//------------------------------// // 4: Engineering // Story: Of the Hive // by law abiding pony //------------------------------// After eating a thoroughly enjoyable lunch, Twilight flew off to find Chief Engineer Sprocket Altair. The hive mind told her he was currently stationed in the Altair University. As she flew towards her destination, Twilight was confounded by the school’s very existence. I don’t understand. Why would we need a university if the Link can tell us everything we need to know? She thought about asking the hive mind, but ultimately decided she could ask Sprocket himself. She was, however, still wondering why she got three love crystals for lunch. I know I can make general requests over the Link, but I don’t know how to send complex questions yet. I guess there’s no harm in trying, right? Twilight focused on Cadista’s image and tried to send her a query. She got a reply back a few moments later, but couldn’t decipher it. Crud. This isn’t working. She was still ten minutes away from the university, so she decided to try something else. Looking around, she spotted a drone flying parallel to her, and drifted over to him. “Excuse me, can you help me with something?” He instantly recognized the purple coat and slitted eyes. “Of course, Twilight, what do you require?” “I can’t seem to ask the queen a question over the Link, yet. Can you help me speak to her?” “Absolutely,” he replied happily. “What did you want to know?” “Well, the queen knows I was given an enormous amount of love from Celestia when she visited, but I still received three love crystals for lunch. Why couldn’t they be saved, since I’ve already fed so much today?” “Give me a second,” he replied while relaying the message. “She says since you’re a royal changeling, you require at least three times as much love as us drones. The longer your body’s brimming with love, the faster your overall development will be.” She cocked her head at the statement. “My… development?” This time, the drone didn’t bother relaying the query. “Well, it’s not for nothing, sister, you’re still at the princess stage of development. You’re not going to stop growing until you're queen size, as it were.” The thought of learning more about her physiology was enticing. “So, I’m still basically a larva as far as royal ‘Lings go?” He gave a nonverbal sound of uncertainty. “I guess you could say that. Royal ‘Lings come in three flavors. A princess, what you are right now, is what every royal changeling starts off as. You’ll reach the proto-queen stage at some point, and that’s usually marked by your first laying. Full queens are like Cadista, and well, you know how they are.” Twilight mulled over the information. “What do you mean, laying?” He thought it was an obvious answer. I guess it’s our own fault for being so insular towards the other pony nations. “It’s short for when you lay eggs.” “Oh.” She cringed a bit and pulled her hind legs closer together. The drone felt sympathy for her. Twilight was already an adult mare before being reborn as a royal so she’ll probably learn about this stuff rather soon, but I might as well help her out now. “In the other hives, a proto-queen will stay with the old hive until she has about three hundred mature drones , giving her enough of a workforce to begin her own hive. That is, if she doesn’t try launch a coup against her mother.” Twilight recoiled at the last bit of information. Sounds dreadful. “How does, um,” she tried to think of a tactful way to ask. “How does our hive work in that regard?” “Well, that’s entirely between you and Cadista. I don’t know if it’ll make you feel better, but Cadista and Yumia decided this hive was far too important for that particular set of traditions. Cadista stayed on for four hundred years longer than she could have, because they wanted to make sure our hive survives. So, when Yumia was killed by Chrysalis two hundred years ago, Cadista was already here to make sure the hive didn’t collapse without a queen.” “What happens when a hive collapses?” “Depends on the drones, really. If the other hives had the ability to be independent like ours, we’d probably just be left queen-less, without a way to replenish our numbers. We’d still be very disorganized and frightened with the absence of her presence in the Link, but I don’t think we’d remain that way forever.” The answer satisfied Twilight more than the drone could possibly know. At least if the unthinkable happens, my brothers and sisters would be able to carry on. “And the... less independent drones of the other hives?” His even demeanor fell. “They’d likely go feral, or at least close to it.” Both changelings lapsed into a brief silence before he spoke up again with genuine gratitude. “I’m really glad you’re here, sis.” Twilight perked up at the statement. “With Cadista being alone on the throne for so long, I always worried that if something happened to her, everything we had accomplished here in Stripped Gear would be destroyed by the other hives.” Twilight studied him for several long moments before answering, as a smile slowly spread over her face. “I’m glad I’m here too, brother.” The drone noticed his destination was almost directly below him. “Hope to see you later, sis, bye!” Twilight waved back at him until he flew away. The university was close by, and she descended towards it. For knowing I’m a princess and all, my siblings seem to be a lot more casual toward me than I thought they’d be. Well, I prefer it that way, rather than them walking on eggshells. Twilight found she was being directed to a square, four-story building. The space was occupied by various student projects to demonstrate their prowess in the field of engineering. Gleaming monuments of bronze and brass crowded the inner square, making it difficult to navigate by air. Twilight was captivated by them so much she whined about her predicament. “Ouuah, I want to study these so much! But... I can’t keep