Princess Celestia and Luna both sat with rapt attention. The discussion was steering towards one that their new nephew and captain of their royal guard would want to be privy to. The royal sisters looked at King Apidae expectantly.
"I can tell by body language alone that this is a topic you have a great deal of interest in," he says to them , "and to clarify now, I too wish to see her brought to justice for the horrible things she's done, but there is a request I must make of you before I can offer my assistance."
Celestia quirked a brow. "And what is this request that you wish to make?"
"When she is captured," he continues, "and the time comes for her and her hive to stand trial for their crimes, please do not punish the drones as harshly as her."
"And why should they not receive punishment?" Luna questions.
"I understand fully that the drones should not be considered without fault," the king concedes, "but you must understand that, as I've said before, the drones of other changeling hives don't have the level of freedom that I grant to my subjects. When they are given an order, it must be followed, regardless of their personal reservations."
"You mean, the changeling drones for this Queen Chrysalis wouldn't have attacked of their own free will?" Celestia asked him.
Apidae adopted a nervous smile. "I won't say they all wouldn't have," he admits, "but the odds are fairly good that the majority would've avoided the incident from a month ago if they could have. I guess the best way for me to say it is that you should listen to the testimony of the individual changeling before making a judgment on the matter."
Celestia and Luna digest this information and request. They have heard of many times in history where the right hoof ponies of tyrants were put on trial and claimed that they were forced to act in the horrible way they did. In fact, they had been witness to some of them.
The solar princess turns to face her sister with a wing raised to keep their conversation as private as possible. "What do you think, sister?" she asks.
"I don't expect that the changeling drones of Queen Chrysalis's hive would be too remorseful of their actions," Luna replies, "but I suppose that it would only be fair that they have the chance to speak their peace before we pass a final judgment on them."
Celestia nods her head, a wordless agreement with her sister's viewpoint. She lowers her wing and faces King Apidae.
"We shall honor the request you have made" Celestia informs him. "However, since it is pretty much a second nature for changelings to lie, perhaps you can recommend a way for us to discern whether what they tell us is truthful or not?"
Apidae thinks on this for a moment before another one of his drones offers a solution.
"With your permission, we could offer you the services of a drone to help you in that matter."
The changeling was the one named Socrates. His voice was rather baritone, but not comically so. Apidae looked at him for a moment and then had a small smile.
"Why yes, that would be the simplest solution" he decides. "Thank you for that suggestion Socrates."
"It is my pleasure, my king" the drone responds.
Celestia and Luna both look to each other with a little bit of nerves.
"I understand there is a need to build a certain amount of trust between our subjects," Celestia begins, "but I don't believe that my subjects will trust a changeling drone to be truthful in a situation where it is being asked to inform us that another changeling drone is lying."
"I agree with my sister" Luna chimes in. "While we all desire to establish peace, this offer of assistance in this regard could be viewed as a deception in order to make us drop our guard and be open for another nefarious act like what happened a month ago. We very much appreciate your suggestion in that matter, but I believe that we should attempt to devise another solution that will be equally as effective and also not fan the flames of fear in our subjects further than what they already have been."
Apidae and Socrates both look at the two sisters, then to each other, and then back to the two sisters. "You raise a valid point" the king concedes. "There is another method that we can suggest, but we don't often like to use it. In truth, it might be even more untrustworthy than allowing a drone to act as a detector of lies for you."
Celestia quirks an eyebrow. "And what would this other method be?"
The king seems apprehensive for a moment before Socrates decides to answer for him.
"A hypnosis spell," he tells the sisters, "but not just any old hypnosis spell. The one you would need to use would be almost, if not completely identical to the one that was used on your captain of the guard prior to his wedding to your Princess Cadance."
Upon hearing this, Celestia and Luna both grow quite nervous. Allowing the use of the same spell that was responsible for helping Queen Chrysalis dupe the pony they placed in charge of their whole royal guard would not be viewed favorably. Worse yet is the fact that everypony in Equestria now knows of the spell and the signs to look for to know if the pony they are talking to is under the influence of that spell. It's a situation that could cause even greater pandemonium than allowing a drone to tell them if another is lying.
"This has clearly become a rather... complicated matter" Celestia concludes. "Are there any methods you could show our ponies that would not be so quickly judged as nothing more than acts of deception?"
Socrates shakes his head rather somberly. "I'm afraid that we don't have any solution that won't cause possible ire in your subjects" he answers. "Those two options are the best that we can give you, and the offer of the drone serving you during the trial against the hive is the one most likely to be accepted."
"How would a drone serving under us be viewed as more acceptable than teaching us a spell?" Luna asks.
