Of all the things he had expected to happen in his life, being welcomed into a Changeling hive as a liberator was one of those things extremely low on Silver Shield's list. And yet it was happening; Changelings lined the streets cheering the Equestrian army that was in their midst, as well as the reconstructed army for the hive. Over two thousand Equestrian soldiers were marching, unmolested, by Changelings. Well, not totally unmolested; every few feet seemed to bring another Changeling shouting thanks or offering something to eat.
The victory celebration had erupted several hours after the ceremony commemorating those who had died in the struggle for freedom. It had been a very somber occasion, entirely contrary to the current mood. Then, the entire hive had been silent, except for those who stepped up to make speeches, the Queen most prominent among them. The way she held her head in sorrow, the passionate way she spoke, and the strength in her voice, as well as the sad faces among the Changelings had finally convinced Shield that these Changelings were friends. He'd never admit it to anyone - save, maybe, a very close friend or family member - but throwing away his distrust, at least a little of it, felt very liberating itself.
"We shall never forget the names of those who perished to give the present and future generations in our hive freedom from the most evil dictator ever to have lived among our species," the Queen had said - in Equestrian, which James referred to as English. "The task which they have started, I promise you all, we shall complete. And we no longer struggle alone; Equestria lends us their strength. Their aid in our liberation will not go unrewarded or unnoticed; it shall forever be written in the chronicles of our people, and the names of their dead in this battle shall be added to those on the monument we shall set up to remember the day we got our liberty back. It is but a paltry repayment for their aid, but aside from the alliance we have set up and the military assistance we shall provide, it is all we can do at this point in time."
"We have a long way to go before the war is over... However, I know that our hive has the courage and the will to change the world for the better. We will win this war, and rise from the depths of oppression to a free and prosperous society. This... I... vow."
Not the worst speech ever, Shield decided. He jerked his head to the right in order to snap up an apple that had been tossed from the crowd. I wouldn't mind doing this a few more times. The free food is nice, and it feels good to be appreciated.
He looked behind, at the Changeling soldiers following his contingent. There weren't that many of them, but they were well armored, using the a flexible version of the material they used to construct buildings. Most of them carried spears, but a sizable fraction of them carried matchlocks. One or two that he could see carried one of the new rifles. He felt a surge of anger at that - all too likely, they had been taken from dead soldiers, and the idea of others using Equestria's new technology made him uneasy - but he forced it down. The Changelings weren't a people who liked the idea of waste; their way of thinking probably concluded that if something wasn't in use, it wasn't being useful.
And they had paid the bill for their brave uprising; they had suffered hundreds of dead, and twice as many wounded. As he marched, he saw one Changeling lacking his right foreleg, which had been amputated at the knee; it had been replaced by a black-colored replacement that, although it mimicked Changeling anatomy, could never hope to have the same ability as an uninjured leg. He passed a female of the species, wondering where her mane was, before he realized it had been burned away, with only a few shreds remaining. Another Changeling had lost his entire tail, and yet another was missing an eye entirely; he hadn't even bothered to get an eye patch. The gaping, black hole made Shield feel somewhat sick to his stomach, and he wondered why the Changelings nearby weren't throwing up already.
With a great strength of will, he made himself keep his composure and kept marching at the head of the formation. As a newly-promoted colonel, he no longer just led companies, but an entire regiment. True, it was understrength, but so was any unit that had been in a battle. The Equestrians hadn't suffered as badly as the Changelings, but they had suffered thirty dead and over a hundred wounded. Luckily, Changeling hospitals were well stocked with medical supplies, so the wounded, Changeling and pony both, were well cared for. In spite of that, there wasn't enough room in the hospital, or enough doctors, for that matter. Some patients wouldn't leave their beds for weeks or months. For a small, sad number, there would be no leaving.
Shield felt himself getting angry again, but it was for a different reason. Lightning Rod hadn't bothered to take into account the sacrifices the Changelings of this particular hive had made; his hatred for the whole species ran that deep. He had actually said, at one point that they'd deserved the losses they'd taken, as a beginning to a redemption for their race. Shield felt himself being grateful to the Almighty that no Changelings had been present. As a result of that particular outburst, Shield had banned him from the festivities; in fact, he'd almost called for the guy to go to a mental hospital, but decided that a good court martial would do if the orange unicorn slipped out of line again. Lightning was currently outside the hive, confined to camp for the time being.
Of course, the war wasn't over. No amount of celebration now could mean that. There were more battles to come with Queen Chrysalis and her host, and whatever hive-slaves she would force into battle with her.
For now, though, he allowed himself to feel a sense of accomplishment in what had been done.
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"The whole hive is in an uproar," the Queen noted to James, who was seated next to a window; the Queen herself was staring out of it. "A good kind of uproar, mind you, but rather unusual; its generally been quiet these past seven years or so."
