//------------------------------// // Chapter Nine: The Gleaners arrive, Some extra research // Story: Gleaner Chronicles // by sevenofeleven //------------------------------// Gleaner Chronicles Battle Council Room “I managed to get back into the Hive Labs to get some real data. Chr’Ida had not been telling me everything,” Chr’Aya gave her sister an angry look. Chr’Ida waved her left forehoof dismissively. “The Queen wanted results and I got them.” “For two wonderful days, we had enough emotion for every changeling. I knew that all of that emotion was probably not being obtained peacefully. My sister was probably killing humans, but I needed proof to bring to the Queen. I was checking some of the logs when things changed...” Chr’Aya glared at her sister and continued. --- Hive Lab “You can stay here but don’t interfere. The Queen has made it clear that nothing must stop our work,” Chr’Ida said with a determined tone. With a toss of her head, Chr’Aya replied, ”Fine.” Chr’Aya walked away from her sister and started checking the black and green humming machines. Some of the strange energy readings were alarming her. Chr’Aya did not like surprises. The figures hinted at possible problems. It was bad enough that she was using designs from an old tome she found in the forbidden tunnels. Chr’Aya wished she had more time to study the energy readings. To Chr’Aya, her sister was just rushing the project into a dangerous situation. Several teams of changelings transformed into humans and walked into the gate. Chr’Aya watched the readings carefully. Five minutes later, almost all of the teams returned but two. “Where is Team Four and Three?” Chr’Ida asked loudly while staring at the gate. The researchers shrugged and checked their monitors for info. “Research Leader, Chr’Ida, Team three’s life signs are gone. I think the humans killed them,” One of the researchers responded with lowered ears and tail. Chr’Ida wondered how the humans were able to kill one of the teams. It seemed that they were capable of sensing that they were changelings. She was quite sure that humans didn’t practice magic. They had spent countless hours watching humans through the viewscreens, it seemed that humans didn’t practice magic. There was sleight of hand, um, hoof but no real magic. A bit of dismay floated into Chr’Ida’s mind. Her ears drooped. The idea that they missed something about humans could make the Queen angry. She didn’t care that much about the loss of a few changelings, but the fact that Chr’Ida missed an important detail on humans would make her look sloppy. Chr’Ida resolved to learn more about human magic or whatever they used to detect the teams. The report filled Chr’Aya with foreboding for some reason. Another researcher announced, “Incoming emotional surge in one minute.” Chr’Ida sat down with a smile. Chr’Aya checked the figures from one of the devices again. Several minutes passed and there was no emotional surge. The gateway started to glow a brighter shade of green. Chr’Ida looked at the gate with surprise. “What’s going on?” Chr’Aya looked at the glowing gate with fear. “Turn it off!” She screamed. For a second, Chr’Aya thought about using her telekinesis to disconnect the power cables. Then she realized she didn’t know what would happen if she did that, maybe the gate would expand and engulf the room? A green glowing translucent blob floated out of the gate. Seeing the being gave Chr’Ida a chill. It took her a moment to find the right words to describe the thing. Before she took up her princessly duties, she used to be an avid fan of horror and ghost stories. This creature had the look of a ghost, but even equine ghosts had equine heads. It looked like a blob. Then it floated up to a researcher who watched it with curiosity until the it grew two legs. Before Chr’Ida could scream a warning, the strange being stuck it’s legs into the poor changeling’s chest. The victim screamed in pain until it faded away into a blaze of green. The creature floated up to its next victim until it was blasted into glowing bits by Chr’Ida. A smug look covered her face,”There, the problem is solved!” The gateway was now too bright to look at, and more ghost like figures floated into the lab. Chr’Aya ran for the doorway. She hoped her sister was heading that way too. Behind her more changelings screamed and died. When Chr’Aya reached the hallway, she