Socrates takes a sip of his tea before he answers. "Well, to begin with, your mages are going to want to go over the spell with a fine tooth comb to make sure we haven't done something to cause it to deliberately backfire. This alone is a process that will take a fair amount of time. Besides that, there's also the fact that the spell is the same one the queen used, and will likely be very vocally opposed by your ponies, and even more specifically, your guard captain."
Celestia and Luna both concede on these points. Their mages were the best unicorns that could be trained, with all of them having their special talents in the fields of arcane sciences. With that said, spell analysis was something that always took a fair bit of time. Ponies would want justice enacted as soon as possible, and wouldn't want to wait for a unicorn mage to tell them the spell was okay and safe to use.
Then there was another elephant in the room that they had been trying to avoid for some time: Captain Shining Armor. The unicorn was currently away on a honeymoon with Princess Cadance, but would be returning soon to resume his post. When he came back, they would have to inform him of this meeting, and make sure he didn't do anything rash, such as attempting to capture or kill any of King Apidae's subjects.
Apidae takes notice of their nerves. "Is there something troubling you?"
Celestia nods. "It has occurred to my sister and I that we have not informed our guard captain of this meeting. We will have to do so when he returns from his honeymoon. I can only think that his opinion on our decision regarding our meeting with you will be... decidedly negative."
"You mean you fear he will do something rash?" the king deduced.
Celestia gave a simple nod.
"Well, overcoming negative publicity will be a large obstacle for us to overcome," King Apidae declared, "and overcoming our worst critics will be the most significant challenge. That is why I have brought Socrates along with me today, as he has, like I stated earlier, earned several degrees here in Canterlot under the identity Honey Gold. One of those degrees was in political science."
"Yes, I remember those classes quite well" Socrates chimes in. "Professor Filibuster was quite dull to listen to, but he did relay the information in an easy to understand fashion. Had I had a different teacher, I may not have learned enough to pass that course."
Celestia blinked for a few seconds before she responded. "You were a student of Professor Filibuster?"
Socrates nodded. "One of his last before he retired. I hope it won't be too much trouble, but I would appreciate getting to meet with him before we left Canterlot. I do owe a great deal to him for inspiring a lot of the ideas that we've implemented in improving the function of our hive."
Celestia considers the request for a moment before nodding. "I think that that request is something we can grant. Of course, you'll need to look like Honey Gold and will also have to withhold the fact that, not only are you a changeling, but that you're here with your king as an adviser on a very important matter."
"Yes, I can respect those terms" Socrates agrees. "Now, I believe we have gotten a touch off topic. We were discussing how to bring Queen Chrysalis to justice, but veered off onto the tangent of how to deal with Captain Shining Armor's reaction to this meeting. As for the latter, I do believe the best solution for that would be to arrange for a meeting between all of us and Captain Shining Armor, as well as the royal guard placed in charge of the guard when the captain left for his honeymoon."
"Normally, I would agree," Luna chimes in, "but given what has happened to our guard captain at his wedding, an in person meeting may not be the best course of action. However, perhaps the captain would not be so opposed to the notion of written correspondence. That may be the avenue to take."
Both Socrates and Apidae consider Princess Luna's solution for a moment before agreeing. "That is a fair idea" the king responds. "However, I would like for you to present this to Captain Shining Armor when you believe it would be the best time to do so."
King Apidae then makes a gesture to the changeling named Andromeda. The changeling mare nods and goes into the king's saddlebags again, this time producing a film reel. The producing of the film reel causes the two sisters to jump nervously. The king looks at the film reel for a second and then smacks his face with a hoof.
"I do apologize again" he tells the two sisters. "The film reel was wrapped up in my vest in order to protect the film from harm. When I lifted it out earlier, I hadn't even noticed the weight in comparison to my garments."
Celestia and Luna continued to stare at the changeling king for a few more moments before they eventually calmed down. Once appropriately calmed down, Celestia gave King Apidae a very stern look. "Your highness," she begins, "I do not appreciate that things have been slipping your mind in regards to this meeting. As a ruler of an entire nation, I sympathize with the fact that we have so many things going on at any one time that we tend to overlook small details, or details we perceive as being small. However, you've come forward claiming a desire of peace when another member of your race has committed what amounts to an act of war, and while it is unfair to place any blame or develop some form of prejudiced viewpoint, the fact of the matter is that that attack is the only interaction our nation has had with your race, and it will continue to fuel that viewpoint until we have been shown enough examples that that attack upon our people was an exception to the rule and not the rule itself."
"So, I must ask you now, and please think very hard about your answer. Are there any more items you have that you intend to present to us in those saddlebags?"