Sprocket waiting.” The moment she entered the building’s halls, a deep sense of belonging washed over her. Memories of the smell of chalkboards, books, and the droning of lecturers behind classroom doors, all came rushing back to her in a garbled mess. She pressed a hoof to her temple to ward off a headache, but the pain didn’t really matter to her. This is a place of learning, and being here feels so right! I know I’m going to love it here. Before she got very far, however, her thoughts drifted back to her saddlebags, and she descended to the ground and opened the left pouch. Inside were four filled love crystals, three of which she had received for lunch. She levitated the ones from lunchtime in front of her and sighed. Hasten my development. I don’t know how to feel about one day… laying… eggs, she brooded over the slightly unnerving thought. My siblings work on machines, as soldiers, even in the sewers. Am I not obligated to fulfill my purpose, just as they do? I don’t want this magnificent city to collapse if anything happens to Cadista just because I’m too scared to play my role. With her mind made up, she brought the crystals to her horn and drained them. They barely registered amidst Celestia's love. “I’m still saving the last one for Ratchet.” After depositing the empty crystals in her bag, Twilight made her way through the corridors to Sprocket’s office. Okay Twi, make a good first impression. Show him that you’re the perfect student, and this first meeting will be a cakewalk. Before she could bang on the door, a gravelly voice yelled from within the office. “There’s no need to knock, Twilight Sparkle, I can sense you out there.” With a sheepish grin, Twilight entered the office, and was met with an absolutely horrifying sight. Discarded papers, damaged scrolls, books in complete disarray, toppled inkwells, balled up pieces of paper on the floor, and a broken chalkboard met her eyes, and she had to fight every fiber in her being to keep herself from rushing forward to clean it up. How can he possibly work under these maddening conditions!? A gravelly voice from behind a pile of books directed her attention. “So you finally arrived? I must say, I’m not very impressed.” Sprocket’s condescending tone broke Twilight from her stupor. “What makes you say that?” “That you obviously don’t see the beauty of my filing system,” he said while sweeping a leg at his office. “Your distaste is palpable over the Link.” “W-well, I— er, um, I’m sure it works for you,” she hastily replied to avoid further insult. “Right,” he replied curtly. “I’ll be blunt, Miss Sparkle, I don’t really see why our queen would bother sending you to me. I only deal with those who know what the Pontoon effect is, how to work with Axiomatic design, and at the very least know how to reverse engineer another student’s work equal to or lower than their grade.” She rubbed her foreleg nervously. “Isn’t that why I’m here? So I can learn those things?” He scowled and sat down at his desk. “If you were here to enter the school as a normal student, then I’d say yes, but the queen’s got it in her head that she wants you to apprentice under me. Me!” He started grumbling more to himself than to her. “To think I have to dumb down my theories and concepts so an elementary student can grasp even one percent of my genius.” Twilight arched an eyebrow. “To be honest, I don’t see the point of having a school. Research and development, I understand, but can’t the hive mind give me all the information I need?” He harrumphed as he perused some of his notes. “You are a recent reborn, Miss Sparkle, and a former Equestrian at that, so I will forgive your ignorance.” He ignored a sour look from Twilight, and continued. “Tell me, if we carried such valuable information over the Link, made available to every brother and sister in the hive, what do you think would happen if another hive took one of ours hostage and ripped the information out of them?” Twilight recoiled a hoof. “They do that?!” “Of course they do.” He stopped looking over his notes to study the fledgling royal. “Most queens care nothing for the loss of a few hundred drones. To them, ripping apart another queen’s drone is like peeking into your neighbor’s window.” Sprocket didn’t seem to notice, or care about, the appalled look on Twilight’s face. “So, you can imagine why such knowledge never leaves an individual drone’s mind. Except for when he’s working, then it’s shared with his fellow researchers, but only what’s relevant to the task at hoof.” Twilight’s wings fidgeted uncomfortably. “Oh, makes sense I guess.” The grizzled, old researcher wasn’t sure if Twilight was up to the task of being under his wing, but his orders demanded that he give her a chance. “You may be a princess in body, Miss Sparkle, but until Cadista says otherwise, you’re just like any other drone to me.” He leaned back in his chair to look over his disastrous filing system. “That being said, mother thinks you have potential, and I’ll abide by her judgment until proved wrong.” Sprocket got up and started digging through his scattered books, pulling some out and placing them on the front end of his desk until he had a stack of twelve. “Read and memorize these texts and pass an exam about them. Then I’ll know that you can handle being my apprentice. If not, find something else to do with your time, or enter the school like any other student.” As she walked over to the pile of books, primal joy erupted out of Twilight at the prospect of reading. “I have a feeling I’m going to love it here.” He rolled his eyes as the mare tenderly placed each book in her saddlebags. “We’ll see.” Two blocks away, Twilight walked into a three story library crammed with books. Rows upon rows of shelves left little room to walk between them. Only the top floor and the roof had any real open areas to read. Twilight made her way into the center of the first floor and took a deep slow breath as a