Chapter 1: Domestic Dogma
Mercy trotted out of the throne room, unsure of where this new mission would take him. The Queen had informed him of another defector of the Hive: a lone Executioner that had been tracked to a hospital in a remote village of ponies. It was originally going to be another task for Vertigo, but the circumstances had changed. What surprised Mercy the most about the briefing was the primary objective: the capture of the nameless Executioner. The Queen believes the changeling is simply lost, and will come back to the Hive if given the chance. If the changeling refuses, lethal force is encouraged. The worst place for a defector to be would be a pony hospital. If the pair follows through, a promotion would be in order... which is exactly what Mercy needs to become a breeder again.
As he trotted up the stairs, he noticed Foresight meddling in the armory. Upon further inspection, he was simply replacing the spear from earlier. Mercy trotted quickly past him and up the stairs, where he found Vertigo waiting for him.
“There you are, Breeder... I’ve been waiting.”
“I’m... I’m an Assassin now...” Mercy said, still resenting his new rank.
The news worried the Executioner. “Did she give you a name?”
“...Mercy. My name is Mercy.”
“Well...” Vertigo tried to shake off the connotation. “You don’t have to go by ‘Mercy’ around friends if you don’t want to...”
“Thanks,” the changeling replied, shyly looking over his shoulder.
“What’s the matter?”
He sighed, then turned and looked her in the eyes. “What do you know about Foresight?”
“He’s something... that’s all I can say.” She chuckled. “He was thrown to the bottom of the Hive with the Workers who, as you already know, don’t have wings. Then a few days passed and he comes out with brand new wings... and it wasn’t until today that I learned just how he pulled it off.” A frown invaded her face. “I suppose that’s what is so magical about legends... you only see the good and never stop to think about what had gone so wrong.”
She sighed. Then turned to the door beside her. “You think we should find some good disguises?”
Mercy nodded, and the two changelings trotted through the door and into the Breeding Room. “Take your pick” he said, looking around. “I’ll take this white Earth pony over here.”
Vertigo stared at the griffin she had carried inside, now trapped in a cocoon. She shook her head, knowing that ponies would never fall for it. She trotted over to a light yellow pegasus.
“This should work...”
They donned the forms of the ponies, then went back to their changeling forms. The pony village was a long ways away, but the disguises were now firmly put in their heads for when they needed to use them. The two changelings trotted into the morning light. As they trotted toward the edge, a changeling appeared at the Hive’s entrance. Mercy turned for a split second to confirm its identity. It was Foresight.
“What do you want?” Vertigo asked, not turning around.
“You two are going to a hospital, yes?”
“Yeah...”
“Could you do me a favor? Those dragons managed to take something from me, and now I need a replacement.”
“And what’s that?” Vertigo asked hesitantly, almost expecting some nonsensical answer.
Foresight sighed and stabbed at the ground with his hoof. “I need an eye-patch.”
Mercy turned around, tilting and turning his head to check. “Umm... you still have both your eyes.”
“How I wish that still was the plan... I should have foreseen this.” Another sigh left his snout as he stared at the dirt.
Suddenly, his head perked up again. “Get me two eye-patches.”
“You definitely have both of your eyes...”
“I’m going to lose one. I need you to keep a spare with you... just to be safe.”
“Going to lose one what?” Vertigo asked, growing tired of the games. “An eye or an eye-patch?”
“Are you going to help me or not?!” Foresight demanded to know.
Mercy took a step towards him. “Yes, we’ll help you. Then we can call it even for you saving my life and never have to talk to each other again!”
Foresight took a step back, unsure of what he had done. “I... Thank you.” He forced a smile. “I’m sorry to say I had planned to take the spare eye-patch when the Hive crumbles to dust, but I’ll take it with the other one if you don’t want to hold on to it.”
“The Hive’s never going to crumble to dust!” Vertigo snapped.
A frown fought the smile on Foresight’s face. “I have told you all that you need to know.” He turned and trotted back into the Hive while the two changelings flew into the horizon.
The flight to the remote village took several hours, but it would have been several days if they hadn’t had wings. They landed in the forest near the town so that nopony would see their true forms. They donned their pony forms quietly, and Mercy broke the silence.
“It feels weird... I was taught in basic that I would need an alias for this kind of mission, but ‘Mercy’ works.”
“‘Vertigo’ works too,” she admitted. “It’s the Queen’s way of punishing those who don’t see things her way.”
“Because ponies are inferior?”
Vertigo nodded. The two turned and made their way out of the forest. They found themselves facing a large hospital, complete with a security guard at the door.
“Why are there guards at a hospital?” Mercy asked, confused.
“They must know we’re coming for the deserter...” Vertigo assumed.
The white Earth pony and light yellow pegasus were able to trot inside with no problem. Now they had to find the defector and drag him out. This proved more difficult than they thought, as the lead had no specifics on what the changeling looked like now.
“Can I help you?” the receptionist asked the two guests. The white pony gulped as they trotted to the desk.
“We’re looking for a... friend,” the yellow pegasus said, scratching her mane with her hoof.
The light blue Earth pony behind the desk smiled. “And what’s the name?”
The pegasus turned to her companion, then back to the receptionist. Mercy chuckled nervously while Vertigo was thinking. “Well... it’s a friend... of a friend, you see. Our friend told us to check on them and we... well, this is awkward... we can’t remember their name.”
“Huh...” The receptionist seemed to buy it. “Well do you know what they look like?”
Vertigo turned to Mercy, who smiled and answered the question.
“We met once before... though I can’t quite place the face.” He inhaled deeply through his nose. “But I’m sure we would know them if we saw them.”
“Same here. We’re terrible with memory, but we were the closest friends to this hospital.” She inhaled deeply through her nose.
“I see...” the blue Earth pony said, there was no sign of Fear in her voice. She looked over to one of the security guards and nodded for them to come over. “This officer will escort you through the facility. Do you know what the friend of your friend was brought in here for?”
Vertigo thought for a few seconds. “Mail travels very slowly... we were supposed to see if they’re alright, but the letter said nothing about why they were in here.” She pretended to be scared, and the guard’s presence helped. “W-we just don’t know... all the letter said was that they were admitted here... but we can’t leave our friend in the dark!”
“So you have no idea where to start?”
Mercy trotted around, sniffing the air until a familiar scent pointed him in a general direction. “How about there?” he said, pointing to the hallway on his right.
“I don’t think you want to start there,” the receptionist warned after a brief glance down the hallway.
“Why not?” Mercy asked, hiding his Fear of the answer.
“That’s the Psychiatric Ward,” the blue pony responded quickly.
“We have to start somewhere...” Vertigo reasoned. “It would be rude to keep you any longer.”
The blue pony sighed and turned to the brown Earth pony guard. “Take them down the hall, but don’t let them into any of the... rooms.”
“What if we find our friend...’s friend?” Mercy asked the receptionist, almost forgetting the cover.
“Do you really think they would be admitted for psychiatric care? We haven’t had a new patient in that ward for months now!” Slight Fear could be heard in her voice.
“Mail moves really slow...” Vertigo reaffirmed.
