//------------------------------// // Change in the Air Part 3 // Story: Vortexes are Magic // by JeckParadox //------------------------------// Pinkie and the Doctor fell through the air, toward the ground, and certain death, below. The Doctor desperately reached for his screwdriver, but couldn't reach. Pinkie comically waved her legs like wings, then scrambled, then even attempted to jump. She began propelling herself toward one of the other clouds. The Doctor smiled at this, Pinkie was brighter than she seemed. He moved himself in the path of a smaller cloud, it would catch him, then he would get back to the sky somehow, get into the Tardis, then go back in time and save Pinkie Pie. He smiled at he expected a soft landing in the cloud, but he came to a hard impact. The last thing he heard was his own skull shattering. Pinkie looked in horror at the Doctor and carefully avoided the nearby cloud. She looked uneasily at the Doctor, spiraling away from the cloud, and then uneasily back at the ground. He was right, she wasn't prepared for this level of danger. She put her hoofs together and started muttering a prayer, when a bright light appeared behind her. She turned her head and let out a gasp as she saw the silhouette of a Pegasus. She said a quick 'thankyou' to God and started calling out to the Pegasus, motioning to where the Doctor had been a few seconds ago. The Pegasus dived downward and took her up in his hooves. She quickly looked around for the Doctor, and felt a little pain in her chest when she couldn't see him. She eventually turned her eyes to her rescuer, and her pupils became 80% smaller at the sight of him. "Impressive eh?" The Doctor said casually. "Didn't let it take hold completely, of course, just enough for the wings, which I might say, are incredible." "How?" Pinkie shouted. "Regeneration, keeps us Timelords from dying from things as simple as having a time vortex in our skulls or getting blown to bits or starving. We feel our bodies losing life force and then the time energy overwhelms us, creating a new body. This time however, I only let it regenerate enough to heal my noggin and give me some wings." "So you're a pegasus now?" "Well, I'm a Time Lord, but I'm also a winged pony right now, so... yeah. I'm the Doctor, a Pegasus. Look our World! The Doctor... Can fly!" Chrysalis revitalized her children with bits of love she had gathered from the Doctor. They struggled to their hooves and looked at the gigantic room with despair. All of the cocoons had been broken open, partially shattered. And in the center of the room were Pegasi of all ages, more than a hundred of them. They were corralled by about thirty Changelings, and the Queen had sent the others in search of the dozens of Pegasi that had escaped. She cradled her youngest son in her arms, who had absorbed about a millenia of condensed love. He was shivering from power, and the green gel was dripping from his horn, unable to release it or process it properly. She looked at her unfortunate child. He would have to be taught how to release it properly as soon as possible, she nuzzled her face against his soft belly and frowned. Her eyes darted to the hole next to the blue box. Splattering against the ground was too good for him. it was unfortunate that his partner had to die as well, but Chrysalis had a feeling she wouldn't regret killing them both. Sunset II tried to avoid looking Sunset in the eye, the poor filly was quiet, and was sitting on her haunches, shivering from fear. Sunset II looked at the filly and choked. She walked over to the Queen and bowed her head. "My dear, what is it, we need to make sure that no more of them escape." "I'm sorry mother- uh, my Queen, but... I'm so sorry, I brought them here. They followed me." "And I said for you to lead them here, it was my mistake, not yours." She put her face against Sunset's and then lifted it again. "Now, go on." Sunset moved back to her place and looked at the original Sunset. She looked toward another pony when Sunset I looked up. The Doctor lifted Pinkie up with almost no trouble, after all, right now he was running on regeneration energy. He powered all the way back up to Cloudsdale with the Earth Pony in tow and even managed to find the hole they had fallen from. "Alright Pinkie, I'm going to swing you into the Tardis's open doors, then you'll signal me if there's nothing inside it. Got it?" "Okie Dokie Lokie!" The Doctor turned in mid-air and sent the Earth Pony through the hole and into the Tardis. She quickly moved out of sight from the door and looked over the gigantic room, there were no Changelings or any ponies. She moved her way to each of the most nearby halls. She took a look inside each and made her way back. "Clear" she whispered past the door. The Doctor used his new Pegasus magic to pass through the clouds harmlessly and landed back inside the Tardis. He shut the doors behind him and galloped to the controls. "This'll be hard without a Sonic Screwdriver, but I think I can manage." He moved around the module, flipping switches, turning knobs, pulling levers, playing a short song on a mini piano, and squeezing a rubber duck with some kind of apparatus sticking out of it. Soon the Tardis began making it's unique noise. Chrysalis heard the slam of the door and marched over to the blue box to investigate. She probed it with her magic and found a mind inside it. A very simple, but extremely powerful and intelligent mind. She probed it further and found a deep love for the Doctor, and a understanding of time that shattered anything Chrysalis had ever imagined about the passage of time. And then she saw it. Herself, but she looked so skinny, so frail, her horn had bits and pieces apparently vanish from itself. Her hair was a mess as well, with more spots that had faded out of existence. And she heard her own voice. She could pull out a few words. 