It had taken a ton of effort, but Theodore had managed it. He'd commanded them several times, attempting to break through their discipline on the agonizingly boring trip for his own amusement. Eventually a few had cracked, and he'd managed to get the thestrals and a few changelings singing with him. It left a warm, fuzzy feeling in his heart seeing a couple changeling singing 'What is Love' in an amazing synchronization that left an echo that perfectly reflected the original work. If he was lucky, it would spread throughout the hive, and even Zelus and Pandinus would be humming the song before too long.
'What other love-themed songs do I know?' He pondered. 'Love' themed songs are funny and all considering a good portion of them are changelings, but we need, I got it! Welcome to the Jungle for the gnolls, Do You Believe in Magic for the unicorns, I Believe I Can Fly for the pegasi, I'm Gonna Be for the earth ponies... I'll figure out the others later.'
It was probably stupid, but it would still be funny to give them some songs to sing. This world didn't have radios as far as he'd seen, so music had to be taught orally.
'Technology. Do they even have any idea what could be done with magic? Do they know that lightning can be harnessed? That rivers and lakes can be used to power their lives? That even the sun can be used to run machinery?'
It was definitely something he'd need to look into. So far his knowledge of technology was entirely based on magic-free tech from Earth. What, if anything, had the locals done? Pegasi could control storms right? Electricity was something they'd never run out of, just keep a storm going over a collection grid, and the lightning would power everything for miles.
"Sir, I can see the torches on the Port's perimeter. We should be there momentarily," one of the thestrals shouted to him over the wind. The storm was just about on them, but with the port close by, it was likely they'd be inside before the rain started.
Not five minutes later, the group was landing in front of the town gates, the guards already moving to open them as the alicorn's group had been spotted earlier. Cimmerian was met just inside by Herrick Talon and a small group of mercenaries.
"Didn't think you'd show up so early, the emissary isn't due until tomorrow," the griffon said with a hint of surprise in his voice. "I assume you were looking to cut the travel out of your list for the day though. We've prepared rooms for all the proceedings already. The Talon base has plenty of rooms that don't see any use, so it wasn't that difficult to set it up."
Cimmerian nodded, following him to the far side of the town. The first drops of rain were just coming down and the sun had set almost half an hour ago, so there weren't many on the streets. It suited his group, as his mixed guards would likely draw quite a few eyes. Just as they walked in, the clouds cut lose, unleashing their unholy wrath upon those foolish enough to still be outside. The alicorn looked back over his shoulder with both relief and pity. Relief for being able to retreat from the storm into the fort, and pity for the guards still standing in the rain.
The Talon base was a beehive of activity, most of it being mercenaries moving supplies from room to room to make space for even more supplies, and on more than one crate he saw were the words Shadowtalon Port. Another mercenary passed his group bearing a bucket of amulets, all marked with the array that protected them from the feral changelings.
"We've been pretty busy with all the refugees ending up scattered to the four winds, but we've managed to prepare three rooms for your meeting," Herrick explained. "Two for sleeping quarters, and a third for the actual negotiations."
The older griffon opened a door, stepping aside to let the alicorn and his group inside. "These will be your quarters for the next few days. Just don't break anything or make a..."
Cimmerian followed the griffons gaze, seeing a young hen currently already in the room. The hen reminded him of the griffons he'd often seen in storybooks. Where most of the others had grey flecks or didn't quite have the right shade of fur as most lions he'd seen in pictures, this one was nearly golden, with snow-white plumage. Not sure what to make of the occupation of the room meant for him, he turned to the Talon leader.
"So I'm not as up to date on griffon customs as I should be, but I'm afraid I'll have to decline the offer of hospitality, Herrick."
The reactions to the joke were mixed; more so than he'd expected. Several griffons passing by who'd heard the comment and seen who it was directed at reached for blades, causing his own guards to do the same. The hen merely stared at him with an expression caught between confusion, and shock. Herrick...
The old griffon buried his beak in his talons, before muttering "Lord Cimmerian, be known to Princess Isana, Daughter of Queen Federica. Your Highness, be known to Lord Theodore Cimmerian Fredson, ruler of the Temple of the Shadows and founder of Shadowtalon Port."
The stallion stared for a few moments, finally comprehending just what he'd done. With a sigh, his wings sagged and he chuckled with a rueful shake of his head. "Of course. I can't even make a joke without stepping in it."
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"What do you mean you can't? I said prepare a group to hunt down this benefactor immediately!" The purple alicorn shouted at the lieutenant before her. "This male, this, this thing is a bigger threat than any army! It must be found and either captured or killed immediately!"
"Y-your Highness, we have griffons raiding our caravans at will despite the changeling squads, we have minotaurs making prodding strikes against our eastern borders, despite our best efforts to make sure the griffons could not strike back, we're looking at a war on two fronts without the forces to fight it!" The soldier attempted to explain. "You're asking us to send out specialists of all types looking for a creature whose name we do not know, nor do we even know its species. Not only do we have nothing on this creature, we have even less on its location. One of the intelligence officers suggested checking the lost ships, but those were scattered by a powerful storm and two went down in the middle of the ocean."
