The Greatest Show of Kindness
Chapter Twenty: Caught
Star Spinner awoke in the hospital ward of the caverns, a giant headache rocking his head like a hurricane. His eyes were bloodshot and red, sleep eluding him from the previous night. The intense magical tornado had died down by then, merely leaving a couple small sparks.
The first thing that shot into his mind was the little changeling that sheared his horn and how terribly the other guards treated not only him, but also every other changeling. He told himself that he would get to the bottom of this issue, and he thought that Bumble would be able to help.
He had a plan to get through this, and he hoped that it would be sufficient.
Rolling out of the bed, he landed on the floor. Luckily, this time, he didn’t have the sensation of his eyeballs literally exploding, but he did still wince. A mixture of a powdered form of the painkiller he’d taken the night before, Toravline, and water soon found its way being guzzled down his throat. A satisfied sigh escaped from Star’s mouth.
Star hobbled off in the direction of Bumble, the pain dimming instantly from the nasty tasting mixture. He passed by multiple guards making their rounds, tipping his head in false respect for his fellow guards.
He came up to the main room of the cavern, where the entrance was located, and found most of the ranks lined up before an earth pony in big, spiky, light-orange armor. The earth pony looked his way, nodding at Star. One of his brows was raised as he noticed Star’s horn.
“Prahvate Star Spinner, you are late!” he shouted, the loudness of the sound causing Star Spinner’s headache to return.
“I-I understand that, Sergeant Shell Cracker. I-“
“Be sahlent and join th’ ranks!”
“…Yes, sir!” Star Spinner trotted over to his spot amongst the lined up soldiers, standing himself as tall as he could.
“Attention, Prahvates! We’re expectin' four shipments from Manehatt’n, Balt’mare and Las Pegasus today! They are to be intercepted and brought int’ the far-west caves! The changelin's already here are to be brought to the undersahde at exactly one-thousand and thirty hours! Other than that, y’all 're slackers! Get to filin' yer reports, stat!”
“Yes, sir!” Everypony saluted and began to go in different directions.
At the mention of the “underside,” Star locked up. One of his eyes twitched. He envisioned a ruin, filled with spikes, rusted metal and fire, all lashing out in their automated power.
‘Why in the world would Shell Cracker want to send changelings to the underside? That place is filled with ancient traps! He wouldn’t actually want to-‘
A horrifying realization came upon Star Spinner as hard as a tree falling.
‘He’s going to destroy the changelings!?’
With this terrible awareness in his senses, he waited for all of the guards to disperse. He knew that he would have to act fast in order to figure out what was wrong with everypony and save the changelings, but before he could act and get Bumble, Shell Cracker approached him.
“Prahvate Spinner!”
“Yes, sir!”
“What happened t’ yer horn, private? Did one of ‘em buggers get ya!?”
‘What do I say? How should I-‘ Star Spinner thought, multiple beads of sweat dripping down his face. Shell Cracker’s thick, southern accent intimidated him very much.
“Spinner! Answer me immediately! Did one of the changelings harm ya?”
“Yes!”
Star Spinner blurted that word without even a thought. A wave of guilt suddenly washed over him as he put a hoof to his mouth, holding in a gasp. He couldn’t believe that he had just said that, and he felt like an idiot. He did not want to let Shell Cracker know that he was on the side of the changelings, so he coughed.
“Which one of 'em did this to you!?” he shouted, stamping a hoof in absolute anger. Star Spinner gulped nervously, an icy chill running down his spine. He knew he had to think quickly.
“I don’t know! They all look the same to me, sir.”
“Well then, in that case, Ah’ll have t’ punish each and every one of those nasty varmints! Ah’ll be back in fahve minutes!” Shell said, turning his back and walking towards the eastern caves. In his mind’s eye, he thought back to his plan, and this was an opportune moment to act on it.
“I have one question, sir.”
“What is it?”
“What time is it?”
“It’s one-thousand and six hours, soldier. Now, get to yer report!”
“Yes, sir.”
Shell Cracker continued walking on his way, and Star Spinner grinned as his plan fell into place. He was figuring that he himself would have to come up with a distraction for the other guards to do, but that step was efficiently knocked out by Shell. Now, he was the only pony soul in the room, and his plan could now be begun. He looked over to the caged changelings over to his right flank and trotted over.
Meanwhile, Bumble was laying in his cage. He could feel his connection with Fluttershy dwindling ever so slightly, and this scared him senseless. It had been only a day and a half since he was taken from her, but the strain that caused on his heart was great. It felt just like after he lost Flutter.
