//------------------------------// // Meet The Changelings // Story: A Touch of Chaos // by Written Out //------------------------------// Alex gently swum awake, his eyes trying and failing to take in the sight of the pitch black room around him. Once again, he had slept in the very same room that Chrysalis had prepared for him. Left with nothing to do but await her return, he allowed his mind to drift to the events of the previous day. Chrysalis had escorted him back down into the deep bowels of the cavern, her horn glowing as she led him through the twisting and turning tunnels. Since bringing up the carvings again would only make her angry, he had remained quiet as he took in the surrounding architecture. Other than the carvings, he could also see many other wondrous examples of lovingly crafted architecture, such as the giant pillars he had seen in the cavern. It was strange. The architecture was completely incongruous with what he had seen of the changelings so far, who barely seemed more than mindless monsters. The only one who wasn’t mindless was the Queen, but… Well, ‘sickly’ was a word he would be more likely to use to describe her than ‘beautiful.’ He thought it was more likely that the changelings had either found this place abandoned and claimed it as their own or had chased out the previous residents. Lost in his thoughts, he barely noticed when Chrysalis stopped walking, and had nearly blundered into her. “This will be your room,” she had said, standing besides an opening in the wall. “You’ve already slept here, so I’m sure it will suit your needs.” Looking past her, he saw for the first time the room he had awoken in earlier that day. Alone in the center of the room rested a large round pod. It must have been what he was sleeping on earlier. The room was filled with the carvings, and he saw the water he had been drinking earlier seeped through a spot directly between the horns of two of the equine creatures. No way was that an accident. The more he saw of the place, the more he doubted Chrysalis’ claims that the changelings had built it. But why would she lie? Before his thoughts could make any headway down this path, he realized the carvings were getting harder to see. A glance behind him revealed that Chrysalis was walking away, taking the only source of light with her. “Wait,” he called. She stopped and turned to look at him, her multifaceted green eyes reflecting the light in disturbing ways as she silently stared at him. “Um…” he hedged, suddenly much less willing to have a conversation. “What’s going to happen to me?” Chrysalis blinked slowly before answering, letting the moment drag on before she gave him that horrible smirk of hers. “Missing me already? Oh, don’t worry about what’s going to happen to you. I certainly haven’t. Maybe I’ll have an idea in the morning. Sleep tight. Don’t let the… bedbugs bites.” Left with nothing to do once she disappeared, Alex had felt his way over to the pod before sleeping on it for the night. Now, he stared up at the darkened ceiling. Hope she gets back soon, he thought. Chrysalis still terrified him, but a gnawing ache in his stomach was beginning to demand attention. The thought of food nearly overwhelmed his fear, and he toyed with the idea of heading out to look for her. Besides, it wasn’t like she was going to eat his soul or devour his heart or something if he annoyed her, right? Right? …Maybe I’ll wait quietly. Humming tunelessly as he lay on the pod, his hands blindly rotating circles in the air above him, Alex once again considered going out to look for the Queen. His cowardice fought a losing battle against his boredom, as the time slowly ticked past. It felt like hours had passed since he had woke up. Or maybe it had only been a few minutes. It was impossible to mark the passage of time down here. Without any warning, a bright green light suddenly flared at the entrance to the room. Alex instinctively flinched away from the sudden flash, the abrupt movement causing him to overbalance. Sliding off the pod, his legs flailed uselessly in the air before his head impacted the ground with a heavy thud. His legs lying limply on the pod, he released a small sigh. Dying a slow death out in the wasteland was beginning to look more and more appealing. “Good morning, human!” Chrysalis’ cheerful voice reverberated throughout the tiny room. “I hope you slept well.” “Would it matter to you if I hadn’t?” Alex moaned as he pulled himself to his feet. “Probably not," she admitted with that same smug smirk as always. "Unfortunately, I won’t be able to play with you today. I’ve got official business that I need to take care of, so I brought you someling to show you around instead.” Alex