//------------------------------// // Questions // Story: Markings of a King // by Zimprus Nalune //------------------------------// Jack stood in front of the massive, dome-like structure that was Kruziik-Ahrol, clenching and unclenching his hand, shifting hesitantly from one foot to the other. He took a deep breath, held it in for several seconds, then exhaled calmly, closing his eyes and allowing his mind to draw the layout of the structure in front of him once more. The human pinpointed Chrysalis’ throne room, focusing on that location to the exclusion of all else. He held up his left hand, tentatively putting his thumb and middle finger together. He licked his lips, feeling the odd, almost frictionless sensation of his chitinous fingers sliding over one another. Opening his eyes, Jack snapped his fingers, letting his magic flow into a teleportation spell. He felt the world snap away, a brief sensation of weightlessness, then the world snapped back, and he found himself inside the throne room. Chrysalis rested on her throne, a lone changeling in front of her. Jack could feel the love energy radiating off the drone, but refrained from partaking any himself. His emotions were conflicted, and he was not sure whether to hate the changelings or pity them. The changeling queen looked up from her servant, a tired expression on her face as she met Jack’s gaze. With a mental wave, she sent the drone away. The changeling walked around Jack and out of the throne room, the faint tinkling of broken obsidian audible as it treaded over the remains of the once great doors. Chrysalis buzzed off of her throne, landing in front of Jack, allowing the two to be face-to-face. Neither spoke at first, various feelings passing between them through the Hive Mind and some deeper, intrinsic connection that neither could fathom. “Explain,” Jack said, breaking the silence. Chrysalis closed her eyes and bowed her head. “As you know,” she began, “two months ago, there was a grand wedding in Canterlot. It was between the Captain of the Guard and the Crystal Princess, also known as the Goddess of Love. I personally led the infiltration of Canterlot, planning to gain control over Shining Armor and render the city defenseless by imitating Princess Cadence.” The queen sighed and sat down on the floor, the recounting of the invasion seeming to rob her of any of her former vigor and life. “However, Shining Armor’s sister managed to expose me, ironically by taking advantage of her imprisonment and bringing back the real Cadence. I was forced to reveal myself, but by then it was too late. The strike force, which accounted for almost three-quarters of our race, arrived and began their siege in earnest. The shield fell, I personally defeated Celestia, and it seemed like our victory was assured.” Jack kept a blank, if slightly disappointed, expression, looking up from Chrysalis and around the throne room. His eyes settled on the obsidian throne, the black stone calling out to him. He stepped around the seemingly broken changeling queen and walked up to the throne. Chrysalis, in her misery, failed to notice. The teen placed a hand on the arm of the throne as Chrysalis continued to speak. “The Elements of Harmony, the greatest threat our invasion faced, were quickly captured and rendered useless. I had them brought to me, to keep an eye on them while my minions seized Canterlot from what little of the Royal Guard could mount any real resistance.” Jack glanced back at the changeling, smirking for a brief moment. He then slowly sat down in the throne, the cold stone harsh and rigid against his back, yet completely yielding to him. He leaned forward, steepling his fingers as Chrysalis proceeded with her tale. “Somehow... that stupid princess got through my hold on Shining Armor, and gave him enough magic to propel... some... of us back to the Badlands. The rest died, for various reasons.” Chrysalis looked up, visibly surprised that Jack was no longer in front of her. The human chuckled loudly, causing her to whirl around, mixed sadness, rage, and fear radiating off her. Jack grinned and waved his chitin hand dismissively. “Go on,” he said, almost mockingly. The changeling hesitated, but continued. “One month ago, we found a creature of legend being attacked by Royal Guardsponies. The creature, a human as you might recall, was near death. A few drones that had survived Canterlot were sent out to recover the human, and kill the ponies. With that done, I came to the decision to save the human’s life. And just two days ago, it, he, woke up.” Chrysalis began stepping slowly towards Jack, who leaned back in her throne, placing his arms on those of the throne, looking like the royalty Chrysalis should have been. “Tell me about him,” the human asked. Chrysalis looked him straight in the eyes. “In the time since he woke, he has rejected his gifts, rejected his saviors, then accepted them. He has nearly been the death of me, boasted of his own superiority, stolen one of my children from me, stolen love from the hive to feed himself, left us, let my child