Ratchet’s brain locked up as his mind smashed into a fatal logic error. She’s producing love like a pony, but she’s a changeling. This… this can’t be happening! With breakfast forgotten, he closed his eyes to make sure his senses weren’t lying. No, that’s definitely love... h-holy Mother of Burrel that’s actually love! It’s gotta be leaking love—yeah, yeah that’s it. She’s just bloated, that’s all.
But it’s much warmer than any crystal I’ve ever fed off… could it be? I know! One of the collectors might be able to explain what it feels like. This… this is just a misunderstanding!
Unfortunately, the inquiry left Ratchet even more confused. So it is directed love! Ratchet was forced to conclude that he was delusional.
There was only one recourse left. <My Queeeeeeen!>
<What’s wrong, my son?>
<I know this sounds really, really crazy, but I think Twilight’s producing love for me.>
<Producing?> she replied with a disturbing lack of concern.
<Yes, my queen. It defies all logical sense, but I can feel Twilight radiating love!>
Cadista was silent for several seconds. <Wake her, and fetch some food. I wish to speak with her in private.>
<Yes, my queen.> Ratchet gently shook the drowsy proto-queen, which only made her wrap her pillow even tighter.
“Five more minutes, Spike.”
“Twilight, mother wants to speak to you.”
Twilight cracked her eyes open. “You’ve gotten awfully furry, Spike,” she groaned while smacking her lips.
Cadista broadened her speech to both changelings. <You are notoriously difficult to rouse, my daughter. She requires caffeine.>
<At once, my queen.>
Twilight blearily blinked as she watched Ratchet leave. <Ah good, you’re awake.>
Twilight stretched and yawned. <Bluuuuuuuuh. You normally don’t wake me like this. Is something wrong?>
<That depends on who’s answering.> That pushed some of the morning fog from Twilight’s mind. <You’re producing love… for Ratchet.>
Twilight sat bolt upright, as if someone had just read from her diary. <No I’m not! I-I um, that’s not bad, is it? I mean Ratchet’s a great guy, and—> She paused. <Wait, did you say... producing?> Wordless affirmation emanated from Cadista. <That’s not possible.>
A ghost of a laugh drifted over the Link. <He said the same thing. Ratchet will return with your coffee soon. This can wait until you’re fully awake.>
Twilight started rocking back and forth, clutching her tail. <O-okay.>
A short and mildly uncomfortable breakfast later, Twilight was sitting on the bed, watching the passing scenery through the window, but her mind was a million miles away.
<I’m going to be perfectly blunt here, Twilight, I expected this to happen, although I will admit it was later than I anticipated.>
<Y-you expected me to produce love? How?!>
<…Twilight, I engineered you to be capable of this.>
O-of course. I-It’s our way for each queen to tailor her children to the finest degree, but… <But why me?! Why didn’t somepony else do it a long time ago?>
<Perhaps I misspoke. What I meant to say is, I made sure that you wouldn’t lose that ability. The missing element that you have is impossible to create via alchemy. I feel you have a right to know that I have been planning to convert a pony for the past three hundred years.>
Twilight’s paranoia redoubled. <You—you planned to convert me into a changeling!?>
<Not you, specifically, Twilight!> Cadista quickly replied. <Yes, I was looking to find a pony to be my heir. Yumia and I have been working on this alchemical project for the better part of a millennium. In the end, I was not the daughter she wanted, you are. Given your political position, I had no intention on converting you, but fate forced my hoof.>
Twilight reluctantly accepted Cadista’s placating thoughts, if only so she could think clearly. <That nearly brought war between Equestria and the hives.> Cadista sent her wordless acknowledgement. <Don’t you feel… resentful over not being wanted?>
<Yumia loved me as much as I do you Twilight; she was actually envious of me that in all likelihood, I would be the one to see this day. As you are no doubt beginning to understand, Twilight, a queen always looks to the preservation and future of the hive. It is our very nature to do so.>
My nature? Twilight’s eyes drifted towards the rear of the train where the incubator was located. It called to her, striking a chord deep within her psyche that she was all too willing to heed. <Yes… my nature.>
Twilight’s almost calm demeanor fell apart in an instant. <Oh no, Ratchet found out I love him! How did he react?! Was he freaked out, or was he afraid of me, or, or, or did he like it, maybe? You didn’t tell him to remain silent about it during breakfast did you? Please, please tell me he wasn’t repulsed by me! I didn’t even get a chance to read my book on—>
<Calm down, Twilight, why would you think Ratchet would dislike you?>
Twilight stopped biting her hooves. <Well, I mean, I was planning this whole thing on how to confess to him, how to say, what to say, and a checklist, and now it’s all ruined because I produce love, and he sensed it before I was ready to tell him!>
She could almost feel Cadista’s facehoof. <After centuries of waiting for this day, this is hardly the reaction I expected.>
A knock on the door and a familiar presence in the hive mind grabbed the proto-queen’s attention as Ratchet entered with a platter on his back. “Oh, um. I brought some extra coffee for you.”
Cadista withdrew to let Twilight have her privacy. The proto-queen grabbed the platter with her magic and set it off to the side. “Ratchet… about earlier. I, ah...”
He averted his eyes and rubbed the back of his head. “Um, I really don’t know what to say. I was never trained to be a collector, so I don’t know any courtship rituals or mating habits.” Twilight’s drooping ears made him speak hastily. “But, I’m willing to learn—if you don’t mind me being so ignorant about this whole earning love thing…” He paused. “That came out wrong.”
