//------------------------------// // Chapter 67 // Story: To Be a Changeling // by PlagueRat //------------------------------// Pupa knew she was losing a war of attrition. Despite her best attempts to stop her tired eyes from closing, it would only be a matter of time until sleep would overtake her. A long yawn escaped her maw as she unconsciously snuggled closer against her mother’s side, instinctually comforted by the combination of her parent’s body warmth and familiar scent. Underneath her, the carriage’s rhythmic vibrations mixed seductively with the repeating click-a-clack of the train’s wheels as they rolled over steel rails; and with the addition of the steam engine’s continued chugging, it felt as if the train itself was conducting a devilishly hypnotic lullaby perfectly composed to lure her into dreamland. “If you keep falling asleep you’re going to miss your stop again,” a voice said, causing the nymph to blink her eyes several times. The first thing she noticed was the unfamiliar train carriage she now occupied and the completely different layout it had. Instead of the seats facing each other in pairs, they all faced forward in one uniform direction. They had also been crafted out of a different material, with red fabric used on the left-hoof side seats while the right ones were upholstered in yellow. Unbidden, her head swiveled to the right where one of the strange tall bipedal creatures stood. Dressed in some kind of uniform, it had black fabric covering its hind legs while it wore a clean white shirt and a dark jacket. As they’ve all been before, this one’s face was no more than a smudge, but somehow she knew it was a male and he was giving her a light hearted smile. “Sorry, long classes today,” another unknown male voice replied, which oddly came from her direction. “Here’s my ticket.” A pale furless limb ending in a clawless paw with elongated toes entered her vision. Grasped between two of its digits was a scrap of pink paper which it held out as an offering to the creature standing in front of her. After taking the paper and giving it a quick glance, the uniformed creature took out a small silver device and used it to punch a hole in the parchment before returning it. “You’re only five stops away,” the uniformed creature said as he walked off down the aisle of the nearly empty car, “try to stay awake.” The nymph gritted her teeth and sat up straight. Using both of her fore hooves, she lightly slapped the sides of her cheeks; though it was done more to be a symbolic show of defiance against the sand-mare than as an attempt to actually use pain to stay awake. A stealthy glance around the dimly lit cabin informed Pupa that, thankfully, no pony had noticed her spontaneous actions; or if they did, like her mother and fellow changelings most likely had, they didn’t wish to make a big deal of it. In fact most of the other passengers seemed to be engaged in their own activities, whether it be reading, knitting a scarf, or in the case of the two unicorn mares sitting across the aisle, snoozing with frilly sleep masks covering their eyes. Turning back around to look outside the window revealed that Luna’s moon had already begun its ascent, rising prominently among the millions of sparkling stars in the blackening sky. The satellite cast a gentle whitish blue light that made it easier to see the darkened fields of the countryside as they passed as well as the approaching mountain and the silhouetted city built into its side. “We’re now approaching Canterlot and will be reaching the station shortly,” the conductor called out as he opened the carriage’s door and trotted down the aisle. “Please be sure to pack up all of your personal belongings before our arrival to avoid the loss of possessions or delays in disembarking.” As the other commuters gathered their luggage Pupa stretched herself out in a rather feline-ish manner, with her forelegs reaching straight ahead while her rear remained elevated, before standing up on all four hooves. Aided by the inclining tracks, the train began to gradually decelerate more and more as it wound its way up the mountainside; and apparently the engineer in control was so accustomed to this route, that by the time the carriages pulled alongside the finely polished wooden platform of Canterlot station, the brakes barely had to be applied. When the train finally came to a full stop, ponies all throughout the carriage stood from their seats and started to queue up in the aisle, patiently awaiting their turn to exit. Despite being tired, a nervous excitement welled up in the nymph at the impromptu infiltration of the pony capital city that she was about to commit along with her fellow changelings. She prepared to jump from her seat to take her place in line but her mother’s hooves caught her mid-hop. “Let’s wait a moment for the aisle to clear,” Chrysalis said, returning Pupa to the seat beside her. Shuffling from leg to leg, Pupa watched impatiently as passengers trickled out of the car one at a time; and it wasn’t until after the pair of unicorns sitting across the aisle from them left their seats that Chrysalis motioned for her party to follow. “I thought we were going to a library,” Pupa whispered to Bristletail, who had been assigned to carry