“Not that slow...” the guard answered.
“Can’t we just check and prove you right?” Mercy insisted.
“Fine,” the guard said gruffly. “Follow quickly and don’t make eye contact with any of the patients.”
The three ponies trotted down the hallway. Vertigo and Mercy kept their snouts facing straight ahead, their noses doing the searching. When behind enemy lines, changelings could identify each other through scent. Of course, this still has its limits. And though they wanted to concentrate on scent, their ears would pick up rather disturbing things as well. Screaming, laughing, and even barking in the distance echoed through the hall as they reached the end of the tour. Finally, a strong scent lead them from the side of the guard to a door. The door was reinforced, even more than the others. As the guard turned to join them, Vertigo pleaded innocence.
“What’s behind this door?” She put her ear to it, hearing an animalistic whimpering sound.
“It’s one of our more... stricken patients. Extremely delusional, possibly dangerous.”
“Possibly dangerous?” Mercy questioned. “Everypony is possibly dangerous... why does this one get a reinforced door?”
“She has a history of escaping. We can’t take any chances...”
“Can we please see her?”
“If we can’t, and she is our friend’s friend,” Vertigo added, “you’re going to be spending the next hour or so guiding us through room after room for nothing!”
The brown Earth pony looked at the two and then back at the door. He repeated this process several times before finally sighing, and unlocking it. The door creaked as it opened towards them, and the light yellow pegasus trotted inside. The whimpering she heard was coming from a frightened Earth pony in the corner. She was light blue with a unkept gray mane. The pony trembled until she saw the two ponies. She got up and began barking at them, wagging her pony tail like a dog.
“What the hay...” Mercy said under his breath.
Vertigo trotted closer to her to confirm her suspicions.
“Is it your friend?” the impatient guard asked.
The dog-pony growled at Vertigo, causing her to back up. She turned to the guard.
“Yes. Yes it is my friend...” A tear formed in her eye. The guard was unsure how to react. “Could you... could you give us some time? Alone? Please?” She sniffed as her tear began running down her face.
“Sure... just yell if you need anything.”
Mercy trotted up to his friend’s side. “Do you really know this...” he paused to check that the guard had gone out of hearing range. “...changeling?”
“Night Jumper. Saboteur Elite. Sent on a mission to find changeling defectors in Equestria... she never returned.”
“...how long ago was that?”
“About 400 years ago.”
“That’s longer than you’ve been gone.”
Vertigo nodded as more tears rolled down her face. Night saw her sadness and began whimpering.
“Are we going to take her back like this?” Mercy’s eyes shifted between the two ponies. “It’s that or... kill her.”
“Kill my best friend, or watch her suffer under the labors of the Queen as a Worker?”
“But she’d still be alive...”
“Until an Assassin bumps her off a ledge... or just stabs her.” She turned with cold eyes to her companion. “There’s no way to save her... I don’t know what to do!”
“Let’s just leave her here then. ‘Sabotage the enemy’ by making them take care of a useless changeling.”
Finally tears stopped coming. “What?” There was Rage in her voice.
“That’s what we’ll tell the Queen. She’ll only understand if we call her that...”
Vertigo finally calmed down. “Okay. We’ll leave her here. Go get the guard.” With her tears wiped from her eyes, the pegasus spoke with no emotion.
The guard and Mercy returned to find the yellow pegasus stroking the pony’s gray mane. With one last “Goodbye” and even a “See you again” she turned from what was left of her friend and smiled. She joined the two ponies and, after the guard locked the door again, made their way back to their lobby. Once they reached the receptionist, Mercy trotted up to the desk.
“Can I help you?” she asked, trying to hide irritation.
“I almost forgot... a couple of my friends got into some trouble. Do you have a couple eye-patches I could have?”
Her response was monotonous. “Sorry... I can’t give anypony an eye-patch without an examination first.”
“I see...”
Mercy turned from the desk and trotted out of the hospital with Vertigo. Neither of their objectives were truly completed, but there was nothing more they could do. Mercy’s eyes focused on the dirt beneath his hooves as they trotted slowly toward the Everfree forest.
“Cheer up, Mercy,” Vertigo said. “I’m sure our ‘friend’ doesn't actually need the eye-patches.”
“Did you say you were looking for eye-patches?” a cheerful voice interjected. Mercy raised his head to find a pink Earth pony beaming at him.
“Yeah...” Mercy looked around nervously. “Why do you ask?”
“Well I’ve never met you two around here, and if I’ve never met you that must mean you’re new, but if you two are sad and new then you must be alone, but you’re not alone because you have each other...” The mare continued to rant in her high pitched, cheerful voice while the changelings looked at each other in confusion.
“What about the eye-patches?” Mercy interrupted, his ears growing tired.
The pink pony stopped talking for a second, in which her curly mane continued to bounce as though she were. “Oooh... right!” She paused again. “What eye-patches?”
“Our friend needs an eye-patch,” Vertigo explained, sensing Mercy’s distress. “The hospital couldn’t spare one.”
“Oh, that’s easy!” the pink pony exclaimed with enough happiness to gorge a changeling. “I have eye-patches stashed all over Ponyville, in case of eye emergencies!” She ran to a nearby bush and pulled out an eye-patch. She gave the eye-patch to Vertigo.
“Thank you, miss...” Vertigo replied hesitantly.
“Please, call me Pinkie Pie!”
“Well, thank you, Pinkie Pie!” Vertigo repeated. “Now I’m afraid we’ll have to be going. We’ve acquired all that we’ve come here for.”
“But you just got here...”
“This was never meant to be a holiday. We have to get going or we’ll fall behind schedule.”
“Will you come back?”
“Sure,” Vertigo lied, pulling Mercy as they quickly trotted toward the forest.
“Great! It’s always nice to have new changeling friends!”
The pair stopped in their tracks. They stood there in silence, attempting to comprehend what they just heard. The pink pony continued to talk.
“Maybe I’ll invite Shadow! Oh... but I don’t know where he lives. I know! I’ll go see Twilight and she if she knows! See you later, you guys!”
The sound of hoofsteps carried Pinkie Pie away as the two changelings stood there facing the other direction. Finally, they turned around to find nopony around. They trotted forward again and disappeared into the Everfree forest. With their objectives completed for the most part, they were ready to get some answers. They had just met some of the craziest ponies they would ever meet, and now they would turn to the craziest changeling they’ve ever met.
Chapter 2: Building Blocks of Destruction
The two changelings landed on the cliff, and Foresight came out to meet them. Despite seeing the eye-patch carried by Mercy, the Assassin Elite did not seem very happy. There was no emotion. Vertigo trotted up to him until he was forced to back up a step. The stress of the mission seemed to have worn her patience.
“Alright, you!” she said with Rage in her voice. “I know what you do... you just sit around here... pretending to be worthless but eavesdropping. Always watching. Always listening. It’s time for you to start talking for once in your pathetic life!”
“O spare me, Angel of Death!” Foresight replied, with too much condescension and too little Fear. “I know you are not threatening me; I’m not the only one who hears rumors around here...”