A warm smile crossed Twilight’s lips as she sat down in front of him. “For somepony so ignorant of love, you didn’t do so bad earning mine,” she teased.
Ratchet felt the warmth of Twilight’s love swell. “Well, I just, uh, do whatever, ya know?”
Twilight’s smile grew as she leaned in close. “So do I.” She closed her eyes, and ever so lightly, kissed him on the lips.
Ratchet blinked. “What was that?”
Twilight giggled. “A kiss, Ratchet. It’s what ponies do when they love each other.”
“Oh.” Of course it means that, you blockhead, why else would she do that?! “Um, it was good— I mean, nice.”
Twilight cocked her head a little. “This sort of thing really isn’t understood outside of the collectors, is it?”
Ratchet shook his head. “It never seemed important.”
“Well, I read this book once on pony mating rituals, and it’s theorized that kissing arose from the fact that our lips are some of the most sensitive parts of our body. In fact—”
<Twilight,> Cadista interrupted, <you are already ruining your first romantic moment.>
Twilight blushed, and Ratchet looked confused. <Romantic moment? What’s that?>
Oh, Ratchet…
Twilight left the incubator after personally dropping off the day’s clutch of eggs. Being so far removed from the rest of the train, she found the adjoining freight car to be empty, save for the shipment of steel bars. She paused, and contentment washed over her as she thought about the eggs. Her eggs. Was it trepidation? Joy? Or perhaps it was desire that danced through her mind.
Desire for what?
Power? No, Twilight had more than she cared for. Conquest? Hardly. A home? I already have a home, she told herself, but at the same time, it wasn’t quite true.
Twilight traced a hoof along the steel ingots. The more she thought, the more her answers seemed to slip out of reach. Frowning, Twilight took her leave. I’ll find out what I really want later, I promised Rainbow Dash I’d meet her today.
Twilight barely took one step out of the last freight car when she found Rainbow Dash waiting for her with a pained expression. “Hey, Rainbow Dash, I didn’t keep you waiting too long, did I?” she said casually, seeing if the pegasus would be forthcoming.
Rainbow Dash played it casual and started walking with Twilight. “Nah, it’s cool, ya do what ya gotta do, right?” She started leading Twilight further up the train. “Say, you haven’t had breakfast yet, have you?
Twilight’s stomach growled, much to her displeasure. “I did, actually, but I could definitely eat again.”
“Geez, Twi, how many meals do you eat every day?”
Twilight huffed at her cyan friend. “Enough. You try laying four eggs a day, and see how much you eat.” Rainbow only shrugged with indifference. “…Whatever, I’ll tell the staff to grab us some pancakes.”
Rainbow Dash gave her a deeply condescending look. “Really? Pancakes?”
“What’s wrong with pancakes?”
“A mare as awesome as me doesn’t do pancakes. Only the might of waffles will suffice.”
Twilight chuckled as she sent the request to Hot Spice. “Sure.”
Rainbow stopped puffing her chest out as she remembered something. “Say Twi, the ‘Lings around here are in a buzz like something huge happened. Should I be worried?”
Twilight rocked on her hooves as the train took a sharp turn. “It, ah…” She’s my friend, she deserves to know. “It’s about me. Apparently I’m capable of producing love.”
Rainbow's condescending look returned in full force. “I may not be an egghead, Twilight, but even I know you don’t produce emotions, you feel them.”
Twilight grumbled while pinching her brow. There’s no way she’s that dense. “You know exactly what I mean. Chrysalis was practically getting off on all the love she was stealing from Canterlot.”
Rainbow Dash snickered. “She was sounding a bit… husky during that monologue of hers.”
They reached a dining car filled to the brim with changelings. Twilight heard the drone of a dozen of conversations waft over her as she found an empty table. Rainbow on the other hand, heard nothing more than deathly silence, broken only by the clinking of tableware, moving chairs, and the grinding wheels of the train car. The pegasus cringed at the scene. Okay, this is just freaky.
Rainbow’s discomfort was not helped by finding the waiter placing their order on the table barely a second after taking their seats. Twilight eyed her ten-stack of pancakes like she hadn’t eaten in days, and spoke while drenching it in syrup. “So how’s Ponyville been since I’ve been gone?”
“Girl, you’re asking the wrong mare for gossip,” Rainbow replied while digging into her waffles. “You should’ve gotten Rarity to come along if you wanted that.”
“Surely you know of something.”
“Well, there was this bit with the Foal Free Press going around recently. Some writer named Gabby Gums was putting up a tell-all gossip column.”
Twilight smirked at her. “I thought you said you don’t like gossip.”
“Hey, hey, there’s gossip, and then there’s gossip.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Rainbow waved a waffle laden fork at her fanged friend. “You know, for somepony who spends more time reading than sleeping, you’re not really in on that sort of thing, are you?” Twilight opened her mouth to rebuke, but Rainbow moaned with pleasure at her next bite. “Ahh, I still can’t get over how Hot Spice can make a mean waffle; buck this is good.”
Ah, forget it. “I’ll pass your compliments,” Twilight offered.
“So Twi, what’s the deal with you ‘Lings feeding on love, anyway?”
Rainbow could not have asked a worse question because Twilight instantly fell into lecture mode. “I’m glad you asked. For us, love is critically important for our nervous system, higher cognitive functions, and telepathy, to operate. Without love, we’d fall into a coma, and eventually go brain dead.”