'Shining Armor' 'love' 'made me stronger than Celestia' She pulled her mind from the Tardis's and looked questioningly at the box. Out of all of time and space, why did it choose those future moments to show Chrysalis? But she couldn't look into it more because of the whooshing noise of the Tardis. She sent several more blasts at the box, but they were deflected like the others. And then before her eyes the blue box disappeared. "Now then... Pinkie, I got a good look at them, most of the ponies are still captured, and the others are likely to be rounded up before escaping... So, I need a very serious answer." "Okay..." She said hesitantly. "What would the ponies do, knowing that there are Changelings in their midst?" "Um... well, I'd throw a party for them, but most others... I guess they'd drive them out somehow." "Would they try to kill any of them?" "No! Well, this is a long time ago, but... no. I don't think the ponies in Cloudsdale would try to hurt them, just kick em' out." "In that case, we should report them to the proper authorities, and let them deal with it." The Doctor went over to the monitor and carefully pressed several buttons with his hoof. He then marched to the doors and stepped out, he moved some bushes to the side, and found his Sonic Screwdriver in a pushed-up pile of dirt. He spit on it, and wiped it off on a nearby leaf. He then put it back in his mouth, activating the Tardis. He walked back and shook his wings. "So... who would be the proper authorities?" "Um... the Princess?" "No! I mean uh... no, that won't work, she doesn't like me much." "Then we should go straight to the guard?" "Well, I'm assuming that since Celestia hates me she'd have my face known to her soldiers as a criminal, so I'd like to keep the royalty out of this, if possible." "Then that leaves whatever voluntary police is currently in Cloudsdale." "Do you think part-time voluntary police officers could handle Changelings?" "No... but, they could contact the Royal Guard for you! Or I could do it, she doesn't know who I am yet!" "Exactly, if anything it's more important that she doesn't see you, we can't have you making a paradox." Pinkie looked straight ahead at you. "We wouldn't want that, now would we?" She winked, then turned back to the Doctor. "So what should we do?" "hmm... who do we know in this town that could hold his own against Changelings, and that we could trust?" "Doctor. Besides the Changelings and children, we literally talked to three ponies since we got here." "There's what?!" Sunflower screamed. "Shh! Don't tell anypony... actually, that was the whole point of talking to her, wasn't it?" "No, we need your help rescuing the other ponies and getting the Changelings out of Cloudsdale." "Why me?!" "Because you're the only unicorn for miles, and because we haven't built any kind of relationship in this town with anyone who could help besides you." "No, I'm not getting involved, I'd prefer to be alive." "They don't kill you, they just wrap you in slime and eat your dreams!" Pinkie said cheerily. Sunflower stared at the pink pony with an unbelieving gape. "That's almost worse!" The Doctor whipped out his wings and covered the two other mare's with them. "What are you doing-" "Shut it! that pony over there, he was one of the stallions I saw captured. So either he escaped and got half way over the city in five minutes, or he's a Changeling." "So why are you making yourself bigger?" Sunflower asked, eyeing the Doctor's wings. Her eyes widened when she realized what exactly she was staring at. "You... you were an Earth Pony before..." "I... hit my head." "And grew wings?!" "I know, aren't they great?" He smiled as he looked over his feathers. "Turns out flying comes just as easily as walking, I don't put any thought into it, and it's simple, try to understand what I'm doing and I'm falling over and downward!" He gave another quick glance behind him. "Also, they're looking for two Earth Ponies. Not a Pegasus an Earth Pony, and a Unicorn." "Why can't I just leave now?" "Because it defies your sense of justice?" Pinkie Pie said hopefully. "Not good enough." "Those things are stealing ponies entire lives, they have been for a long time, and will for even longer if we don't stop it now. All I need for you to do is alert the Royal Guards... me and my friend... have reasons to not get involved with the Princess." "Oh, great, you're asking me to not only get involved with Changelings, but also aid two criminals?" "What?! Noo, we aren't criminals per say... we haven't done anything wrong yet, Celestia hates me for something I haven't even