“SHUT UP!” she screamed, ensuring that the Elite couldn’t ramble. “How did the Queen know about the institutionalized changeling ‘defector?’”
“You speak of Night Jumper, yes? Poor gal hasn’t been the same since confronting Discord... and suffering for it.”
“Discord’s been gone for over 1000 years... so you start making sense, or I’ll rip that waste of a tongue right out of your mouth!”
“I don’t respond well to threats,” Foresight warned. “I have as many clear answers as I have regrets. I avoid bringing either topics to light.”
“You’re an Assassin!” she almost screamed. “...ELITE! How can you possibly have a concept of Regret?”
The Assassin Elite seemed to ignore her. “Light destroys darkness, but there will be survivors; rocks create shadow.”
“Are you calling me an idiot?!”
“Is he?” Mercy asked, unsure how Vertigo made any sense of Foresight’s gibberish.
The Executioner sighed. “He’s saying that light is like his answers, our questions are the darkness, and we’re too thick to fully understand it.”
“That’s... one interpretation,” Foresight said smugly.
“Enough of your condescension! What happened to Night Jumper?”
“You want something of value from me, then I must have something of value to me from you,” the Elite explained. “For each eye-patch you provide, you get one true answer.”
“Alright... here!” Mercy yelled, pushing the eye-patch into Foresight’s chest with his magic. “Now... tell me why you saved me.”
“What?!” escaped the snouts of the other changelings.
“You heard me. You killed that one Executioner in cold blood, stole the wings on your back, and are rumored to have killed even more Assassins... so why save me? Why save me knowing that this is the kind of place I would have to live?”
Foresight couldn’t look Mercy in the eye. He held the eyepatch in his hoof and stared at it, judging its true worth. His eyes met the Assassin’s only briefly, then his entire head turned and shook, as if shaking off a bad dream.
“You remind me of someone...” he finally said, turning to look him in the eyes. “Falling... failing to heed common sense... He was an innocent life that I regretted taking.”
“Me... a changeling... reminded you of that?” Mercy wondered.
Foresight smiled with an honest face, something that even Vertigo had not seen before.
“Yes, Breeder.”
He doesn’t know my name... weird.
Foresight’s smile disappeared. His head shook again for some reason. He turned to Vertigo.
“If you brought the other eye-patch, I’ll answer a question for you too...”
“We only got one,” the Executioner explained. “If you want another one, you’ll have to see Pinkie Pie in Ponyville.”
Foresight burst out in laughter for a brief moment before covering his mouth.
“What’s so funny?” Vertigo asked, raising an eyebrow.
“She scared you, didn’t she?”
“Of course... but how do you know of this Earth pony?”
“Sorry, I can only give you one straight answer for the information.”
Vertigo took a short moment to think. “How did the Queen find out about Night Jumper?”
“Remember that changeling defector with the purple coat?”
“Plum.”
“What?”
“The coat was plum, not purple.” She smiled.
Foresight tried to ignore her again. “His name was Shadow. The Queen asked me if I knew anything about him, as some scouts had spotted his little convoy heading our way, and I told her how to get into his head and steal his memories.”
“Why?”
Foresight thought for a couple seconds, then smiled. “To come out on top, one must sacrifice a lot. That means ev’rything.”
“O... right.” Vertigo chuckled. “Only one free answer.”
“I’ve kept you long enough,” Foresight said, smiling. “The Queen will want to see you for your debriefing. ...again.”
“Some things never change...”
“Don’t remind me.” Foresight looked down at his new eyepatch and trotted to the side.
The two changelings made their way down the stairs to the Throne Room. The doors opened to the Queen on her throne. Her smile was ominous; she expected the news of their failure. She spoke as they trotted closer; her voice echoed in its condescending tone:
“I see you approach me empty hoofed. Did you dispose of our little defector?”
“It was Night Jumper,” the Executioner answered. “A lost Saboteur Elite from--”
“That wasn’t what I asked of you, Vertigo.”
“She had gone completely insane, your highness,” Mercy added. “There’s no way they’ll get any information from her, and she’d only be a burden if we brought her back here...”
“I don’t remember an opinion being part of your briefing...”
“We just thought it would be more strategic to keep her there!” Mercy pleaded. “She’ll weigh down the ponies, allowing us an advantage!”
The Queen smiled. Mercy couldn’t tell if his argument had changed anything. He turned to Vertigo, only to see a tear roll down her cheek.
Mercy turned back toward the Queen. “About my promotion...?”
“Declined.”
“But a true Assassin would have just killed her! Doesn’t this show that--”
“SILENCE!” she yelled, raising a hoof at the Assassin. Her gaze lifted from the two changelings and centered on the door. A changeling stood there, with a familiar stance and smile to match. “What do you want?”
“You wanted me to report any more happenings? Well, I have something that was overlooked.” The source of the voice trotted into view. It was Foresight.
“Enlighten me...” she condescended.
“I have foreseen the fall of one of Midnight Masquerade’s friends... a pegasus named Thunder Sword. He has been slain in battle by a group of Assassins who, sadly enough, won’t be coming back to the Hive.”
“You intrude on a debriefing to inform me of a possible failure?”
“An opportunity. The pegasus worked for a classified section of the Equestrian military; Midnight is yet unaware of these events.” Foresight smiled as the Queen contemplated the idea.
“So, we send in a team to inform him, which will weaken his resolve, allowing for his capture.”
“A great idea!” the Elite said, almost optimistically.
“Of course it is! All of my ideas are... Now, who should go on this mission?” She turned to Foresight. “Any ideas?”
“I’m sure whatever decision you make is the right one!”
“I asked for an opinion, not a fact,” the Queen said harshly.
The Elite stretched in an attempt to work out the stress. “Umm... well... Midnight’s got an amazing--no, a pretty good memory. I’d send someone who specializes in stuff that he is not familiar with, such as breeding.”
The Queen looked Mercy in the eye. “Well, then... looks like a new opportunity indeed.” Mercy’s eyes met the Queen’s empty stare and tried to turn back to Foresight for some support. “...Mmm...Breeder!” The “Breeder” stopped and looked back at her. “Go get your superior officer, Regulator. Tell him I have a job for him... and a promotion.”
Mercy left the changelings with the Queen... and the door open. As he trotted slowly up the stairs, he could overhear a short conversation.
“You didn’t... we had a deal, Chrysalis!” Foresight’s voice cried out.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Foresight. I can assure you that I did no such thing!” the Queen’s voice responded.
“I explicitly told you to never call a changeling that!”
“What’s wrong with ‘Regulator?’”
Mercy chuckled to himself and ignored the rest of the conversation. He had to deliver the news to Regulator soon or the Queen might find some other demeaning job for him.
Chapter 3: The Counter
Vertigo and Mercy waited by the armory while Regulator and Foresight finished their meeting with the Queen. Without any new missions being given to them, they were told simply to wait. For some reason, Vertigo seemed to be avoiding his eye contact.
“What’s wrong?”
“How the Queen treats all of us,” she replied, still avoiding eye contact. “It’s no wonder there are so many defectors.”