"Obviously, your people remember joy, otherwise, the celebrations you see now would be impossible," James replied, taking the chance to drink some water.
"Yes. What I find somewhat distressing is the new hole in the roof of the cavern I made at the start of the battle. Its.. well... new, and this place has been in darkness since the founders of our hive built this place."
"Isn't it more convenient this way though?"
"Not by Changeling standards; we prefer to keep our hives hidden. Even if some of our harvesters give themselves away, are captured, or both, our location is still safe. We'll seal the hole again, but it will be a few days before it's anything like it was before."
"A lot of things have changed." James paused again, taking another drink - for some reason, he was very thirsty all of a sudden. "Would you rather they had not?"
"Well, when you put it that away... still, an alliance between ourselves and another species has never been done before. We've had dreams of it before, yes, but its never happened."
"Between the soldiers our two forces bring, we can put a stop to our enemy." James took yet another swig of water. "The main question is, do we march immediately on Chrysalis' hive, or do we wait?"
The Queen turned her head to look at him. "I've been thinking about that. Assuming she is unaware that you left with half your original force, she'll still be out in the field, detached from her power base. However, it doesn't mean that her hive won't be well defended. If we can bring another two or three hives to rebel against her power, we'll have a greater chance of taking it down quickly. that will leave her field army cut off entirely. Between our troops and yours, we should be able to trap her and finish her off."
"How many troops can you bring into the campaign with us?"
"A vital question. We can immediately bring something like the number your own force into the field, though 'immediate' is relative, meaning two or three days. I would prefer twice that, and half my hive if I could do that. However, that would mean that we'd have trouble subsisting off our own resources; essentially, we'd have too big an army to keep supplied. And if I did bring that many, a lot of jobs here in our hive would go undone, causing us to stagnate. Five thousand is perhaps the most realistic, though I'll keep an open mind on the matter."
"I see. About six to seven thousand, three hundred something, then. Formidable-"
"But not invincible. Especially if word gets out to Chrysalis about what we've done, in which case she'll do all she can to force the other hives to fight for her."
James frowned. "Won't the knowledge of a rebellion cause those other hives to rebel as well?"
"Probably not. Chrysalis is no fool; she likely has conditions similar to our former servitude set up, making it difficult if not impossible to revolt without horrific loss. I could be wrong, and I'm desperately hoping and praying I am, but I don't think we can count on that happening..." Metamorphosis raised a hoof to her chin, thinking hard. "Hmm. Of course, there's always the option of espionage and propaganda."
"How would we implement it?"
"Chrysalis' Changelings might not be able to tell a member of my hive to that of another; all they could sense at once is that the Changeling would not be one of them. We could sneak a member of my people into another hive, and secretly spread news of the revolt. That would be risky for the agent involved, war is not without risk, and if they ploy succeeded, it would save more lives than it would endanger. It would be better than fighting them, at any rate."
"I guess it would." James scratched his chin. "It would definitely be much cheaper and probably more profitable than fighting an unnecessary or unwanted battle, but just bringing the plan to fruition would be a task in and of itself. The agents would have to be intelligent, and have a good enough memory to remember that they are supposed to be from a different hive than their own. Furthermore, before they could spread the news of the revolt, they'd have to get inside; I doubt you know where their secret entrances, assuming they have them, are. On top of that, the whole affair would have to be told to the Queen of that hive without Chrysalis' councilors knowing about it, which would be the most likely point that the whole scheme could go wrong; if the other Queen is too servile, she'll tell Chrysalis' people, and then we would have to fight. And not just that particular hive, either, as I doubt the enemy will do nothing in regards to the other hives."
"All points I have to weigh carefully before coming to a decision," the Queen answered. "You're right; it's highly risky even at best. But if we march as we are to Chrysalis' hive, chances are, we won't have the troops to just storm it, and they'll have secret entrances to allow messengers to reach her without being noticed. We'd probably have to face a combined might of all they other hives in existence. We wouldn't be able to handle all of them at once. Assuming we were somehow able to defeat them, it would be victory at the cost of those who never wanted to fight the battle in the first place. I'd prefer to try it this way."
"But how will you keep in contact with your agents?"
"We'd send more than one; a group of maybe eight or so, who we'd rotate between active service and sending messages to and from the other hive and our army. Its not the most efficient way, and it certainly isn't the quickest, but its the only one I can find that would have a good chance of maintaining secrecy."
James thought about it for a few minutes. "If you're going to do this anyway, I can't stop you, and I guess it's a decent plan. We'll need every fighter we can get. But this whole venture is going to be riddled with risks. Hopefully, we won't fall into a hole we made ourselves."
"I hope not either."
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The allied forces marched out of the main entrance of the hive the following day. James was impressed at how well hidden the entrance was from the outside; the door, when left unexamined, appeared to be another boulder, albeit much, much larger than the one through which he had entered a few days ago. Unlike the first, it had been cut in two; the two sides would slide away from one another to allow entry into, or exit from, the hive. The Changelings went to great lengths to keep the location of their hive secret. No doubt the other hives took similar, if not identical, precautions.