noticed for the first time a smaller changeling that stood at the Queen’s side. This changeling looked almost identical to all the other changelings he had seen before except for its eyes and its fangs. Unlike the flat pale blue all the others shared, this changeling’s eyes were green and multifaceted just like Chrysalis’ own. As for the fangs, they were small enough to rest within the changeling’s mouth when it kept its mouth closed, and Alex was unable to get a good look at them. The smaller changeling’s wings buzzed rapidly and the creature flew over until it hovered in place directly in front of Alex. Its wings fluttered rapidly, moving fast enough that he could barely see them, while the changeling’s expressionless gaze locked directly onto Alex’s face. “H-hello,” Alex stuttered out as he cautiously waved a hand at the being in before him. The moment stretched out for several awkward seconds before the changeling bared its fangs and hissed at him. Letting out an exclamation of surprise, Alex stumbled away from it, tripping over the pod and once again ending up with his head on the ground and his legs ignominiously waving in the air. He heard a deep chuckle coming from the air above him, laughing at his predicament. “I see what you meant, my Queen. He is certainly an amusing one.” The changeling’s voice was surprising deep and masculine despite coming from such a small frame. It didn’t reverberate as strongly as Chrysalis’, but there was definitely an unearthly feeling to it. “But are you sure this is wise?" “It doesn’t matter if it’s wise or not,” Chrysalis answered as Alex clambered to his feet again. “At this point, it’s only a matter of time.” “I’m assuming the preparations are well underway?” “At this point, it should be finished in a week – two at the most.” “I… see.” “Am I missing something here?” Alex asked, hauling himself to his feet. “No.” Chrysalis’ answer was flat and blunt, making it clear the conversation was over. It reminded him a lot of how she had reacted when he had asked about the carvings before. “This is Last Breath. He’ll be escorting you around while I’m busy. Now if there is nothing more, I will see you later.” So saying, she turned and disappeared down the corridor, the green flickering light bobbing slightly with her stride. Alex looked up to see that the smaller changeling’s horn was now glowing, though the amount of light cast was a lot weaker than that cast by the Queen’s horn. “So… now what?” Alex asked uneasily. Really, Chrysalis was going to set someone to watch over him whose name was a synonym for death? The Badlands were definitely starting to feel like the better option. Last Breath sniffed at the air before wrinkling his nose. “First thing is getting you a bath. I don’t know if it’s a human thing or what, but you stink.” Alex brought his arm up to his nose and sniffed it. “I don’t really notice anything.” “Maybe you humans are used to the smell of excrement, but you’re having a bath if I have to throw you.” “And then you pissed yourself? Oh, that’s just too funny.” Last Breath was watching as Alex washed his clothes in an underground river. The water was freezing cold, and Last Breath had said it was icemelt from the far-off Macintosh Hills. Alex was only wearing his underwear, the water coming up to his knees as he rinsed his clothes out. His pants were slowly drying on the shoreline and he hunched over, running his shirt through the slow-moving water. “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.” Having just finished explaining what had happened when he met his first changeling, Alex shook out his shirt, spraying droplets of water everywhere while Last Breath watched amused from the shoreline. “You things are freaky, and I think you’re perfectly aware of it.” “It’s not like we chose to be this way, you know.” The changeling actually sounded a little offended. “Maybe not, but it sure seems like Chrysalis certainly enjoys teasing me about it.” “Oh, she’s not the only one.” With those ominous-sounding words, the changeling’s horn flared even brighter and Alex felt a slight pressure wrap itself around his body and lift him out of the water. His body rotated in midair until he was suspended upside down about a foot above the rushing water, looking into Last Breath’s smug face. “Any last words before I drop you?” The changeling asked, his eyes twinkling playfully. “Please don’t drop me?” Alex pleaded hopelessly. Last Breath smirked, half-revealing one of his sharp fangs. “Well, since you asked so nicely, no.” The pressure holding Alex aloft disappeared and he only enough time for a single dismayed exclamation as he was dropped head first into the ice-cold water. Sputtering as he came to the