//------------------------------// // Changelings, humans, and revealings // Story: Sweat and Iron // by The Psychopath //------------------------------// "LET ME OUT!" The Doctor was checking his notes. "WHERE AM I?!" He was in an isolated chamber to view everything in the newly dug testing room. "PLEASE! GET ME OUT!" Monitors working stations lined along viewpoint to allow perfect observation of test subjects below. It was dark, gray, and black in this place. The doctor put down his notes and set his hand down on the console while the engineers worked their black magic. Behind his mask, one could be sure of his smiling. Down in the immense pit, however, sat a woman. She had ruffled brown hair and chestnut colored eyes, but that was not important. What was important was what was going to happen to this human. "I know this is a new manner of introducing experiments, but, now is a better time than ever. Start the ventilation and bring in the gas. We'll do this the old fashioned way." the scientist told the workers who did as told. A light clanking noise filled the now silent chamber, and the sound of exhaling began to come from it instead. Several panels had opened up, and a green gaseous musk began to seep from the walls as a result. The woman, who was, unfortunately, naked, couldn't utter a single word nor make any sounds. As a result of not having any clothes, she couldn't use anything to protect her face. Little by little, the gas encroached on her. Slowly crawling across the floor. Her heart began to beat at a faster rhythm. "What's going on? What are you doing? Get me outta here! I don't want to die! It's too early." the woman yelled as she beat on the walls with her fists. Doctor spoke quietly in the operations room: "Don't worry. You won't die. It'll only be mentally as your neurons are reconditioned and your molecules are modified and replaced or destroyed. Your dna will be a new work of art." This creature was twiddling with a small communications device in his hand as he watched the scene. Finally, after the longly anticipated moment, the human was engulfed in the fumes. First, came the gagging, then the coughing, then the painful screams. Next, her body began to have convulsions and spasms as every single atom of her body was twisted and mutated to begin taking on an equine shape. Her skin became as black as oil and as hard as chitin. From her back tore out two little fluttery insectoid wings. She screamed in more agony as the sounds of popping resonated from her legs. Little splatters of blood came from these new holes in her body. The popping and twisting continued until she finally looked like a changeling queen. "Hmmmm. Her mane and tail are a bit bluer and more jagged than the original's. Her horn is also much straighter." Doctor noticed. "Perhaps these queens have a variable appearance?" one of the engineer's proposed his thoughts. There was a long silence as the others began to stress heavily. It was a bad thing to propose an idea when you weren't a scientist. However, the answer given by one of the most feared scientists gave everyone but the questioner a heart attack: "Yes. YES! That's it! Thank you. Because of your observation, I believe it possible to create various strands of changelings. This could prove useful in infiltration. Nice thinking." "Thank you, sir." Everyone looked down at the new queen wobbling onto her four hooves. She seemed distraught and gasping for air. This made Doctor's hidden smile fade away. He knew what was to come. "Wh-wh-what did you do to me?" the woman blabbered. "I...I'm a monster." "Ah. The subject retained her mind." an engineer noted."Should we bombard her with more of the gas?" "No. This has proven to be a failure. However, we'll use the typical reconditioning. Send me samples of the contained gas so I may study the composition and recreate it. In the meantime, send in the breeders. We'll use her to see if the other reformings were effective." "Alrighty sir." the biped added as he pressed on a few buttons. "Wh...what? What's going...NO! NO! GET AWAY FROM ME! A--" she was cut off by the windows being blocked off by sound barriers. "Hmm. I wonder what Scarlet is doing? I wonder if she's still using the hormones unintentionally." The living quarters of the refugees was, fortunately, big enough to accommodate them all, along with a few more. The main room was circular in shape with several blankets and cloths placed everywhere. Many had chosen their rooms and were sleeping, but Celestia, along with the mane 6 and a few other were sitting in this room. Celestia was showing a great sadness and distaste. As for Rosy, she found comfort in hiding under a pile of comforters while Pinkie chuckled at the scene. Everypony was looking at Celestia, waiting for an explanation. "So...Princess...about the explanation..."Twilight