profound sense of nostalgia and belongingness oozed out of every shelf and tome. This feels like I’ve finally come home. “Maybe I should move in here after my connection with the hive mind is complete,” she thought aloud with a giggle. There were dozens of drones in the library, all of them either studying or searching for books. Not wanting to disturb them, Twilight opted to snatch a cushion and find an empty spot near one of the ground floor bookcases. She settled down near a window, and pulled out the first book on her list. Basic Engineering Principles. She had to suppress a squeal of delight. “This is going to be so much fun!” Twilight was so engrossed in her studies, she didn’t notice the sun had set a while ago. Page after page, word after word was consumed by her ravenous hunger for knowledge. The former librarian had just opened her third book when a drone stopped by. “Order up!” Twilight’s head jolted away from the page to see a familiar face holding a small food tray on his back and giving her a warm smile. “Ratchet? Ratchet! Hey, how’ve you been?” She climbed to her hooves and gave him a friendly nuzzle. She pulled away and spotted a faint blush on his cheeks. “Well enough. Mother heard you never took your dinner rations and figured you were busy, so I brought you some dinner.” “That was thoughtful of her. Let me get my stuff packed, I wouldn’t want to potentially ruin any books with spilled food.” Still not trusting her flying abilities under such a heavy load, Twilight opted to walk to one of the wooden and brass benches right outside of the library to eat. The mare found that her brother brought a different meal this time. “I thought you might like the supreme pizza. It’s a favorite among the alumni.” Twilight set her saddlebags down and levitated the tray to be in front of her. The aroma that hit her after lifting the dish cover made her stomach protest being ignored for so long. “Its smells great, I seem to forget to eat when I study.” She saw him fidgeting in front of the bench. “Why don’t you join me? I could use some company.” “Sure, sis,” he replied, enthusiastically taking a seat. Twilight spied the trio of love crystals on her tray and yelped out of remembrance. “I’m glad it was you who brought me dinner, I have something to give you.” She lifted the tray above her so she could dig into her bags before withdrawing the crystal filled with Celestia’s love. Didn’t she say love is meant to be shared? She faced Ratchet and gave him the crystal. “Here, I still owe you from yesterday.” He eyed it quizzically as she deposited it into his hoof. “You saved one from lunch just to give it to me?” “Well no, that’s some of the love Celestia gave me. I don’t think I’ll go love starved for a whole week, thanks to her.” He couldn’t stop his jaw from dropping. “I-I don’t know what to say. Do you know how powerful freely given love is to its intended recipient? It would do you far more good than it would ever do me.” “But, Celestia said love is meaningless if it’s not shared. Of course, the Princess thinks love is more of an abstract concept, rather than a resource, but still, I want to share it with you.” A ghost of a smile found its way on his face. “Well, thank you, really. But if you want to share your love, let me give this back and I’ll take one of the crystals on your tray, instead.” She furrowed her brow at the suggestion. “Why does it matter which crystal you use? Isn’t it all the same?” “For me, yes, but this love,” he handed the gift back, “was love given to you, for you. Because of that, you would receive at least five times as much nourishment from it than I ever could.” Her ears dropped a little along with her voice. “Oh. Well… here then.” She placed Celestia’s love back on her plate and gave Ratchet two of her other crystals. “What you did still means a lot to me, and since I have six crystals worth here, giving you two shouldn’t be a problem then. If anything the second one can be for bringing me dinner.” Ratchet knew she was just trying to be kind and accepted them without protest. “Thanks sis. I appreciate it.” Her smile grew and she wrapped a foreleg around him and pulled him into a sidelong hug. “Hey, brothers and sisters look out for each other right?” He chuckled at her expected casual demeanor and hugged her back. “Yeah, we most certainly do.” A few hours after sundown, Twilight returned to the queen’s bedchambers. Her wings ached every time she tried to fly a long way with such a heavy load, so she walked most of the way. Twilight found Cadista had brought in an easel and canvas along with an assortment of paints. A collection of artwork had also been placed on pedestals around the room. The queen spoke without looking away from her drawing of a verdant forest. “You left quite an impression on Sprocket today.” “I did?” asked a bemused Twilight as she trotted over to inspect the painting. “Oh yes, most students balk or tremble at the workload he gives them. A bit of an intimidation tactic he uses to separate the wannabes and the will-bes. I didn’t tell him you were Celestia’s star pupil, so he was refreshingly surprised to see your eagerness to learn.” Twilight pulled one of her books out to read and breathed in the intoxicating aroma of knowledge. “There’s just so much to learn! Can I take the rest of today and tomorrow to study?” Cadista put the finishing touches on a tree before facing Twilight. “Well that is what Sprocket asked of you, but before you do, there are still a few things you need to learn.” Always eager for new knowledge, Twilight levitated her saddlebags and book over to lie next to the rest of her belongings before giving Cadista her undivided attention. The queen cleaned her brushes and prepared her other supplies to be left alone for a while. “Now, what do you know about the trade agreement we have with Equestria?” Twilight rubbed her head as she searched her randomly cobbled together memories. “I know we