Rainbow Dash’s raised an eyebrow. “Wow, what a bummer.”
Twilight hummed in agreement. “Well, I prefer not to think about it.”
“So…” Rainbow led on with mocking bedroom eyes, “you’re a love factory now?” Rainbow smirked as she polished off another waffle to give Twilight time to understand her meaning. “Sounds like a name from one of the fellas from the stable back home.”
Twilight bristled. “At least I didn’t spend a month’s pay there every week!”
“That doesn’t even make sense, love factory. So hey, are we going to be stopping in Ponyville? I want to grab some stuff from home.”
Twilight had the perfect rebuttal on the tip of her tongue, but forgot it in lieu of Rainbow’s topic shift. That, but, oh I give up. She groaned and didn’t answer until she had another bite. “The conductor won’t stop until we reach Appleloosa, where we have to take on supplies for the final leg of the journey. Cadista doesn’t want to risk the train being attacked while sitting in the station.”
Rainbow freaked. “Ah, pickle nuts! I better book it back home before the train passes by Ponyville, be back later!”
Twilight watched her friend leave with a patronizing smirk. Five bits she’s going to grab her trashy romance novels.
Her fork clattered against an empty, syrup covered plate, and her eyes slowly shifted to Rainbow’s half-finished meal. No sense in letting good waffles go to waste.
A week later, Twilight was enjoying Ratchet and Rainbow Dash’s company over drinks in a lounge. The partially darkened train car gently rocked its occupants as it raced through a tunnel. A glass of rum sat mostly undisturbed in front of Rainbow Dash, who kept flexing her stiff wings. “How much longer are we going to be stuck in this train? I can feel myself wasting away in here.”
“Should only be for a few more minutes,” Twilight said between sips of lemonade. “The last station is just beyond the mountains themselves.”
Ratchet was too absorbed in the last several pages of the spider walker manual to pay the mares any mind. That changed when Twilight’s tail brushed against his own, eliciting a mild jump out of him. Twilight’s snickering served to identify the culprit. “Sorry, did you need something?”
She blushed while her hooves fiddled with her drink. “Find anything else of interest?”
“Nothing we didn’t go over already. Except for—”
Ratchet, along with every other changeling in the car looked towards the windows, leaving Rainbow Dash at a loss. She glanced around to see them looking out at the passing rock of the tunnel. “What’s going on?”
No sooner had the words left her month that the mid-day sun blared through the windows as the train left the tunnel behind. The gorge between the mountain and cliff based train station stretched out as far as the eye could see, as if the continent was trying to tear itself away from the fetid jungle. The setting sun coupled with the multicolored rock face of the gorge filled Twilight’s heart with wonder. “Isn’t nature beautiful?”
Rainbow mumbled to herself as the two changelings discussed the scenery. That hive brain of theirs is really creepy.
The whistle wailed as the train slid noisily into station. The trio carried their baggage towards the street where a small shuttle airship awaited them. Rainbow Dash eyed the craft suspiciously, but did not hesitate to follow Twilight inside. “I thought you said we would be traveling back to your hive on one of those big ant walkers or whatever.”
Twilight watched a series of crates being unloaded from the mobile incubator and carted to the shuttle. “Normally we would, but due to the circumstances, we’ll be traveling in that.”
Twilight waved a hoof at what seemed to be empty air. Or it was, until a huge, ninety meter airship decloaked. Rainbow Dash’s mouth hung open as the shuttle brought them over into a hover above the steel behemoth.
“What in blazes is that!?”
“That,” Twilight replied with pride and she shooed a fly away from Rainbow’s mouth, “is the S.G.N. Column of Spring. It’s a q-ship.”
Rainbow stared in awe as the faux transport opened its top mounted doors to reveal a cramped cargo bay, barely large enough to accommodate the shuttle. The cyan pegasus fervently studied the craft. “Wait a sec, where’s the gas bag? Every airship has a gas bag right?”
Ratchet cleared his throat. “Actually, our navy uses an artificial recreation of pegasus magic. With that, even a ship as large as this can stay aloft for weeks without refueling.”
The shuttle came to a halt and Rainbow watched the cargo bay doors slide closed behind them. “Okay, that was cool.”
Rainbow Dash stuck close to Twilight as the proto-queen walked through the halls towards her cabin. “Hey Twi, how do you know where you’re going? Nopony’s told us where we’re bunking.”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Hive mind, but we’re not going to be staying long enough to need a cabin, just a place to store our luggage.”
“Oh, right.”
Twilight stopped walking and studied her friend. “Are you really that bothered by our Link?”
“...Not really, I just can’t stand being out of the loop, ya know? I’ve seen a dozen ‘Lings go by us without a single word being said, but I can still tell they were talking to each other. It’s creepy to see a dining car full of ponies without a single word being said… out loud, anyway.”
Twilight started back towards the cabin. “I don’t know what to tell you, Rainbow Dash, we use the Link almost exclusively in the hive.” Well, aside from me, I guess. “Tell you what, why don’t I assign somepony to be your guide while I’m busy? You don’t need to guard me while we’re in Stripped Gear.”
“You are the official diplomat, Rainbow Dash,” Ratchet offered, “you should get to know the town better for a while.”
Rainbow stroked her chin in an attempt to look conniving. “A personal guide, huh? He’d better not slow me down.”
“Heaven forbid,” Twilight replied. “He’ll be waiting for you when we get to the palace.”