under his care die, then returned to demand answers.” She stopped walking, now standing directly in front of Jack. “And to top it all off, he has destroyed what little records of our history we have, then proceeded to take my very throne.” Jack looked down at the arm of the throne, running his hand over the rough yet smoothly carved material. He looked back up at Chrysalis. “I took nothing that wasn’t mine to take.” Chrysalis hissed, her horn lighting up with a deadly green glow. “You have taken far more than was yours! You have taken our race into your hands, where you play with it like a foal with a rattle!” Jack stood up. “If those Night Guards weren’t lying, and I’m pretty sure they weren’t since they obviously didn’t see me or Cain, then all I’ve done is strip away the lies and deceit you’ve fed me.” “You haven’t stripped away lies, you’ve stripped away our pride! We were feared, once! That I remember! That, we will always remember!” “Memories long gone, I’m sure. And why do you say that’s what you remember? What, do you have amnesia, like some overused cliche garbage fictional character?” Chrysalis howled with rage, baring her fangs and lunging towards Jack, who was suddenly immobilized by a stabbing feeling in his chest. “SEE!” she screamed. “SEE MY PAIN! SEE WHAT WE HAVE LOST!” Before he could retort, Jack felt Chrysalis’ horn brush up against his forehead, and the world exploded into a sea of colors, then faded to greyscale, and vanished. *** Jack flashed back to consciousness, finding himself in what he guessed was Chrysalis’ bedroom in Kruziik-Ahrol. It was even more spacious than the one at the outpost, yet the furnishings were mostly the same. On the bed laid a changeling queen with long, purple hair, amethyst eyes wide open. Her legs and hair had gaping holes, looking ready to snap at any second under their own weight. The queen babbled incoherently, her limbs twitching every so often. Her horn sparked with magic, yet the characteristic green glow never fully appeared. Eventually, the queen spasmed to her hooves, moving jerkily around to the far side of the bed, giggling madly as she went. She leaned down out of sight, and several small squelching noises reverberated around the bedroom. When she pulled back up, an egg was suspended from her mouth by a sling of green slime, and was quickly placed on the bed. With that done, the queen threw her head back, cackling madly. Her horn sparked again, this time fully surrounded by a bright green aura. At this, the changeling stopped laughing, went rigid, then shivered. She closed her eyes and let out ear-splitting cry of pain, sadness, anger, and everything in between. Her horn flashed again, lighting up the entire room with a glow only matched by the sun itself. Her cry still continuing, the changeling’s eyes became indistinct, the same light from her horn spilling forth from them as well. A single, blinding, all-consuming flash of purple shone out from the queen. When it faded, a stone statue of a screaming changeling stood in the queen’s place. The statue slowly crumbled like ash, disintegrating into a purple dust that sparkled briefly, then disappeared. Jack was hit with a sudden feeling of loss, a stabbing feeling in his chest and head. It was as if someone had torn out his heart and brain at the same time, leaving him a husk of his former self that wasn’t worth letting live. The egg trembled on the bed, a muffled cry from within. The world vanished. *** Jack awoke with a gasp, his head and chest still aching with the memory. He made a move to clutch his chest, but found that he instead grabbed hold of a limp, shaking Chrysalis. Her lunge at him had landed them back in her obsidian throne, the changeling queen clutching the human like he was the only one in the world who’s shoulder she could cry on. She was doing exactly that, trembling with an overwhelming sadness that Jack could barely comprehend. Her hooves were hugged around his neck, her face buried in his shoulder. She made no noises other than staggered breathing, but the wet tears that poured forth betrayed everything. The pair stayed as they were for some time, Jack too dumbfounded by the memory, Chrysalis too saddened by it. The human found himself rubbing the changeling’s back softly, trying to offer some form of comfort while she released a lifetime’s worth of grief. Eventually, Chrysalis pulled herself together and off of Jack, who slowly helped her up. The queen took a few wobbly steps before she collapsed to the floor, utterly broken. Jack moved off the throne and sat beside her, regarding her before speaking. “How long ago was that?” he asked softly. “Almost one thousand years...” Chrysalis responded. “What you saw... that was one of the few ways for a changeling to die.” “What, insanity?” Chrysalis looked up at him and nodded gravely. “When you live for thousands of years, what is there to hold you together? The queen’s duty only holds her for so long, and then... well...” Jack looked at her quizzically. “You said that’s one of the few ways you can die. Can’t changelings be killed