import steel and coal, and I believe we export machinery, but I can’t recall anything else.” Cadista nodded while levitating a short knife from a chest of drawers. “The piece you’re missing, Twilight, is something we changelings call 'salve'. It’s a gel like substance that we produce that can repair skin, stop bleeding, prevent infection,” her tone shifted to be rather condescending, “and those hives that still wrap themselves in chitin can use it to repair that too.” “Each hive has their own… brand as it were,” Cadista continued. “The salve we produce can’t repair chitin, as I have long since found its use in both queen and drone to be uncivilized. As a result, our salve has been tailored to work on skin to a much more effective degree.” “Makes sense. But this sounds like medical stuff, why would this be considered basic knowledge?” Twilight asked while eyeing the knife floating next to her queen. Cadista knew Twilight wouldn’t understand unless it was shown to her. “We make it within ourselves. Allow me to demonstrate.” Cadista raised her left foreleg and used the knife to make a shallow cut a few inches above her fetlock. Twilight winced, but said nothing. Cadista raised the wound to her mouth and spat a wad of orange gel onto it before using her magic to smooth the substance across the wound. “It hardens shortly after being exposed to air, so it’s very useful in saving somepony’s life when medical aid is too far away. All you need is soapy water to clean it off later.” Twilight studied the orange liquid on her queen’s leg. “So, I was submerged in salve while I was in the chrysalis?” Cadista nodded. “That’s what gave the fluid its color yes, but this is not what turned you into a changeling. Salve is only designed for healing.” The more Twilight looked at it, the closer and closer she felt to remembering something. “Wait a second, I-I…” She fell on her haunches and clutched her head as a flood of old memories came rushing back. A cascade of images of a pink alicorn with reptilian eyes, green fire surrounding her in a throne room, dark crystal caverns, and fighting scores of black changelings while being side by side five ponies, and other memories tried to cram into her mind all at once. Cadista was at her side and hesitated for only a moment before wrapping a leg around Twilight. “Hold on, I will ease your pain.” The queen deepened her mental connection with Twilight and spread her pain across the Link. The young princess removed her hooves from her head as the pain abated. “Thank you. I remember parts of a wedding, when I saw a changeling for the first time in my life.” “Chrysalis,” Cadista spat the word as if it was poison. “She did everything in her power to make us look like monsters.” Twilight only barely listened as images of the attack came back to her. “Yeah, she did,” she muttered sullenly at now being associated with such beings. “Chrysalis is not one for caring about the wellbeing of others,” Cadista spat, “A most telling attribute of her callousness is what she’s done to her hive’s salve.” Twilight momentarily forgot the disturbing images of ponies being wrapped in cocoons against their will to look at her queen. “What do you mean?” “You should know, Twilight, that even hives that care little for the common drone have always kept trying to improve their version of salve, if for nothing else than to allow their drones to recover from minor to medium injuries. Chrysalis, on the other hoof, reengineered her hive’s salve to be a grotesque method of restraining their captives. Instead of possessing any healing properties, it’s sticky to everything except chitin. It’s absolutely revolting,” she cursed the other queen’s name before seeing Twilight’s cowed face and softened her expression. “I apologize, Twilight, I should not get so heated at the mere mention of her name.” The lavender changeling nodded and resumed a more neutral posture again. “Did the other hives act against her for attacking Canterlot?” Cadista’s face became unreadable. “In their own way. Nubile and Thereena suspected she would be weakened from the failed invasion and attempted to annex some of her lands. Yeelindrus and Jstrul are her younger sisters, so they have little choice but to remain allies with her. The rest, however, are unsure, and have called for a Summit of the Queens to decide what the hives should do about Chrysalis bringing us into the global spotlight.” “The very last place we wanted to be,” Twilight mused aloud. “Well,” Cadista replied wistfully. “I at least feel we’ll do better this way than hiding in the shadows, but mother and I never agreed with most changeling traditions.” “When are you going to the summit?” Cadista’s smile fell a little. “I’m afraid that’s going to be, when we are going the day after tomorrow.” Twilight’s eyes dilated to the size of saucers. “W-wait, why am I going?” “Outside of our personal relationship, Twilight, as far as the rest of my hive is concerned, you are an equal with your siblings. At least, until you decide you want to be more. However, general tradition states that you are my heir, and thus you must attend with me. It would be seen as a grievous insult to the other queens if you didn’t. There are many traditions I can cast aside, but this is not one of them.” Twilight broke out in a cold sweat. “B-but I don’t know the first thing about traditions, or posturing, or politics, or any of that stuff. I’ve only been a changeling for two days!” Well, technically, you could have been considered a changeling once I started feeding you love in the chrysalis. Cadista wrapped a leg around Twilight. “I know, and after hearing they were calling the summit, I had hoped you would not hatch until after it began. But alas, that was not meant to be.” Several hairs started to frazzle out of Twilight’s mane and tail. “I don’t want to get you or the hive in trouble because I don’t know any better.” Cadista had to put forth serious effort