“But how many survive?”
“What are you two saying about the Queen?” an unfamiliar force interrupted. The two changelings turned to find a Soldier wearing unfamiliar armor.
“Who are you?” Vertigo asked.
“I should ask you the same question...”
“Listen, Soldier!” she stood up and began staring the changeling down. “Not only did I ask first, but I am an Executioner with several hundred recorded kills. And that’s just griffins! Creatures twice the size of you and twice as deadly.”
“I... I see.” The changeling gulped. “I’m sorry... I only arrived here last night with the others. We’ve been gone for about 1000 years.”
“1000 years...” Vertigo mouthed in contemplation. She shook herself out of it and continued to stare at the subordinate. “And where have you been all this time?”
“A faraway city, now a mere shadow of its former self.”
“How far away?” Mercy asked. “Which way?”
“Well...” the changeling scratched his head. “How you say? North?”
“The Griffins are north of here...” Vertigo said. “Well, Northeast of these Badlands.” She looked at the Soldier. “What form had you taken?”
The changeling breathed in and green fire concealed his form. He was now a strange-looking pony. His eyes were slit like a Manipulators, much like the Queen’s even. His ears seemed to have excess fur on them, and he had bat-like wings spread from his sides. Vertigo looked over the pony, unsure where she had seen the features before. Another strange pegasus-shaped changeling joined him.
“And who are you?” the new one asked.
“I am Vertigo. Executioner.”
“Your voice is a bit high-pitched...”
“I’m a female Executioner,” she explained with slight irritation.
“You think you’re as good as our Queen?” The pair chuckled. One of them looked into the eyes of Vertigo glaring at them. “I suppose there’s no harm done,” one explained, straightening up.
“So how did you guys find your way here?”
“The Queen called to us from afar. Her time is at hoof! We will--”
The other jabbed his friend with his hoof. “That line’s overdone.”
The sound of large doors slamming shut and wings fluttering shook the changelings out of their conversation. Regulator appeared at Mercy’s side, beaming and shaking with excitement.
“I’m out of here, Breeder!” he exclaimed with newfound joy. “I’ve been promoted to Breeder Elite! The bastard was right!”
The two strange pegasi exchanged a glance. “What ‘bastard?’”
“Foresight...” Regulator said, barely turning around. He obviously didn’t care much for newcomers.
“O good,” one of them answered, breathing a sigh of relief. “For a second we thought Midnight Masquerade was still alive!”
“Of course Midnight’s still alive!” the Breeder Elite said, turning around to face the pegasi this time. “My main objective is capturing him! What made you think he was dead?”
“The pony princess of the Moon announced that he had been executed. Makes sense it was just a farce to keep us changelings scared!”
“It actually did about the opposite,” the other added. “After what he did to Night Jumper...”
“What?!” Vertigo demanded to know.
“O... you were that other...”
“Yes,” the Executioner admitted. “What happened to her?”
“We’re pretty sure Midnight...” the one’s voice trailed off in a sad tone.
“...killed her,” the other added, having more courage than his partner.
“Well then... I suppose Foresight and I will have to have a little chat then.”
“About what?” the ever familiar voice sounded from behind the group.
“Well, what did the Queen say?” Regulator asked Foresight as he trotted forward.
“She kindly obliged. I hate to say we are even. So... thank you, I guess.”
Breeder Elite smiled. “Great! Do you have an assignment yet?”
“As I have foreseen,” he turned to Mercy. “Breeder, you will join me. A long quest awaits.”
“Why would I join you?” the Assassin asked him.
“Because I’ve been promoted back to my original stance. I’m an Executioner again!” Foresight revealed, smiling. The smile faded quickly and his tone grew somber. “...thanks to the newly dubbed Elite’s testimony.”
“Great... another insane Executioner...” murmured one of the pegasi.
“What did you just say about me?” Foresight said, trotting forward to stand between the two pegasi and the three other changelings.
“Not you...” one of them pleaded. “It was Midnight Masquerade. Completely insane changeling.”
“How would you judge his intentions?”
“What?” they both asked.
“In times of hardship, it is a challenge to choose,” Foresight took a breath. “...’tween good and evil.”
“Well, he was definitely out to kill us changelings like some deranged freak,” one of them answered.
Foresight stomped towards the two pegasi. With a single spell both of their changeling forms were back. He ripped their armor off with his magic. They both pleaded for mercy as they lifted off of the ground. Regulator looked on at the spectacle, laughing to himself. Foresight levitated them over the pit. Vertigo held Mercy back, unsure of what had upset the male Executioner. With a slight tilt of the head, the two ensnared changelings’ wings snapped off. They screamed in futility, and were then let go. Their screams echoed quieter and quieter as they fell before being cut off by a loud thud. Regulator peeked over the edge, putting his ear out to try to hear any whining. He laughed at the silence and trotted up the steps to the Breeding Room to prepare for departure.
“Mercy,” Vertigo whispered, with slight fear in her voice. “I want you to follow after Regulator, just get to the room and stay there. I’ll distract Foresight.”
Mercy nodded, and Vertigo confronted Foresight.
“What has gotten into you?! What happened to the changeling I once knew? The one who would help the weak and the new...”
“You think I could have sympathized with those two?” Foresight lifted a piece of their armor from the ground with his magic. “They were not worth the Lunar armor on their back!” The green aura flashed and swirled as the armor was reduced an unrecognizable mass. “I don’t know what you’re so upset about,” he said, horn still aglow. “There’s a hundred more where that came from!” A focused beam from his horn further reduced the metal to ash, which gently landed on the ground.
Mercy used the bright lights as a distraction to try to sneak past the commotion. As he passed behind him, Foresight’s head turned and his green eye focused on the blues of Mercy. A high pitched voice caught his ears and turned his head back around.
“What do have against Mercy!?” Vertigo screamed at him. Mercy trotted quickly away, only getting Foresight’s attention for a split second longer. “He’s an innocent Assassin just as...” her voice grew quiet in Fear of those around them. She leaned in and whispered to Foresight, “...just as oppressed by the Queen as we have been.”
“He’s dead already. There is nothing you can do... I have foreseen it.”
“But you said he was ‘the Unforeseen!’”
Foresight sighed. He looked pulled out the eyepatch they had given him and stared at it for a few moments, spacing out into thought. “...I didn’t realize...” He shook his head and put the patch away. “I have to go. I’m escorting Regulator and his team into Canterlot; if I don’t help them get inside, then I’ll never be able to get in myself.”
Vertigo crooked her head, but decided not to question it. She nodded in compliance. “Just go...”
Foresight turned and trotted up the stairs, meeting Regulator and Mercy at the door. He turned to Mercy first.
“I must go with Regulator. If the mission fails, I’ve got a back up plan that I will send to you. If the mission is a success... well, what I do doesn’t matter.”
He turned with a frown to Regulator and simply nodded. The two trotted up the steps to the light outside, where two Assassins were waiting. They spread their wings and disappeared into the horizon.
All was quiet for a week.