like any other race?” “Not as you think of it. The body can die, yes, but if the mind is still there, noling can ever truly be dead.” Jack’s eyes lit up. “If that’s true, then can Cain...?” Chrysalis shook her head. “His mind... disappeared. Was his neck snapped, or his head injured?” Receiving a nod, the queen shook her head. “Then he is gone forever. I do not know how, nor why that works the way it does. When a queen dies, they take all the knowledge of the Hive Mind with them.” “No plans, no prototype, no backup?” “N... no. Death is the end, and for us one death can destroy our entire race.” Jack was taken aback. “So every few thousand years, you have to start from scratch?” The queen nodded sadly. “The first two hundred years I ruled, I spent recovering what lost knowledge I could. Nothing I did really helped, all that we know today is either stolen from ponies, translated from what few records we can find, or so ingrained in the Hive Mind it’s instinctive.” “Do you age at all? Or are you just forever young until you die?” “No. Each queen’s body lays one egg. That one egg is either their reincarnation, or their replacement.” Chrysalis scratched at the ground with her hoof, looking dejected. “This my twelfth body, and it’s still young. I won’t be reborn for some time, unless I am killed by someling else.” Jack was silent for a moment before he spoke again. “You seem tired,” he said simply. “I am.” Chrysalis stood up slowly. “With you here, I had hoped our fortunes would take a turn for the better, but...” She sighed deeply. “I understand if you want to leave us now. I have misled and lied to you.” Jack stood up as well. “You admit it?” “I do. And I regret it.” Chrysalis turned towards the doorway. “What you heard is the truth. We wither away each day, more and more of our number must be put into cocoons, to die slowly rather than quickly. I suppose I’m only delaying the inevitable at this point.” The queen began to leave the throne room, walking with her head held high. She looked over her shoulder at Jack, who remained where he was. “I will not hold you to your claim,” she said. “Do as you please. We will continue our lives until we fade from Equestria forever. Take our gifts, and whatever you do, I ask that you remember Queen Chrysalis, and her people, the Changelings.” With that, Chrysalis’ horn lit up, and she vanished with a flash of green light. *** Chrysalis appeared in her bedroom, relieved that her teleport had not drained her like it had when she brought herself and her race’s would-be savior to Kruziik-Ahrol. “Note,” she said aloud, to noling in particular. “Teleportation for two is much more difficult than it is for one.” She smiled to herself. One more bit of lost knowledge, recovered. It was really all she had left now. Knowledge for the sake having it. From here, it was simply a waiting game. A wait until all of her children were encased in the cocoons they made for themselves, with no love to sustain them, and from there they would rot away, and their queen would wither until either she went mad from loss or simply could not reincarnate herself. Chrysalis let out a harsh laugh. Now that all her race’s secrets had been revealed, now that they were revealed for what they were, they would die. The queen could see nothing but death and despair on the horizon. At least she could die on her own terms, rather than at the hooves of another filthy race. The changeling buzzed onto her bed, one that had been her mother’s before her, probably her mother’s before her, and back however far it was. The queen pressed a hoof down into the mattress, feeling its softness seemingly for the first time. She had never really stopped to consider how wonderful this bed really was. She had never before stopped to think how luxurious her quarters were. Chrysalis leaped off the bed, moving over to her dresser. The mirror that rested on top reflected her image back at her. A proud, broken, powerful, helpless, beautiful, hideous, queen. She put a hoof up to the mirror. “Who says a girl can’t really have it all?” she asked, a small smile touching her lips. She bowed her head and moved away from the mirror, shifting to a large bookcase in the corner. There were so many tomes, so many scrolls, all of them written in the ancient, savage, powerful tongue of the changelings. Harsh lines, seemingly carved by claw rather than hoof. She could read none of them. Despite her best efforts, the best efforts of her drones, noling had been able to get ahold of any kind of translation index for her people’s script. Standard Equestrian, they could do just fine, but a dead language? Nothing. The queen scoffed. It was sad, really. Every race with a language of their own, except hers. Chrysalis levitated out several scrolls, bringing them with her over to her bed. She unrolled a random scroll, looking over the various pictures. She smiled. For now, she was content to sit and look. She was living on borrowed time, and she planned to make use of it however she liked. It didn’t matter anymore. Nothing did. *** Jack stood in place for