"Ugh, if I'd remembered what the Badlands looked like, I might never have left the hive," James muttered. Still, someone has to beat Chrysalis, it might as well be us.
Queen Metamorphosis was going along with them. "It is a Changeling Queen's duty to lead her armies in person," she had insisted when James had commented on the decision. "I will lead, and there is nothing you can say to dissuade me. besides, I'm not without protection; I shall be wearing armor when I go out to fight, of similar make to that I've provided my soldiers. The armor itself is new, though the concept is not."
"I hope it fares well."
"Seeing how our buildings were largely invulnerable to enemy fire, as well as how durable it is in general, I think it will serve its purpose."
For most of the day the allied army marched northwestward. "Queen Camilla and her hive live some distance to the northwest of mine," Metamorphosis had said. "Her hive has an even higher population than mine, though not by more than a few thousand or so. I haven't seen her for a long time, but when we last met, she was a fiery individual, more so than I could ever be. If she hasn't been killed for that, and if she hasn't grown despondent and dispirited, she will join us willingly."
When dusk finally began to set, the two armies stopped and set up camp. Tents went up in the Equestrian camp. To James' surprise, the Changelings didn't set up tents of their own. Instead, most of them began gathering dirt, while the rest dug deep trenches. After a while he noticed that they were building large, black orbs.
He watched the process, realizing that the Changelings were building much more durable equivalents of tents. The space inside would probably be minimal, but it would be enough for two or three Changelings to comfortably nest in. Overall, a very efficient method of producing housing. It also explained why Chrysalis' army had been able to build bases with walls and towers so fast; if you set thousands of Changelings to do such a job and gave them a week, it would be done well within that timeframe.
By the time the sun disappeared over the horizon, the camps were completed. Inside his tent, James set himself to studying one of the maps of the region he'd been provided. The ones provided by Equestrian sources were of poor quality; apparently, they hadn't wanted to stay long enough to fully map the place, and, considering what there was to see - much less eat - of the surrounding countryside, he couldn't blame them. The ones provided by Queen Metamorphosis, however, were much more detailed.
From it, he could pick out eight hives total. Five were scattered to the west, and it was toward the one at the very bottom of those that they were currently headed toward. One was in the south, the one they'd just freed. One lay in the east, one to the north, and one - that belonging to Chrysalis - somewhere in the center. He found it hard to decipher - the Changeling language was one that was hard to read, as it was something like calligraphy and normal writing mixed together, and in any case he would have found it hard, if not impossible, to pronounce many of their words even if he understood it.
In the meantime, part of the plan relied on the revolt remaining undetected. To solve that problem, some of Metamorphosis' drones would continue to carry energy and materials to Chrysalis' hive to maintain the illusion that nothing had happened. It was a dangerous job - if the illusion failed somehow, those drones would most likely suffer badly - but it needed to be done, and they wouldn't betray their own hive in any event.
The Queen, James, and the officers appointed to both armies had argued over what course to take. However, they eventually agreed that they would try to loosen the enemy Queen's grasp on her race before confronting her in battle. That meant going a little out of their way, but Metamorphosis had reassured them that it would not be necessary to free every hive on their own; another one or two would suffice to convince the other hives to free themselves. After that, they would meet up and besiege the central hive.
He went outside, pausing as the night air chilled him. Although summer was well upon Equestria and the surrounding lands, it didn't keep the nights from being cold at times. Looking up at the moon and the stars, he felt part of him feel that it was worth it to get a view of the sky like this. Nonetheless, his body cried out for relief, so he walked among the camp fires until he reached the one his friends were seated around. "Mind if I join you?"
"Not a problem, Jim," Shield replied. "Why don't you come and sit down? Our guests have been getting ready to tell us a story."
James looked up to see three Changelings sitting by the fire with Shield, Bright, Knight, and Silver. "Oh, well then, don't mind me," he said. "Please, continue."
The Changelings - who he now recognized as Meta, Cal, and Cica - were sitting on a rock off to one side. "I don't know where you thought I said 'story,'" Meta said, "but the yellow one asked what life was like for us before Chrysalis took over."
"The name's Bright Star," Bright said.
"Right, Bright Star. Anyways, there was the usual harvesting of energy by our harvesters, who went out into Equestria and did things to earn the energy. Many perform, disguised, as musicians, comedians, and rock stars."
"Wait, aren't the first and third the same thing?" Bright asked.
"Not to me," Meta said, her face showing signs of disgust.
"But does that mean that all of your harvesters are deliberately exposed to crowds?"
"By no means, but many are, as that's the easiest way by far to gather emotional energy, as emotions are running high and can be gathered en masse. Others serve as novel writers and as actors. Still more are workers in factories. Whatever jobs they need to perform and are best suited to, those are the jobs they are assigned to."