Chapter 4: Deep Scars
Mercy trotted down the steps, in no hurry to get to the throne room. As he passed the armory, he could see Vertigo with yet another team of Assassins preparing for their next mission. It was always a new team. Her last team was probably lazing about somewhere, just idle while Vertigo never got a chance to stop working. All of these thoughts passed through Mercy’s mind, but were not enough to take his mind off of what Foresight wanted him to tell the Queen. There was a complication in the mission; not only did Regulator fail to capture Midnight Masquerade, but the defector killed him and his team. This mysterious changeling seemed more deadly every time something came up about him... Mercy wondered why Foresight was so obsessed with the guy. He shook the thought out of his mind, realizing a darker truth that resurfaced in his brain. Foresight said that even worse than the murder of Regulator and his team was the fact that Midnight had gotten ahold of the battle plans for the second Changeling invasion of Equestria. Mercy knew there had to be a reason for Midnight’s “War Hero” stature in the Hive, but had no idea how effective the guy really was until now. He continued trotting down the steps, unsure of what the Queen would do. Finally, he reached those dreaded double doors, and they slowly opened to him. He trotted inside, unsure of his future.
“What news do you have, Mercy?” the Queen asked. Her condescending tone was lighter than usual, as if actually expecting something from the Assassin.
“Foresight told me to inform you that Regulator has ultimately failed his mission,” he said, with Fear in his voice.
“What is the damage?” Her voice was commanding.
“Regulator’s dead. The two Assassins are dead. And Midnight has obtained our invasion plans.”
“Ah... the Counter,” she mumbled to herself. “I doubt Masquerade understands what he has gotten a hold of... but it won’t be long before he figures it out,” she explained to Mercy. “This gives us time to prepare. Tell Foresight to keep an eye on Midnight.” She grinned as if a sinister thought had sprung to mind. “As a token of my appreciation, you are promoted to Breeder. Get a team of Assassins on standby and add that if Masquerade were to try anything, you and that team are ready. I can’t have any of my changelings going against their own race, especially not in the middle of an invasion!”
“Yes, ma’am...” the Breeder called Mercy said as he turned to trot out of the throne room.
“And one more thing...” the Queen said in an almost polite tone. “Don’t tell Vertigo any of this... she has enough to worry about with her current mission already in motion. This news should not affect her in any way for the time being so don’t worry about her.”
“Of course, ma’am.” Mercy said, almost completely sure that she was lying. He trotted outside and began climbing the steps once again.
Vertigo’s missions have always been excuses to keep her outside of the Hive. Behind her back he had heard the voices of changelings always saying how useless she was. Officers in the pony military were almost always male, so a female Executioner was seen as a waste of talent. As Mercy trotted past the now empty armory, he was almost relieved. Though part of him felt guilty that he wasn’t able to warn the Executioner of the enemy’s new strength, he wasn’t sure he wanted to bare any bad news. He simply hoped she had what it took to defeat whatever obstacles the ponies would put in her way. He spread his wings and flew to the top of the Hive. Trotting outside, he found the lazy Assassins who had no responsibilities.
“Who wants a chance to kill Midnight Masquerade?” he asked them.
Two of the changelings simply laughed and laid back down. The other three got up and trotted over curiously.
“Midnight Masquerade is alive,” Mercy explained. “If you want a chance to take him down, just stick by me. I’ll relay the orders between us and the Executioner.”
“And who are you in all of this?” one of them asked.
“I’m the Breeder on this mission.”
“And when do we strike?” another asked.
“I’m not sure... I’m not as gifted as our Executioner, Foresight.”
The changelings looked at each other. Even the couple basking in the sunlight were unsure of how the bastard changeling could lead such a major mission. They looked at the Breeder, seeing his promise as a second in command, but also as someone who actually respected the freak that had been guarding this entrance for so long.
“A chance to finally break some bones?” The Assassin smiled. “I’m in.”
The other two changelings backed off, but the two basking ones took their places. “This mission should be simple if they’ve got that freak leading us...”
Mercy ignored their remark and told the three to stick around the entrance as much as possible until the time to act was revealed.
Foresight, if you can hear me... I’ve got a team of three Assassins and myself as a Breeder here as back up. Please respond.
“Three Assassins? And a Breeder?” Painful laughter echoed through Mercy’s brain. “I have foreseen it all. I told Regulator you guys would be going through Everfree Forest; go there covertly and ambush the team sent to intercept you. Do not bring weapons, common magic can kill these ponies easily. The attack will begin in approximately 24 hours. Be ready.”
Will the attack be successful?
“As Nightmare Moon would say: nothing shall interfere with our plans.”
Who’s Nightmare Moon?
“The lesser sibling. Jealousy is dangerous. It’s what makes monsters.”
Sibling of who?
“The sovereign leader of the ponies, of course! What do they teach you in training?!”
Was it a little brother?
“QUIET! Her name was Luna. Little Sister. Enough questions, Breeder...”
My name is Mercy.
“...”
Is there something wrong with my name?
“...everything.”
What?
“You had so much promise... The Unforeseen! But no... you have to be Mercy.”
You know what’s going to happen to me?
“I have foreseen terrible things. Your death is one of them.”
Will I die on this mission?
“I cannot tell you that.”
Why?
“Because once you know your own future, it cannot be changed. Knowing another’s, however...”
So you’re trying to save me? Again?
“You do not deserve what will happen to you... but you will be given a second chance. ...maybe.”
What’s that supposed to mean?
“I’m sorry, my once unforeseen friend. I must go now... there is much preparation required for this next step.”
Mercy’s head grew silent. He turned to the Assassins, who were staring at him in confusement and awe. He told the three about their mission.
“No weapons?” one of them responded. “In the Everfree Forest? I’d ask if he were crazy, but I already know...”
“He’s foreseen this fight, you know,” Mercy explained. “Just as he foresaw that defector’s arrival.”
“Yeah, sure he did,” one of them replied with obvious sarcasm. The others chuckled.
The changelings made their way to the Everfree forest, unsure of what lie ahead of them. Mercy trusted in Foresight’s guidance, and the Executioner returned the favor with constant updates on the group’s movements and weaknesses.
“A storm burnt the wing of one of the pegasi... he’ll be first victim. His coat is blue.”
Any other targets of interest?
“There is another changeling defector present. Born of the Elite.”
Elite? You mean Regulator.
“Affirmative. Without formal magic training, he is powerless.”
Alright, so we’ll target the changelings with magic.
“No. Midnight is too powerful and will probably kill anyone who attacks him like that.”
Well, how are we going to tell them apart?
“I will see about a sabotage. An allergy will mask his sense of smell, and coat him in green.”
Wait... how do you know what Masquerade’s allergic to?
“Some would call it an obsession, others call it intelligence. I call it vanity.”
O right, because you want to take the guy’s place...
“No, because it’s worthless information.”
The Breeder silenced his mind and relayed the identifying details of the changeling defectors as well as their soon-to-be first blood. One of the Assassins immediately volunteered to take the first kill, and a short quarrel ensued among them. Upon thinking about the situation, an answer appeared in his mind from his superior.