to not ease Twilight’s mind. She needs to recover from this on her own or she’ll never make a good leader. “Don’t worry, I’ll be there to both protect and guide you. No pony would dare harm another during the summit.” Her tone grew sardonic. “A rare time of peace between us, to be sure.” Twilight remembered a calming technique and slowed her breathing while moving her upraised hoof to her chest and back away on the exhale. Cadista watched with curiosity as her daughter centered herself. When she opened her eyes again, Twilight’s face was even and calm. “I think we got off our original topic about the salve.” Cadista felt a lopsided grin crease her face. “That we did. Let me show you how to use it. After that we should call it a night.” The Link was always present in Twilight’s mind. Twilight often mused that the line between her mind and the chorus of voices was blurring with each passing second, even if the Link was unintelligible most of the time. She could receive and give instructions when putting forth strong effort sometimes, while required information would be automatically given to her without even needing to voice a request. Now, however, the voices, as quiet as they were, were finally understood. Twilight awoke the instant the line between the Link and her mind eroded away completely. She cracked her eyes open and sat up at the realization that she understood the voices. She saw Cadista sitting on a cushion in front of her easel with a few pieces of breakfast hovering nearby. Thus far, the queen was unaware of Twilight’s awakening, so the purple changeling used the opportunity to try speaking to her via the Link. The matriarch turned to face Twilight and replied with a pleased note of satisfaction, but inwardly suppressed her alarm. Cadista abandoned her artwork while Twilight climbed out of bed so they could close the distance. The matriarch stopped a foot away from Twilight and used her magical senses to inspect the purple changeling. Astounding. It should have taken at least another week for this to happen. Perhaps the freely given love of an alicorn is more potent than I realized. “This is good news indeed. Your merger with the hive mind is complete. It appears retaining Celestia’s love like I asked has greatly accelerated your development.” Twilight mulled over her words. “Well, I’m sure Celestia would be happy to know her love helps me like that.” “Undoubtedly.” She smiled at the young changeling. “How does it feel, now that you are truly one with the hive?” Twilight looked to her recovered memories to piece together a reasonable comparison. “Before, I was alone with my thoughts. It never caused discomfort or loneliness because that’s how I had always been. Now though, it’s like I’m in a vast forum where everybody’s talking and I can understand them all at once. I am part of the whole, but I feel like I stand above them a little. Like I could direct the flow of conversation if I wanted to.” “That’s your royal blood. A queen must be able to listen to all of her drones and direct the will of the hive.” Twilight looked at the ground as a puzzling question came to mind. “Cadista, why did you make me a royal changeling instead of a drone?” Her large purple eyes moved back up to search her matriarch for an answer. Cadista sighed while levitating some food over to Twilight. “The biggest reason was to maintain your ability to remain independent. By our nature, a royal changeling can survive with either a million drones or completely by herself. You do not need to be part of a hive mind, and you can recover from being severed from it if necessary. However the most important aspect of this independence is that another queen cannot subvert your will and force you into her hive like she could with a drone.” Twilight cringed. “I didn’t think other queens could do that, or would want to.” “It's mostly used for spying on each other,” The queen explained, “but the point is, if one of the other queens got ahold of you, they could forcibly induct you into their hive mind and rob you of your very identity, if they were so inclined. As a royal, however, that’s impossible.” Geeze, I didn’t think life outside the hive was so ruthless. Twilight’s thought was not broadcast over the Link, but Cadsita noticed Twilight nervously scuffing the ground. “Don’t worry about it, Twilight. Now that your connection to the Link is complete, I can guide you through all the ridiculous pomp and ceremony. Some might question your position at first, but none would dare harm you during the summit.” Her words only had some of the effect she was hoping for. Time to switch topics. “How about I summon breakfast while I teach you more of your natural abilities?” Twilight’s pout switched to a large smile while her wings buzzed in excitement. “That sounds fun!” Brandishing a smile of her own, Cadista beckoned Twilight over to one of the walls of her chambers. As if to mirror the city’s shield above the hive, the queen’s bedchambers were a dome as well. “You’ve probably already seen several of your brothers and sisters doing this already, so stop me if you already know how to do this.” Cadista propped herself up onto the incurving walls and started walking up towards the ceiling as if she was on the ground. Twilight’s eager grin never left her face. “I saw a few drones reading upside down in the library when all the tables were occupied. And I remember Chrysalis’ brood doing that during the wedding. I’ve just been so preoccupied that I never thought to ask how to do it myself.” “Well, now is a good a time as any then. Wall walking is not very difficult to grasp. All you have to do is feel the interior of your hoof for a muscle and sort of…pull on it.” Twilight had never taken the time to actually inspect the bottom of her hoof since hatching and looked down on it now. The front and side outer parts of her left forehoof were the same as before, but the frog had been replaced by a