//------------------------------// // The... changeling in the moon? // Story: Deep Cover Confusion // by Zerodius //------------------------------// Twilight Sparkle checked the mirrror. A lavender being with purple eyes with a dark purple striped mane looked back. That was normal. Of course, the reason she was staring in the mirror was because of the slitted eyes, the chitin-like parts on her body, a pair of tiny fangs, and the weird shape of her horn. That, nobody should see, ever. Contrary to what she had read in books that her kind was supposed to do, she was supposed to do a real battery of magical spells to make sure that no one would ever suspect this. Her mom had told her, when she was but a foal, or maybe was it a hatchling? She was not really sure ; no one had ever told her the proper terms for her true species and the books had been less than helpful about that. Still, as usual, she followed her morning checklist. "Texture charm, check. Anatomical containment charm, check." Her mother had told her the last one was not necessarely needed. It was only needed if she ever was to have a coltfriend and expected to... ahem... consumate the relationship. However, Twilight was nothing if thorough and she always took the time to cast every single spell before starting her day. "Visual appearance adjustment spell..." A flash of green fire and the insect-like features disappeared, replaced with the mare that everyone knew. "Check." Her horn glowed as she unleashed more of her spells. "Permanence field charm, check. Texture readjusment on legs, check. Texture readjustement on head, check. Texture readjusment, internal, check." The permanence field spell was vital, probably the most important spell that her mother had taught her. Most spells tended to drop when its caster was knocked out or seriously injured and of course, few spells could survive the death of its caster, having its source cut off. Twilight knew that she was a deep cover infiltrator from mother to daughter, and had been for... how far do her family tree go, exactly? She wasn't sure. Considering what she knew, it probably was pointless to try and figure it out. But what she knew was that the permanence field was the most important spell. Namely, if she was to be seriously injured, rendered unconscious, or even killed, her disguise would not drop. Likewise, it would protect her from all detection spells designed to remove illusions. In a way, it was amazing how complex the spell sequence that allowed changelings to be in deep cover among ponies was. The time it must have taken to create it!... and almost all of them are transformigation spells too instead of merely illusions! The lavender pony brushed her left leg against her right one. The hole that was supposed to be there wasn't even there physically anymore thanks to the spell. The spells didn't merely make her look like a pony, it effectively turned her into one and with the permanence field spell, she could technically go through whole weeks without renewing the spells. However, she was nothing if meticulous and whenever she could, spent each morning that she had to herself dropping the disguise and renewing it. It was a safety measure too, being the princess's student. If her mentor was to learn her true nature, she'd... she'd... well, she'd probably be at least very disappointed in her. Just the thought of her mentor's disapproval made her almost expel all the love she had drained yesterday out of sheer fear. She knew that in theory, she was probably meant to be loyal to some changeling queen but the truth was, she had never ever met, been contacted, or even sensed the presence of one. Sure, she had sensed plenty of minds around but her mom had been very clear that the magic of friendship and the mind link were too similar for one to jump to conclusions. Besides, her mission was a simple one: to bask in pony love and be a beacon of pure love and friendship. Well, that was convenient since Celestia wanted her to be this and well, everypony wanted her to be this anyway. With her morning routine done, Twilight nodded to herself and left her room. Celestia the XXIIIth, twenty-third changeling queen to bear the name of Celestia, was in her personal study. The warded room was teleportation-proof and a very special type of lock had been installed on the door. She was effectively locked in and considering the secrets this room held, it was only a sensible precaution. The letter that her student had sent her later this morning had disturbed her greatly. She did not know why it did and this was why she was in here, her disguise dropped. To her little ponies, she was Celestia, the immortal alicorn ruler of Equestria, the eternal sun, one of the goddesses of order who stood in opposition to Discord, god of chaos. There was some truth to this. Her disguise was a perfect replica of the ancient alicorn's physical appearance and a complex sequence of spell added physical texture and volume to the disguise, making it effectively as real as it could be. Of course, her little ponies would not care that she truly loved them just as they loved her if they learnt of her true appearance and nature. In particular, she could only think of how crushed her personal student, Twilight Sparkle, would be. To learn that the pony she had looked up her entire life was nothing but a fake, a monster in disguise... No, she should not dwell upon that fear. In over a millenium of reign, none of the queens were ever discovered and she would not break tradition. Besides, she was not in this room to let her worries flow through her nerves. No... she was here to dive into her greater memories. Celestia was more than a disguise, more than merely a way to make herself be accepted. It was an idea, a greater whole in which she was but a small part. To merely take over Equestria did not make a changeling queen into the Celestia. One had to bask in the love of the ponies, to truly grasp the magic of friendship, to immerse oneself a power unlike anything else on this world and become one with it. From mother to daughter, memories were transmitted. Within her mind, the combined memories of twenty-two generations of changeling queens lived, a real hive mind within a single mind. She was still young and to be fair, even now, as she slowly immersed herself into the sea of knowledge, she felt overwhelmed. This mass of memories was, effectively, the true Celestia. She remembered the