looked behind her. The doors to the lab were smashed open with a crash and a flood of green energy creatures flowed out of the lab. Ahead of the hungry enemies, Chr’Ida galloped to safety. The two princesses ran to the throne room. Hive Throneroom “You three, form up over there! You cover them!” Chr’Bintha shouted orders as Chr’Ida and Chr’Aya cantered through the doorway. A guard closed and locked the door behind them. Chr’Aya hoped that that was enough to keep the enemy out. Deep down, she knew it wouldn’t hold for long. The princesses pushed their way through the thronging soldiers to the Queen. Queen Chr’Ysalis fixed her frightened sisters with a cold green gaze. “How can we fix this?” Chr’Ida looked at Chr’Aya for a second. Chr’Aya looked back. “Well, I am waiting,” Chr’Ysalis said while her patience faded. A panicked guard yelled,”Something is burning through the wall!” All eyes focused at the wall as it was covered by a network of green lines that grew brighter. “Everypony move back!” Chr’Bintha commanded while she stepped back too. The wall exploded and several changelings got crushed by the debris. Glowing figures floated through the gaping hole in the wall.. “Send them back to Tartarus!” Chr’Bintha screamed as she fired green blasts from her horn. For a few minutes it looked like the defensive line would hold, but there were just too many of the green enemies and the line was overwhelmed. Changelings screamed as their lives and emotions were torn from them. Chr’Aya looked away from the carnage, it was just too much. Chr’Bintha dodged and fired blasts before she ran back toward the Queen. The remaining soldiers followed her. Chr’Ysalis blinked slowly and sighed. “It has come to this. Follow me!” She got off of the throne and used her magic to activate it. The emerald and ebony chair smoothly slid aside and revealed a dark tunnel. Chr’Ysalis cantered into the tunnel followed by the princesses and soldiers. Chr’Aya thought it would be pitch black, but green runes in the walls provided enough light to see. After a few minutes of walking, Chr’Ysalis stopped and raised her left forehoof. “The tunnel goes up and out of the Hive. Once we are safely away I will decide where to go,” Chr’Ysalis said. She galloped down the tunnel. Chr’Aya could hear screams coming from behind her. She knew the enemy was in the escape tunnel with them. The princesses followed Chr’Ysalis as she galloped to the end of the escape tunnel. Then she flew upwards. All of the surviving changelings followed her with a whirr of wings. Black walls just kept passing by. Chr’Aya was getting tired, but she kept on flying. She wondered how long it would take them to reach the surface. At first it was just blank walls, then she could see doors. Some of them were opened by escaping changelings. Later on, Chr’Aya could see glimpses of green on the higher levels. More changelings joined the group. Chr’Bintha flew up next to Chr’Aya. “These foul Gleaners are everywhere now!” “Gleaners?” Chr’Aya asked with surprise. “I call them Gleaners because the foul creatures steal life and emotion. I await the day when we can tear emotions out of them,” Chr’Bintha explained then she glanced back at the changelings behind her. A scowl covered her face. Chr’Aya could feel cold air blowing down on her. Exhaustion threatened to slow her wings, but she kept flying. The swarm flew out of the hive into the dark cold night sky. With a green flash, the changelings lit up their horns so they could see. Chr’Aya wanted to slow down and rest, but the glow of the chasing Gleaners kept her flying fast. Beyond the Gleaners chasing her group, Chr’Aya saw a frightening sight. A bright green fountain of Gleaners spewed out of the Hive going in different directions. She also saw something next to the fountain that looked like a glowing green alicorn. Chr’Aya faced forward and concentrated on flying as fast as she can. Slow flyers would fall back and never be seen again. Battle Council Room “When the last Gleaner behind us was killed, we found a place to rest. Chr’Ysalis made the decision to go to Canterlot to ask for refuge,” Chr’Aya’s ears drooped. Margot didn’t know what to say. After hearing Chr’Aya, she was not sure what to do or think. Now she understood why the changelings killed the people in the mall. Margot wished she could contact her boss at D-core and pass on the