King Apidae and the quartet of changeling drones sit on the other side of the table quietly. While his assistants nervously look at each other, the king rubs his head in embarrassment. Eventually, he answers the sun princess's question.
"There is nothing else in the saddlebags," he begins, "but we have some other items we wished to present to you once we had fully hashed out a formal peace agreement between our subjects."
"What other items?" Luna asks rather pointedly.
"Other miscellaneous gifts" the king answers. "Examples of work from our artisans, a few tomes from the earlier days of our hive, and some photographs from important moments in our history."
"Nothing of a military nature, I presume?" Luna continues. "No weapons or anything of that sort?"
The king shakes his head. "No, nothing of that sort. If I had anything such as that to give, I would have given you fair warning. I know that my lapses in judgment and memory have caused unnecessary tension, but I assure you there is no malicious intent behind them."
Celestia and Luna look to each other for a few more moments before they calm down again. "Very well," Celestia says to the king, "we accept what you are telling us now is the truth. However, if you have lied to us, or have another lapse in judgment, then we will not hesitate to act as though you have hostile intentions towards our subjects. We will not have a repeat of the incident from a month ago, even if I have to give my life to prevent it."
"And so shall I if it is deemed necessary" Luna adds.
The king looks to the two rulers in shock. The drones look between him and the two princesses with nervous looks, wondering if they will have to fight the two strongest ponies that currently live. Eventually, the king nods to the princesses.
"I must apologize to you for my conduct. It is not befitting of a king, and I must also ask that anything you feel you should do, do unto me and not my drones."
"Your highness" Andromeda says to her king.
"It is alright, Meda" he responds. "I have made the mistake, and I shall face the consequence for it."
Celestia and Luna look at each other again. Celestia lets out a breath and looks back at the king. "I apologize for my reaction, but I must insist that you try to remember everything to do with this meeting. While we confess to lapses in judgment of our own, we have done our best to ensure that they don't endanger our talks of peace."
A huff sounds from the only drone yet to speak: Nero. The changeling drone is the only one who bears a resemblance to the ones who attacked the city a month ago, but still is closer in color to King Apidae than the drones of Queen Chrysalis.
"Might we ask why our comments are unbelievable to you?" Luna asks rather pointedly.
Nero glares a bit at Luna before answering her question. "I often hear from drones about how peaceful Equestria is, but I know that ponies have not always been that way. The founding of Equestria and the strife between the three tribes, the reign of Discord, and not to mention your own hostile actions against your subjects."
Upon hearing that accusation, Luna became rather sheepish; being reminded of her past wrongdoings was still a rather sore subject for her. Celestia was about to say something in her sister's defense when King Apidae shot Nero a strong glare.
"THAT," he says with a sharp voice, "was entirely uncalled for Nero! You will apologize to the princess, NOW!"
Nero flinched under his king's gaze. He then looked back to Princess Luna and bowed his head.
"My apologies, your highness" he says to Luna. "I still have great difficulty in adapting to the new ways that my king wishes for us to follow. I ask that you would please forgive me."
Luna sits there and considers the changeling's words for a moment before speaking. "I shall forgive you," she replies, "but I must confess that being reminded of my actions from long ago still wound me greatly."
Nero doesn't move, nor make any noise. King Apidae takes advantage of the situation to try and set things back on track.
"I again apologize for everything that has transpired in the past few minutes, both in my mistakes and my subordinate's lapse in judgment. However, I would like to try and return us to more positive and constructive avenues of discussion."
"Yes" Celestia agrees. "That sounds like a wonderful idea. Now, what is this film reel you wish to give our guard captain?"
King Apidae offers the film reel to the princesses, with Luna taking it in her own magic. "It is a plea for peace, and an effort at understanding between my hive and himself. Princess Cadance may also have an interest in watching this as well."
Luna examines the film in her magic before offering it to Celestia. After looking over it herself, the princess responds to the king. "This film may not accomplish your intended goals," she cautions, "but I will show it to him none the less."
"That is all I can ask" the king replies. "Now, I believe we were discussing ideas on how to capture Queen Chrysalis and bring her to justice?"
"We were" Luna confirms. "At current, we have squads of guards combing over every part of the southern half of Equestria in search of her hive."
"That won't do you any good" the king interrupts. "In changeling hives, the first order of business in regards to being discovered is security. If it's feasible to detain the ones who discovered the hive, then they are detained. If it's not, then the entire hive is moved."
"What exactly do you mean by 'detained' and 'the hive is moved'?" Luna asks rather sternly.