urged. "Right. I was thinking about our thin friend over there. I wonder what happened to her." "Maybe I can ask her." Pinkie bounced up and smiled. Celestia gestured for her to try, but returned to looking at all those waiting for an explanation. "You want to know why we hid this island from you all? Well, it's because Secantor Island is an enemy of Equestria." Everypony gasped. "An enemy? Why did you never tell us?" Rarity asked. "Because knowing that we had an enemy that could threaten lives would ruin the balance that my sister and I strived to create. Secantor citizens hate Equestria because it considers that magic users have the same social status as other creatures, as well as it having magic users as leaders." "But how come they're so...advanced compared to us?" Applejack wondered. "Couldn't this help with mah apple harvestin'?" "Yes. However, they developed all this as a means to compensate for lack of magic users. We have a similar technological level, as shown by our airships, but we prevented its spreading." "Yet we still find technology of this level around Equestria." Twilight noted. "I know. Those are still controlled variants. You don't see these cannons that can kill and threaten, do you?" Everypony stayed silent. "To be honest, this technology is actually more of a curse than anything. Magic users are subjected to torment and the incapability to use their own abilities. Others can't use it, and are cast aside by the typical citizens." "And the one at the head is that gray pony. Everypony here would be better off with you guiding them." Rainbow Dash proposed with a smile. "NO!" Celestia stomped, scaring the pegasus."It is not in my intentions to do anything here. The citizens must deal with things their own way. I will not intervene, as, not only is it, as I said, against my own thoughts, but the results would be catastrophic and I would be seen as a hate inciter and blood thirsty maniac. As for Scilian Crow, I don't know why he has done this to the populace of this place, but it's clear he has a thirst for power and deep hatred for unicorns. As for WHY we are at war, they tried attacking Equestria territory a few centuries ago. We pushed them back, back they relentlessly sent in attack after attack. Soon enough, they tried to get the Griffin Kingdom to side with them, but the griffins refused and alerted us of these actions. Why they alerted us? I do not know, but they did so intentionally. We have been watching them and keeping them away from you since those days...until now. Do not panic. They will only attack us magic users, so you should either stay in here or walk in groups when leaving." "Princess!" Pinkie shouted. The pink pony began to bounce around the white alicorn as Rosy walked up to her, carrying the comforters on her back. She still preferred to hide from anything and everything. Celestia simply leaned forward and gave a warming smile. The rose pony yiped and shrunk deeper in her "shell". "What's the matter?" "N-n-not the smile! Those sickly teeth and holed skin....KEEP HER AWAY!" Celestia seemed insulted at first, but realized that her smile was actually reminding her of something...else. "It's okay, Rosy. She's with us." Pinkie coaxed the mare out. "Wh-wh-what d-do you wa-want?" "We just want to know what happened to you. Were you pony-napped from your mother and father? What had they done to you? Anything you are willing to tell us at first. You are free to not speak right now. We just wish to stop those evildoers." "You cannot stop them. You cannot stop 'them'." Everypony looked at eachother bizarrely. What a name. A paranoid pony? "What do you mean? They're a governing party?" "NO! They want to control everything under a centralized hierarchy. They simply pass their times experimenting on people to create the perfect army to do this. It may seem like paranoia at first, but they have nothing to do with any governing party. They say they want to control, but all they do is experiment on us." Rosy began to speak faster and faster as every scene came back to her. "They take you from your homes and throw into capsules." The scene of her being torn from her house and put under sedatives came back. "They take you to their experimentation grounds." She was reminded of an immense, black building towering over a destroyed city. "Then they poke you, cut you, inject you. They mutate you. Toss you away if they don't like the outcome. They experiment on you! THEY CHAIN YOU UP! THEY TEAR YOU OPEN TO INJECT MORE THINGS! THEY--" "Calm down, Rosy. It's okay. You're with us." Pinkie pat the mare on her 'back'. "You poor pony. Why would they do that?" Fluttershy pitied. "I'm not a pony. I'M A HUMAN!" Although they didn't know what a human was, the entirety of the room broke into pieces as everypony just figured out the extent of these experiments.