//------------------------------// // Metamorphosis Part II // Story: Spark // by Fyn16 //------------------------------// Metamorphosis: Part II Nimbus was at a loss for what to do next. The Changeling Queen’s magical restraining spell was strong; strong enough to render any thoughts of escape fruitless. He was trapped like a fly in a spider’s web. Even if he could get out, he mused, what good could he possibly do? Chrysalis was basically an Alicorn, and considerably more powerful than himself. Even if he could charge his CAL-2 in time, he highly doubted the weapon would have any real effect on the target. No, escape was indeed impossible this time, and Chrysalis knew it, chuckling as she approached. “Don’t be too hard on yourselves. Nopony else was able to tell the difference between the real Bright Future and me, either. Please allow me the opportunity for a bit of self-praise. That was the longest masquerade I’ve ever kept up, and apparently it held up well.” “So what, then?” Storm Runner snarled, “are you keeping Bright Future trapped here, too?” Chrysalis smiled, running a jagged hoof under Storm Runner’s neck. The Pegasus’s eyes widened in discomfort, but without control of his body he could do nothing. “Oh he’s here,” Chrysalis said, “but not trapped. You see, Bright Future came to me willingly, for a much different purpose.” “And why are we here, then?” Octavia asked, “why us?” Chrysalis shrugged as she tapped the cave wall with her horn. A sliver of glowing green magic began to snake its way up the wall, splitting off into several veins that were converging towards the center of the ceiling. “You four were simply in the right place at the right time. The Awakening sought Site Echo, Celestia’s loyal henchponies chased them down, and you, my dear,” she nodded to Octavia, “were simply swept up in the middle of it all, which, as it turned out, benefitted me greatly…” Chrysalis was back in the center of the room now, standing under the converging lines of magic. “You see, my race feeds on emotion- the stronger, the better- and when you four crossed my path, I could practically feel the potential. I clearly wasn’t wrong. I needed to feed to break the disguise I’d been keeping for over three decades now.” “Why?” Nimbus groaned, struggling against his bonds to no avail, “if you set hoof outside of this facility, you’ll expose yourself to the might of Celestia and Luna, or even to the Elements of Harmony themselves!” “You really think I feel threatened by them, Nimbus?” Chrysalis sneered. “I am not some petty field tactician. I’ve waited millenia for this day, and I can continue to wait. I will simply take comfort knowing that the time for my race to rise is near. And I won’t be alone in my new conquest, either.” The sparks of magic had finally converged on the tank in the middle of the room, and the few parts of it that weren’t covered by black growths began to emit a green light and a low hum. “Thirty-two years ago, Bright Future approached me with a dilemma,” Crysalis went on. “His superiors ordered him to destroy this facility, and terminate everything related to Project Spark; to me. His thoughts weren’t hard to read. The stallion admired me, or at least respected me. When the time came for him to shut the doors and pull the plug on his operations here, I knew he wouldn’t be able to do it. On the day Site Echo was scheduled for termination, he approached me and told me everything. I offered him a choice…” Through the tank Nimbus was starting to see the outline of whatever was within. It was tall, almost certainly quadrupedal… suddenly he was beginning to piece together what Chrysalis was talking about. “He’s in that tank, isn’t he?” Chrysalis ran a hoof fondly down the surface of the tank, nodding. “I asked him to demonstrate a simple act of devotion to me, and he complied. Among the safety features of this building was a magical stasis field created to safeguard its inhabitants in the event of a breach, not unlike the field that rendered me dormant for so many years. He used it on those still inside, and helped me convert them into my subjects. In exchange, I gave him what he always wanted- perfection.” The tube pulsed with light, then the fluid inside began to drain, being siphoned upwards and into the ceiling above. Then the glass face cracked and shattered, crumbling outwards as something rose to its hooves behind it. Thin slivers of light grew wider on what Nimbus could