The Mad Queen's eyes lit up momentarily with hope. "The storm! Did you check it for magical properties?"
"Of course Your Highness, it was one of the first things we did when we found out we lost crew and resources to it," he responded. "It was completely natural. Normally we have weather teams send a counter-storm to stop it from reaching Equestrian shores and don't give them a second glance."
The Mad Queen began pacing about her dais, mumbling to herself. "No no no, I know he's out there, we need to find him and stop him. He's the reason the changelings are being bypassed, he's the reason she's fighting. If he keeps doing this, it's all going to come down."
Much to the surprise of all those gathered, in a few seconds she relented. "Very well, but I want the specialists ready to gather and move out when the word is given. In the meantime, I want the information network...what? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Uh, you disbanded R.I.D.E eight years ago, Your Highness." One soldier mumbled, ducking his head in a bow afterwards in the hope of dodging her focus.
"I, I did?" She said softly, sounding unsure of herself in public for what was likely the first time in months if not years. "Oh, well uh, is there, no, I'm the Queen. I want it back up and running, and its only job will be to find this creature. Once they find him, send word to the specialists I listed and send them to the last location of the creature. Other than that, I want alternatives on how to deal with the minotaurs, and somepony find out where these griffons are striking from! We've already captured all of their main cities and towns, there can't be that many places left for them to rally."
"Of course, Your Highness," the soldiers said in unison before walking out the door to their appointed tasks. The Mad Queen watched them go, a little more certain of herself. It hurt to admit, but they were right, she was sending troops she may need elsewhere off chasing a nameless shadow. All it would do for her at this point is weaken her already strained position.
"Well? Anything to add, 'Captain'?" She asked the white stallion standing beside her throne.
The captain merely snapped a salute at her attention before speaking, "Nothing that you are not already pursuing, Your Highness."
"Of course not." She snorted in disgust. Of course she was left with fools surrounding her, she'd removed most of those that displayed sort of intelligence to make things easier to control, and those with any spine, she'd grown frustrated with and fed them to her experiments. Truly, the life of a tyrant was a frustrating one. Those like her were too willing to attempt to usurp her to use effectively, and those intelligent enough to be useful were also too intelligent to stay anywhere near her when she was so likely to have those around her executed and/or tortured for her own amusement. If only she had a...
"That's it! I build my own officer. A little of programming with a few changelings and I should have a perfectly loyal soldier. Oh don't think the fact that you won't help me will stop me, fool. I still have access to your notes!" She cackled cheerfully as she darted down the halls to her personal lab and library.
Pity the Nightmare, a foolish creature who had no idea that there was a reason the purple unicorn turned alicorn had an assistant for keeping her notes and research in order. Nor did it realize how difficult programming golems could be. The Mad Queen was in for a very long and frustrating experience.
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Pandinus paced. Lestidae watched.
The larger queen paced for nearly ten minutes, debating on the idea that had occurred to her. Zelus was finally cleansed enough to move on to actual love, and was ready to start helping in any tasks set before her. The current task Queen Pandinus was contemplating was sending her after Cimmerian to act as an additional, albeit much stronger, bodyguard. Certainly she trusted the alicorn to watch after himself, but his aura kept her hive safe, his love is what kept them fed.
"Out with it already. What has you wearing a rut in the floor." Lestidae said in irritation. "You're a queen, aren't you? Stop acting like some freshly hatched proto queen and either ignore it, or make a decision."
"Like you've ever been in this situation before." Din snapped back. "If something happens to him, our link will be exposed to the Mad Queen and the majority of our love supply will be cut off. On the other hoof I don't want to coddle him, as he's my mate, not a nymph, and I've already had guards sent with him." Pandinus paused for a moment, looking at the older queen. "Zelus would be an excellent bodyguard I'm certain, able to fight off anything that could threaten him in the local area, maybe even stand against alicorns if it was required. The tales told of a hunger-crazed queen sapping the true love of a single stallion and managing to fight an alicorn. In that case, fueled by so much love, do we even need to worry about hiding? Even if the worst occurs and the Mad Queen captures him, would anything be able to stop us if we put our stores to use?"
"Do you even need to continue this charade in that case?" Lestidae asked with a haughty gaze. "When he returns, defeat him, lock him in your quarters and harvest what you need. I really don't see the issue here. Why allow him to leave at all?"
"He's the source of the love, yes. However, his happiness increases its potency. You still haven't tasted it, have you? Neither of you have. The love we have stored here, not only is it plentiful, it's potent."