info. Something could be worked out, but Margot still had no idea how to get home. Celestia sat in her seat and pondered Chr’Aya’s story. “This is a good story, but how does this help us get the Prophetess back or take down Skyshriek Tumult?” Rainbow Dash said. “I wonder if we can sneak in and get the Prophetess?” Margot asked. “They would see us, but the changelings can look like other creatures. Yeah, I am liking this plan,” Rainbow Dash enthused. “I know some levitation and illusion spells. I can help with rescuing the Prophetess,” Margot suggested. “A small group might have more success than a large invading army. What do you think ‘Tia?”, Luna asked. Celestia looked at her sister and then back at the group. “Yes but the group must do its work quickly and quietly. They will not survive a battle with a much larger force. I agree that this could work. After lunch, we need to do more planning and preparation.” “Princess, its Skyshriek Tumult! No one does anything quiet there!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. Everypony laughed. “Princess Chr’Aya and Princess Chr’Ida would you like to have lunch with us?” Celestia asked. “Yes. I thank you for the invitation,” Chr’Ida replied with a bow. The changeling princesses joined the table. Luna motioned to a waiting serving pony and she brought some cleaning bowls. Margot watched as ponies put their forehooves into the bowls to wash them. Then she tried it too. Serving ponies brought bowls with clean water for rinsing as well as towels. After their hooves were clean, the waiters brought in all sorts of food and drink. “Where does all of this food come from?” Margot asked while she munched on some celery. “We have a special group of unicorns that conjure up food and water. It’s too late in the season to grow anything. Also the big farms have been abandoned,” Skybreeze replied. Margot thought a bit. ”I might be able to help your unicorns. If I could contact someone from back home, they might be able to help.” D-core had access to tech and magical ways to replicate stuff like food and water. A fearful thought crossed her mind, maybe she wouldn’t be able to get back. Margot shoved that idea away. “We could use the extra magical power if the food making unicorns were freed from their duties,” Celestia added. Margot liked the lunch and the company. She had been resentful of the changelings but now she was not sure. Rescuing the Prophetess was her next priority. --- Lower Canterlot Lore Archives Margot and Skybreeze stood in front of a small green velvet tent. A breeze pulled at their manes and tails. “This tent holds the magical archives of Canterlot. Celestia and some forward thinking ponies made copies of the archives and moved the copies to an area outside Canterlot. We will have to ask for books on Conjuration, Polymorphism and Illusion. I hope none of these are in the proscribed area,” Skybreeze said. Margot looked at the tent. “Why?” Skybreeze sighed. “Proscribed items require more paperwork before you can get your hooves on them. I thought that they would streamline things, but nothing has changed.” “After you,” Skybreeze pointed at the door of the tent. Margot walked through the door of the tent and entered the archives. Margot was expecting to be in a hot stuffy tent with books all over the place. What she saw was much different. A brown carpet over a black marble floor led to a desk with a gray unicorn sitting in front of it. A swinging door with a shiny bronze plaque that said ‘Authorized Ponysonnal Only’ was on the right next to something that looked like some sort of non reflective mirror. It had a fancy frame like a standing mirror, but the metal part did not show any of its surroundings. Behind the unicorn’s desk, Margot could see bookshelves going to the back of the tent. She was quite sure that the number of bookshelves she saw didn’t fit in the small green tent. Margot looked at Skybreeze. “Yes, it is quite impressive. From the outside you would not expect this much room. You can thank the Hoofvard Advanced Applied Magics group for that,” Skybreeze said with a smile then she walked to the desk while Margot followed. At the desk, the gray coated and maned pony still read aloud from an open book. “Ah Yes, Sinnamon Swirl The Breaded. She was a portly unicorn mare who was the head baker at the Sweet Hoof Confectioners. A chance meeting with a pony