He felt a longing he had never felt before in his life. He couldn’t help but remember an old lullaby his hatch-mother sung to him every single night when he was a baby. He heard his mother’s voice speak to him in his heart.
"Well, my little snuggle-bug, it’s time to go to bed now," she would say. "Would you like me to sing you a lullaby?" He would nod happily every single night, and she would sing to him in her beautiful voice until he fell asleep.
‘Even if some of my emotions are to remain in this world,
That one whispered word from you is like a flower.
While I was confused, a miracle on the path of my dreams appeared.
“Welcome,” he cooed gently, extending out his hooves in aid
The spells piled on and twisted together,
Were shaken and untangled.
Toward that unchanged bond, you have leaded me far.
Even if all that was remaining in this world were my lost emotions,
There was always one light that lit my world—and that was you.’
Bumble was starting to cry at this point—the soft voice bounced around in his head, and endless memories sprung up of him and his mother.
‘I was very hurt, and my lonely heart needed to be ascertained.
“What a vague existence,” I recalled, yet you only laughed.
In the many dancing flower petals,
It looked like you belonged.
The pale of your fleeing face led me to the now.
Even if, after this, some tears flow out of my wary, tired eyes,
At least, in the end, I’ll understand your smile in my dreams.’
Bumble remembered his first day of school. Immediately as he arrived, his mother said, “Well, I hope you have a wonderful first day of school, my little snuggle-bug,” and nuzzled him. He could sense the blush on his four year-old face as she left him, and he entered the building.
Not even a minute in, he met three middleclassman changelings—Spinner, Strider and Ambrosia—and they hazed him. They told him that he wasn’t a “real changeling” if he couldn’t go and pick a fight with a middleclassman female changeling, which was something of a common opening ritual for new male students in the military school.
Of course, he wouldn’t do it. Just the thought of hurting another without any provocation or another reason was foreign to his innocent, young mind. He denied, and thus began a day of utter hell for the young child, filled with teasing and physical harassment. He was hit in the side, smacked across the face, slammed on the top of the head for what felt like an eternal ten hours. “Weakling” and “coward,” they called him.
When he got home from school that day, he couldn’t help but jump into his bed and cry until his mother finished her day of work at her market stall, where she sold jewelry. She returned a half-hour later and saw how broken down he was, and just cradled him until he was consoled. When she asked him what happened, he only said that it wasn’t a big deal. No matter how much she tried to pry the information out of him, he wouldn’t give in—he was just too scared of what would happen to him if he did. She cradled him until he fell asleep.
‘Inside the endless slow of this sensation,
I’m sure there’s an impulse stirring up in my heart.
Within this endless strife, there’s a single, unwavering flower,
That will modestly bloom into full.
Even if the scenery of life may already be drawn for us,
We will still be able to reach the petals in the sky.
We’re able to go.
Even if this world was completely engulfed in my feelings and thoughts,
There was always one light that lit my world—and that was you.
While I was confused, the warmth of our connected hooves,
Was the sign that I could faintly see to the future.’
All of the memories of Bumble being cradled, nuzzled and loved by Flutter, all the times she showed him just how much she felt for him melted away into the scene of Queen Chrysalis killing her. Bumble broke into a full sob.
Star Spinner observed each changeling to see which one was the one who saved him from his evil ways. All over, they looked the same—holes in their legs, perforated insect wings and giant fangs; however, he saw that one’s fang was chipped and wing was folded. He knew that changeling had to be the one. When he saw Bumble crying, he became concerned.
“Hey, you,” he softly said, kneeling down to the little bug. Bumble nearly jumped out of his sob and daze, pushing against the back of the cage in fear. "Are you all right?"
“Get back!” Bumble desperately cried, forcing his head against the side of the cage.
“Please, be quiet! I’m going to get you out of here!” Star hastily said, looking for the lock on the cage.
“You’re going to… break me out? Why?” Bumble seemed to become a bit less tense as the guard searched the cage.
“You were able to somehow save me from my internal demon, and I owe you a whole lot for it, little guy.” He noticed that the lock was on the bottom of the cage at the backside, so he went over and pulled out a pocket knife.
“Wait… are you the pony that I hurt?”
“Yeah, but it’s alright. You saved me, so now I’m returning the favor.” After fumbling around with trying to pick the lock with his knife, he just slashed it off. The sound of soft rattling rung in the corner of the room, and the door of the cage flew open. He sheathed his blade, walking back over to the front of the cage.