“How are you going to manage that?”
“Hive mind, remember?”
Bah, you can’t use it for everything. “What about your big queen? Does she hold court like Celestia?”
“Over the hive mind.”
“Training soldiers?”
“Hive mind.”
“Call the Fire Dep—?”
“Hive mind.”
“Pay your taxes?”
“Hive mind.”
“What about—”
“Hive mind!”
“Do you use it to go to the bathroom, too?”
“Guuuuuuuuuh!”
True to her prediction, the q-ship made the trip in good time. The trio stood in a lone observation bubble suspended below the belly of the ship. A jungle covered caldera stretched out below them, illuminated by the glow of Luna’s moon, seemingly devoid of all life.
Rainbow was finally getting a chance to fly, or at least hover, above Twilight. It did much to improve her mood, but it wasn’t enough to hide her sour expression. “Okay, what gives? Where’s that glowing city you raved about? There’s nothing here but a weird mountain. This better not be more brain cloud crap.”
Twilight took a deep breath. “Actually, Rainbow, we can’t see the town yet either. We won’t for another minute or so.”
Rainbow Dash plopped on the metal floor next to her friend. “Give it to me straight, Twilight. How can you handle being in that think link of yours? It’s like hearing a ton of different voices all at once, right?”
“It’s really not the terror you keep making it out to be, Rainbow Dash. Yes, I hear thousands of voices all the time, but the Link doesn’t drown you in a sea of noise. If I really wanted to, I could tune them out.”
“But you don’t, do you?” Twilight shook her head. “How can you think with all that noise in your head? I mean, they tell you to be quiet in a library for a reason.”
Twilight huffed. “That never stopped you from yelling in my library.”
Rainbow snorted, but said nothing. She sulked until Ratchet pointed at the bottom of the ship. “There, that’s the edge of the masking barrier.”
They passed through a faint orange forcefield, revealing Stripped Gear in all its glory. Factories churned out smoke, food plazas were lit up in decorative color palettes, shops flaunted experimental neon advertisements, and all the buildings had warning lights. The sight left Rainbow Dash dumbstruck.
Small tugboats moved in to guide the massive beast towards the hatchery. While a second shuttle went about moving the eggs to their final destination below, the original shuttle headed straight for the palace.
Rainbow’s muzzle was plastered against the glass as she drank in the sights. Never before had she bore witness to such a spectacle of color at night, and the bewildering artistry left her speechless. Twilight joined her at the window. “A lot different than Ponyville, isn’t it?”
“You’re not kidding. I haven’t seen a town that’s this lively at night! Canterlot would if it wasn’t for the stuffy nobles.”
The shuttle passed by a sign extolling the virtues of Twist Berry Beer. “I thought you guys had that cloud brain for everything. Why bother with advertisement?” Twilight glared at her while tapping her hoof. “What?”
“I’m not going to dignify that with an answer.”
“What did I say?”
Eventually, the shuttle landed on a palace platform. The lights on the platform and palace wall cast the area in an almost daytime ambience. Cadista stood near the boarding ramp.
Twilight squeezed out of the door, and launched herself at the hive queen. <Mother!> Cadista braced herself as Twilight collided with her in a bear hug. “I missed you so much!”
Cadista was briefly overwhelmed by the sensation of receiving intended love. So it’s really true. Praise the First Mother! She half chuckled, half snorted at Twilight’s excessive enthusiasm. “How can you miss me so much if our minds are linked?”
Twilight nuzzled her. “There’s a big difference between being able to talk to you, and being able to hug you.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” she conceded before hugging her back.
Twilight jumped back to point at her nonplussed pegasus companion. “This is Rainbow Dash, longtime friend, and slowest flyer in Equestria.”
Rainbow Dash snapped to attention. “Slowest!? Them’s fightin’ words!” she playfully growled in a mock Applejack accent.
Cadista let the two mares toss banter back and forth for a minute before clearing her throat. “Ambassador Rainbow Dash, it is an honor to finally meet you.”
The pegasus had Twilight on the ground in a headlock. “Huh?” She looked up at the bemused queen before bolted up to her hooves and standing at attention. “Oh right,” Crud, how did it go again? “I, Rainbow Dash, the Element of Loyalty, thank you for your hospitality.”
Cadista nodded slightly. “And I, Queen Cadista, welcome you to Stripped Gear. The hour is late, why don’t I show you to your accommodations?”
Twilight stood up. <It might be best if it’s near the outer walls. RD will want to have something near the open sky.>
<That can be arranged.>
Rainbow Dash followed the changelings deeper into the palace and couldn’t peel her eyes off the multitude of lights brightening the hallways and aesthetically pleasing gear systems near the doors. The sound of clanking gears and hissing steam was faint, but omnipresent within the large hallways of the palace.
“Here we are,” Cadista said, breaking Rainbow from her reverie as they came to a queen sized brass door. She stepped on the metal plate for the door to slip open and show Rainbow Dash a large room with a massive adjoining balcony. She pointed at a drone standing off to the side. “This is Brass Excursor, he will be your guide and assistant during your stay.”
Rainbow Dash ignored the room and zipped over to inspect Brass. He was a little shorter than Ratchet, but with much larger wings. “Assistant, huh? You think your scout’s going to be able to keep up with me?”
The drone sent a query to Cadista to see if he could speak freely. “I’m an Excursor for my speed and agility, not my charm and good looks, that’s just a bonus,” he added with a smirk.