"What about inside the hive?"
"Well, some of us have jobs storing the energy our harvesters collect. Others serve as administrators, sentries... generally, any task we need to have done, our Queen assigns us, just like with the harvesters."
"Sounds like its all work and no play with you guys."
"Actually, no. Most of our harvesters enjoy the jobs they're assigned to, and our drones are given jobs, inside the hive and out, that are best suited to their talents. And we don't lack for holidays of our own. Every half year, we used to be given to a big festival in Palace Square, where we would eat, drink, dance, and all round have fun. They were one of the few times the entire hive, or close to it, were gathered together at once. The Queen would read out the numbers and names of drones who had done exceptional work, a list that every drone wanted to be on, and we would shout their names."
"What was the point of those festivals?"
"Mostly to celebrate prosperity, our young, the hard work we put into our home.. in short, for just about everything good that happened to us. Not to say that our lives were carefree. Sometimes, food would be scarce, and we'd have to ration food. Its hardly pleasant to work while you're hungry, but someone has to do all those jobs around the hive, and who's going to construct a building if not the drones who are supposed to do it? And who is going to account for the materials we have in stock if not our administrators?"
"How often did something like famine happen?"
Meta, and the other Changelings, shivered. "Too often. Its the reason we celebrated our prosperity when we could. A lack of food meant a lack of prosperity, and that would be true even if the entire hive were made of silver and gold. Without emotional energy to feed off of, we starve. It contains vital nutrients we can't get from any other source. Fruit, vegetables, and... other things... would keep us alive for a time, but without energy, we're sunk. That's why the loss of fifty percent of our stock would have been such a disaster. Even if we didn't need it to power our crystals, we'd starve, and badly."
"Which explains why you need the energy. But doesn't your way of getting food count as parasitism?"
"No. Our hive, at least, tries to give something back. We heard about what the tyrant Queen did when she was in Canterlot. That definitely counts as a parasitic way of gaining the energy Changelings need. Chrysalis' method, which involves sticking ponies in green pupae, would suck a pony - or any creature, really - dry of emotional energy, while preserving their bodies for future harvesting."
The group began to look mildly sick at this point. "But what point would that serve?" Shield asked, disgusted. "It's not even necessary, if what you said earlier is true."
"It isn't... not unless you want a permanent source of food. An even more direct method would be to bite the victim and suck their emotional energy from their bodies all at once, leaving them emotionless wrecks for the immediate future, while empowering the Changeling who did it."
"Ugh," Silver said, looking green.
"Don't look at me as though I invented the whole thing," Meta said. "Our hive and our Queen find it as repulsive as you do. That's why we use the methods we do. Think about it. A musician - disguised, of course - will be receiving the emotions around him or her, true, but they will also be entreating their audience to music, something enjoyable. An actor will likewise provide good entertainment, while a comedian makes ponies laugh. We give back to society where we can, instead of just taking, like Chrysalis tried to do."
"Ah, I see now," Sliver said, nodding. "But why would they try stealin' it like they did?"
"Partly because of the immediate effects when a drone is overloaded with energy. Imagine a drone with an earth pony's strength... with greater strength, actually. Imagine a drone able to fly faster and farther than the fastest, strongest pegasus. Imagine a drone with magic stronger than any average unicorn could hope to pull off. Imagine that.. and more. An all powerful army... that's what Chrysalis wants. An army like that would be... formidable."
"Try practically unstoppable," Cica said, speaking for the first time in the conversation. "An army with magic like that would have the power to level a castle, enough strength to pull one apart, and be able to outfly and outmaneuver anyone sent to stop them. They would be incredibly difficult to stop head on. Even your weapons would have trouble stopping them."
'But that would require a lot of energy being used up very quickly," James noticed. "The effects would only last a short while, assuming they used it up all at once like you're saying they would."
"That's true," Meta answered. "But if they took hundreds, thousands, of prisoners before a major undertaking - like a battle - and then infused their army with the energy of those prisoners, they would have unprecedented abilities for the next... Cica, Cal, what do you think?"
"I'd say half an hour to a full hour," Cal said.
"Fifteen to thirty minutes," Cica replied.
"Somewhere in those time frames," Meta continued. "Not to say their drones would be invincible - they could still be killed, for example, as the energy would not provide super armor. But while they lived, they'd be able to do wreck the opposition, and obliterate the walls and defenses of whatever fortification or city they attacked, and chase down and capture those who tried to flee from them."
"If that's the case, why didn't they just gather all that energy before they tried attacking Canterlot?"
"Because its not easy to collect an excess of energy to the point they would need, other than by having those prisoners in the first place. They would have to use most of that coming back just to feed their own people."
"Is there any other use it could be put to?" James asked. "Like, in a Changeling crystal or mechanism of some kind?"