only guess was its face, and he realized he was looking at a pair of eyes. If this had indeed been Bright Future, there was no longer any resemblance. This observation was only confirmed when the creature’s horn began to glow, illuminating the rest of his body. He wasn’t as tall as Chrysalis; instead, the creature that was once Bright Future seemed to still have his old Unicorn-sized body, or at least most of it. His legs had stretched, closer to Alicorn length, but noticeably out of proportion for a Unicorn, and they bore hollowed-out sections just as Chrysalis’s did. Fangs jutted out from his mouth, and his eyes glowed with a pale, bluish-green light. What was most horrifying, though, was that his transformation wasn’t entirely complete. Wisps of his old mane and tail still showed, contrasting with his new, waxy black coat, and the fading remains of what was once a cutie mark were still visible on his flank. Bright Future took several rasping breaths, then stood next to Chrysalis. “I am awake,” he said softly with a voice so grating it seemed to penetrate Nimbus’s skull. Chrysalis nodded, then addressed the captive ponies. “This is my new mate. Bright Future no longer exists; the being you see before you is Chitin, the evolution of ponykind.” “Bright Future?!” Storm Runner gasped, incredulous, “so you just bought into her story? But what about the Griffons? What about your loyalty to Equestria?” Chrysalis opened her mouth to speak, but Bright Future cut her off. “I was a scientist, Pegasus, my loyalties were to the betterment of ponykind. Do not think for a second that I had any specific ties to the throne or this country. If I had felt that the Griffons were the best hope for our future, I would have sided with them instead. Thanks to Chrysalis, I was able to see a better option; under the Changelings, we can be anything we want to be. Is that not perfection? Have you ever looked in a mirror and wanted to change something, however small, about yourself? Don’t you see why I did what I did now? It’s the natural next step in our evolution!” “Sounds an awful lot like servitude to me,” Silky Sunset shot back. “What would you know of true perfection? What would any of you know?” Chrysalis countered. “You’re trying so hard to fight us, but you don’t even know what it is we offer.” “Maybe not, but I know it can’t be anything good,” Storm Runner said. Chrysalis frowned briefly, regarded Chitin, then smiled slowly. “Well, I have other uses for you too, then.You see, I have so much to do and so little time to deal with such petty creatures as you. Chitin, on the other hoof…” The two Changelings exchanged brief glances, and Chitin nodded slowly, solemnly, as if he’d received a message. “Unfortunately I cannot say with any honesty that you four will see the rise of the Changeling race,” Chitin said, stepping forward. “My queen has requested one more demonstration of loyalty from me, and in the case of you meddling outsiders, I’m more than happy to oblige…” Chrysalis’s form was suddenly engulfed in a bright green light which quickly covered the room. Then with a loud “crack,” she was gone, and the light faded away, leaving the four ponies alone and unbound with Chitin. The ponies were free, but none dared move yet. Storm Runner nodded slowly. “I see how it is…” the Pegasus said softly, his voice dripping with venom, “Chrysalis needs us out of the way without getting her hooves dirty, and you’ve got a convenient new body and loyalties. Shame you can’t see that you’re pretty much her b-” Storm Runner sailed through the air, impacting the cave wall behind him before he could finish. Chitin laughed, then clicked his tongue. “Now now, little pony. Language.” Looking back, Nimbus could see that his friend was in pain. Storm Runner’s body had taken a lot of punishment today, and getting slammed into a wall probably wasn’t helping. Without hesitation, he rushed to his friend’s side. He only managed to travel a few feet before he was flipped upside-down and thrust face-first into the dirt- Chitin’s work again. “Not a very challenging initiation into the ranks of the Changelings, I must say,” Bright Future gloated, ignoring the mares and approaching the shaking forms of Nimbus and Storm Runner, “I mean I knew you’d be easy to take down, but this? Hardly what I’d call strenuous.” “Hey ugly!” Chitin whipped around. Silky Sunset was standing on the opposite side of the room, horn bared and glowing. The