Twilight wrapped a hoof around her friend. “Why don’t we let you get settled in, Rainbow Dash. Cadista and I have a few matters to discuss.”
“Oh, yeah, sure. See ya for breakfast or lunch tomorrow?”
Twilight briefly nuzzled her friend. “Sounds great.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Thanks for coming Rainbow; you don’t know how much this means to me.”
Rainbow fidgeted, but didn’t push her off. “Yeah, yeah, I know, enough with the mushy stuff already.”
Twilight lost all of her mirth. “Rainbow Dash, I know it’s going to be hard for you to stay here, but I meant it. Thank you for coming.”
Rainbow groaned and gently pushed the clingy proto-queen off. “What are friends for right?”
Twilight snickered. She never could take a hug for long. “See you later, Rainbow Dash.”
“Laters.” Rainbow watched the two queens depart before turning back to Brass. “So, you think you can keep up with me huh?”
Brass buzzed his wings to limber up. “We’ve heard of your competitiveness. It’s why I was chosen.”
“Is that right?” She eyed the open door to the balcony. “Well, then you’d better prove it!”
Without another word, Rainbow Dash bolted out of the room in a prismatic blur.
Brass was only barely able to track her movement. Why didn’t I see this coming?! Brass vaulted into the air, intent on winning this little contest.
Twilight and Ratchet followed after Cadista towards the royal chambers deeper in the palace. “I made arrangements for your chambers to be prepared in your absence and all of your personal effects moved in as well.”
“Can Ratchet stay with me?” Twilight blushed. “I mean— that is, if you want to.”
Ratchet glanced between the two royals. “I, ahh…”
“Given the nature of recent events, I will leave the matter entirely between the two of you.”
He turned to see Twilight’s warm smile. “If that’s what you want, I would be honored.”
They came at last to a sizable bedchamber with a personal library on the second story. However, the room was lacking furniture of any kind, save for a plain queen sized bed and a simple dresser with various personal hygiene implements on it.
Cadista remained near the door as Twilight and Ratchet slowly stepped inside. Twilight surveyed the mostly empty chamber with confusion. “It’s a little… bare, don’t you think?”
“Well, it would at least provide plenty of room for designing and building prototypes,” Ratchet offered, “and the skylight’s big enough to airlift supplies, so they don’t need to be brought through the palace.”
Twilight surveyed the area. “That’s all well and good, but this feels more like a workshop than living quarters.”
Cadista walked over to the balcony. “This used to be Yumia’s room—she was always the tinkerer. Aside from some basic amenities, I’ve stripped everything out of here so that you can remodel your quarters as you wish.”
“Oh,” Twilight’s ears fell. I’m sure she just put it all in storage somewhere.
Ratchet sensed Twilight’s desire for privacy. “Why don’t I start packing my things so I can bring them over?” He bowed once to each royal. “My queen, Twilight.”
Cadista watched him leave before speaking. <What troubles you, my child?>
Twilight sat on her haunches while rubbing her foreleg. “I know it’s been a very long time since Yumia’s death, but there isn’t even a portrait of her anywhere. Not your room, or this one, or… well anywhere.”
Cadista’s gaze slowly fell away from the light of Stripped Gear towards Twilight. <It is our way, Twilight. The hive mind keeps her in our history so that we may learn from the past, but not so that we’ll get bogged down in it.>
Twilight leaned her head against Cadista’s foreleg. <Canterlot castle has a stained glass hallway marking important events in Equestria’s history. While the hive mind is nice, sometimes a visual reminder can be just as good.>
Cadista’s eyes never left the proto-queen leaning on her. <If you wish to start such a project, I will support you.>
The gears in Twilight’s head churned away. The future is important, but it seems like the past is forgotten. Maybe that’s what I can do.
The elder queen felt Twilight’s gratitude, but her troubled thoughts remained. <Was there something else, my child?>
Twilight cast the older queen a searching gaze. “Why do you never call Yumia ‘mother?’”
Cadista’s visage stiffened. “Because I do not know if she is.”
“What do you mean? She birthed your egg, didn’t she?”
“She designed the alchemy that made me, but… I did the same for her in my previous life.”
Twilight cocked her head. “Previous life? Wait, I thought that it was Yumia’s idea that our hive’s new queens didn’t break off to form their own Link.”
“It might have been,” Cadista replied at length as she tried to search her memories. “Yumia and I have played and reversed the roles of mother and daughter so many times through rebirth that I’ve forgotten who the first queen was.”
“Then who was she to you, exactly?”
Cadista sat down so she could wrap a tentative hoof around Twilight. “It’s… difficult to explain. I don’t think it would be accurate to call her mother or daughter, nor a wife or life partner as it was never a romantic relationship… as far as I know, anyway. Again, the events of the life previous to this one are lost to me, and Yumia left such things in the past. I suppose it might be safer to call Yumia and myself as one being of two bodies, always in a state of decay and renewal.”
Twilight watched the tears start falling off her mother’s cheeks. “Until Chrysalis killed her.”
A tidal wave of fury washed over Twilight. “Yes,” she replied between clenched teeth. “That wretched creature thinks she only killed my mother, when she really murdered my other half.” Her fury dissipated into resignation as she struggled to hold herself in check. “And, now… once my body fails me, through injury or age, I will die for good.”
“What!?” Twilight shouted as she leapt into the air out of shock. “Why can’t you go through rebirth again?”