a long time, staring at the ground as if it had all the answers he needed. He could feel Chrysalis’ reassignment to her fate rolling off her in waves, and disgusted him. She was just going to lay down and die. She had no desire to change her situation. “She’s acting like me...” he thought. Jack felt something click in his mind. Chrysalis had handed him her race’s future, then gone and given up. He couldn’t just stand where he was and let the changeling race die off because they saw no point in fighting anymore. Every part of him rebelled against it. The human raised his left hand. The black appendage responded as well as his old hand had, even better, in fact. He watched as his clawed fingers curled, straightened, came together, separated. He watched as he focused his magic, causing his hand to become enveloped in a green aura, the same as any changeling. He released his focus, and the glow faded. A glint out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. The teen turned, looking at the changeling’s seat of power once more. It sat there, a magnificent, brutishly carved throne, blacker than those it held authority over. Jack felt his spines shiver. Slowly, he turned, walking up to the throne. He sat down for a second time. He closed his eyes, picturing the massive network of the Hive Mind. He felt around, testing the responses of each and every mind. A simple touch, nothing more. It was all he needed to get a response. Only a few hundred chittered back to him. The human sighed. It was worse than he’d thought. So many were trapped in stasis, so many minds dimmed to the point of being almost invisible. And of all the minds active, only a few dozen or so were still hidden in pony society. There just weren’t enough changelings to sustain their siblings. It just wasn’t enough. Putting that issue aside, Jack called on as much knowledge of spells and their workings as he could. The Hive Mind responded instantly, flooding his mind with the information he wanted. Ideas of spells, their arcane formulas, how to focus them, all of it came to him in an instant. The teen’s mind reeled in shock, and it was all Jack could do to try and sort the information he had just been given. Taking a breath to relax himself, Jack turned his attention to Chrysalis. The queen was in her bedroom, observing various objects in her room and being thankful for them. She then moved on to trying to decipher several scrolls by pictures alone. The human laughed a bit at this. “Chrysalis,” he said, receiving a mental grunt in return. “What are you doing?” “Reading, what does it look like? she replied, sounding annoyed. “What do you want? I’m trying to enjoy myself here.” “I’m going to do something, and you’re not going to like it.” “The first time, is it?” “Chrysalis, let me ask you a question.” “Go ahead.” “Do you love your people? Do you want the best for them?” “Of course I do. What are you getting at?” “It’s clear that you’re not going to do anything to stop your children from falling into the grasp of death and becoming extinct. So, with that in mind, are you willing to give your children’s future to someone else?” “...I...” “Yes or no. I need you to answer me, or else I don’t think this can be done.” “... What... wait... I know what you’re trying to do! You’re trying to replace me!” “Chrysalis, every second that passes you... no, the changelings... no. No, that’s not it.” “What?” “... Chrysalis, this isn’t about you, and it isn’t about me. This is about our entire race. Every second that passes, we, and I mean WE, become closer to extinction. We’ve let the ponies drive us into a corner, with no way out. But what they were too stupid to see is that a cornered animal is a dangerous animal. Let’s face it, and be brutally honest. We’re out of options. You’re at your limit. You can’t take it anymore. So you need to be replaced, if only for a month or two until we can get our shit straightened out. I’m a changeling as much as you are. And I will NOT let us go out like this. So let me ask again. Do I have your blessing? Or is this really the end?" *** Chrysalis had thrown her scrolls aside in her initial fury, but now she was sitting in a stunned silence. Jack had taken so much from them, and now he was asking her for the lives of her children? Still, all he had said made sense. Her species, whether she wanted it to be so or not, and she really didn’t, could be doomed. She had thought she had the brightest idea ever, but it had horribly backfired and now Equestria was on high alert for any changelings, which meant that unless she got help from somewhere, her children would all die. Truth be told, she had hoped that Jack’s aid would be mystical, god-like. He wasn’t what she had expected, but she hadn’t thrown him away or refused his help when he gave it before. What reason did she have to now? Still, there was one thing that he had said that troubled her. “You say you are just as much a changeling as any of us. How can that be? I have given you pieces of myself, but that does not make you a changeling yourself.” “... Chrysalis, I once wrote