“Hey!” he yelled, breaking up the fight. “Whoever gets the first kill won’t get any greater honor but you won’t a get a single extra kill either. Everyone else gets to work on the soldiers.”
One was singled out from the others and forced to take the role.
“Sometimes I regret killing those guys... their lack of intelligence is almost entertaining.”
You fit the Executioner role pretty well then.
“...”
It’s a shame you don’t tell me how much time we have to converse.
“So what’s your role in all of this?” the frontline Assassin asked.
“Well,” Mercy stalled...
“The military chef seems weak. He’s your target, Mercy. It’s the smallest tent. I predict an easy victory with minimal damage.”
“I’m going after the chef. He sounds like an easy target,” he explained to the changeling.
“You don’t like challenges?”
“I don’t like murder...”
“No wonder you’re called ‘Mercy!’” he laughed.
With the rising sun, the changelings found the camp where their leader was staying. They could not see Foresight, but he somehow knew they had arrived. They saw a blue pegasus with a wounded wing, and Mercy gestured to the Assassin. Before the pony could trot into the safety of a tent, a loud cry of the Assassin surprised him, followed by the sound of bones breaking as he crushed the pegasus’s spine. The other soldiers appeared from their tents in an attempt to help, and the other Assassins flew in for the kills. Looking for the frontline Assassin, Mercy only saw a pile of ash. A pink Earth pony medic rushed out of the tent to the fallen pony’s side, only to be met by a one-eyed unicorn wearing a familiar eyepatch. They both looked at the pony’s body and then to the ash.
“This was foreseen... finish it.”
Foresight shook himself out of the psychic trance and pulled the medic back into the tent. Mercy stood alone in the forest, watching his team fighting the soldiers and winning. He found the smallest tent, and felt uneasy about his first duel with a pony. He relaxed and reminded himself of the intel that Foresight had given to him. He charged, his horn aglow and struck the pony inside. The orange Earth pony got back up, his back to the changeling. The chef spun around faster than the changeling could react. With the swipe of a large butcher knife there was burning pain from the tip of the changeling’s snout to his cheek. Hooves lifted Mercy’s upper body up, allowing the blade in the pony’s mouth to slash the changeling’s chest. The chef threw the fallen Breeder out of the camp and left him to die.
How could this have gone so wrong...
“And how are you still alive? I thought the chef would have killed you by now...”
What? You said the fight was going to be easy!
“For him...”
Him? What about us?! What about your team?
“Midnight killed that first Assassin, is killing another one, and will figure out who I am and kill me. This was never a victory for the team...”
Then why did you wrap me into this?
“I couldn’t have you interfering with my plans.”
Your plans? What happened to OUR plans?
“I was using the royal we then... just like Nightmare Moon used to.”
You bastard...
“Don’t remind me.”
Do you have any idea how much this hurts?
“Goodbye, Mercy. If I see you again... it will be too soon.”
Mercy attempted to trot away from it all. The pain is his face and chest hindered him, and he hoped that it was not marking his demise and he pushed himself closer to the Hive inch by inch. His wings spread and slowly carried him through the forest. He did not know where he was going, but at the moment it didn’t seem to matter. He saw a cave in the distance and a feeling of Peace came over him. He flew inside, unaware of its inhabitants. He turned to find several other changelings in the cave with him. A familiar, high pitched voice greeted him:
“What are you doing here, Mercy?” Vertigo asked, shocked at his wounds.
“Foresight... he predicted our defeat... and did nothing,” Mercy explained, weak and out of breath from his afflictions.
“I should have known he was up to something...” she said, shaking her head. “I’m going back to the Hive to report this to the Queen.” She put a hoof on Mercy’s shoulder. “You stay here and rest.”
She turned from the changeling and left with her team to go to the Hive. This left Mercy to feed off of the Love of life in the Everfree forest. She returned after about a day, with news from the Queen: Foresight is now wanted for death with a reward almost equal to Midnight Masquerade’s, and a full scale invasion of Equestria’s capital is underway.
It was time to invade Canterlot.
Chapter 5: When That Great Tower Falls
The two changelings stood at the entrance to the cave, waiting for further instructions and reinforcements. Screams echoed from the direction of the camp, and strange lights flickered from the tops of the trees.
“Looks like Midnight found him...” Mercy observed, still weak from the previous day’s attacks.
“If we see that bastard again, it’ll be too soon.” Vertigo was hard to read... a strange mixture of Anger and Sadness.
“Something wrong?” her friend asked.
“I just never expected him to turn on us like that,” the Executioner explained. “He’s never abused his gift before.”
“Why doesn’t anyone else believe he can see the future?”
“The Queen. She believes him completely but fears for her own popularity should his talent be recognized by everyone else in the Hive.”
“I’d ask why he’s trying to kill me, but I feel like she’s to blame for that too.”
“That’s a much harder accusation to make.”
“Why’s that?”
“Foresight told me that he liked you from the start because he didn’t truly recognize you.” She smiled, turning from Mercy and looking out over the forest. “It was good to know that he was open enough to not fear the unforeseen.” She turned back to Mercy. “It hurts to think that knowing your name would turn him against you...”
“What difference does my name make?”
“When he learned you were called ‘Mercy,’ he became extremely agitated. Turns out he foresaw the death of ‘an assassin called Mercy.’” She sighed. “His obsession with Midnight Masquerade and his lack of patience with inevitable events makes me question his true integrity now.”
“...did he say how?” Mercy asked, shyly.
A frown creased the Executioner’s face. “No. He was worried I would tell you, making it an inevitability.”
“So he tries to stop me from dying... by sending me to my death?”
Vertigo laughed. “I guess so.” The smile quickly faded.
The sound of wings interrupted the changelings’ conversation as an army appeared at the cave. The Queen herself appeared before the changelings, and gave them new orders: The two of them would have to find a way into Canterlot and take down the shield.
“But how are we supposed to be able to take a forcefield down?” Mercy asked.
“That is your problem; I’m sure you’ll figure something out.” The Queen chuckled and trotted to the back of the cave.
The two changelings made their way out of the cave and to the outer perimeter of Canterlot. They trotted cautiously up to the shield, unsure of how they would breach it. A touch of the shield felt like it was made of rubber, and the changeling hooves bounced back toward their owners.
“I hear a spell similar to this defeated the Swarm a few months before my return,” Vertigo said, prodding the shield with her hoof just to see the fluctuations in the texture.
“You should stop touching it like that,” Mercy warned. “Its purpose is to warn the ponies of intruders, and if they see the wall moving like that...”
Vertigo turned her head to her companion, smiling with her hoof still poking at the shield. “That’s exactly why I’m doing it.” The smile faded. “Now, don your pony form. Somepony must have seen the spell fluctuate.”
Three royal guards investigated the breach in the shield to find a white Earth pony and a griffin. The griffin’s clenched claw was beating against their precious shield, as if knocking on a door.
“What are you doing here?” the unicorn guard asked.
“Please help us!” Vertigo yelled, feigning distress. “There are changelings after us!”
The guards looked at one another, then attempted to peek around the griffin.
“Please! We don’t have much time!” she screamed, putting a stop to the soldier’s curiosity.