Changeling snarled. “I’ll deal with you later, you impetulant insect.” Seeing her chance, Octavia picked up a stone and hurled it towards Chitin. The rock hit him squarely in the back of the neck, and he whirled towards her, hissing. Shaking himself to his senses, Nimbus saw his chance. Nodding to Storm Runner, both took off, blasting past Chitin as he lunged for Octavia. The Changeling turned to strike them, only to be met with a blast of magic from Silky’s horn. As he prepared to attack Silky, charging his own horn, Nimbus and Storm circled around, charging in and bucking Chitin’s exposed sides. Any of the calm, commanding presence the Changeling had was gone now, replaced with an animalistic rage that was terrifying to behold. Green sparks danced about his body as he started firing bolts of magic wildly in every direction. “You can’t hit us all,” Octavia called out as Nimbus flew past Chitin’s front legs, almost tripping him up. “Admit it,, Chitin- you’re out of your league!” As Chitin became angrier and angrier, Nimbus could see the sparks around him intensifying, and at the conclusion of Octavia’s comment, he prepared for the worst. He wasn’t exactly disappointed. With a cry of “enough!” Chitin’s magic erupted outwards in all directions, scattering the ponies to all sides of the cave. The friction from the cave floor burned against Nimbus’s skin as he fought to stay upright, but against the blast he had no protection, and was catapulted head over hooves into the wall. “Changelings, hive-dwellers, hear me and awaken!” Chitin called out. Nimbus shook the stars out of his eyes and waited, listening for a response. Just as it seemed Chitin’s awe-inspiring declaration might be a contestant for biggest failure of the year, the humming from before began to fill the cavern. Nimbus didn’t even need to ask what it was. Chitin was smart- using powers he’d only just acquired to take down four targets was unwise, but unleashing the full fury of the hive would give him the protection he needed, if nothing else. The drone became a steady thrum until Nimbus could feel his chest shaking. Chitin simply smiled as the walls began to crack and debris fell from the ceiling. The Changelings would be here any second now. “Go!” Nimbus yelled to the others, charging for Chitin again. Chitin swiped at him with a magical beam, forcing him to divert, but Nimbus dove back in again, yelling “get out while you have a chance! I’ll catch up!” “Got your back, Raider One,” Storm Runner called out, “and I’m going to assume I can trust you with mine for the moment.” The words stung, but at least they were confirmation that Storm Runner was going to help. Nimbus nodded as he strayed clear of another blast. Octavia and Silky got to their hooves and began running for the cave exit ahead. “No!” Chitin yelled, preparing to fire. Storm Runner came up from his side, landing a blow directly to the Changeling’s face as his horn fired. The bolt of magic impacted the ceiling where, on contact with the veins of green magic, it exploded, sending cracks spiderwebbing across the stone. Nimbus paused a moment. There was an opportunity to be had here. “Get ready to go pick up Silky and fly like mad, Storm!” Nimbus yelled over the clamour of Changeling wings. “What, why?” Storm Runner called back. “You’re going to have to trust me.” Storm Runner shook his head in disdain, but altered his course as Nimbus darted up to the ceiling above Chitin’s head. The Changeling’s face contorted into a frightening smile as his horn began glowing again. Nimbus flexed his wings, then swiftly leapt out of the way as the bolt hit the stone… right in the middle of a thick vein patch Nimbus had been concealing. The roar from the blast was deafening, and Nimbus fought to stay in the air, but more importantly, the explosion had done its trick. Chitin was flung back, far enough away to give the ponies some breathing room. Storm was already halfway to Silky Sunset, and Nimbus diverted towards Octavia. The head-start was going to help, but he knew he couldn’t count on it, and the sound of Chitin spreading his wings behind them was more than enough confirmation. To make matters worse, Changelings were now pouring out of the cave behind them, and Nimbus had to constantly shift to keep from hitting one and slowing down. “Hang on, Octavia,” he gasped to the mare below him as he tried to get accustomed to flying with twice his normal weight. “You’ll get no argument