feelings of Celestia the first, of her guilt, and then of her decision to stop merely impersonating the alicorn her grand-mother had killed and to actually, truly take on her name and responsabilities. She felt the confusion of Celestia the first and Celestia the second as they struggled to understand ponies, to grasp the six concepts of friendship. She felt the pain of Celestia thr third as she sacrificed all she had for beings who would hate her if they learnt who she was and then, the pride she felt at a people she grew to see and love as her own. She felt the sheer surge of emotion that Celestia the fifth had felt as she had fully grasped the power of the Elements of Harmony. ... and most importantly, she reached that particular memory. Among the countless regrets that the Celestia bloodline had felt, the second-greatest of them, behind murdering the original alicorn goddess, was the Celestial War. Of how the shame of overcoming Discord and finally truly understanding the magic of friendships that the ponies felt only for her own sister to be abandonned to let her jealousy. The tale Twilight had warned her of was no mere tale. The memories of her ancestors did not lie. Celestia, the true Celestia born of her combined bloodline's memories, knew this to be true. The banishment spell is going to fail. It is imminent now. But the question is... what does it mean? Luna the third was a changeling queen, as she is. One who fully grasped the power of the alicorn Luna as to effectively become her but changeling queens were mortal. It was why the Celestia bloodline, as the Luna bloodline also did, sacrificed their individuality granted through their nature as queens. They accepted to have their mothers' memories, their entire beings poured into themselves as mere foals, well, maybe was it hatchlings, so that they may effectively continue to be the same being, fooling their little ponies into believing their ruler was an immortal alicorn instead of a procession of queens. In a way, Celestia the XXIIIth was a bit sad that none would remember each of Equestria's queens on their own merit... but then, when all of the queens were so magnificient, loving, and true to the ideal of Celestia as to indeed fuse into the goddess of the sun, then maybe her pride as a mortal pride was but a tiny price for the love of her little ponies. No, no, she must focus! She must not lose herself into the sea of her ancestors' memories! Celestia the XXIIIth scolded herself mentally and focused more deeply. Luna the third, her banishment, what it meant... Was the banishment spell's failure truly a threat? Changelings are not immortal ; it is probable that what will emerge from the lunar prison will be a decayed exoskeleton and dust. But then, it is probable the banishment spell act as a stasis spell. If it does... what should she do? No, what can she do, if Luna the third is truly returning? Luna the third grasped the power of the Elements of Harmony, she was effectively an incarnation of the late alicorn, Luna. A changeling queen, wielding divine power... Sure, Celestia the XXIIIth could raise the sun and the moon, or rather fling them through space but the truth was, she was incapable of using the Elements of Harmony. Though the knowledge of how to use them existed within the collective memories of her ancestors, she was herself too young to do so. She had not truly grasped, personally, as Celestia the XXIIIth, the true meaning of friendship. This was why she trained Twilight Sparkle, in fact! Just as she taught her, she made the ancestral knowledge actually real within her own mind! If Luna the third is truly returning and she is still in the form of Nightmare Moon, her hatred of Celestia the fifth's lack of care fresh on her soul, what can she possibly do? Luna the third fought Discord himself and defeated him. She... she cannot compare herself to such power. No, no. It's useless to panic. It's not even sure that the banishment spell's failure will send something alive after all. And even if it does, a thousand years is a long time. Maybe Luna the third will have calmed down, seen Equestria from orbit, and forgiven her bloodline? Maybe she'll recognize that she is not her ancestor and that they can mend fences? She didn't know. She did not know and it terrified her more than anything. She need to learn, she need to be sure. And for that, she need to figure out the date and location at which the banishment spell will fail. ... She is a dumb, dumb changeling. Of course she knows! The sea of knowledge! Alright, so as Celestia the fifth, she fought her sister on that day, unleashed the spell at that moment... ouch, that hurt emotionally. Hope nopony passed by the door when she experienced that particular memory else it would be awkward to feel that wave of sadness leaking out of the room. Anyway... so the spell was casted on that day, which if one translate old calendar dates to modern ones give... Oh. Oh horseapples. That day. And the location is now a thriving, if somewhat small city: Ponyville. If Luna the third comes back alive and still as Nightmare Moon at that particular place, she'll make a fine mess. Bring the Royal Guard with her? That'd cause awkward questions and probably a mass panic if the knowledge of Luna's return spread. What to do... what to do... ... of course, this is given Luna the third returns at all. Oh! She got it! She needs someone she trust to verify, to assess the situation. She needs someone who is already in the know and who will thus not make a mess with the senate or the nobility! ... unfortunately, only Twilight Sparkle fit the criteria. Horseapples again. Oh well. She can always teleport to her student's side if Luna the third comes up and well, if her ancestor could banish her, maybe she won't be as terrible as her memories say she is? Who is she kidding? If anything else than a corpse or a calmed down Luna the third comes down, she'll get squashed, her little ponies will follow shortly after, and all she love alongside with a legacy of over a millenium in age will be destroyed. Oh well. Not gonna make a scene, not gonna make a scene, not gonna make a scene... Just put on the spell sequence, act as if nothing had happened, simply send Twilight to Ponyville for some inane reason, and pray everything does not blow up in your face. What could possibly go wrong? Besides an insane changeling queen with the power of a true alicorn wrecking the world?