//------------------------------// // 2) Matrix // Story: Incomplete Fusion // by AppleTank //------------------------------// What if Chrysalis wasn’t an incompetent tactician and tried using brute force when her species’ specialty was stealth? 250 years before Luna’s return In the dead of night, a shimmer snuck into a nursery, several pod like objects hanging off his side. When there were no movement in sight, the spell was dropped, uncovering a crouching Changeling, its eyes softly lighting up the floor beneath it. It used its fangs to cut the pods open and placed changeling nymphs into the beds beside other sleeping foals. It touched its jagged horn to one of the foal’s head, sending a green bubble through it. The foal’s form copied, it sent the memory to the nymph. A flash later, a twin of the copied foal was in the bed. The changeling repeated the process until it ran out of nymphs, then placed the foals in new pods generated from glands in its mouth. Once the pods were dry and secured to its back, it recloaked itself and ran from the building. 235 years before Luna’s return A blue maned, grey coated colt sat at a diner, eating a salad. His term had just ended, and spent his spare time ogling fillies. Tomorrow, his parents would come by to pick him up. His room was a bit of a mess, and he dreaded the amount of cleaning he would have to do. He gave a depressed sigh, and glanced at some of the papers in his bag. At least he didn’t fail catastrophically like the first semester. That month was Tartarus. He had just finished when a petite young mare, her eyes hidden by her bangs, sheepishly trotted in and sat at an empty table. She had a green and pink striped mane and a pink coat, and she appeared to be engrossed in a book. The colt attention was instantly attracted to her. She was alone. She doesn’t look half bad, either, he thought. The colt looked around, shifting his bags. A buzz resonated deep within his mind. He gave a sharp toothed smile, and focused his senses at the aura of emotions surrounding him. He slicked his mane to the side and sauntered over. Elsewhere “Genetic code analyzed, and sending a Scout,” a Changeling Nurse announced. “Location: Manehatten Institute of Technology. Mission: Observe.” 225 years before Luna’s return The colt brought his smiling bride over to a bed in a fancy hotel, their honeymoon. He leaned in and gave her a kiss, while his free hoof discreetly pulled at her wedding gown. “Oh my,” the pink mare said, her cheeks blushing despite her coloring. The Hive Far away from the borders of Equestria, a Changeling Nurse wandered the tunnels of a hive hidden away in the badlands. It had buckets hanging from its side, for the dirt that was removed for the expansion of the hive. A buzz like order went through its mind, and the Nurse called over another Changeling to take its buckets to a storage locker. The Nurse went down a side path towards the lower levels of the hive, its pride and joy. Rows and rows of green pods lined the walls, inside a thin pony floating within. Tubes on the top of each pod fed nutrients in and filtered waste out. A glance told the Nurse that nutrients made need to be shipped in soon, and made a note to inform the its managers to send in a request to replenish their supplies. The Nurse paused for a moment to verify the numbers. After a moment, it went to Pod #2-15. It pressed its hoof against the wall and sent its magic into the slumbering pony’s mind. Half a minute later, a tiny cloud of white fluids floated out to the side of the pod, where the changeling collected it into a small ball made from the same materials as the pods, the green gels. She went to a different room and mixed the fluid within the ball into a labeled jar. The Nurse left the mixture mix for several days before returning. It touched its horn against the jar and sent a magic pulse through it. A flash of light transformed the Changeling into a young male Earth pony foal. He had blue and green striped mane, and a sky blue coat. He nodded and went to the Nursing area and picked up a random chrysalis. It took off its disguise by the time it reached the upper levels, and sent a message through the local mental network. A few minutes later, two Scouts appeared, ready to take the package. Midnight. Some hotel after a night of opera. The sleeping blue colt twitched besides his newly wed, a slight glow underneath his eyelids. He gently hugged his wife close and gave her a kiss, one that let trails of green gel. About an hour later, the colt was waiting by the door, a cocoon by his side. He opened the door for a few seconds, then closed it. He turned around to see his wife standing next to a Changeling with a pod on its side. They shared an unspoken agreement, the Changeling leaving the package behind and taking the giant chrysalis with it. Tomorrow morning, none would be any wiser. Across the country in Whinnychester, a old looking unicorn mare smiled at the orphans under her care. A flash of green shone from her eyes, and she turned to glance at the front door. “Come on, little ponies,” she called, “It’s time for bed,” and herded them to their rooms, her horn glowing slightly as she unlocked the door. In a local hospital in Ponyville, a doctor cast a spell on a Changeling Nymph, changing its appearance to one of a sleeping pink pegasus, a tuft of yellow on her head and tail. He nodded to them as he signed the child’s birth certificate as a Changeling cloaked itself, a pony shaped blur inside the small pod it carried on its back. A colt showed strong dedication for the crown, and competent at combat spells. He smiled at the ceremony at the end of the year. For now, he was just a Private of the Guard. However, he knew a friend who was already in the Royal Guard, and envied his friend’s skill. I’m right behind ‘ya, buddy. 194 years before Luna’s return Two best friends laughed at lunch at one of their father’s antics, together so often they might as well be sisters. One of them asked the other over for a sleepover. A green maned unicorn and his filly friend, a orange colored unicorn went behind into a room under construction for some private snogging. 103 years before Luna’s return A teacher hoofed out permission slips for a field trip to an archeological site. 90 years before Luna’s return Ponies stood in line, waiting to go to a private room for vaccinations. 85 years before Luna’s return Two best buddies stood guard at Her Majesty Princess Celestia’s door as the Princess walked in for the night. They held the door open for a few seconds longer than necessary. “She in, Orion?” “Yep, Her Queen is in. Use your eyes for once, won’t ya?” They smirked at each other and shut the door with a hall shuddering boom. Luna’s return The stars flashed, and the marks on the moon disappeared. A cloud of purple smoke shot down to the planet and reformed, sneering at ... The dark mare blinked. Eternal night was in full swing. And everything was dead. The first globules of tears formed at the corner of her eyes. “No...” she whispered. “This isn’t how I wanted it to happen.” She fell to her haunches. “Not like this...not like this.” She collapsed bonelessly to the floor, sobbing quietly, smoke burning off of her. Twelve Months after Changelings scurried near a geothermal vent, checking up apparatuses that captured the energy emitted, every once in a while doing maintenance work. A blue form crouched in the shadows created by the machines, unnoticed by the workers. The Princess of the Night, Ruler of a dead country, snuck down the passageways, blending in with the walls in order to avoid detection. She briefly pulled out a map, one drawn by some of the few she had saved due to his skill at locating underground tunnels. After a few wrong turns, she arrived inside the pod room, and looked sadly at every single one of her ponies trapped within. She shook herself out of her mood, glancing around to make sure nothing spotted her. She crawled behind the rows and hid herself between the hundreds of gently swaying chrysalises. She covered herself with the cloak, further hiding her form, then closed her eyes and touched her horn to the pods. When Luna opened them again, she saw the modern city of Canterlot, confetti raining from the sky. She looked down and saw unfamiliar ponies milling about in celebration. A wedding, it seemed, had recently occurred. She flew down to meet her sister, putting up a fake smile. “What did I miss?” In a different chamber The Goddess of the Sun twitched in her sleep, wiggling the numerous tubes and wires connected to her magic. A weak smile crossed her face. “...Luna...”