Cadista gently pulled Twilight back to the floor. “Because I don’t wish to. Our dream has been realized in you, Twilight Sparkle. My time on this world is passing, and I have long since accepted that.”
Tears dripped down Twilight’s face as she hugged Cadista. “Don’t talk like that! I can’t lead the hive without you!”
The elder queen nuzzled Twilight. “Don’t fear, Twilight, just because I have resigned to leave this world does not mean I will rush to meet my fate. As long as I draw breath, I will aid you for as long as I can.” She tilted Twilight’s head up with a hoof and flashed a reassuring, but weak, smile. “And that will be for a long time yet.”
With her spirits recovering, Twilight yawned deeply. “I’m glad. For a minute there it sounded like you wanted to…”
Cadista nodded solemnly. “I apologize, thinking too much about Yumia often robs me of my good humor. You should get some rest, I have a feeling you will want the entirely of tomorrow to redecorate.”
Twilight chuckled briefly. “Well, that’ll be a joint effort between me and Ratchet, but there is something else I want to do this week.” Cadista hummed inquisitively. “I want to see just how much useable love I produce, and who can feel it.”
“I thought you might. I will make arrangements for the day after tomorrow.”
“Great! For now, I’d better go help Ratchet move. Bye!”
Why doesn’t she just ask some drones to do that? Cadista was about to ask as Twilight flew through the skylight, but something stayed her hoof. Oh, let her go, it’s probably a custom among ponies.
The next week and a half flew by as Twilight settled back into hive life. It was a nippy autumn morning as Twilight flew over the city. She took in the brief stillness in the skies before the hive exploded with activity. Firmly clasped in her magic was an object that had the distinct honor of being both embarrassing and precious to her. It was a steel container shaped exactly like the egg cartons she used to buy from Applejack.
Despite having used the thing every day since her return, Twilight still blushed at the sight of it. I’m never going to be able to look at chicken eggs the same way again. The longer she looked at the carton, the more it soured her memories of scrambled eggs. That does it, my first act as queen is redesigning this thing.
Twilight wrenched her eyes from the egg carton to spy the hatchery off in the distance, but a prismatic blur off to the side caught her attention. Rainbow Dash was about to pass her by, but Twilight’s distinctive red wings were hard to miss against the brass and bronze of the city. “‘Sup, ‘Ling Queen.”
Twilight yelped in surprise, and the egg crate in her magic wavered for a moment until she restabilized it. She let a sigh of relief before facing Rainbow Dash’s smug grin. “Don’t sneak up on me like that, I almost dropped them!”
Rainbow waved off Twilight’s exasperation. “I would’ve caught ‘em.”
Twilight pulled a checklist and quill out of her saddlebags and started writing on the back of it. Note to self: beware of Rainbow Dash while transporting eggs.
Rainbow performed aileron rolls around Twilight until she took closer scrutiny of her friend’s magic. “Hey Twi, did you notice your magic’s nearly all purple again?”
The proto-queen took a moment to hold the checklist and quill away from her face to inspect the aura. “Yeah, it started changing back a while ago, but my magic stopped short of turning all the way back. I don’t think I’ll ever be rid of the orange flicker that dances through it all the time.”
“Can’t you like, make it go away?”
Twilight put her checklist and quill away. “It takes a while and constant effort to change one’s magic color, but the orange flicker’s kind of growing on me. I think I’ll keep it.”
“It does look pretty rad. I haven’t seen anypony with multicolored magic before.” She glanced away from Twilight. “Well, aside from King Smoke with Eyes anyway.”
As they neared the hatchery, Rainbow was about to fly off when something occurred to her. “So, uh, do you always deliver the eggs yourself?”
Twilight fidgeted with her hooves, but managed to keep her voice level. “I, ah, no, I haven’t done it myself since we were on the train.”
“So what makes this batch so special?”
Twilight looked insulted. “Rainbow Dash, I would think that you of all ponies would know that every child is special to their mother, even if all you see is an egg.”
Rainbow Dash was not so easily dismissed. “You wouldn’t be trying to hide something from me, would you?”
“I—uh—buh—No! Of course not!”
Twilight cringed and started to back away from Rainbow’s reproachful glare. “I may not have AJ’s lie detector magic, but I know you’re not telling me something.”
“It’s… personal.”
Rainbow’s scowl was replaced by pleading clasped hooves. “Oh come oooon, Twilight. I’m your friend, how personal could it be?”
Twilight worked her jaw as she debated on if she should anything at all. She’s going to make me regret this. “You have to promise not to tell anypony.”
“Who’s ta’ tell? I’m always the last to know anything around here, with that group think you all have.”
I guess she’s right. “They’re… Ratchet’s eggs.”
“Him? I thought only queens laid eggs.” Twilight shot her a sardonic look before understanding fell over Rainbow’s visage. “Oh, oh! Well, well, well, so you finally got around to that, huh?”
Twilight landed in front of the hatchery and kept the egg carton close. “Yes, well, unlike you, I wanted my first time to be something special.”
Rainbow Dash grinned. “So, if you two break up, does that mean he has to pay egg support?”
“Rainbow!” The cyan pegasus rolled in the air, laughing, until she saw a familiar drone flying towards them.
“Uh oh, gotta jet!”
Rainbow Dash bolted away as Brass landed right next to where the pegasus had been. “Confound that pony! Stay still for once!” he yelled after her.