who’s talent was finding magical talents changed her life forever. Sinnamon learned that she had magical powers...” The unicorn looked up. “Oh, I am sorry.” Skybreeze smiled. “Gray Page, you can continue talking about Sinnamon Swirl.” Gray Page smiled. “Well thanks, I will just skip to her contributions to magic, and get back to work. Sinnamon Swirl tried to combine magic and food and most of the time she failed but she made two important contributions. She created the first set of food conjuring spells. This allows us to keep ponies from starving. The second one was the Donut of Dispelling. This artifact when placed on an unicorn’s horn, prevents the unicorn from casting any spells.” “Thank you for that bit of lore,” Skybreeze said with a smile. Margot on the other hoof could barely keep her eyes open. Gray Page’s voice was nearly a monotone. When he was reading about Sinnamon Swirl, Margot almost thought her eyes closed for a second. She hoped he would not do any more reading aloud. “I have to say, I was quite appalled at what happened to you at Hoofvard,” Gray Page said. Skybreeze looked down and then back at Gray Page. “Well, it was an unpleasant time.” “If you need someone to put in a good word, count me in. I would be honored,” Gray Page said and saluted. Skybreeze nodded. “Who is this fine pink unicorn mare? A student perhaps?” Grey Page said while facing Margot. “She is a visiting mage from, well actually, where do you come from Margot?” Skybreeze looked at Margot. Margot had to think quickly of a decent name. Earth was not a good answer. It seemed like some of the places these ponies had were pony or horse themed names. “I’m from Los Angeles.” She hoped that would work. “Las Anglos? I have not heard of it. Where is it?” Skybreeze said while peering closely at Margot. Margot did not bother trying to correct Skybreeze. “Its to the west.” “Ah, beyond Las Pegasus,” Skybreeze said and nodded. “Harumph! Your accent seems more Eastern, like Manehattan. They clip their vowels there,” Gray Page said while flipping pages in another book. “Wow, you are good,. I did spend a lot of time in Manehattan,” Margot said with a smile. She hoped that they would move on to another subject.Skybreeze placed the list of books on the desk. Gray peered closely at the list. “The book on Polymorphism is on the proscribed list for sure.” Skybreeze sighed. “Really?” Gray stepped back. “I am quite sure. I will check the list to be sure.” His horn started to glow as he opened drawers to search for something. Then a large dusty book floated in the air, and landed on the table. Margot hoped he would not blow the dust off, and make her sneeze. Gray just opened the book. “Lets see Polymorphism, Theory of, by Redshift. I am quite sorry, you will need a signature from a Princess for this book. Oh wait, only Luna or Celestia will do. I know that Twilight Sparkle has authority, but this book has not been updated. Also I believe that she is missing. Quite a shame,” Gray Page said. “Why is Polymorphism a proscribed subject?” Margot asked. She had been on worlds where wizards were encouraged to change their forms. Seeing the world through another creature’s eyes would give interesting insights. Gray Page looked away for a few moments. “Well, I don’t know why. I do know only a few ponies have ever changed their shape. Star Swirl the Bearded and Alakosh the Rainbowed. Alakosh would take the form of a rainbow scaled dragon. He only wrote one book, in it he claimed that there were more worlds than just our own. Alakosh even theorized that some worlds could have humans on them. After than I stopped reading, it was just so fanciful. Now since I think about it a bit more, Princess Twilight Sparkle was the last one to have access to the book.” “Gray do you think that we could just borrow the book on Polymorphism for a short while?” Skybreeze said while cranking up the charm. Even Margot felt like she wanted to give Skybreeze a book even though she didn’t have one. “Ah Skybreeze. Who could resist your charms? Well, I am the Head Archivist and I would be remiss in my duties if I did not follow the rules. I am so sorry, but you need to get a signature from a princess for that Polymorphism book, ” Gray said. “I am off then to get the signature,” Skybreeze said and walked out of the tent. Margot looked at the strange mirror. She could not see her reflection. Again