surface, his skin covered in goosebumps and his teeth chattering, he glared at the changeling. “Was that necessary?” “Probably not,” Last Breath answered calmly as he levitated Alex’s shirt out of the river, which the human had dropped when he was submerged. “But it was pretty funny. You got to have a bath, and I got to throw you. Everybody wins.” “I don’t think I like your definition of ‘everybody,’” Alex complained as he waded towards the shore. “Well I won, and that’s good enough for me.” The shirt carelessly draped over a rock, Last Breath climbed to his feet. “Now budge over.” “What are you-? Wait, nono stop, stop, WHOA!” “CANNONBALL!” Not long afterwards, the pair trudged through the changeling catacombs on their way to the surface, both of them dripping freely onto the stone floor. Alex's shirt and pants were tucked under his arms, and he grumbled to himself all the while. After Last Breath had tackled him into the water again, the duo had started to waterfight, which had ended when the changeling had picked up the entire river and dropped it on Alex’s head. “Magic is friggin’ cheating,” Alex complained aloud. Last Breath flashed a fang up at him, the changeling’s mouth slightly curved into a smile as he glanced sidelong at the taller human. “Oh, wah wah wah. Does the poor human feel outmatched?” “Of all the changelings Chrysalis could have stuck me with, I end up with one that mistakenly thinks he has a sense of humour.” “You can change escorts at any time.” Last Breath’s voice, unusually serious, caused Alex to stop and look down at him. “I…” Alex hedged, but Last Breath cut him off with a sharp gesture at one of the blank-eyed changelings that walked the corridor. “Go ahead, do it.” Last Breath’s forceful demand sent Alex staggering towards one of the surrounding changelings before his mind had time to process what he was doing. Last Breath watched expressionlessly as the human uneasily approached a random changeling. Expecting some sort of trick, Alex stopped one of the changelings. “E-excuse me? Sir? Madam?” Alex asked the changeling, silently wondering how he was supposed to tell the difference. The changeling he spoke to silently turned its head towards him, its blank eyes dispassionately watching him. He quailed momentarily under that look, having forgotten how much those eyes freaked him out. The changeling only remained silent a few seconds more before turning its head away from him and continuing on the path it had been walking on before he had interrupted it. Alex watched it leave before looking back at Last Breath. “Was it something I said?” Last Breath just sighed slightly before answering. “No, that’s not it. They won’t respond beyond basic reactions. They’ll follow simple orders, but they won’t take initiative and they can’t follow orders more complex than ‘go here’ or ‘feed’.” “Then what makes you and Queen Chrysalis so different?” Alex asked as he followed behind the changeling, his bare wet feet slapping heavily against the stone floor. The silence spread for several increasingly awkward minutes before Last Breath finally responded. “Did you ask Her Majesty about the carvings that lined the walls?” Alex looked down at the changeling, surprised by this sudden apparent change of topic. “Well… Yeah. Why?” “And what did she say?” Alex exhaled a breath of air through his nose, slightly annoyed at the way the changelings reacted whenever his naturally inquisitive mind tried to learn something about them. “She reacted much the same way you are; by dodging my question.” Much to Alex’s surprise, Last Breath actually chuckled at his response. “Well said. Alright, I’ll tell you someday what makes me different from all the others you’ve seen, but not today. It’s… not a pleasant topic.” “I understand,” Alex said, not understanding in the slightest. They continued down the twisting corridors for several more minutes before something occurred to Alex. “Can I ask another question?” “Didn’t you ask one just now?” The changeling laughed at Alex’s unamused glare and waved a hoof. “I’m just kidding. Go ahead, go ahead.” “Right. Anyway, what’s the difference between male and female changelings? No offence, but other than your eyes and the Queen herself, every changeling I’ve seen looks completely identical.” “I wouldn’t have pegged you for a racist,” the changeling’s teasing voice drifted back to Alex, which Alex responded to by smacking Last Breath in the back of his head with the wet shirt. “I’m serious. The only thing I can think of is that your race experiences sexual dimorphism where the females are twice as big as the males. But that would mean that the Queen is the only female I’ve seen in the hive. So is there just something