"Too much energy in one crystal will shatter it. More than once, a Changeling hive accidentally burned out the conduits and crystals they used to light their homes due to giving the system too much energy. Other than that, we had theories as to what it could do, but few that we've acted upon, and fewer still that we actually put into effect. Queen Camilla's hive tried to build a portal at one point, for super fast transportation, but the machine they built malfunctioned; they were lucky to have any survivors from among the scientists who were working on the project."
"Emotional energy has power to do this?"
"Emotions are really that powerful. They are part of who we are, after all. Certain emotions are harmful to our health; anger and hatred are consuming, and a Changeling that consumes either will be unhealthy, as well as having the unpleasant side effect of being snappish and easily disturbed for the next little while; of they consume too much of it, the effects can be devastating... and permanent. Love is the most coveted of emotions, as it is pure and a small amount of it gives off more energy than any amount of hatred could possibly hope to aspire to, but joy and contentment are nice as well."
"So the type of emotional energy involved will effect the consumer?"
"Basically, yes."
"But then why would Chrysalis and her people turn evil?"
"First off, the emotions themselves won't change who we are, the Changelings, that is; the energy will have some effect, but we retain our original character and attitude, with some exceptions like the one I just told you. While the... taste, I think the closest word is, varies, it's not enough to change us from our original self. Secondly, the energy is mostly just that, a supply of nutrition to keep us alive. We usually take it in limited amounts, as a Changeling that consumes too much energy can cause accidents to happen due to under or overestimating their new, and temporary, strength."
"So they chose to be who they are."
"I think it was largely Chrysalis' decision; after all, the drones in a hive usually take after their Queen. I think we all know how it spiraled downward - the drones being bullied became bullies themselves. They're stuck in a cruel society their Queen forced them to accept, and now anyone outside their group is just considered another target, another source of labor and food."
"How come-"
"It didn't happen to our hive because our Queen isn't like that. Like I said, the Queen's character often rubs off on her drones. Unfortunately, we didn't have the strength to fight them off during their conquest. We ended up being the last hive conquered, which meant that the strength of the rest of the Changeling race was arrayed against us. We didn't have much chance against the tens of thousands that came against us, although our forces fought bravely up to the point of their destruction."
"The Changelings that invaded Canterlot didn't arm themselves with spears or guns, and your Queen said it herself that a Changeling's horn was as good a weapon as any. Why do you arm yourselves otherwise now?"
"That is a question I've asked myself. Chrysalis stifled sources of knowledge that came outside our realm, and drones who came back from their hive said that they'd gone back to very primitive ways, like living and sleeping in a crevice in the wall rather than in the buildings you've seen in our hive. I'd say that she has some idea of Changeling superiority, or something very much like that, and she's trying - or, I should say, was trying - to take us back to our roots, with the idea that we don't need pony technology to live or thrive. It would have also made it easier for her to rule over us without tech from the outside, a traffic we managed to maintain in small amounts during the years of oppression. You should have seen our library before we were invaded; it was stacked with books we'd brought. One of the first things they did was to wreck it and burn most of the books in there, though we saved some."
"Ya got any games ya used to play?" Knight asked.
"Yes. We loved to play flying ring, which involved us throwing a round circle with the middle cut out to one another. A variant was ringhorn, where we'd try to catch the ring on our horns and throw them back without magic. In either version, the rule was to back up ten steps after a catch was made, gradually making the game harder and harder. The winner would be the last one to catch the ring."
"I meant somethin' like chess, a game play on a board."
"Ah, yes. We enjoyed playing... bother, I don't think your language has an exact translation for the name. It gave one player nine pegs, and other twice as many. It was designed to test how smart we could be at infiltration. The player with fewer pieces had to try to get one to the other side of the board, while the other had to try to stop him. In compensation for the mismatch, the player with the bigger force could only move a single peg at any one time, while the player with the smaller force could move two. It's a challenge for both sides, and it can get pretty heated."
"Is it played on a championship level?"
"I'm not sure what you mean by that. There is no 'Changeling nation,' despite what Chrysalis claims, and each of our hives usually works alone, like city-states, not a unified country. If you're asking whether or not we would go to an official gathering of hundreds of thousands to watch one game, then no, though the idea has been proposed numerous times."
James was quiet as he digested all this. What was really weighing on his mind was the campaign ahead, but he felt that it was impolite to look uninterested. The war was going to get even more complicated with the inclusion of former enemies into the allied ranks, and some ponies would find it hard to accept, if they could accept it at all. Sometimes people just refused to listen to facts, no matter how reasonable... or obviously true. Not everyone in his army had accepted the new allies with joy. Most, though, had the good sense to remain quiet about their misgivings.
The alliance needs time to solidify. And time is something we are all too likely to run out of. The Griffons are no doubt building new weapons even as we speak here. this campaign must be won, and won soon, or else our efforts eastward will be in jeopardy.