she wished for the ability to scan the mirror so she could understand it. “You can’t use that to preen with, it’s a Mirror of Truth. It shows the truth. The mirror was made for detecting changelings. If one of them were to show up disguised as another pony, we could see the changeling underneath,” Gray said while fussing with another book. “What if a changeling just shows up in its regular form?” Margot said while still peering into the mirror. “Well, to answer your question, the mirror would show nothing. Just like it is doing now,” Gray said as he blew the dust off of a book. Margot sneezed and sneezed. Gray Page ignored Margot’s sneezing. “Ah yes, the Enigmatic Alakosh the Rainbowed, not much is known about this pony...” After catching her breath from the sneezing, Margot’s body slumped to the floor. Her eyes closed as Gray Page read about Alakosh’s strange life. The vision of the Pink Pony Margot was standing somewhere while the weight of Sadness pressed down on her like twenty tons or more. Her eyes burned while the oppressive atmosphere threatened to make her curl up into a weeping ball. She was in some sort of forest while a pony cried near her. Margot looked down. A pink pony was in a pond looking up at Margot. It had straight red hair and bright blue eyes. Some of the brightness was stolen by the constant weeping. The pony stopped crying. “You can see me? P-please help.” A voice cried out “Wake up!” Margot awoke and found herself lying on a carpet while a pony droned on. “Are you alright? You had such a sad expression on your face,” Skybreeze said while concern covered her face. “I had a strange dream or vision,” Margot replied while she stood up. “I would like to hear more after we get the book from Gray Page,” Skybreeze said then she looked at Gray Page. Margot nodded as Skybreeze walked up to Gray Page. “I have the signature for the book on Polymorphism,” Skybreeze said while placing the form on the desk. Gray Page peered at the form and the blue crescent moon seal. “Its official. Here is your book.” The book floated over to Skybreeze who placed it in her saddle bags. “Do you need anything else?” Gray Page said. “We are fine now. Take care of yourself Gray Page,” Skybreeze said while turning around to leave. “I shall and I wish you well on your work,” Gray Page said as he watched them leave. Outside the tent, Margot felt the sun on her fur, it felt good. Even though her nap left her feeling a bit sad, she felt energized. She hoped she was not bouncing on her hooves. “I talked to Princess Luna and she provided a place where we can do our magics for the mission. You can do your Synchronization ritual there too. I am heading there now. Please tell me what you saw in your dream that made you feel so sad,” Skybreeze asked. “I saw a pink pony with blue eyes and red hair crying in a pond or puddle. It seemed like she was in some sort of forest,” Margot said while following Skybreeze. Skybreeze put a forehoof up to her face. “Hmmm, I wonder if that is Pinkamena Diane Pie?” “Who?” “Pinkamena Diane Pie or Pinkie Pie, is one of the Elements of Harmony. She represents Laughter. We could use her help,” Skybreeze said while gazing at the glum looks on the passing pony’s faces. Skybreeze stopped Margot. “Do you have other visions of ponies?” Margot looked away. “Yes, I saw a yellow pegasus with a pink mane and tail. She had teal colored eyes. I think she was in some sort of forest. Then there was this grey pegasus with blonde hair and crossed golden eyes. She was in a cloudy noisy place.” Skybreeze’s smile widened. “The first pony you saw was probably Fluttershy, the Element of Kindness. The other pony was the Prophetess. I will pass this info to the Princesses. After we save the Prophetess, we can get those Elements of Harmony. Each one returned will help us fight the Gleaners.” “Don’t worry. Once I do the ritual, I will have my powers back. I will help with getting all of the ponies back,” Margot said. For some reason, she felt that maybe she was promising more than what she could deliver. Margot wondered if when she did the ritual, most if not all of her magics were not compatible with this world. That thought made her ears droop. A defiant thought arose in her mind, even without her magic, she would do what she could to help. Soon she would be in a place to do the the ritual. Then she will know the truth.