the nymph atop her back for the time being. Since leaving the train station the changelings had, at a careful distance, tailed the white and blue unicorns as the pair made their way through the city streets. “The library is already closed for the night,” the infiltrator whispered back. “We’ll have to wait until morning for it to open again.” “Then why are we following them and not waiting at the library for it to open?” questioned the nymph. “Dawns is hours away and we’d look suspicious loitering around outside the library until morning,” explained Bristletail. “Besides, would you really want to just stand around all night and wait for a building to open?” “Not really,” Pupa admitted. “Couldn’t we just sneak in? I know how to pick locks.” “Probably not,” explained the infiltrator. “Over the past two years almost all the locks in Canterlot have been enchanted to be magic resistant. It would just be safer to wait until it’s open.” The changelings continued along in silence until their quarry stopped in front of a modest violet roofed dwelling. Motioning with a tilt of her head, Chrysalis directed her group to move into the shadows of the nearest alley. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay?” the ivory coated unicorn could be heard asking her friend. “Rarity, I’ll be just fine,” replied the blue unicorn as she trotted up to a gold painted door. “What about you? You’re not going to spend the night at the boutique are you?” “Oh no,” said Rarity with a shake of her head as she followed Sassy. “Please don’t think I’m bragging, but I’m going to the castle to see the princesses. They might have already gotten word about the changelings in Fillydelphia but I’m going to warn them just in case the news hasn’t reached them yet.” “I knew you had connections, but are you really able to just stroll up to the castle and get an audience at any time?” balked the blue unicorn. “I wouldn’t dare to do it for something trivial,” the marshmallow unicorn said, “but I can if it’s an emergency.” “Well, please be careful on your way over to the palace,” Sassy said before embracing her friend with a fore-hoof. “I will,” replied Rarity, returning the hug. “Now get some rest.” “I will,” the blue unicorn said and released her friend. “Goodnight.” “Goodnight,” repeated the marshmallow as she trotted away. Using a bit of magic, the remaining unicorn levitated a key from her saddle bag and turned back to face the door. “Come,” was the only word Chrysalis uttered before she purposely trotted out of the ally and onto the vacant street.   Following swiftly, Odonate and Bristletail took up positions just behind the queen with one on each side of her to create a V formation. Together as a group and without their hooves making a sound against the stone street, the changelings headed straight in the direction of the unaware unicorn. Sassy hadn’t even had the chance to fully open her door before Chrysalis was upon her. An aura of green magic surrounded the poor mare and she was tossed unceremoniously across the threshold. Confused at suddenly being airborne, the unicorn let out a sharp surprised gasp, then collided with a soft thud against the back cushions of her plush sofa. Whilst barging into the room, the older changelings began to simultaneously cast a multitude of spells. Curtains swooshed closed and blinds snapped shut, then fields of overlapping green energy coalesced along the room’s interior walls. This was revealed to be sound dampening magic only a second later when Odonate bucked the door closed behind him and the only noise generated was a puny thud no louder than a hoof stomping on a pillow. “W-what in Equestra is going on?!” the flustered unicorn stammered as she struggled to get her legs back underneath her. A ring of emerald flames surrounded the lead intruder, causing Sassy’s pupils to contract as she pressed herself defensively against the back of the couch. The unicorn visibly swallowed the lump in her throat when a long hole-ridden black hoof emerged from the dying flames followed by the remainder of Queen Chrysalis’s true imposing form. “Sassy Saddles,” the changeling queen said using a dual tone voice as she casually strolled closer to the pony, “I believe that little marshmallow Rarity called you by that name, did she not?” At that moment, if not for her bright colors, the unicorn could have easily been mistaken for one of the marble statues the group passed on the way here. Chrysalis came to a stop within a legs length of the pony and eclipsed the mare with her tall shadow as she loomed over her. In an attempt to get a response from the frozen mare, the queen cleared her throat; and when that didn’t harbor a reaction, she clopped her hoof down on the hard wooden floor. Flinching from the queen’s actions, the unicorn released the breath she had been holding and inhaled a fresh new lung full of air. “Yes,” Sassy weakly squeaked. “I have a few questions for you,” Chrysalis said. “I want you to answer them quickly and honestly. I’ll know if you’re lying, I can sense emotions after all, understand?” “O-okay” the mare croaked out with a tiny nod. “Very good,” the queen leaned in closer and grinned, revealing her bright white fangs. “Now then, my first question is, do you have a library card?”