done yet! I don't even know what it is! As for Pinkie, I have... Time Lord reasons for not letting her and Celestia meet." "I... I don't even..." "Just report the Changelings to the guard post." "Why should I-" "Listen, are you really going to try and continue working here after hearing that almost any pony in the street could be a Changeling." "Well..." "Come on Sunset, monsters are bad for business." "Fine. But I'm not getting any more involved than this." "Excuse me, I need to send a message out to the Royal Guard." The Pony at the Desk looked up from his crossword puzzle and widened his eyes at her. "Are you a unicorn?" "Yes, now about my message," "Oh, oh yes, to whom is it directed, and is it a petition, a complaint, a plea for economic concerns, a personal letter, or an emergency?" "Emergency. I have two eyewitness reports of monsters in Cloudsdale." "W- monsters?" The timid stallion's eyes narrowed. "Are you sure? Few can fly up here unnoticed." "They're Changelings." "Oh... oh dear." "From what I know,there's somewhere between fifty and two hundred." "Oh... oh no... no... A-alright, I'll get it written up immediately." He walked into an office behind him. Sunflower waited patiently for him to come back. "I'm so sorry." She heard the stallion's voice come from behind her. She spun around on her hoof and her eyes widened in panic. Her mouth was sealed by a green slime before she could let out a word. The timid stallion was engulfed in green flame, becoming a large muscled mare. Green flames covered Sunflower, and she was completely encased in a green cocoon. She struggled with her magic and with her hooves, but she was overcome by sleep. With another green wave there was only a large burlap sack where the cocoon was. The construction mare lifted it carefully over her shoulders and took to the sky, flying toward a mostly unknown sewer entrance. "That... that's not good." "What? A construction mare left, what's the problem?" "There were two ponies in there a few seconds ago, and two just left." Pinkie looked at the monitor from within the Tardis. "Where's the other one?" "In the bag, asleep, is Sunflower." The Doctor switched to heat vision, the red silhouettes of a bulky pegasus with a unicorn on her back appeared. "And I'm guessing that the mail stallion was a Changeling." "We need to go help her!" "Yep, now then, I'll wrestle the Pegasus to the ground, you get the bag." "Got it!" The Doctor gripped the Sonic Screwdriver in his mouth and made the Tardis appear in front of the disguised Changeling. He put the Screwdriver in his pocket and began flapping his wings. "Go!" He charged at the surprised Pegasi and headbutted her in the throat. "Gah! That hurt, what is her neck made of, granite?" The Pegasus looked down at the Doctor and looked from him to the Tardis. "What?" Was all she said. "Take this Changeling!" Pinkie charged out as well, colliding with the disguised cocoon, knocking it to the ground. The construction mare then flared her nostrils and bucked Pinkie in the stomach, sending her through a not-so well built cloud wall with a 'POOF'. She turned to the Doctor, angry and snarling. "You just had to blow my cover! Great, now I need to explain why I need to put up three cocoons!" She raised her hooves up and was about to bring them back down on the Doctor when he started pumping his wings to get away. However the Changeling was used to dealing with panicked pegasi, and pinned down the Doctor's wings with her own. She brought a hoof down on his head, and the Doctor went out cold. The Changeling looked down at the unconscious Time Lord and sighed. She prepared a cocoon spell for him, but she found herself lifted into the air, but not under her own power. She managed to turn her head against the magic enough to see a unicorn with a burning mane and pure-white coat surrounded by flames of anger. The changeling shrunk back from the rage-mode unicorn but was pulled toward her. With a loud grunt Sunflower slammed her into the ground, knocking her out, and leaving her a Changeling less than half the size of the mare he was disguised as. "That's for messing up my mane!" Sunflower screamed, letting the fire dissipate to reveal a yellow hairdo stuck in bunches with the green slime. She looked up at her mane and whimpered, but then she got angry again. She wheeled on the Doctor. "That was a trap, wasn't it!? You knew he was a Changeling yet you made me parade in there so you could save me and get me to help you well I'm not falling for it mister-" "I think he can't hear you." Pinkie said, nudging the Time Lord with a bit of cloud she had pulled out of her mane. "By the way, your cloud walking stuff doesn't let us move through cloud." "Then it's doing what it was supposed to." "Yeah, but when we were falling, the Doctor tried to land on a cloud, but the cloud was hard as a rock and ended up almost killing him!" "That's... weird. My spell loses power after a certain amount of force is done to it, wait... The Doctor didn't have my spell, whatever made that cloud solid for him was because of his own magic." "Hmm... that reminds me, what should we do with the Changeling?" "Tie him... her... it?... up I supposed." "You have some rope?" "Nope, something better!" A maniacal