After a short discussion amongst the soldiers, the unicorn guard opened a small rift in the shield. The griffin and the pony stepped through.
“Are you two alright?” the unicorn asked.
“Thanks to you... yes,” Vertigo said, pretending to be out of breath.
“So you saw the changelings?” the unicorn asked. He removed his helmet, revealing a light yellow coat and a lime green mane. The mane alternated in lime green and light green. His brown eyes looked into the eyes of the pony.
“Yes,” Mercy answered shyly, not used to answering questions while undercover.
“Did any of them have a purple coat and a black and red mane?”
“You mean Shadow?” Mercy asked, wondering how a common guard could know the smart defector that had visited them a few weeks ago.
The unicorn chuckled. “Nah... his name’s Midnight Masquerade.”
“What!?” Vertigo said, interrupting the guard and distracting them from Mercy’s shocked countenance. Realizing everypony was now looking at her, she calmed down. “Well... that explains a lot.”
“If Midnight was the changeling you saw, then you should be okay.”
“Anything but...” Mercy said, remembering the death of his team. “I mean... we haven’t seen him recently. There were several hostile changelings rushing at us, so we had to escape. But now we’re safe.”
“Did they use any weapons? I hear they use weapons...”
“Mirage!” a booming voice yelled from a distance. A taller unicorn trotted into view, obviously a superior officer. “Are you hassling refugees?”
“I prefer the term ‘interviewing,’ sir.”
“Interrogations? You have no right to question these two!”
“But the two have seen the changelings, I just wanted to know...”
“You need to get your head out of the fiction section and into the real world!”
“Changelings are not fictitious, sir...”
“I never said they were! But you can’t go around asking about changelings that don’t exist!”
“You’re one to talk...”
“Excuse me!?”
“You’re asking about the flying feathers I give...”
“If you weren’t at the top of your class, Mirage, I would kick your sorry flank to the street in a heartbeat! Once I get a chance to transfer you out of my troop, I’m taking it.” He gestured the three guards away, and Mirage reluctantly followed orders. The officer turned to the griffin and pony. “Sorry you had to see that... now, would you like to report what you saw to the princess?”
“We have a choice?” Vertigo asked, sounding as confused as she felt.
“Of course! I’m not sure how they do things where you come from...”
“Which way to the castle?” Mercy asked.
The officer gestured toward the tallest tower visible. The two changelings thanked him for the information and made their way there. Inside the throne room was a large crowd of ponies in between them and the princess. Rather than wait in line for a while, they decided to take a short walk through the Canterlot Sculpture Gardens. The grass beneath their hooves was confusing Mercy; it seemed too soft to actually be grass. Vertigo’s eyes were on the statues, almost as though she were searching for something.
“And not a single image of a griffin...”
“Is that why you wanted to see this place?” Mercy asked her, barely able to take his attention off of the grass.
Vertigo didn’t respond, causing Mercy to look up and see her staring at a very strange statue. He trotted closer, seeing that the sculpture was of some kind of monster. It had parts of many creatures all put together, and the only thing remotely pony-ish about it was the face of the monster. The strangest part was the pose of the beast: it looked scared.
“The more time I spend in this culture, the more it confuses me,” Vertigo said, looking over the details of the sculpture. She turned to Mercy. “What do you think it means?”
“Judging by the fact that it has pieces of monsters all over its body, I’d say it symbolizes the worst enemy of the ponies... or all of them. Probably all of them. The fact that it’s scared shows how little these ponies have to fear. It’s almost like a gargoyle or something.”
The griffin chuckled. “That’s an interesting analysis. Now do you want to know what it really is?” she asked the pony, smiling.
Mercy nodded his head, unsure if he really wanted to know.
She looked over the statue. “This monster is called Discord. He is the physical embodiment of chaos and disharmony. He transcends most forms of reality and has wanted nothing more than see this world burn.” She turned to her friend. “He is also the king of the changelings.”
“What?”
“His chaotic magic was a major influence on the spells used by his subjects. Eventually they turned formless and began to hunger for love instead of pony food. We burned in our own personal Tartarus thanks to this monster... it wasn’t until the pony royalty turned him to stone that we were able to become an independent race.” She smiled. “That moment is remembered as the first great fall of the changelings. Seeing our king fall caused a lot of defection. Foresight eventually returned to the Hive, but Midnight never came back.”
“You say the ponies turned him to stone... does that mean that this sculpture is really... him?”
“Yes,” Vertigo said in an almost emotionless tone.
“Why would they keep him among common statues?”
“Why does the Queen keep me on tedious, if not overly dangerous, missions? Why do our Workers live at the bottom of the Hive--the place we put our trash?” Vertigo turned to Mercy. “Because there is a surface to every society, and the darker side is always hidden. The Queen tells us we are better than the ponies, but how can we be when the ponies destroyed the monster that made us?”
“Foresight would have said the same thing...”
“Foresight would have used a more cryptic wording... he always loved complicating things.” She chuckled, turning away from both her friend and the statue. “You know... there was a time when he was more open. It was only after a few years after I met him that he started going insane. He told me about Discord, since I wasn’t around to experience it, and he was very polite compared to most Executioners. He even sided with me when others began to mock my feminine pony form. Then he started losing it... before long he started having night terrors and visions of the future. I caught him staring at the many cocoons in the Hatchery one night. He reached through the goop and pulled a book out of a dead pony’s hooves.” She turned back to her friend. “It was a poetry book. Foreign in nature... from a faraway land. None of them rhymed, but he said there was a simplicity to them that could calm him down. They were called ‘Haiku.’”
“Never heard of it...”
“It’s strange to say the least. Basically, you start with five syllables then move on to seven, then end with five again. He would always speak in Haiku whenever he felt a lot of pressure.” She smiled in remembrance. “I never did find out where he learned to read pony writing... the book was in a text that changelings his age couldn’t recognize.”
“Nothing about Foresight ever made sense,” Mercy admitted.
“He’s definitely not an ordinary changeling. I’d like to think that we’re not either.”
“You’re beginning to hate our own race?”
“Just the Queen. But there is nothing I can do... except follow orders and hope for the best.”
Vertigo sighed, and Mercy looked back toward the castle. The two changelings began to make their way back inside when they noticed a pink beam of magic striking the city’s shield, empowering it.
“That’s the source of the shield?” Mercy asked, looking for a second opinion.
“Must be. Let’s seek it out!”
The two changelings made their way toward the source of the light. The beam disappeared very shortly after it strengthened the shield, so they galloped by memory. At the spot they found a Royal Guard captain, alone. He rested on a bench in golden armor, exhausted.
“We must be sure that he is the source,” Vertigo whispered to Mercy.
“I have an idea...” the pony said, trotting out of cover. The captain looked up, and crooked his head as he wondered who was approaching him. “Excuse me, sir... but are you responsible for this amazing shield protecting us all?”
The white unicorn smiled. “Yeah, I am. It’s my duty to make sure this city is protected.”
Mercy smiled back, exposing his fangs. “Thank you for making my life so much easier.”