“But, aren’t you going to help any of these other changelings?”
“Well, for just this moment, you’re my priority.”
After he said that, Star felt such guilt. He felt selfish for putting his feelings for one of the changelings over the others, but he did feel that he had a debt to pay to Bumble. He took a deep breath. “C’mon, little guy. Let’s get you out of there.” He extended a hoof towards Bumble and a few awkward moments arose.
“…Are you going to help me out of here?”
“My hoof is there. Grab it!”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m blind, so you’re going to need to help me.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Here.”
Star Spinner softly extended his hoof under Bumble’s bum leg, making sure not to apply too much pressure. Using gentle force, he put his other hoof under Bumble’s other hoof and pulled him out of the cage.
Once out, Star helped Bumble stand up, holding his bad hoof softly. “You got it?”
“Yeah. Thanks, Mister…”
“My name’s Star Spinner, bud.” He smiled inwardly.
“Okay, Mr. Spinner.” Bumble grinned up at where the voice came from. “I’m Bumble.”
‘He’s a cute little kid, gotta give him that.’
“Let’s go. I’ll move your bad hoof on the count of three, okay?” Bumble nodded at Star, who counted, “One, two, three.” Exactly as told, the three moved forward a step with each hoof. “One, two, three.” Once again, they moved in rhythm.
The three continued to move toward the trap door, and Bumble could just feel love energy radiating from Star, and only being next to him made him feel full.
The two had already made their way to the exiting end of the cave, and Star was trying to figure out how he was going to get them out of there. He looked between their escape route and Bumble. He felt compunction wash over him as he decided that their priority was getting out of there. He frowned and went back to his task.
After another minute of Star Spinner having trouble hopelessly trying to climb the wall, the realization that he had no way to get out in his current state dawned on him. Not that it mattered, anyway, as Shell Cracker came back into the room. Star Spinner heard the clacking of Shell’s hooves on the ground.
Star panicked, jumping off his back hooves as hard as he could to gain as much height as possible. It was all for naught, as Shell galloped up.
“Hey, what’dya think yer doin’? Stop!”
Star landed on the ground, not turning to face Shell. He gulped; he knew he’d been caught.
‘Dang it! Why couldn’t I figure it out?’
“Hmm… It looks like we’ve got a traitor on our hooves.” Shell cracked a small, wicked grin as he grasped Star by the shoulders, turning him towards him. “Oh, I’m gonna beat yer-“
Shell Cracker couldn’t finish that phrase as Bumble rammed his horn into his side. He gasped, losing his breath, a wave of pure rage shooting through him. He turned towards Bumble, who stood with his fangs bared, and a deep, throaty growl and hiss arising.
“You will not hurt my friend,” he growled, pulling back his fore hoof.
“You’re going to regret that, you insolent worm!” Shell shouted, lunging backwards away from Bumble. He drew his blade from its sheath before shooting back forward.
Suddenly, Bumble remembered a skill he’d been taught in his year and a half of military school. He clicked his tongue, sending a wave of sound throughout the room. In his vision, he could see a quick flash of the room around him, allowing him effectively to sense Shell’s movements—echolocation. He lifted his bad hoof and used his other three to jump to the side, behind Star, causing Shell to miss Bumble and stumble forward.
Shell turned back around, giving a loud yell as he brandished his sword. Quickly Star pulled out his miniature knife in attempt to chance his overseer’s strike.
“Why’re you protectin’ that l’il cretin, Star Spinner? Answer me!”
“Because your problem isn’t with him, it’s with me! If anything, you should be angry at me for trying to escape with him! Punish me instead!”
For a moment, Shell thought about it. He could reprimand either of them, or even…
Both of them.
He sheathed his blade, giving a little chuckle. He took two sets of hoofcuffs, slamming one around Star’s and the other around Bumble’s. Bumble winced at the sudden pressure of his bad hoof, but he held in his cry.
He galloped to the barracks, and in a half-minute, he came back with six guards, each of which had lances drawn.
“You six take these morons up to the princesses. They’re no better than the dang changeling queen.” The six each nodded with no haste, one of them opening the hatch of the caves. Quickly Star and Bumble were lifted up out of the hole, as the guards were teleported out. Once they were all up, the sound of Shell Cracker’s maniacal laugh could be heard as the turf slammed back down, sealing the entrance.
They then began to push the two towards their fate.