rough looking mass of muscle. Must be that way so I can walk on rough ground without being injured. Experimentally, she pressed the same hoof against the wall and pulled the muscle. She felt a twinge of her magic flow through the muscle which adhered itself to the wall. Cadista nodded in praise. “Excellent. Now just start walking up. Once you begin with the first hoof, the rest will follow automatically after they make their next step. Just be sure to keep at least two hooves on the wall at all times or you’ll slip off.” Following her matriarch’s advice, Twilight put both forelegs on the wall then leveraged their suction to kick her back hooves off the ground and onto the wall. “Let instinct tell you how to walk. Your body will release and adhere as needed without additional thought on your part.” Twilight couldn’t help but giggle as she walked up the wall to be at Casita’s side. “This is really neat. I could find all kinds of good reading spots now that I’m not restricted to the floor.” Cadista smirked. “As good a use as any.” After walking along the ceiling for a few minutes, a drone appeared with Twilight’s meal and departed after leaving it on a fold out table. The young royal got an idea and levitated the food over to her while still remaining on the ceiling. “Might be fun getting used to wall walking.” Cadista shared the sentiment. “It can be disorienting when all the blood rushes to your head, so try to mix your training with rest time on the floor. It’ll take a while, but your body will acclimate eventually.” “I will, thanks,” Twilight was exhilarated by the chance to try something new. Upside down dining, this should prove to be quite the experience. Cadista dropped off the ceiling and returned to her painting. Twilight was only able to eat like that for a few minutes before a headache made her fly back down to the ground near Cadista to finish her meal. “So, when did you take up painting? Did you do all of the paintings in here? They’re really good.” She gestured a hoof to the five different works of art strategically placed across the room. The matriarch glanced at her other pieces of art with pride. “I did, thank you. Mother said that a queen influences the hive in more ways than one. She believed that the demeanor of the queen is reflected in her drones, and I am in full agreement. As such, I try to keep my creativity strong so the hive can benefit from that.” Twilight briefly studied the other paintings. Most depicted machinery, or Stripped Gear from multiple elevated angles. “Well, I think it's working. The hive has built a great city here.” “I’m glad you agree. I know in time, you will make improvements I could only dream of.” Twilight fell silent while gnawing on her food. I hope I can live up to those expectations. The rest of the day and much of the next was entirely occupied by Twilight studying the fascinating world of engineering in the books Sprocket gave her. Most of that time was spent in the library on campus. The repository of books called to Twilight like an old friend. The structure resonated the same way with many of its patrons, and the purple changeling felt that collective mood echo within her. It served to only bolster her already insatiable hunger for knowledge. Currently, she was hanging from the ceiling on the second floor of the library reading the last book assigned to her. Unlike most structures in Equestria, changeling architecture typically took wall-walking into account. Twilight found reading upside down both entertaining and useful for staying focused. Twilight was so enthralled by her studies that she didn’t hear someone calling her name from below three times before they switched to speaking via the Link. The purple mare’s ears perked up and she looked down to see a female drone she hadn’t seen before, but the hive mind quickly gave Twilight her name. She spotted the tray of food on the grey mare’s back. Twilight kept her books in her orange kinesis and dropped off the ceiling and into powered flight before landing next to Flexi and speaking normally. “You really don’t have to go through all the trouble of bringing me meals all the time, I just need an alarm clock.” Flexi smirked. “The librarian would chew your wings off.” Both mares tittered at the humor before Twilight spoke. “Well, I’d better take this outside.” She leaned forward and gave Flexi an affectionate sisterly nuzzle. “Thanks for thinking of me.” The grey drone knew of Twilight’s alien preference for physical displays of affection and smiled while returning the gesture in kind. “It was nothing, really, we all look out for our own.” Twilight broke contact. “Well, perhaps one day we can expand our definition of 'our own'. Maybe I’ll see you around sometime.” Flexi frowned as she walked off to eat. What does she mean by that? This time, Twilight found an actual table so she could both read and eat. Now I just need to finish the last chapter review before I compile my notes on everything. Then, I should be able to pass Sprocket’s test. As her pony friends knew, Twilight’s version of passing was a perfect score, and that had not changed one bit since becoming a changeling. I should be ready a couple of days after the summit. Twilight shuddered at the thought. “Don’t focus on that, Twi, Cadista will help you through it, and it’ll all turn out fine in the end.” Actually, now that I’m fully integrated into the hive mind, maybe she’ll let me visit Ponyville and see my old friends. I remember some bits and pieces of them, but if we got along back then, then I’m sure I can reforge old friendships. Twilight was halfway through with her meal when Sprocket’s voice yelled at her through the Link. Twilight jumped out of the chair at Sprocket's yelling. She groaned before responding. She rolled her eyes. “Oh joy, he’s going to be one of those teachers.” Twilight took the time to get back in her chair to look over her notes. The old engineer balked before his