I’m missing, or does your kind just look the same because you’re a race of shapeshifters?” Last Breath looked askance up at Alex. “…How did you know that we’re shapeshifters? I’m pretty sure the Queen never told you that.” crapcrapcrapcrap. Caught on the spot, Alex quickly tried to piece together an answer that wouldn’t reveal any of his knowledge from the show. “I… um… I guessed. Yeah. From the name. ‘Changelings’ seems like the sort of name a race of shapeshifters would have, right? Ahahaha…” The changeling just stared at Alex through eyes half-lidded with doubt as the human laughed awkwardly. “…Uh huh. Well, whatever. You wanted to know the difference between male and female changelings? Simply put, there isn’t one. Other then the ruler, all changelings are exactly the same. A changeling is determined to be male or female depending on what they identify as.” “I… wait, no.” Alex tried to cut in as his mind fumbled to understand the ramifications of Last Breath’s words. “That doesn’t make any sense! You can’t just have a race without sexes! Reproduction in any species more complex than a single-celled organism requires genetic material contributed from two donors. The idea of magic is easier to buy than this!” “Magic, huh?” Last Breath laughed once again. That easy mocking laugh was really starting to grate on Alex’s nerves. “You’ve hit the prey on the head.” “Huh?” “Changeling saying. Means you got it pretty much right. To start, you need to understand that changelings are unlike almost any creature in existence. We are creatures of magic, which is why we’re able to eat pure energy in a form like love instead of needing to rely on physical matter. Oh, that reminds me, you’re able to eat plants, right? Not a carnivore?” “Omnivore, actually. Why?” “We’ll be able to get you some mosses or mushrooms or something to eat once we’ve dried. Anyway, where was I?” “Creatures of magic,” Alex prodded. “Right, right,” Last Breath nodded. “As you somehow know, changelings specialize in transformation magic. In order to feed, we might need to transform into a male or female role. It’s just easier for us if there’s no… awkward changes, you might say.” Alex stroked his chin, pondering the new information. “Alright, I guess that makes sense. But what about reproduction? You can’t intend to tell me that changelings just pop into existence fully formed because magic, can you?” “Now that would be a sight. Ah, turn here, we’re almost out.” The pair slipped down another corridor, which looked much the same as many of the innumerable corridors they had already passed. Alex knew that Last Breath could be leading him on a merry roundabout romp through the depths of the catacombs and it would look pretty much the same. Before Alex’s thoughts could get any farther down that path, Last Breath suddenly picked up his pace and Alex saw the tell-tale shine of natural light up ahead. Seeing the changeling trotting up ahead, a wicked smile crossed Alex’s features as he lowered his hands down to the ground in a racer’s stance. “Ready, and…” At the imagined sound of a gunshot, Alex sprinted towards Last Breath, charging towards the confused changeling. Grinning down at the smaller creature as he passed him, Alex offered his challenge. “Race you.” Dashing towards the light, Alex heard a loud buzzing as Last Breath’s wings beat fast enough to lift the changeling off the ground, signifying his acceptance of the race. Alex redoubled his efforts as he heard the buzzing closing in on him while his own feet continuously slapped loudly against the floor. Glancing behind him, Alex noted where Last Breath was flying before tossing his shirt backwards. A wide grin split his face as he heard the changeling curse, followed by a loud crash letting him know his projectile had hit his target and brought the changeling to the ground. Unchallenged, he easily sprinted the last few steps to the exit, raising his arms in the air as he came out into the warm midday sun. “And we have a winner!” he joyously proclaimed to no one in particular. Laying his pants on the ground, he stared out at the sight of the desiccated Badlands surrounding him. Now that he thought about it, it was strange that such a beautiful land filled with magic like Equestria would have a wasteland like the Badlands in it. After several moments of silence, he turned back to the cave entrance, now slightly worried. “Hey, Last Breath. You alright in there?” The silence was shattered by a loud buzzing which echoed out of the cave, followed immediately by a black streak launching out of the cave entrance and slamming itself into Alex’s midriff. Alex let out a winded “oof” as he crashed heavily to the rocks, his assailant