"In the first matter," the king begins, "the creature who discovered the hive is captured and brought before the ruler to have their fate decided. Usually, it was decided they would be added to the... food supply. However, there are occasions where it is considered more favorable for them to return, so they are given a memory potion that knocks them out and blanks their memories going back to a specific point."
"As for the moving of the hive? Well, that's quite literal. Every changeling packs up their belongings and all other important information and prepares to evacuate. Once every changeling is outside of the hive itself, the ruler casts a spell and the entire thing collapses on itself."
Celestria and Luna digest this information and what it could mean. "So what you're saying is..."
"Either your guards will be put into danger, or they are on what would amount to a wild goose chase. Granted, they might capture one of the drones, but it is highly doubtful that they would divulge any useful information."
"That is... unfortunate" Celestia responds after a moment. "At the moment, it is imperative that we find and bring Queen Chrysalis and her hive to justice. I fear that if she remains free, she will use her drones in a more effective manner and attempt another invasion."
The king nods. "That is very true, and unfortunately, also very likely. I was going to introduce Nero at this point, but he has saved me that trouble. I shall turn the topic of discussion over to him so he can provide you with the information about what our hive can offer to help aid you in her hive's capture."
Nero gives a nod to the king and then stands up. "My apologies, but if I may be provided a blackboard and some chalk?"
Celestia nods and ignites her horn. Almost immediately, a blackboard appears next the the changeling, along with a box of white chalk. Nero moves the board so that everyone sitting at the table can see it. Once he is satisfied with its placement, he then opens the box and removes a piece of chalk.
"Before the attempt to invade your city," Nero begins while writing numbers, "we had estimated Queen Chrysalis to have approximately five thousand total drones capable of combat. In the time since, we can only guess as to how many she has lost for one reason or another."
"We also know that she had approved an increase in breeding some time ago, and it is presumed that her hive nursery has almost as many nymphs in it as drones. That would make for a total population for her hive as somewhere between ten and twelve thousand."
Celestia and Luna blanch at the numbers. "There is quite an amount of gap between ten and twelve thousand" Luna points out.
"Unfortunately, that is the most accurate figure we can provide" Nero admits. "It is much harder to spy on other changelings that it is to spy on other creatures."
"With all of this information," Nero continues, now drawing a crude map, "we can surmise that Queen Chrysalis and her drones would have a difficult time moving their hive, and after the failure to invade your city, they will be looking to move it if they already haven't. In order for there to be an effective move, a new location has to be scouted so that drones can move quickly and begin setting up the new hive."
"As for where the hive would be located, there are several criteria that need to be filled before a location is selected. First, it needs to be close to a food source, but far enough away that no other creatures take notice of it. Second, it must be in a warm climate; we don't quite have the body heat regulating qualities of other species, even though we can survive for a time in the cold. Finally, there must also be enough ambient magic in the area to sustain the protective wards that would be placed onto the hive, so total deserts are out of the question."
"With all of that information in mind, I can deduce a few locations where Queen Chrysalis may have moved, or is planning to move her hive to."
Nero finishes drawing the map, which the princesses recognize as being parts of southern and western Equestria.
"I thought you said deserts were out of the question?" Celestia said in confusion.
"Arid deserts are not practicable" Nero clarifies. "A desert that still has enough water to sustain some life is feasible, though difficult."
Nero takes the chalk and marks three different spots on the map with an X. The princesses immediately recognize the locations as being near major cities.
One is outside Las Pegasus.
Another is outside Appleloosa.
The last is near Ponyville, and placed inside the Everfree Forest, quite close to the castle that the sisters once used as the capital of the whole nation.
Nero turns to face the princesses. "I'm sure you recognize the locations, so I won't point them out. I will say that, of the three, Ponyville and the Everfree Forest look like the best bet. The forest provides both an ample amount of ambient magic and a proximity to ponies to allow their use as an effective food source."
Celestia and Luna once again look uncomfortable about their subjects being referred to as food. Nero sees this and apologizes.
"Besides the two reasons I just listed, the Everfree also provides the hive with defenses that require no effort to be expended on their part. With the correct defensive wards, most immediate dangers could be kept away from the hive, meaning there would be less need for security patrols, which means more changelings available for scouting missions."
Celestia and Luna digest the information just given to them. Being the more military minded of the two sisters, Luna asks the first question.
"You are confident that this is the most likely place for Queen Chrysalis to move her hive?"
Nero nods. "For all the reasons I listed, I strongly believe that the Everfree Forest would be the most ideal location for Queen Chrysalis and her subjects."
"What of the other two locations?" Celestia asks.