Twilight watched him take a moment to catch his breath before flying off after Rainbow. The proto-queen couldn’t stop a mirthful snort from escaping her. Well, it’s not like I wanted to keep it a secret, anyway.
Unlike the mobile incubator, the hatchery was a cavernous chamber under the palace, with heavily reinforced support columns covered in disused alcoves of a bygone era. The floor, however, was a maze of pipework that criss-crossed underneath catwalks leading to rows upon rows of glass incubators.
The hatchery smelled like cleaning chemicals and ancient alchemical magic that tickled the nose of anyone who remained for very long. Luckily, Twilight was headed for the central control room, where the caretakers from the mobile incubator awaited her, along with a dozen other drones starting their morning shift.
The senior caretaker dipped her head in respect. <Sister, while it is a pleasure to see you as always, I am unsure as to why you did not let us deliver the eggs for you.>
Twilight landed carefully on the small landing platform in front of the control center and levitated the egg crate onto the floor between them. “Because of this.” Using her magic to open the crate, Twilight revealed five, not four, glowing purple eggs.
The two drones moved over to inspect them carefully for flaws. After a minute the caretaker gave Twilight an approving nod. “They are in excellent condition, a good sign that your maturation is progressing without complication. I know it must be difficult to have a consistently high appetite.”
Twilight watched as other caretakers removed the eggs to be placed in the larger incubators below. “Not so much anymore, it just took a few days or so to remind myself that all of the calories are going into the eggs, not my flank.”
The elder caretaker moved over to Twilight with a tape measure, starting with her legs, while the younger one stood nearby with a clipboard and quill. “Well, in a manner of speaking, it is.”
The proto-queen looked at her forelegs while the caretaker measured her hind ones. “Do we really have to do this every day?”
“Yes,” the drone declared as she probed Twilight’s skeleton with her magic. “Otherwise your development and egg health might be in jeopardy. By the way, your bone density is starting to drop.”
Twilight pulled out her checklist and amended her previous personal note. “I’ll start drinking more milk,” she mumbled.
The drone made several other measurements and passed on a few other recommendations until she arrived at Twilight’s head. “I don’t understand it,” she said after removing the Element of Magic from atop Twilight’s brow and inspecting the top of her head. “There should be at least some sign of your crown growing in.”
Twilight nearly knocked the older mare in the muzzle as she looked up. “Wait, that’s what you’ve been inspecting my head for, for the past two weeks? We grow that?!”
The elder changeling tactfully pulled Twilight’s head back down to continue her inspection. “Yes, every royal since our race began starts growing their crown in at the proto-queen stage.”
“But I’ve seen mother take hers off. She hardly wears it at all around the palace.”
Having no luck, the caretaker released Twilight’s head so she could stand normally. “They’ve always been removable after fully growing in, and for other hives they are critical to the queen’s ability to command her swarm without being overwhelmed by the weight of their hive mind.”
“You make it seem like our hive doesn’t.”
“That’s because we don’t,” the younger caretaker replied, “due to us drones being far more intelligent than the average, we don’t require such intensive micromanagement.”
“Not to mention that those same drone improvements were incorporated into Cadista and you as well. You could support a hive mind of half a million without your crown’s amplification, but that still doesn’t explain why you’re not growing one. Mother never said anything about removing that from the alchemy that remade you.”
Twilight was about to replace the Element of Magic when a thought occurred to her, and she pulled the tiara in front of her face. “Maybe this is why.” Both caretakers shot her quizzical looks. “The Element and I are one and the same. What if it replaced my crown?”
The two drones blinked. “It’s… possible,” the younger one offered. “The crown grows in when you start forming your own hive mind, but maybe only if you don’t already possess an amplifier.”
The trio of mares were jarred out of their debate when Twilight froze. Of the one hundred and thirteen silent slots in the hive mind forming under her, four of them were waking up. Twilight’s ears turned towards the northern section of the hatchery.
“Twilight?”
“They’re hatching!” Without another word, Twilight raced through the air as the two caretakers tried to keep up. She arrived at a padded dais, where her first twelve eggs were resting. The eggs themselves had grown to the size of a watermelon, but Twilight was focused on four of them in particular.
A lone caretaker jumped as Twilight approached. “Sister! I was just about to call you.”
“I know, I can hear them.” The first two caretakers arrived and, with the help of the third, they moved the other eight eggs away so the first four would have room to hatch.
Twilight knelt down until she was at eye level with the quartet of eggs as they started quivering. Bit by bit, the changeling infants became more restless as the hardened wax shells started to fracture. Twilight’s eyes grew wide as one changeling's horn managed to breach her shell, and her three siblings quickly followed suit.
<That’s right, break free. You can do it.> She didn’t know if they could understand her yet, but she encouraged them anyway.
After a minute of slowly wearing down her shell, the first hatchling freed her head from the egg and slumped over, trying to catch her breath. What she got was a full view of Twilight’s face. The purple hatchling chirped inquisitively as the proto-queen smiled and used her magic to help pry off the rest of the egg.
<There you go, little one.> She turned to the other three hatchlings as they freed themselves. Twilight helped each in turn while one of the caretakers brought over a heating unit to keep the hatchlings warm.
Twilight’s heart melted at seeing the four purple hatchlings, each bearing her mane colors of purple and orange, but they lacked her cutie mark. The proto-queen’s love poured into her hatchlings, as they stumbled towards her. She looked into their azure glowing eyes with a few tears of joy dampening her fur.