The Assassin spat his goop on the unicorn, ensnaring him. The Executioner looked to the sky and, after a short while, watched the shield drop completely. They stood by the guard for almost an hour until the Queen’s invasion force finally appeared. It would not be long until the capital fell. The two changelings fled, leaving the captain to slowly work his way out of the goop with no time to warn his troops.
“Just keep moving! It won’t be much longer before one of his inferiors shows up,” Vertigo reasoned as they made their way back into the castle.
“What if he catches up to us?” Mercy asked, as he reluctantly trotted with her.
As the Executioner galloped, she looked toward the sky and the thousands of changelings swooping in. “I think he’ll have bigger problems than a couple of changelings whose job is done.”
“Then where are we going?”
“The Queen wants us in the throne room; that’s where the strongest and most final line of the pony defense will be.”
Mercy continued to lag a little behind, until he turned to see the white unicorn guard chasing after him. The two quickly made their way into the throne room, using their wings to fly over the evacuating ponies. This only slowed the pursuer down, as he pushed through the crowds and joined his fellow soldiers in their defense. Two larger ponies about as big as the Queen attempted to blast the Swarm with powerful magic, but the number of changelings was overwhelming. A while passed and the ponies did not give up. The throne room doors swung open and six ponies and two changelings joined the fray. Changeling reinforcements swarmed in as well, overpowering the ponies and gathering the survivors into the middle of the room. With their quest at an end, the two changelings trotted out of the throne room. Their place was taken by the Queen herself, who would send the final blow to the pony’s government. A complete takeover of the castle was underway; next would be the rest of Canterlot, then all of Equestria. Mercy stopped to admire some of the stained glass while Vertigo continued out and into the gardens once again. Her hooves cushioned by the green grass, she noticed a dark brown stallion with a black mane looking over the statue that was Discord. Sniffing the once fresh air, Vertigo realized that this pony was actually a changeling in disguise. She trotted closer to him.
“What are you doing out here? ...and in disguise?” she asked.
The changeling’s brown head turned so that he could see her with his left eye. “Why should I answer? I should ask you the same thing, Executioner.” A smirk creased the left side of his stallion face.
“Foresight?! I don’t why I keep mourning your death when you just keep coming back!”
“You cannot expect me to die when I still have a job to do here.”
He smiled, turning to face her. This revealed a large “scar” over his right eye: a hole in his disguise through which his true changeling eye could be seen. Areas where his changeling skin met his pony form was lit up in bright green, the color of changeling magic. The pattern the bright green made was that of an explosion.
“What happened to you?” Vertigo asked, concerned and almost disgusted by the scar.
“This is that battle scar I had mentioned earlier. It’s why I need an eye-patch,” Foresight explained. “I got this a long time ago... even before my servitude to Discord. Then some idiot thought it’d be fun to feed me to some dragons, and the scar opened up again.”
“Does an eye-patch cover that whole thing up?”
“Yes... but I can’t see through an eye-patch.” He chuckled to himself. “I’m cursed.”
“The only curse is the fact that you’re a changeling!” she said, wondering if it wasn’t true about herself.
“You’re starting to think like me!” He beamed. “...well, like Midnight. I’m a bit more... complex,” he added, having a difficult time finding a good adjective.
“Foresight,” Vertigo said in a somber tone. “You said a few weeks back that the Hive would crumble to dust. Now, I never wanted to believe you, but there was always something that did. Perhaps part of me still trusts you just as you trusted me those centuries ago... back when I was rising through the ranks and you only trusted that I was still your friend.” She sighed. “What I’m getting at is... the Hive. Is it actually going to fall? Or were you alluding to this mission we’ve just completed? Is the Queen finally going to rule Equestria?”
“That’s what I like about you, Vertigo,” Foresight said, smiling and dodging the questions. “You complicate the simple things and simplify the complicated things!”
“Answer the questions!” Vertigo almost screamed, not taking “no” for an answer.
“Do you really believe that being a changeling is like a curse?”
“...I don’t know,” she admitted.
“They say our ancestors became something greater than the ponies...”
“And you say that you were one of the first.”
“Well, in a stretch of the term, one could put Midnight into my ancestry.”
“Midnight’s your father?!” she gasped. “But how does that even work...”
“Such a simple realization... I expected no less. I have said thousands of times how I do not belong here,” he added, trotting closer to Vertigo.
He put a hoof to her shoulder and leaned in so that his mouth was next to her ear. He whispered quietly the Where and the How of his illegitimate birth, as well as his plans for the future. He stepped away from the changeling, chuckling at her shocked reaction.
“So many times they called me a bastard... and all along they were correct.”
“But why tell me this?” she asked, shaking her head as if wanting to forget what she had heard. “...if it is true, why reveal it to me?”
“Two reasons: the first is the Trust that you had mentioned earlier, and the second is the fact that Mercy is dead.”
Vertigo frowned.
“He is dead, right?” Foresight asked, becoming uneasy. The Executioner remained silent. “Vertigo, answer me!”
A loud crash from inside the castle would answer a few questions. A shockwave of magic flashed through the walls, revealing Foresight’s changeling form completely and pulling the two changelings into the castle with enough force to lift them into the air screaming. The thousands of other changelings were screaming and swirling too as they were pulled into the light. With a flash, the changelings found themselves teleported back to their Hive. But there were too many occupants now, and too much noise for the walls to hold. Being within the first thousand to fall in, Foresight and Vertigo climbed the stairs from the bottom in a race for the exit. The stairs cracked and crumbled from being bombarded by the thousands of screams. Despite it all, Foresight managed to make it to the top with Vertigo just behind him. She turned to find that Mercy had followed her up the stairs, and turned back to see a spell just before its impact. She fell a few feet down to a ledge below, and Foresight flew out of the crumbling Hive as Mercy tried to help her up.
“Just leave me! You have to stop Foresight!”
“Stop him from what?”
“He told me everything! He’s going to kill himself before the end of the year!”
“What is it to me if he lives or dies?”
“He saved your life twice now, Mercy! And only tried to take it once, so you still owe him! Please... you have to find him and talk him out of it!”
“Alright,” Mercy obliged, seeing its importance to Vertigo.
A large beam of magic shot up toward the ceiling, destroying it. Mercy flew quickly through what was left of the stairs, dodging the new rubble, and making his way out of the Hive as it collapsed. From the sky, he saw two ponies arrive. He recognized one as the deserter from earlier: Midnight Masquerade. The Queen attempted to stop their escape, knocking out Midnight’s friend and blasting Midnight’s right eye with a strong beam of magic. It didn’t stop him, and another spell destroyed the entry of the Hive, trapping the Queen beneath the collapsing rock. ...along with Vertigo. He looked up to see Foresight also hovering at this altitude, as if waiting for something. He turned to see Mercy there, and his face filled with Rage. His horn glowed green as he chased the Assassin away from the Hive. A successful shot sent Mercy spiraling down into the Everfree forest, crash landing with a broken wing. He looked to see a smiling Foresight flying back toward the Hive. Mercy got back up and began trotting through the forest in search of help.
He was alone.