gleam came into Sunflower's eyes. "You won't get away with this!" The Changeling yelled, struggling against the enchanted & hardened cocoon wrapped around it. "Tell us how to get back to the throne room!" Pinkie said, bringing a light into it's face, making it cringe. "I don't know what you're talking about." "You know as well as I do that you were sent to capture us after we ruined your whole evil scheme and freed all the ponies." "What?! All of them?!" The Changeling managed to suppress a shudder at the thought of what would happen when the real construction mare was free. "How- who are you?" "I'm-" "Stop, you haven't been born yet, and normally that means it's safe to spread your name, but with us being this close to your present you could end up altering the time stream by spreading too much future info of any kind." He turned to the Changeling, "However, I am the Doctor. Known as the oncoming storm, the Predator of the universe's greatest predators, the knowledge of my existence was enough to send the greatest military forces of a thousand races run away from anything I ever held dear." He stared into the confused Changeling's eyes. "You kidnapped my friend, and tried to kill my other one, you stole the lives of hundreds of ponies, and you tried to kill me. However, I won't really count the last one, I stopped treating it personally considering how often it happens." He closed his eyes and lifted his head. "Now then, we're going to let you go, and you can run and go tell your Queen to find somewhere else to harvest love, one that doesn't involve stealing ponies' lives." He swiped out the Sonic Screwdriver and liquified the cocoon past it's honey-like state and into a boiling hot juice tha melted through the clouds below, and sent the Changeling bouncing away on one hoof, desperately trying to somehow rub the heat out of it's burnt hoof with both of it's forelegs. After that it jumped into the sewer system with the Doctor, Sunflower, and Pinke galloping after it. "Grr... Damn you Doctor, Damn you." Chrysalis muttered, attempting to find some solution to her problems. The needed cocoons would take too much energy, so they couldn't re-seal the abductees, but they couldn't exactly spend the rest of their days playing guard. At the sight of the whole in the clouds a sickening thought came into Chrysalis's mind. "No. I'll figure something out." She looked at a silently crying filly. "No... I won't kill them. I'm not a monster" Interrupting her thoughts came another Changeling, his wings shivering from a burst of use, he was panting heavily. "M-my Queen, th-there are three ponies following me, they know." Chrysalis' eyes widened and she rose to her full height, letting an ugly grimace appear on her fanged mouth. "Show me." He became a yellow unicorn, "What, how can there be a unicorn in Cloudsdale-" the same way there was an Earth Pony. "What about the others?"Pinkie Pie appeared in a burst of green flame. "No..." and with a final burst of flame, the Doctor, with his tan wings extended, and a determined look on his face, appeared. "No! NO NO NO!" She backed into the wall, and after realizing every changeling and pony in the room was staring at her with confusion. They looked upon the form of the stallion. And the ponies huddling together thought together. 'This stallion is what the Changeling Queen fears, what is he, and can he help us?' "No... I-I killed him, he-he was an Earth Pony! I saw him fall! Hunt him down, bring him to me!" She realized that she was making a fool of herself in front of her captives and her children, her subjects. "I'll run him through with my horn!" She licked her fangs. "He will pay for this. Mark my words." "Alright, we need a plan." "... Got it!" Pinkie shouted but then a glare from the two other ponies made her back down again. "Sorry, hehe... but I have the perfect plan, I need a box, 400 tons of cotton candy, industrial-strength rubber coated boxing gloves, and three fifteen inch long sticks of dynamite." She scratched her chin. "And a spoon, very important." "One that makes a tiniest fragment of sense?" Sunflower hissed. "Okay, how about this? Sunflower, do you have an understanding how their magic works?" "Um... kind of." "Alright, we managed to get away the last time by me poisoning their 'food' with my hate, but I think that in order for that to work they had to already be feeding on me." "Yeah?" "Can you magically force them to feed on me? If I do that I can shock them again, and give the ponies time to escape." "I-I don't know." "Alright, do you have a plan of your own?" "I-I don't know... do you have anything in the Tardis that could help you?" "Maybe... It's unlikely though, I don't keep weapons with me, I destroy them. And everything in the Tardis has to deal with technology, not magic." "hmm..." Sunflower walked back and forth. "I-I don't know what we could do then. Most unicorns have a limited selection of magic they can do. I made a cloud-walking spell, but I'm not a magic talent, telekinesis, transfiguration, and cloud walking are about all I can do, and the last two are very taxing..." "Okay... we have three ponies, the power of telekinesis, a sonic screwdriver, limited transfiguration... hehehe... what can't we do?"