tone became one of disbelief. Twilight tilted her head. He was silent for a few seconds to recompose himself. Sprocket scoffed over the Link. Twilight frantically started putting her notes and books away. he interrupted, Twilight sent an apologetic call for a server to clean up her food while she telekinetically wrapped her saddlebags on. “I think science waits just fine,” she grumbled while galloping off to the chief engineer’s office. Twilight burst into Sprocket’s office on the fourth floor a half hour later, panting. I hate stairs so very much right now. I really need to get my wing strength up. Sprocket was standing near the one of his drawing boards when he turned to face the winded mare. “Ah good, I like a student who believes in being early,” he said while completely ignoring her discomfort. He flew over to a high mounted line of shelves in the back of the room to fish through some papers. “I’ll have your test in a moment. Why don’t you place your belongings by the door, I want no temptations for cheating.” Twilight would have been insulted if she hadn’t been out of breath. “I do not cheat.” He found the paper he was looking for and grabbed it in his hoof. “Yes, yes, they all say that.” He landed on the ground next to her. “This way, if you please, we need to get to the testing room.” Twilight followed wordlessly as they passed several rooms until they got to one with a heavy bronze iris door. Sprocket used a jolt of magic to activate the portal and it opened to reveal a small desk and chair with decent lighting. The walls were lined with dark orange resin. “What is this place?” she inquired while looking around the spartan décor. “This is the mute testing room. You’ll see why when I close the door. I’ll be kind and give you a warning: it can be quite jarring the first time.” She was perplexed by the statement. “What do you—” As soon as the door sealed behind him, the hive mind went silent. All of the voices that welcomed her and embraced her as one of their own were shut off. She was alone in her thoughts for the first time since she hatched, and the sudden silence left her with a migraine, quivering in terror. Without the memories of her past, she would have been a gibbering mess on the floor. Sprocket always felt a little guilty about doing that. “Don’t worry, this room only acts as a filter. You are still one with the Link, you simply can’t hear them.” Twilight was rubbing her forelegs to get the chills out her of being so alone. “Do you really not trust me?” she growled indignantly. “You simply don’t understand what the queen has done, forcing me to take on an apprentice. Your discomfort will pass, and if you can’t handle a little stress on the job, then you’re not cut out to be under my wing.” I’m starting to think that might be rather unhealthy. Sprocket dropped the test on the desk which already had an ink well and quill waiting for her. This room wouldn’t be necessary at all if I knew you didn’t have help. Nopony could possibly read and understand even those basic principles in two days. Those cliff notes of hers must have been given to her by somepony else. Possibly even mother. “Well, go on, get started. When you’re done, use this lever here to open the door and give your exam to me.” Taking a deep calming breath, Twilight walked over and sat down at the desk. Sprocket pulled a lever next to the door and a sphere enclosed him and the exit to keep the Link filtered out when he opened the door and left. As soon as the door shut again, the sphere slid back into the floor. She wrapped the quill in her orange magic and flipped the test over to the first problem. You can do this Twilight. You haven’t even spent a full week in the hive mind, you got through it back then just fine, you can handle an hour or two without it. Just focus, you need to focus! For two hours the test picked and prodded at Twilight’s brain so much a throbbing headache threatened to make her pass out. Years under Celestia had shaped and molded Twilight’s very way of thinking to make her an excellent test taker, but Sprocket’s test was ruthless and the absence of the Link made it worse. The test picked through obscure methodologies and downright criminally obtuse requirements of solving calculations. The final question had been a short essay on why Twilight thought she could even dream of standing in Sprocket’s shadow as his apprentice. It took a monumental effort to keep from using that as an excuse to vent her frustrations at Sprocket for rushing her testing and cutting off the Link. If he thinks I’m going to give him flowery praise , he can guess again. With the test held firmly in her magic, Twilight bolted for the door and pulled the lever to open the door. She slumped in the empty hallway as the chorus of voices flowed back into her. I feel whole again. It only took a few seconds for her mind to reacclimate to the Link. She was surprised to feel an extremely angry Cadista in the direction of Sprocket’s office. That can’t be good. Twilight tried to hide her presence from the hive mind as she crept towards his office. She could hear shouting coming through the closed door. Cadista was staring needles through Sprocket. “What gave you the right to place her in a testing chamber? She’s barely out of the shell and you want to traumatize her by silencing the Link!?” He shrunk away from the irate queen. “I can’t believe this. I thought you were above that. After I free her from that torture chamber, you and I are going to have a long discussion about your career.” As Cadista was about to head for the door, Sprocket held out a pleading hoof. “L-Let’s not jump to conclusions, my queen. Twilight Sparkle wasn’t taking this apprenticeship seriously!” Cadista was almost at the door. “We’ll see about that, after I free her.” She burst through the door to find Twilight waving at her with a sheepish grin. “Oh, hey! I finished.” Cadista’s presence in the Link instantly shifted