"I'm sure you've noticed that the other two locations are just outside the city of Las Pegasus and the town of Appleloosa" Nero replies. "That would provide the hive with adequate food source, and the areas around those cities are less than hospitable, which would keep other creatures from wanting to wander too close to the area around the hive."
"While they are viable options, I still feel that Queen Chrysalis would move her hive to the Everfree Forest to take advantage of the ambient magic and natural defenses. In truth, I wouldn't be surprised if she used the Castle of the Two Sisters as a temporary hive while her drones complete construction of the new hive."
Celestia and Luna consider the information and agree. The information Nero provided them made sense. The Everfree was a wild place that few dared to venture into. For a race of creatures who rely so heavily on secrecy, it would be an ideal place for them to make a home.
That last thought raised a question in Princess Celestia's mind.
"If the Everfree Forest is such an ideal location for a hive, then why isn't there one there now?"
Nero takes the chalk and points to a familiar landmark near the forest: Ghastly Gorge.
"There was one, and it was right here."
Celestia and Luna both looked shocked to learn that information.
"What happened to it?" Luna asked.
"Discord" Nero answered. "The hive was destroyed by his magic."
Both sisters looked somberly at each other. The god of chaos was one of the most vile creatures to grace the surface of Equestria. For as much as they didn't care for the hostile acts of the changelings, they still didn't wish harm upon other creatures.
After a moment, another thought occurred to Celestia. "This wasn't the hive of the same queen your king spoke of earlier, is it?"
"It is not" Nero responds. "This hive was led by Queen Widow. She sacrificed herself so her son, King Redback, could establish a new hive elsewhere."
"Then she died a noble death, protecting her people" Luna observed.
"And she is a part of the songs sung by her people" King Apidae adds. "Now, Nero, if you would be so kind as to inform the princesses of your strategies for locating Queen Chrysalis and her rogue agents?"
"Of course, your higness" Nero replies before once again writing some things on the chalkboard. The first thing he writes is a simple word: reconnaissance.
"The biggest tool that will help us locate Queen Chrysalis is, quite obviously, our ability to alter our forms. With it, we can become something as inconspicuous as a bird or squirrel. We could even have sentries posted as flowers and rocks and nopony would be the wiser."
"Next to reconnaissance, tracking will be the next greatest asset. We have already ascertained the location of one of Queen Chrysalis's old hive sites, so once we gather some information from that area, we will begin deducing where her current hive is located, or at least where it was previously standing."
"Her old hive location?" Luna asks.
"Yes" Nero responds. "Though most obvious evidence of her hive has been erased by time, there are still some parts that remain. In truth, your ponies have probably come across a few old hive sites by accident. A civilization that left behind only strange underground tunnels and no other artifacts?"
Celestia went wide-eyed at that remark. She could recall at least three occasions within the last century where ponies from various universities across Equestria had encountered such a site. To have an answer as to what they truly were now was going to do a lot in regards to the fields of archaeology and anthropology.
"I've taken notice that none of your plans seem to directly involve us" Luna continues. "Are there any measures that you can suggest we take to make headway in our own endeavors?"
"Unfortunately, I cannot" Nero replies. "As good as your own ponies may become at tracking, there is simply one thing they cannot do at this point in time: suppress their emotions. Being as quiet and still as possible will aid them greatly, but at the end of the day, they'll be sussed out and either avoided or captured because they are creatures that emit emotional energy."
"However, if I were to advise you to calling off your efforts, it would tip off Chrysalis and she would either move her hive elsewhere, or accelerate the speed of her move to whatever location she has selected."
"Could that not be a benefit?" Celestia questioned. "If she were made to move faster than she would like, it could cause her to make a mistake and give either one of our sides an opportunity to capture her and her hive."
"That is true," Nero concedes, "but if she makes a mistake and gets backed into a corner, she will defend herself by any means necessary. Plus, as soon as she would realize that her efforts to relocate her hive were jeopardized, her first order of business would be to activate her anti-thaumic throne."
"Anti-thaumic?" Luna questions.
Nero nods in response. "Every changeling hive relies on defensive wards to protect itself from attack. The most common one is the anti-thaumic throne. As long as the throne itself stays intact, a creature that uses magic will be unable to use it if they get close enough to the throne."
"So if a creature were able to destroy the throne, it would negate that ward?" Celestia deduces.
"Yes," Nero confirms, "but the first order of business would for the hive as a whole will be finding a location to hide and protect the throne. Once they've done that, they'll go on the defensive and keep any creature that comes close from getting to the throne."