a poem. Would you like to hear it?” “I... I don’t see why not...” “This picture of me, This picture that you see, Is truer than you might believe. What is real, and what is farce, Can I be greater than the sum of my parts? Change once, change twice, Can you figure out the price? So many masks, so many faces, All of these foolish races. Challenges without a goal, Each one has taken their toll. Time has come, I must rise above, My one source of strength is that of love. This picture of me, This picture that you see, Is truer than you might believe. Of my strength, there can be no reigning, Within and without, I am not fainting, My resolve, I must keep maintaining, Pursuits of which there can be no elating, The flow of love, there must be no constraining, For in my heart, I am a Changeling." “... How will you do it? How is it you will save us?” “I don’t know. But not doing anything will get us nowhere.” Chrysalis sighed, fear wracking her mind. She knew what she would have to do, and she desperately didn’t want to do it. She would have to give him control of the Hive Mind. The queen was afraid of what would happen. Jack could interface with it, yes, but could he control it? Her greatest fear was that he would simply let the network collapse, and her children would be lost and confused forever. But he was right. The future was uncertain, but doing nothing was the worst thing they could do. Chrysalis sighed, and with a green flash, she teleported into her throne room. Unsurprisingly, Jack rested on her throne, as if he was already king. She approached him, making sure he not only felt her fear, but saw it as well. His expression hardened, betraying no sympathy or pity. “I don’t know how to do this,” she admitted. “Neither do I. But I have a theory.” Chrysalis raised her eyebrows expectantly. “I think of it like computers back on Earth,” Jack explained. “The way I see it, the Hive Mind is a network, and those who access it all have a set of permissions. The idea is that all the drones and I only have standard user privileges. We can access the network, but we can’t direct or modify it to any real extent. But you’re the administrator. You can do whatever you want.” “And that includes making you an ‘administrator’?” she guessed. “Bingo.” Chrysalis took a deep breath. “If you think it will work, then we’ll try it.” Both Jack and Chrysalis closed their eyes, trying to feel each other through the Hive Mind as best they could. Chrysalis felt the entirety of the Hive Mind, how everything ran through her, obeyed her will. She felt Jack’s mind, how he was preparing himself for the mental load she had been carrying all her life. The way he explained it made it seem so much simpler than it felt. She kept trying to push the collective consciousness away from herself and onto Jack, but she just couldn’t do it. She could feel the Hive Mind resisting her, the weight of her children’s minds staying the collective. She projected her wishes out, forcing every changeling to bend to her will. They panicked, but slowly bent until she was at last able move the center, the heart of the Hive Mind off of herself, and onto the human who was waiting for it. And she felt free. Chrysalis laughed. It felt absolutely wonderful to finally not have to hear every thought of her children! At last, she could have her mind go blank! It was the greatest thing she had felt since she had consumed Shining Armor’s love for Cadence. Then, she felt a tug on her mind, and dread washed over her. *** Jack had felt the gradual shift of the Hive Mind from Chrysalis onto him. She had difficulty getting it off her mental shoulders, but he didn’t blame her. There was a reason she was queen, and her duties would not leave her so easily. The human prepared for the shift as best he could. He didn’t have much experience with the Hive Mind, but judging from the way it had nearly sent him sprawling earlier, he anticipated difficulty. He steeled his nerves, and let his mind go blank, ready to concentrate on bringing the massive collection of changeling minds under his control. “Aperture, my name is Wheatley,” he thought with a grim smile. He hoped he would have better results. Then it came. A massive mental tidal wave of information crashed against Jack’s mind,literally knocking him out of his throne and onto his hands and knees. He felt his body temperature skyrocket, a layer of sweat forming nearly instantly over his entire body. The sheer amount of thoughts, sensory input, and random bits of information passed from changeling to changeling was too much for him. He felt the network collapsing, falling apart under its own weight. “NO!” Jack yelled, slamming his fist down on the floor hard enough to crack it. He immediately concentrated on sorting, categorizing, making so that the flood was not so unmanageable. At first, it seemed like nothing he did had any effect, but as he worked more and more, pushed more and more, everything began to flow in a more orderly fashion. Smells one way, conversation topics another, the weather forecast yet another. Eventually, he was