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They continued on for the next three days. In that time, James had come to thoroughly despite the Badlands. Why anyone - or anything - would choose to live in this kind of environment was beyond him. The Changelings seemed to bear up well, but he and the ponies found it heard to remain cheerful in any respect. Nighttime was an exception, as the darkness shrouded the landscape and allowed one to forget the blistering days.
The camp was well protected on the third night as James went out to inspect the defenses. Sentries were at their posts, and the rest of the army was either already asleep or else seated around campfires, talking and eating.
He went back to his own tent when he was done and began writing another letter for home. He frowned; the words seemed reluctant to come to his mind.
"Sir?"
"Hmm? Yes, come in."
A light gray pegasus in Royal Guard armor walked in. "Sir, are you alright?"
"Yes, why?"
"You appear frustrated."
"Never mind that now. I doubt you've come here just to discuss my emotions."
"Oh, yes. Her majesty Princess Celestia herself is arriving sometime in the coming week, having received news of the... new developments."
"Wait, she got it that fast? I thought it would take this long just for the news to reach her."
"I think it has. She'll take two or three days to reach this place, more if you move from here."
"Doesn't she have things to take care off back in the capital?"
"I can't say for sure, but I don't think she'd leave if she weren't sure that her duties wouldn't be taken care of. Perhaps her sister or her ministers are taking care of it."
"I see." James scratched his chin. He hadn't foreseen this happening. "Isn't it dangerous for her to come here?"
"The Princess thought you'd say that. In any case, she says that she's coming with a company of pegasi that will reinforce the army, all armed with the latest weapons."
"Is she taking her chariot?"
"Not fast enough. She's flying by her own wings to this location. Besides, the chariot would likely attract attention."
"Hmm."
"Also, Prince Shining Armor has returned from his excursion to the north, and has taken command of the army under Golden Fire. They are advancing to your position to combine forces."
"I told Golden Fire to keep the enemy Queen and her forces distracted, so they would not find out about our mission here."
"Prince Armor understands, but the army there is now his. That means he has the authority. That said, he has kept five hundred soldiers to do that job, and taking the remaining two thousand to rendezvous here."
"That could be problematic," James said with considerable understatement. He doubted that Shining Armor was going to be easily satisfied, considering that he had, without royal authority, made and alliance with the same race that had conducted the attack on Canterlot and taken control of the Guard Captain himself, even if that had all been done by a different hive. At the very least, he would have to answer some questions, which was hardly his favorite pastime. Nothing for it but to answer them, in that case. Only thing I can hope for is that it doesn't get as bad as our fight at Trottingham.
"I wouldn't know about that. All I know is that I was given orders to tell you about the changes in the situation, and I have done so."
"Very good. In that case, go get some rest. No doubt you've flown a long way, and this landscape isn't friendly to outsiders."
"Thank you, sir. It feels a lot like the desert, except not quite as hot and the life here is almost non-existent whatsoever. At least the life in the desert was there, even if it was hidden during the day."
"Yeah, scorpions are all I've found here, and the only thing they enjoy is crawling up people and stinging them." He nodded, dismissing the Guard, who saluted and left.
Two or three days from now, everything is either going to be great or its all going to... well, anyway, now I have to worry about whether the Princess is going to tell us to throw all the Changelings in prison. I doubt she'll do that, but even discounting that, there's the whole "Made an alliance without permission" thing. Guess I'm just going to have to see what happens and hope for the best.
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Metamorphosis didn't seem surprised when he told her the next morning. "I can't really say that I didn't expect something like this. Maybe I didn't think it was coming so soon, but regardless of that, what's done is done, and she'll be coming. All we can do now is prepare."
"Surely you don't intend to-"
"Go to jail, or become a puppet again? Certainly not. But I'll hear her out. Who knows, this could be a good thing, and if that's the case, I welcome the meeting. In the meantime, I suggest we make ourselves busy with military concerns."
"Hmm. Well, if you want to change the subject, I suppose I can't really complain. We aren't exactly sure how or when the next battle will occur. Sadly, I have little intelligence on our enemy right now; I hope your agents have more information than my scouts."
"I do, though not that much. Our drones infiltrated Camilla's hive and have begun spreading the news of the uprising. So far, no effort has been made to stop them, though that could have changed since the last report came in. Its been two days since we first infiltrated the other hive, and no alarms has been raised. Of course, it could all be a trap, but based on the logic of what we know, I doubt that."
"I wish we had more information to go on. We could do with some."
"So do I. However, I suppose its the best we could hope for in this situation."
"I don't have experience in propaganda and spying. Since the war began, the fight was largely between several different races, not members of the same species against each other. It was hard to spy on the other side when your would be agents had hooves, not claws and talons, and were herbivores as opposed to omnivores, not to mention the cultural differences."