Celestia and Luna nodded in understanding. As much as they didn't like the idea of having to sit back and completely trust these changelings to locate Queen Chrysalis, they also had to concede that their efforts to locate her were fruitless, and that's after her guards had checked practically every square inch of Equestria and turned up nothing. Besides the fact that the changelings were so good at avoiding detection, the guards also had no idea what signs to look for that indicated a changeling presence. Their main tactic was literally to sneak around and hope to run into them; a very poor strategy, but also the only one they could really act on.
"We cannot assist in the search," Luna continues, "but what can we do once she's been located?"
Nero turns back to the chalk board and erases some of what he had written before. In its place, he draws a circle.
"Let's say that this circle would represent the location where Queen Chrysalis and her hive currently are. If we are lucky, we will still find them during their move, which is the time they would be most vulnerable."
"The best course of attack would be to cut off any escape routes. Ground troops should immediately move into a position to surround her and her forces, while anti-air measures should be taken."
"What anti-air measures would you suggest?" Celestia asked.
"At low-to-ground and low air altitudes, unicorns with stunning spells would be most effective, especially if they can cast them as an area of effect type of spell. This, of course, is dependent upon the throne remaining inactive."
"For higher altitudes, I would recommend pegasus combatants armed with stunning potions and stun powder bombs. I would normally recommend some type of artillery piece, but that would create a good deal of risk for you and your ponies."
"I can assure you that our soldiers are highly trained in effective use of artillery" Luna counters.
"I have no doubt of that," Nero continues, "but the bombardment would catch the attention of not just your ponies, but also any changeling hives that could be nearby. It would be similar to crushing a hornet outside of a hornet's nest. The workers will see you attacking changelings and report it to their ruler, and then the ruler will send out forces to either eliminate you or capture you as a new prey source."
Celestia and Luna both shudder at the terminology again, but Nero chooses to ignore it.
"You can mount an effective offensive against her hive," he assures the princesses, "but it's not something that can be thrown together at the last minute. That's why I am here: to offer you a sound battle strategy that can lead you to a victory and the capture of Queen Chrysalis."
"I agree that this is a sound battle strategy," Luna concedes, "but this is only for if Queen Chrysalis is still on the move. What plans do you have if she has already relocated her hive and set up her throne, or if she is still at the location of her old hive and has not yet made preparations to move?"
"Queen Chrysalis has most likely made the preparations to move and has already evacuated her hive" Nero responds. "It is possible that she has already found a suitable location for a hive and has set up her throne already, but it's not very likely. Aside from the fact that she hasn't had a realistically long enough time to do so, our scouts have not encountered any sign that indicates that a new hive has been established."
"Earlier you said that you could obtain information from an old changeling hive to deduce where the new one would be located" Celestia interjects. "Couldn't we all head to the last known location of her hive and go from there?"
Nero looks nervously at his king before Apidae clears his throat.
"As I have mentioned to you before," he begins, "Queen Chrysalis is wanted by all of the other changeling queens and kings for violating the laws set up between all changeling hives. As we speak, a cooperative delegation is being sent to last known location of her hive to either capture her there if she has not yet moved, or begin tracking her down if she has."
"Are you sure we cannot make an attempt at peaceful cooperation with these other hives?" Celestia asked. "We all have the same goal in mind of capturing Queen Chrysalis and bringing her to justice for her wrongdoings."
"I agree that the overall desire to see her punished for her wrongs is a shared viewpoint between Equestria and the changeling hives," Apidae concedes, "but the other queens and kings view changeling law as above pony law. They likely would choose not to cooperate with you. In fact, there are likely a few queens and kings who would see no problem with Queen Chrysalis's attack on Canterlot; their issue would be the fact that she chose to attack so openly. Plus, a cooperative effort that wouldn't result in Equestria being stabbed in the back is highly unlikely."
Celestia frowned at this observation. There were creatures out there that saw what Queen Chrysalis did as wrong, but only want her punished because she attacked her and her sister's subjects out in the open instead of using a stealthier method of attacking Canterlot.
"Moving on" Nero says in an effort to get the conversation back on topic. "If she has established a new hive and set up her throne, then you would have to resort to more conventional weapons to attack her hive."
"Such as?" Luna prods.
"Well, siege weapons, to put it bluntly" Nero replies. "Things such as trebuchets would be best; their range would allow their use by unicorns while outside the anti-thaumic field. If it were moved inside, an earth pony crew could take over if the device were properly set up."
"Catapults would also be a good option, but they would have to be smaller ones that would be most effective within the anti-thaumic field."
"What about something simpler?" Luna proposed. "Say, pegasi dropping large boulders from high altitude?"