straddling his torso and pinning his arms to the ground. Unsteadily opening his eyes, Alex stared up into the angry visage of a snarling changeling. Flashing an unrepentant grin, Alex spoke up. “Oh, what’s wrong? Does the poor changeling feel outmatched?” Last Breath blinked in surprise as the words he had spoken earlier were flung back into his teeth. After a few seconds, a small grin spread across his own face before it widened. The pair lay there several seconds longer, grinning into each other’s faces like idiots. Maybe, Alex thought, slightly winded. Maybe this isn’t going to be as bad as I had feared. Alex lay out his wet pants and shirt on a clean-looking rock to dry out in the midday rays. Glancing over at his companion, he smiled when he say that the changeling had stretched out on a flat rock and was basking in the sunlight. Finishing up laying his clothes out, Alex walked over to where the changeling lay. Last Breath looked like he was enjoying himself. Pity he had to put an end to that. “You never finished answering my question.” Last Breath cracked open one eye and stared at the human balefully, the changeling’s green eye squinting against the bright sunlight. “You’re not going to just let me just enjoy the sun, are you?” “Questions first, than whatever you want.” The reclining changeling released a heavily exaggerated put-upon sigh. “Fine, fine. What do you want to know about?” “We were talking about how changelings reproduce. If it’s not through sexual reproduction or spontaneous generation, I can’t really think of any other method.” Last Breath rolled over to get a better look at Alex as the human sat down, the changeling’s expression slightly bemused. “You really can’t let these things go, huh?” Alex just shrugged. “What can I say? I like to know things.” “Fair enough.” Last Breath rolled back onto his back, shifting slightly until his wings were laid out evenly on the rock beneath him. “Alright, what’s a good place to start?” He hmmm’d deep in his throat to himself for a few seconds before clicking his tongue. “Ah, that’ll work. You know we changelings feed off love, right?” “Yeah, I kinda picked that up.” The duh Alex wanted to say went unmentioned. “Right, right. Anyway, that’s literally all we feed on. And we need more than usual just before we hatch. The ruler, King or Queen, needs to give a great deal of love to the changeling egg. In order for the unborn changeling to get this love, the donor is shoved into one of the collection pods.” “Um…” Alex cut in, pretty sure he wasn’t going to like the answer but knowing he had to ask anyway. “Donor?” “Love donor,” Last Breath replied blithely. “Usually a creature we manage to find wandering alone. Though for whatever reason we can only use sentient species like ponies, gryphons, and zebras.” Yeah, saw that coming. Alex grimaced, trying not to think too hard about the ethical ramifications of what they were talking about. “So you take the… donor… and trap them in one of the pods. Is that anything like that pod I’ve been sleeping on?” “You have been sleeping on a collection pod, actually. Once a donor is trapped inside, it is virtually impossible for them to escape without outside help. Even Princess Celestia herself needed to be released after the invasion failed.”   “What invasion’s this?” Alex asked, trying not to reveal that he already knew about it. “It’d probably be better for you to ask the Queen,” Last Breath easily waved the question aside. “I was just a soldier chasing the fleeing ponies. Ah, watching them run was so much fun.” The changeling sighed wistfully, reminiscing over the events of a few weeks prior. “Right…” Wanting to shift the conversation back to relatively safer waters, Alex tried bringing up one of the strange things that he noticed about the pods. “So is that why all changelings look kinda like ponies?” Last Breath glanced over at Alex, the slightest hint of confusion on the changeling’s face. Alex’s head was tilted back to better feel the sun’s warmth against his bare skin and he missed his companion’s expression. “Huh? Oh! Oh right. Sure. Yeah, the species of the donor affects what the base changeling will look like. Since the current generation was all taken from ponies, all of us have basic pony characteristics.” “That makes sense. So what about the young changelings? I don’t think I’ve seen-?” He was cut off as Last Breath sprung to his hooves, the changeling’s wings starting to buzz in the dry air. “No more questions,” he said, urgency spread across his face. “I’ve just received a message from Queen Chrysalis. She wants to see you right away.” “Now?” Alex asked, remaining seated on the ground. “But we haven’t dried off yet.” Any complacency Alex