to apologetic concern. “Thank goodness you’re alright! After I noticed you weren’t responding to me, I had half the hive looking for you until this one,” she stabbed a hoof behind her to Sprocket, “came forward with his crimes. I had no idea he would go this far with you, or anypony for that matter.” Twilight was just happy to see Cadista, but felt she should at least put on an air of strength in Sprocket’s presence. “It wasn’t fun, but I survived intact.” Her test flew over and landed on the engineer’s desk. “I think that should take care of my exam.” Even if I failed, at least I can prove to him that Twilight Sparkle doesn’t cheat. Cadista sent Twilight accolades through the hive mind before addressing both of them. “Somepony else will have to grade that test, I’m afraid. The position for Chief Engineer has just been vacated.” “My queen, I must protest!” Sprocket nearly shouted. “You decreed that Twilight was to be treated as any other sister. She simply could not have read twelve detailed textbooks in two days. She either got others to help her, or she doesn’t care enough to take it seriously.” “I did read those books!” Twilight retorted, “but I told you I wasn’t ready for the exam yet, I wanted time to re-read them and go over my notes!” Sprocket scoffed. “Please, you may have won mother over because of some nonsense with being a foreign diplomat or something, but I deal in cold facts. No pony reads and comprehends reference text that fast.” Cadista had had enough and was going to reassign him to grunge duty when Twilight made a rebuttal. “Then why not grade my exam? You put me in that filter room; I couldn’t possibly have cheated, right?” Twilight looked to Cadista. Alright, I’ll try it your way for the moment. The matriarch glared at Sprocket before flicking her head towards the waiting test. As he sulked over to look at it, she led Twilight out of the room to speak. “I must apologize for his actions against you, Twilight. I knew he prided himself on being one of my top researchers, but not to the extent that he would try to commit such an act against you just so he wouldn’t have to take on an apprentice.” “It wasn’t that bad, I could almost ignore the silence towards the end of it. But, might I ask why we even have such a room?” Cadista let out a long sigh. “It’s used for multiple reasons, but it’s mainly for students taking the higher graduate exams. The problem is that, at every other time in our lives, if we don’t know something, our instinct is to send a query through the hive mind. As you can imagine, that defeats the purpose of testing to see if you know the answers. Our hive’s drones are fully capable of surviving days, if not weeks of separation from the Link. Longer, if they undergo rigorous training. But even then, it is unpleasant.” Cadista stopped near an open balcony and sat on her haunches, gazing at the city under the dim glow of the shield dome. Twilight used the opportunity to sit next to her and lean against her matriarch. “So, our hive’s natural resistance to isolation coupled with me being a royal helped keep me from having a mental breakdown?” Cadista was starting to enjoy Twilight’s physical affection. “Correct. But, even then, I wanted you to remain within the hive mind for a minimum of two to four weeks before isolation training.” Twilight had some ideas as to why Cadista would want to do that, but didn’t voice them so she could enjoy Cadista’s company, both in the physical world and within the hive mind. “Just promise me a heads up before you do that, please?” Cadista took a lesson from the young mare and wrapped a foreleg around Twilight. The queen found the effect they had on each other fascinating. She has such an unusual influence. Perhaps there is more Equestrian in you than just your spirit. She inwardly chuckled at such an impossible idea. Silence reigned for ten minutes before Sprocket made a low priority request for Cadista’s attention. Being what she was, it was trivial of her to keep Twilight company while casting a baleful shadow over the chief engineer. Cadista detected more resentment in those words than submission. The matriarch kept her thoughts to herself. You’re not useless yet, Sprocket. Don’t do anything stupid. She looked down at Twilight, cooing softly in her embrace. Perhaps I let my ambitions run away again by assigning her to Sprocket. She needs somepony who hasn’t let their ego grow bigger than their intelligence. Somepony who’s a skilled engineer, who’s familiar with her. Her focus shifted to another drone who was just now bedding down for the night. Rachet nearly tripped. It took a moment for him to put his thoughts together. First class engineers were the lowest rank eligible to take an apprentice, but they typically didn’t receive one until the next promotion. Cadista could tell he had been thrown off balance by the news. He sighed in relief. Cadista ended the conversation as her attention drifted to the mare at her side. “Come along, Twilight, we should get some rest for the summit tomorrow.” Twilight reluctantly pulled away from her queen. “Alright, but can I ask a favor?” “I owe you one for letting Sprocket put you in an isolation room. Name it.” “After the summit, can I go to Equestria for a few days? I want to meet my old friends, and hopefully get some more of my memories back.” Cadista smiled at the idea. “I don’t see why not. Your integration into the hive mind is complete, and another trade caravan will be leaving the day after the summit. I’ve quadrupled the guards since that unfortunate event, so it should be safe now. It’ll also be a good learning experience for you to see how our love collectors operate.” Twilight’s wings buzzed out of happiness. “Oh, thank you! Ever since I read my friends' letters, I’ve been dying to see them. I’m sure we can all be friends again.” Cadista started flying towards the palace with her heir in tow. “Knowing you, Twilight, I wouldn’t doubt it.”