"I wouldn't know about the war in the east; all I know is that its happening. But I agree, that would be difficult, if not impossible, task for a pony to accomplish. Even for us... We can't really change into forms other than ponies, and only those of the infiltrator's own size. For example, I couldn't transform into, say, your average mare; I'd be better suited to imitating Celestia or Luna, or maybe Cadence."
"Don't say that name around Shining Armor, by the way," James warned.
"I won't. I know about the events of the Canterlot invasion. But the fact remains. And I cannot imitate a stallion.. Likewise, one of my subjects could not try to imitate any of the Princesses, only a pony of their approximate size."
"Why? Is it a problem of the quality or power required of the transformation?"
"No. Even if one of my subjects was able to transform into Celestia, it would be an obvious fake, considering the difference in sizes."
"I see your point. And I'm assuming you can't grow claws or anything like that?"
"No. That would require magic outside our natural ability, and that sort of magic is very, very dangerous in any case. If its done improperly, the pony or Changeling or what-have-you in question could be stuck in their new and possibly not-so-enjoyable form permanently, which is why its easier to stick to pony forms, although we can consume emotions from other species. And I think we've gotten off track."
"Oh well. Assuming we continue on our course..."
"I'd actually advise that we stop soon. We're getting close, and we want Celestia's arrival to remain secret from Chrysalis' drones and officials. Otherwise, they'll force Camilla to fight against us, and I would rather we didn't have to face them."
"Won't they be patrolling out here?"
"They probably are, but they might not be patrolling out here as much as farther east and southwest. Nevertheless, I'll keep up a number of counter patrols in order to keep watch. Our sentries should also be put on alert."
"If Camilla's hive is as close as you say, how long would it take to get there from here?"
"Between one to two days, if we move at the pace we've been going. Its probably a good idea to halt, seeing as we'll need food and drink, and no doubt having more of that, and more ammunition, stocked would be beneficial."
James nodded. "Hopefully, the camp isn't detected during the pause."
"This whole excursion has great risks. However, this is necessary, as much for the extra supplies as well as Celestia's arrival."
James nodded again, but didn't otherwise answer. He looked to the north instead, silently hoping that things wouldn't go horribly wrong.
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The allied armies had fortified the camp quite well. Trenches ran around the camp in a radius of half a mile. Artillery was spaced out between several well-defended outposts, and sentries stood on guard, constantly watching for signs of an attack. Here and there, Changeling patrols flew over the camp, keeping an eye out for enemy scouts.
All in all, James was pleased with the camp's defenses. The allied forces had cooperated well in making them. All the same, he felt nervous. There was no guarantee that the enemy hadn't detected them. It was true that supplies of food, water, ammunition, and other necessities had reached his army, which he was grateful for. However, he was leery of remaining in one place, especially here, in the middle of enemy country.
James was looking west through binoculars. He was currently in a trench facing that same direction, with a mixture of ponies and Changelings occupying it. He let down the binoculars, for a moment, wiping his eyes as a gust of wind blew a thin veil of dirt around. He raised the binoculars again. So far, he had seen nothing, and logically, he knew that the flying patrols would almost certainly see trouble long before he could, but the worry remained.
"You doing alright, General?"
James turned - lowering the binoculars again as he did so - to his left; a Changeling had asked him the question. "I don't particularly like sitting in one place waiting for the other side to find me."
"I wouldn't worry about it. We built enough in the past couple days to hold off anybody that decides to mess with us."
That was true. The camp even had watchtowers built, with soldiers manning each one, and several bunkers with artillery inside them had been constructed. "Perhaps," he said, looking out west again. "Then again, it pays not to become overconfident."
"You sound like you speak from experience."
"I do. Its one of the lessons of the battlefield... an unpleasant one."
Before his companion could speak again, there was a flutter of wings and the sound of hard hooves landing. James turned around to see another Guard pony. "Sir, Her Highness Princess Celestia is approaching and will be here any minute."
"Very good. Lead on."
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Metamorphosis was already waiting in the middle of the camp when James arrived; no doubt the patrols had informed her. She nodded in greeting to him. "Well met, General. I think we're going to have company soon. Royal company, to be exact."
"So I've heard. Where is she?"
"She's..." Metamorphosis suddenly pointed a hoof eastward. "There."
James looked at where she was pointing. "Ah," he murmured. In the distance, but flying quickly, were a large number of pegasi, as well as a white alicorn.
"I'd say that's our guest and her escort," the Queen said, "assuming they aren't disguised enemies. I'll know when they get closer."
The group of flying ponies flew over the camp. Upon catching sight of James, Celestia nodded, gesturing for the large squadron to land. The Princess landed right in front of them, with the pegasi landing to either side of her.
There was a moment of silence. Soldiers, both pony and Changeling, began to gather, curious as to what was happening.
Celestia looked around, then fixed first the Queen, then James, with a very focused eye. At last, she smiled. "Well met, James. Very glad to see that you're still whole and hale given the war and its circumstances."