from me,” Octavia replied, watching as the ground rushed by only a few inches away. Surprisingly, the ponies hadn’t actually traveled far during their dream state. After traversing a quick bend in the tunnel, they were right back at the spot where Chrysalis had trapped them. The door to the facility was dead ahead. “Come on!” Storm Runner grunted, flapping his wings as hard as he could to gain ground, “we can still finish this!” “Or we could just escape,” Nimbus pointed out, rolling to avoid a Changeling that had come up unexpectedly from behind. “The cat’s pretty much out of the bag now, or at least it will be!” Octavia stole a quick glance to the rear. Chitin was angrily catching up, his horn glowing with magic again. Perhaps even more frightening, though, was the rapidly advancing cloud of Changelings swarming up to meet them. “Nimbus, they’ll catch us,” she said, “we’re not getting out of here if we try to run. I think we should listen to Storm!” The door was approaching quickly now, and a decision had to be made. Sighing, Nimbus gave in. “Okay, Storm. What’s the play?” “Brace!” Storm Runner called out, blasting the door open with his CAL-2. With a start, Nimbus realized that his own weapon was probably fully charged as well. They weren’t completely hopeless yet. The four ponies dove into the small tunnel, breezing past equipment and lockers. Nimbus could feel the rush of displaced air as he flew by; they were cutting things close. “Okay, next step-” Storm Runner called, “Silky, I need you to target any vertical beams we run into with your magic. If I’m correct, collapsing those should at least weaken the cave, and we can go from there.” “I’m not sure I can,” Silky said, her sanity starting to slip, ,”we’re so fast, and there are so many of them…” “You’ve got one shot,” Storm said, ignoring her and downing a Changeling that passed by them, “don’t miss!” A searing bolt of magic flew past Nimbus; he could feel the crackling energy from it dancing off his face. Chitin was closer now, and well within striking distance. He jinked left and right as a flurry of more bolts hurtled towards him. “It’s over, ponies!” Chitin called, “we’ve awakened! Even now my kind is escaping into the world above; you’re too late!” Silky twisted around in Storm Runner’s hooves, firing a shot back at the Changeling. Chitin swerved, avoiding it, but cried out in pain as he ground his side into the tunnel wall. The ponies cleared the tunnel moving into the main room, but despite the extra space, things were becoming much more complicated. Changelings were everywhere now, and even though they were no longer hostile, they were considerable obstacles. Silky scanned the room as best she could, looking for support beams. By the time she saw the first one, it was almost on top of them. “Fire!” Storm Runner yelled, and Silky let loose with as much magical force as she could muster. The impact of the bolt upon the steel structure made a considerable dent, and with a satisfying groan, the column fell, snapping in two like a fallen tree. “Awesome!” Nimbus called as he took down two Changelings in his path, “let’s move on!” No sooner had he finished when a Changeling ran directly into him. Unprepared, Nimbus tried to correct, but ended up running his wing into a filing cabinet. White hot pain coursed through his wing, and Nimbus dropped a few feet. Octavia shrieked, shaking Nimbus back to his senses, and the Pegasus pulled up just in time to clear a desk. The final room was dead ahead, and as soon as they entered it, Nimbus knew there was going to be a problem. Silky’s mouth opened wide as she finally came to realize just how many supports the main room had. at least six strong beams held up the roof, and at the ponies’ current speed, hitting them would be almost impossible. She began firing, trying to stay precise while moving past cluttered debris. One down, then two, then a third… the roof was groaning as if in pain now. A collapse was imminent, and Chitin seemed to realize this too, gritting his teeth and launching himself forward with renewed determination. Up ahead was the cave entrance; light streamed through it, promising freedom and security, but Silky wasn’t done yet. Two more pillars fell; just one left, but there wasn’t any time- Storm Runner was moving too fast. Well then, Sunset thought, only one last trick in the book to play. Here goes nothing. Without any advance warning, she pushed Storm Runner’s