Sitting on her haunches, she wrapped all four hatchlings in her forelegs and held them tightly. Sensing her as both their queen, and as a strong source of love, the four purple changelings feebly hugged her back. My darling little foals.
Twilight and her first four drones remained in the embrace for a few precious minutes before the elder caretaker rested a hoof on the proto-queen’s withers. “Sister, we should take them to nymph care.”
Twilight looked first to the caretaker, then to her hatchlings. The azure glow in their eyes was slightly dimmer than Cadista’s drones, making their irises more visible, but not enough to see their color. “Don’t worry, little ones. Your aunts will take good care of you.”
The four nymphs clung to their mother, and only source of love. Twilight kissed each one on the forehead. “It’s okay, mama can always hear you.”
Sending as many reassuring thoughts as possible, Twilight calmed her nymphs down and levitated them to the waiting hooves of the caretakers. The younger caretaker stayed behind and watched as Twilight bit her hoof as the hatchlings were taken to the western section of the hatchery. “I should go help.”
“Sister, wait!” the drone called out before the proto-queen could take off. “Twilight, you can trust your brood in our care. This is what we’ve been trained for.”
“I-I know, but, they’re my children. I need to care for them.”
“Sister, I read up on how mammals care for their young, but you can’t give that… style of care to your young ones.”
Twilight wrestled between logic and her maternal instinct. “But… they’re precious to me.”
The caretakers sat next to the proto-queen and pulled her head towards the ground floor incubators. “Aren’t they as well?”
“Of course they are,” Twilight replied definitively. “I just… I don’t want the most they ever see of me is an occasional passing glance.”
The drone hugged her royal sister. “They are linked to you, Twilight. If they ever want to feel your love for them, all they have to do is think of you.”
Twilight watched over the active incubators and thought of Cadista. She was rewarded by the elder queen’s caressing touch upon her mind. “Thank you, sis, I may not be able to be a part of their day to day lives, but I want to be there when they hatch. From both the egg and the chrysalis.”
The caretaker nodded and flew off after sensing Twilight no longer needed her. The proto-queen’s gaze remained on her eggs. My children, I promise you that I will be the best mother I can possibly be to you. After all, a queen is incomplete without her drones.
The moon was high in the night sky by the time Ratchet returned to the workshop he called home. The walls were aglow with the flickering light of a scented candle, beating back the smell of grease. Next to the candle sat a pile of books, and the only mare in Equestria who would willingly subject herself to them. Twilight was so absorbed in her studies, she didn’t notice the door opening.
Grey hooves softly clopped along the floor as Ratchet let the door swing shut behind him. He wiggled out of his saddlebags and softly fluttered over to Twilight’s side, his gossamer wings creating the slightest of breezes in the still air of the room.
“Sorry I was out so late.”
Twilight tore her eyes from the musty old tome. The light of the candle cast shadows that danced across her face. “It’s okay, I was distracted myself.” They shared a long kiss before she turned back to her studies. “I’ll go to sleep in a few hours, I don’t want to start laying first thing in the morning again.”
“Ah, it wasn’t that bad. It gave me an excuse to test out my newest washing machine improvements.” They snickered as Ratchet brought over some spare cushions next to her. “So, what are you studying?”
Twilight rubbed her tired eyes. “I need to contribute something to our race if I’m to earn the right to found my own hive. So, I’ve been digging through our history, but I can't find anything before the ebony castle's first queen.”
Ratchet started massaging her wing shoulders from behind her, eliciting a moan of relief. “I take it mother didn’t have any answers, either?”
Twilight gave up on the book and leaned back into the massage with a blissful expression. “No, she seems completely disinterested in any past beyond her own. Oh Celestia, that feels good.”
Ratchet adjusted his treatment towards the base of Twilight’s neck, making her melt into the cushions. “Maybe that could be your contribution, if you find some long lost alchemy or something? I’m sure that would be acceptable by the summit. How does this feel?”
He gently pulled Twilight onto her back so he had easier access to her left foreleg and kneaded her muscles. Twilight’s body went limp under his caring touch. “That feels wonderful. I’m suddenly really happy that we don’t have chitin.”
Ratchet betrayed none of his mounting sadness as he slowly moved on to her other foreleg. “I thought you were going to stay with Stripped Gear.”
“I am, in a sort,” Twilight replied lazily. “I won’t be severing the Link with mother. We’re going to try a new thing where multiple hives will remain united in a singular hive mind.”
He slowly worked his magic up her neck before coming face to face with Twilight. “Glad to hear it. If our minds were ever separated…”
Twilight pulled him in close for a tight hug. “Ratchet, my love, I would never leave you, nor Stripped Gear. I want my future hive and Stripped to be united as one nation. That…” She gave him a long, lasting kiss. “…will be our legacy. United queens under one Link,” and to join Equestria as a single nation.
Ratchet nuzzled her face in slow movements. “I would be honored to help you achieve such a goal,” he kissed her on the cheek, “my queen.”
Twilight’s laugh echoed through the room. “You’ve become quite the Romeo.”
“I’ve been taking a few love collector classes Rose recommended.”
Twilight nibbled one of Ratchet’s ears. “Is that right?”
Ratchet felt Twilight’s love swirling around and through him like a furnace. “It’s helped, but I think I can do better.” He planted a long, passionate kiss upon her lips. Twilight wrapped her hooves around the drone that had unwittingly stolen her heart, and they fell back on the cushions, giggling.