able to spare enough thinking of his own to push himself up, a brightly smiling Chrysalis greeting him. She laughed and threw her hooves around him, bringing him in for a hug. “‘You did it!” she cried happily. “I didn’t think it was possible! Now my mind is all my own! Thank you!” Jack chuckled weakly, still trying to push information in line. He managed to place his arm around Chrysalis weakly and allowed himself to share in her merriment. Canterlot Castle Celestia smiled as the last pony for the Day Court left. It had been a relaxing final conversation, with the simple farm pony needing a bit of extra money to expand his crop. She made a mental note to check on the rising seed prices herself. It wouldn’t do if prices were going up and the amount of produce went down. The Sun Princess preferred not to meddle in Equestrian affairs, not since the old days, but every now and then she stepped in to right the scales of her land. A slight dimming in the hall immediately caught the princess’ attention. She cast her gaze around, trying to determine which of her stained glass windows had gotten dirty. Again. There! Even though she had an entire cleaning staff at her disposal, Celestia decided she could take it upon herself to clean the window. The alicorn gently stepped down from her throne, walking over to the pink window that depicted her niece and nephew-in-law performing the greatest barrier spell she had ever witnessed. With a small cleaning spell she had learned when she was just a foal, the princess zapped the black smear on the window. A small cloud of smoke appeared around the site of the spell’s impact, then dissipated... ...revealing the smudge to still be there. Celestia blinked in surprise. That spell had never failed her, not even when she found five-day-old frosting stuck to her bedsheets. The princess creased her brow, inspecting the smudge more closely. She then pulled back in shock. It was spreading. As Celestia watched, the black smudge quickly overtook the window. Shining Armor and Princess Cadence, formerly encircled in a heart shape and using their love to save Canterlot, were turned into a cowering, roughed up unicorn and alicorn, surrounded by a swarm of changelings, all below the eyes of the one enemy she had not been able to best. Queen Chrysalis. The princess’ temper flared, but she closed her eyes and relieved her anger with the Royal Canterlot Sigh. After her anger faded, it was replaced with panic. She had enchanted these windows herself. Nothing in Equestria, save the Elements of Harmony or Discord, was powerful enough to alter them. Unless... what changed them wasn’t from Equestria. Fearing the worst, Celestia ran through her mental checklist of enemies. None of them seemed capable or currently able of changing those windows. With a quick teleportation spell, the alicorn teleported to the castle basement, more specifically her personal enchantment room. Celestia immediately levitated a clean, large window, already with the proper enchantments, and placed against the far wall. She cast a spell to activate the pigmentation enchantments, then spoke her wishes. “Show me the force capable of challenging harmony in Equestria.” Celestia waited. And waited. And waited. Slowly, color began to bleed into the window. The Sun Princess watched as, here and there, colors filled in. The flowed mostly from right to left, slowly appearing to take on a familiar shape. Fingers became distinct. Celestia blinked in surprise, her heart rushing with excitement. Could it be? A furless arm, a leg, and a foot, all covered by some exotic clothing she had never seen before. The princess smiled, unable to contain herself. It was true! The time had come, at last! Half of a face confirmed it. A human! The human! The one she had waited so long for! Perhaps he could help find out whatever had happened to all the Royal and Night Guards near the border! Celestia smiled widely at the window, her entire being brimming with happiness. True harmony was almost upon Equestria! The window continued to fill in. A splotch of black appeared and the window passed over to the left side. Celestia’s heart sank faster than she brought the sun up. The Sun Princess watched in horror as the window filled in even more. What was once a human in clothing quickly became a twisted, evil monstrosity. Black, chitin plates protected its body, and a monstrous, twisted right arm stood in stark contrast to the gentle flesh of the left. Bits of chitin were attached to the not-human’s face, and two insectoid wings stuck out from the thing’s back. But the worst part? The eyes. The eye on the right side was a pleasant, steel-blue. But the one on the left side was an evil, poisonous green. They stood out from one another, clashing yet irrevocably intertwined. As the window finished filling in, Celestia dropped to her knees. This was not the human she had hoped for. This was a monster. “No...” she whispered. She was too late, and she knew it. And as the tears fell down her face, Celestia could only hear the mocking laughter of the Changeling Queen.