hooves away just before the Pegasus cleared the entrance. The three others soared out of the cave as Silky hit the ground, rolling upright in a cloud of dust. The beam was directly ahead, and so was Chiitin. Two shots would have to do. Concentrating, Sunset hit the beam first, sending her magic through the cloud of Changelings around her. A squeal of metal was all the indication she needed that she’d landed a direct hit. “And now for you,” she hissed, aiming her horn at Chitin as great chunks of the roof began to fall. One bolt traveled through the swarm. Chitin saw it coming, but didn’t react fast enough. The magic avoided his face, but hit his wing, crippling it. Destabilized, he plowed into the ground heading straight for Silky. The Unicorn skipped backwards as the roof fell in with a deafening roar. A cloud of dust rose up in front of her like some terrible monster, and she closed her eyes preparing for the end… then a hoof wrapped around her midsection, dragging her clear and into the sunshine. Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out. For a moment, that was all Silky could do. She hadn’t expected a rescue, yet instead of being sealed inside of what was once Site Echo, here she was. As she opened her eyes, she saw the solemn face of Storm Runner above her. “You?” she asked, incredulous, “you pulled me out?” Storm Runner winced. “Yes. I know I completely turned on my personal code of honor by saving a wanted criminal, but yes I did. Please don’t make me regret that decision.” Silky smiled as she sat up, looking around at the group. All three of them had no reason to come after her. They could have easily left her with Bright Future to die, Searching for words, she could only muster a “thank you.” The others nodded. It was all they really needed. At the sound of shifting rocks, Octavia turned back towards what had once been the cave opening. Half of a black form still stuck out of the rocks. It was Chitin, and despite the faint stream of green blood running down the side of his face, he was clearly still alive, if only barely. “Chitin’s still with us,” she said to the group. Nimbus’s ears perked up. He’d barely heard Octavia, but what she’d said was more than enough to get his attention. He trotted over to the mare, who was standing near the still form of Chitin. The Changeling’s mouth had broken into a slight grin. Nimbus was about to ask Octavia if she was sure when the Changeling spoke. “Not… over yet,” he whispered, choking, “only… begun.” “And now that you’ve got those cliched final words out of the way,” Storm Runner said drily, “anything meaningful?” Chitin’s eyes traveled upwards to Storm’s, and the two locked their gazes. “You destroyed Site Echo… you th- think that makes a difference? M- my queen… my queen is free.” “Where is she?” Storm Runner pressed. Chitin only laughed in response. “That secret, little pony, is one I’ll take to my grave.” And with a rattling breath, the light finally faded from Chitin’s eyes as his form went limp. Site Echo was no more, but the dreadful secret contained within was free. Nimbus wasn’t entirely sure that today had truly been a victory. “Call it in,” Storm Runner mumbled to Nimbus. With a start, Nimbus grabbed his headset- he’d almost forgotten they were supposed to contact Cloudsplitter back at base- and checked his frequencies. Satisfied, he spoke into his helmet.” “Raider One to Cicada, acknowledge?” There was a moment of static before Cloudsplitter’s voice finally came through on the other end- sweet relief. “Raider, you took your sweet time getting things done. Do you have an update?” “Roger, ma’am,” Nimbus replied hesitantly. “Mission successful. But-” “I’ll catch it in the debrief,” Cloudsplitter said, cutting him off. “Yes ma’am,” Nimbus said, “we’re heading back to base, then.” “Not necessary,” Cloudsplitter radioed back, “I’ll meet you in Dodge Junction and we’ll debrief there. You’ve done enough traveling. I’m sending some Aviators from the 56th AS your way with a carriage- the guys who helped take down the Sol. They should be there shortly.” “Understood,” Nimbus answered, “Windi- er, Raider One out.” Closing his comms, Nimbus sat back in relief, letting the air slowly out of his lungs. After nearly a full day of intense combat and travel, it was finally over, and when the relief team from Dodge Junction arrived, climbing on the carriage back to civilization was one of the best feelings he’d felt in a long time.