might have developed regarding the fearsomeness of the changelings was blown away by the force of the black creature’s single shouted demand. “NOW!” “I hope I didn’t interrupt anything.” “Even if you had, Your Majesty, being in the presence of your magnificence more than makes up for it.” Alex remained silent as the changelings talked until Last Breath struck him in the knee. “Huh? Oh, no, no of course not. Being in your presence is always a,” he swallowed loudly once before finishing somewhat lamely, “…pleasure.” In truth, Alex was far more distracted by looking around the room they stood in. The cavern Chrysalis had called them to was absolutely massive, the light cast by Chrysalis’ horn fading and dying into the darkness. Far, far above him, he was unable to make out even the faintest hints of where he knew the ceiling had to be, only seeing a roof of inky blackness. The walls were even stranger. Riddled with hexagonal holes in the wall, it reminded him of nothing more than a giant honeycomb, with each hole large enough to hold a fair-sized human. Most of the holes were covered up with some strange green material, and some closer to where he stood looked… fresh? Before he could get a closer look, Last Breath’s voice interrupted him. “How are you holding up, my Queen?” “Not well at all, my little changeling,” Chrysalis admitted. She looked tired and weary, and a part of Alex feared she might just collapse on the spot. “It’s a hard, thankless job, but I know it needs to be done.” Last Breath slowly walked over next to her and gave his wings a single, quick beat, brushing them up against Chrysalis’ hole-filled forelegs. “We’re all very thankful that you do it, my Queen.” Chrysalis smiled gratefully at his reassurance before turning back to the human before her. “And what of you? How are you finding your time here?” “It’s very interesting, Your Majesty. I-” Alex said before Chrysalis cut him off. “Please,” the Queen interrupted with a frown, “don’t bother lying to me. I can hear your heartbeat, hear the way it speeds up when you lie. I command you to speak freely. There’s no room for lies, not in this place.” Alex glanced around the giant cavern. What’s so special about this place? “Alright. When I first met you, I was terrified. I saw monstrous creatures that made me fear for my life. Now?” He sighed. “After only a single day, I’m seeing something different. Something I didn’t expect.” He waved his hand vaguely in Last Breath’s direction. “I see a friend. Instead of fear, now I have something a little more complicated. And,” his gaze turned to her, hardening into a glare, “I think you did that intentionally.” His hands balled into fists at his sides. “I’m not stupid. I know you deliberately set him to befriend me. There’s too many things I don’t understand, too many questions that I want answered. But right now, there’s only one question that matters.” He stabbed at the air with his finger, nearly poking her in the chest. “What do you want from me?” Chrysalis remained silent, staring at the extended finger with an expression saying she would bite it off if it came too close. Alex refused to back down, extending his finger until it brushed up against her carapace. In the end, Last Breath broke the frozen moment by rubbing his wing against Chrysalis’ leg. “He’s right, my Queen. It wouldn’t hurt any to let him know.” Chrysalis’ wings buzzed angrily for a second before she conceded the point. “Very well. But not now. There is one thing more he needs to know.” Alex stepped forward, angrily grabbing for her neck. “Now wait just a moment here!” Her horn flashed brightly and he felt himself struck as if by a heavy weight. Knocked backwards, he flew for several feet before crashing heavily on the floor. “DO NOT FORGET WHO YOU ARE DEALING WITH, WORM!” Her enraged voice echoed repeatedly within the cavern, seeming to feed on itself to become louder and louder. Alex crawled away from the furious monarch as green flames licked her sides and mane. But the flames covering her body were nothing compared to the heat of the fires within her eyes. Last Breath sprinted past her and hurriedly helped Alex to his feet. “Run.” The pair fled for the exit, the unmoving queen watching their fleeing forms. After they had left, Chrysalis released the flames and collapsed to the floor. Slightly panting for breath, she stared out at the honeycomb walls surrounding her. The anger of a moment ago had vanished, and all that remained was the crushing despair in her heart. Her gaze turned to the back of the room, invisible even to her eyes in the deep darkness. “It’s the only thing I can do. And yet… is it worth it?” If she was waiting for a response, she didn’t receive one.