Nero shook his head. "Another common enchantment would be durability. Catapults and trebuchets would have a higher rate of fire than pegasi flying high enough above the hive to avoid the anti-thaumic field to drop their payload. If it were advisable to use conventional weapons, I would suggest pegasi bombers to attack from above."
"Are you certain that there would be other changeling hives close by?" Celestia asked. "From what you've told us, it would sound like Queen Chrysalis would be keen to want to avoid either side of this matter."
"True," Nero conceded, "but she has to prioritize the needs of her subjects over things such as proximity to a hive that could be hostile towards her. Or at least she has to prioritize it now. More than likely, once she has established a hive, she will set up an aggressive perimeter in order to both defend the new hive and begin providing food for it."
A comment caught Princess Luna's attention. "What did you mean by 'she has to prioritize her subjects now?'"
King Apidae elects to respond. "There were a few drones from our hive in the city somewhat before the attack. They deduced rather quickly that the queen was there AND actively impersonating a member of Canterlot royalty. When they realized that, they understood that something major was about to happen and chose to leave the city. When my subjects contacted me with the news, I ordered one of them to provide you with some kind of warning."
"Yes," Celestia says in realization, "you did say that you tried to give us a warning."
"I did," King Apidae continues, "but a fat lot of good it did you specifically. Anyway, my subjects did manage to get close enough to the queen to deduce that her attack was not one in some desperate attempt to gain food for her subjects, but a power play meant to help her take over Equestria, and eventually all the other territories in Equus."
Celestia and Luna both felt their blood run cold at that observation. "If she had succeeded and taken over Equestria..."
"Then she would have enslaved the whole world" King Apidae finished. "Worse than that, she would have enough power to overthrow all of the other kings and queens, and would command every drone on this planet to do her bidding. You can see why her failure is a great relief not just to your subjects, but to my own and the ones of the other queens and kings."
There is silence for a few moments before Nero continues his presentation.
"I've pretty much given you all that I have for the moment. As for capturing the queen, the best course of action would be to incapacitate her with some form of electricity spell or a powerful knockout agent. I'd recommend..."
Nero pauses for a moment, then looks to his king. "Should I mention it to them?" he asks.
"You mean the contingency protocol?" Apidae responds, to which Nero nods. The king sits back and thinks for a moment, and then regards the princesses. After another moment, he nods. "You may. I believe we can trust them with this information."
"What information?" Celestia asks.
"Well," Nero continues, albeit hesitantly, "we can show you the recipe for a chemical agent that can be effectively used against changelings, based on pesticides your ponies have invented."
"The primary ingredient is a chemical from Chrysanthemum flowers called Pyrethrin. It's well known to cause paralysis in insects which leads to death, but a large quantity would be required to kill a changeling. Combining it with an aerosol delivery system would create a highly effective weapon against our kind."
Celestia and Luna both look to each other and nod. It was clear why Nero and King Apidae were not too enthusiastic about disclosing this information; they had effectively given the two sister a weapon to capture or completely eradicate their kind. It was also something they would need to take into consideration if the event that there would be a joint effort to capture Queen Chrysalis, as using the agent would affect King Apidae's subjects as well as Queen Chrysalis's.
"I thank you for divulging this information to us" Celestia says with a smile. "I understand your apprehension in disclosing it to us, but by doing so, you've shown the trust you have placed in us. It is only fair that we demonstrate that same level of trust to you."
"If you are willing, we are agreeable to working with changeling scouts in an effort to locate and capture Queen Chrysalis. While we will use the information you provided us to develop countermeasures against her hive, you have my solemn word that these weapons will only be used as a last resort in capturing Queen Chrysalis and her subjects. In the event that we would be required to use them, we will give you as best a warning as we can."
The king smiles and nods. "Then we are in agreement. As another act of compensation for wrongs committed by the dragon lands changeling hive against Equestria, we will provide the services of our military scouts to Equestria in a joint effort to locate and capture rogue queen Chrysalis and bring her to justice."
The king's smile falters as he adds one more detail.
"Before we can say the matter is concluded, there is one more thing I must address."
Celestia and Luna both pay close attention to the king as he prepares to speak again.
"Once we have captured her, it is very likely that the other changeling hives will learn of her capture, and will be spending every possible moment calculating a way to remove her from your custody so she can stand trial before the other kings and queens. If I might recommend, I believe that once she has been tried in your courts, an effort be made to turn her over to the changeling hives so she may stand trial there."
Both royal sisters look to each other with unease. "That will be difficult for us to do" Celestia answers.
"Yes, it shall be difficult" Luna concurs. "There are going to be ponies here in Canterlot that will be eagerly awaiting the verdict that Queen Chrysalis will be given the harshest possible sentence we can give her - banishment to Tartarus."