"I am glad that you're safe and sound here."
"And this must be the Queen I've heard about." She turned to regard Metamorphosis, but without a trace of hostility, either in voice or posture.
The Queen nodded. "You must be Princess Celestia."
"I am. Rest assured, I am not here to drag you or your people off to prison, nor force you to swear fealty."
James thought he heard Metamorphosis sigh quietly at that. "I am relieved to hear you say that. But in that case, why did you come? You're worth a fortune out here, and not a small one."
"I know. But matters of state sometimes involve risk. I intend to make this alliance permanent, and see how our two peoples can cooperate, in the present as well as the future. We have much to discuss."
"We do indeed. Much rests on our success in the field, as well as on what we do here today."
"I intend to put any remaining fears we may have of one another to rest today. James, is there a tent where we may confer alone?"
"Yes. There's one right there," he said, jerking his thumb to his left.
"Thank you." Then, as James started to follow the Princess and the Queen, Celestia turned her head. "Oh, I'm sorry, I should have specified. I meant the Queen and I, alone."
"Oh, I see. Girl's day out."
Both monarchs laughed. "Don't get jealous, now," the Queen said, still chuckling.
"Worry not," Celestia said. "We'll be fine."
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Metamorphosis felt nervous as they entered the tent. She doubted that Celestia was going suddenly going to turn tough and threatening away from witnesses, but she couldn't help feeling a little shiver of fear rise up her back.
"I'm very pleased to meet you," Celestia said, in a voice that washed away the Queen's fears, or at least suppressed them. "Its good to know that not all Changelings are under our enemy's control."
"Near enough, sadly. Chrysalis began consolidating her control over the Changeling hives ten years ago. There was war all over the Badlands. The weakest hives fell first, and were subjugated."
"I never heard of that," Celestia said, showing concern.
"Naturally. The Badlands aren't exactly well visited or well documented by ponies, and we are well schooled in the arts of secrecy. The wars concluded with the conquest of my hive. The day we were conquered was the worst day of my life. Sometimes I wish I could just erase it from existence, it was that painful... and humiliating."
"Even the best of alicorns and unicorns could not do such a thing. In effect, the other hives are forced to work for Chrysalis?"
"Yes. Not by choice, either. The councilors she sent us made sure to keep guards from their own hive at our nursery. They enforced their will on us every day. I can't say exactly what they'd do to your people if they had succeeded in their invasion, but I can tell you this.; it would have been better to die fighting."
"All the more reason to end this war as soon as possible. What is your plan?"
"To spread news of our rebellion. There's another hive near here that is prime for revolt. If Queen Camilla aids us, our armies will be greatly reinforced. In this way, we intend to release the other hives under the tyrant's control. If we can do this to a couple more hives, we should have the troops necessary to attack and subdue Chrysalis' hive. After that, we can surround and destroy her field army."
"What if she find out what you're doing and comes back to take command?"
"In that case, we'll have to come up with another plan, one that will have to deal with us being badly outnumbered. However, we've come fairly well along, so I'm not going to let us be stopped by something like that. I won't let my subjects be enslaved ever again. I swore that on the day we liberated our hive, with the timely aid of your forces."
Celestia nodded. "I would expect nothing else from a leader as strong as you."
"It's not strength. Merely what needs to be done."
"Call it what you will. I am impressed by it. I only wish I had been there in person to make the initial alliance."
"Please, don't blame James. he only did what he had to. There was no time to do things officially."
"I know. I am not blaming him. If anything, I applaud his decision."
"Anyway, what do you have in mind for today?"
"To make the alliance official. To that end..." Celestia's horn glowed for a moment. There was a flash of light, and a rolled-up scroll appeared between them. "I wrote a treaty for us to sign, together, as equals. It ends all conflict with your hive, and grants them their rights in Equestria as residents, who are to be protected under the law. It also announces the alliance between your hive and my country, as well as that between any other hive that manages to become free and wishes to ally with us."
Metamorphosis gripped the treaty in her magical grasp, unfolding it before her eyes, checking it for any small print or trickery. There were none, unless part of it was written by invisible ink.
Really? Invisible ink? You're getting paranoid. She sighed, forcing herself to let go of her worries. "This is what you said it is. Sorry for doubting you."
"I can't blame you for it, considering the reputation Chrysalis gave all Changelings with her invasion. Its only natural that you would worry."
Metamorphosis read the treaty over again. "It all seems in order. I'd be pleased to sign, but-" She stopped as Celestia conjured a quill and some ink. "Right then." She gripped the quill, dunked it in the ink, and wrote her name in the proper place.
Celestia took the treaty when she was done. "Interesting, though I cannot read this."
"Its my name. In the Changeling language."
The Princess's eyes glowed with honest curiosity. "Indeed. We have a lot to learn from one another, Miss..."
"Metamorphosis. Queen Metamorphosis."