King Apidae nods somberly. "I understand. However, there will be attempts made as soon as the other hives learn of her capture. I do not mean to cause unease, but I would think that there are some changeling spies in your guard ranks."
That statement causes Celestia and Luna to, at first become rather surprised, then adopt a more aggressive demeanor, their wings splaying open. King Apidae raises his hoof.
"I do not believe they are there with malevolent intent" Apidae defends himself. "They are likely there to act as a set of eyes and ears. Despite their rather negative overall viewpoint of ponies, they are still curious about the important goings on in daily life. In fact, one of the queens is rather fond of the gossip columns in Manehattan."
While Princesses Celestia and Luna relax slightly, they still troubled to learn that there are likely spies in their midst. While they are not ignorant of the fact that Equestria has enemies, as confirmed by the wedding incident some time ago, they had not expected the changelings to plant spies among their ranks as quickly as they have.
"I am sorry for troubling you with that information" Apidae continues. "If you wish, I could have Nero single them out and advise them to return to their hives and inform their kings and queens that they have been compromised."
"Will these drones get into trouble if they return before they have completed whatever assignments they are on?" Celestia asks with curiosity.
"They shouldn't" Apidae replies. "More often than not, drones have their missions end early because their cover has been compromised. The ruler of the respective hive would simply assign them to another duty in the hive or mission outside of it."
"If it will not cause them trouble," Celestia responds, "then I would appreciate it if Nero would persuade them to leave."
King Apidae nods. "Very well. Nero, when we have concluded talks, I would like for you to stay behind with the princesses and help them single out any spies and persuade them to leave."
Apidae then turns back to the princesses. "I would appreciate it if Nero would be permitted to work without supervision. If the other spies thought that this confrontation were somehow motivated by ponies, it could prompt a negative reaction from them."
Celestia and Luna mull the matter over for a few moments before Celestia speaks again. "Might my sister and I be excused for a moment?"
The king nods. "Of course. Take what time you need."
"Thank you" Celestia says in response before both sisters raise a wing to have a private conversation.
"Sister," Luna starts off, "do you think this is a good idea? I understand that we are making an effort to demonstrate trust, but to allow a changeling to go among our guard without supervision? I do not think that is a great idea."
"Nor do I" Celestia agrees. "I do not think King Apidae is making a move to take advantage of our trust, but what he's asking of us is a bit more than I think we should allow. There needs to be some kind of a leash, so to speak."
"I agree" Luna responds. "Perhaps we can arrange for some kind of an escort? Something that doesn't look overly conspicuous?"
Celestia thinks on the idea for a moment before nodding in agreement. "Yes, an escort sounds like a good idea, and I believe I think I know how we can implement one."
"Oh?" Luna says in reaction.
"It occurs to me that we have not had a medical inspection recently" Celestia says simply, hoping her sister will understand.
The lunar princess is quick on the uptake and nods her agreement. "However," she adds, "I think we should ask Dionices to be the one to perform this task. She is the one with medical training, so her cover will be more feasible. The escort could stand outside the room where the 'examination' will take place."
Celestia nods. "You have read my mind, sister."
Luna smiles as she and Celestia both lower their wings.
"King Apidae," Celestia addresses the changeling, "I am afraid I cannot agree to allowing your advisor confront possible spies within the ranks of my guard without supervision. However, I have an idea that I feel is an adequate compromise."
The king looks disappointed at first, but then curious. "Please," he urges Celestia to continue, "let us hear this idea."
Celestia gives a nod to Luna. "Our soldiers have not had a medical inspection performed recently, and since one of your advisers has medical training, we suggest that Dionices be the one to carry out this task. It will allow us to have one of our guards nearby to act as an observer, yet gives her the latitude necessary to perform this task."
King Apidae considers this idea for a moment before nodding in agreement. "That is an adequate compromise. Nero, you will not be needed for this assignment. Dionices, you will work with whichever guard the princesses assign to you to help single out any spies from other hives and persuade them to leave."
Dionices nods. "Of course, your highness."
"Good" Apidae says in approval. "Now then, I believe we can make this completely official. The Dragon Lands Changeling Hive will assist Equestria in their efforts to find and capture Queen Chrysalis, as well as persuade any spies within the ranks of the royal guard to leave for their own hives."
"The proposal is accepted" Celestia announces.
"Very good" Apidae responds with clapped hooves. "Now then, if the matters of recompense are decided, I believe I would like to move on to the major reason I wished to meet with the two of you in the first place: peaceful existence between our subjects."