Pandinus approached a small desk that had been added to her room in the last few weeks. It was more for Cimmerian, allowing him to quickly sign urgent papers instead of having to trek all the way to the war room or his own quarters for proper writing implements than for her own use, but she still made use of it. She opened a bottom drawer, drawing a single glowing pink jar that may as well have been the sun in the nearly pitch black of the room. The sudden change in lighting startled Lestidae, who's secondary eyelids snapped shut at the sudden increase in light.
"This is the most potent of it. I keep some here, not allowing it to be diluted amongst the rest of the love. The love of an alicorn for his mate."
Wordlessly, the larger queen floated the jar to herself as she reclined on her bed. A clinking sound caused Lestidae's ears to twitch, and she spied several small glasses floating to the bed as well.
Pandinus poured the pink gel into three cups, only allotting a small portion for each glass before stoppering the jar and returning it to the desk. Before Lestidae could ask who the third glass was for, the door swung open, admitting a surprisingly energetic Zelus.
"You had something to discuss, Pandinus? I hope it's important, I was just about to train some of the guards by thrashing them. It has been far too long since I've engaged in such activities for entertainment," Zelus cheerfully stated, her smile nearly splitting her face in two.
Without looking at either of them, Pandinus floated a glowing glass to each queen, staring into her own as if it held the secrets to the universe. "I want you to know. I want you to understand, Lestidae, just how different the situation is. You continuously complain about how we are breaking tradition, but you fail to see what I have; you fail to see what's been shown to me.
"You complain about losing our traditions and the laws that we have followed for so long? The griffons have real traditions, ceremonies so intricate they are an art-form in themselves. The ponies have traditions, tales passed down through the generations, plays, songs, even history books recording who their ancestors were and what they did. The minotaurs have their heirlooms, weapons and armor passed down through the families that each new generation learns the exploits of, as well as they who wielded them. Even the gnolls and the diamond dogs have stories of their ancestors, of their origins.
Pandinus' eyes hardened, focusing on the elder of the queens. "Do you know who your grandmother was? Have you ever heard tales of the exploits of changelings? Not warnings or tales of tragedy but tales of changelings succeeding, of them surviving impossible odds to return home, or to defend their hives. What about works of art? The central pillars are abandoned when the hive moves on, and any odd scratches the drones have made over the years are forgotten. We can alter our voices to reach nearly any tone that may be heard with equine ears, yet never have I heard of a song composed by a changeling. Where are our traditions, Lestidae? Where are our customs, our heritage? We have less than the mongrels that spend all day foraging through the jungle for scraps of food! You speak of the proud changeling race? We've spent millennia hiding in the shadows!"
"The proud changeling race, ha!" Pandinus scoffed. "How proud are you truly of your race? The fountain outside, it is the first creation of the changelings, the first thing that any race can look upon and know changelings existed. Even should our race be wiped out, other races will speak of the fountain, of a beautiful creation that glowed with the love of those who lived here. The only other location where one could see such a concentration of love is the Crystal Kingdom, and the idea was proposed by an alicorn!"
"Our laws are binding, Pandinus," Lestidae responded coolly. "You cannot just dismiss all your mother taught you because some alicorn comes along and asked you to dismiss your rearing."
"Name one law your mother taught you that cannot be broken in times of strife!" Din retorted. "There were none in my rearing, the survival of the hive was paramount. If I had to submit myself to another creature for the survival of my hive, I was expected to do so! If I needed to order half of my hive killed because our food stores would not sustain our numbers, I was expected to do so! Tell me Lestidae, tell me one law that is unbreachable by our race. Just. One."
For a few moments the queens stood there in silence, Lestidae starting to speak several times before snapping her jaws shut, even a single loophole being grounds for dismissing the best choices for her counter-arguments. Unsure of how to proceed, she turned to Zelus, eyes asking for aid. Instead, the smallest queen shrugged, swirling the glowing liquid in her glass.
"Mother told me there were no true laws, that they were guidelines on how to deal with other hives and that we make the laws of our own hives. I'd hate to say it, Lessy, but she has a point."
The eldest queen scowled, though whether it was at the nickname or her ally's lack of support was unknowable. "Fine, you've made your point, Pandinus," Lestidae said to the largest queen. "But what has this all to do with the love?"
"You've tasted stolen love, correct? Mother told me most queens and proto queens were given any the hive managed to obtain, and I remember it was the sweetest thing I'd ever tasted. My time here made me realize something though. The emotions we harvest are flat, not at all as fulfilling as they could be. As Cimmerian told me, we've been living on crumbs. Taste it, I want you to understand why I would put myself through so much misery for this prize."
With that, Din slowly sipped her glass, savoring every moment. Zelus was about to knock back the entire glass, but a quick glance at the other queens stopped her. She slowly sipped at the honey, rolling the taste around in her mouth for a moment before going slack, Din's aura the only thing stopping the cup from hitting the floor.
Lestidae stared at her fellow queen in shock, waving a hoof in front of her face a few times before poking the smaller queen. It was enough to upset Zelus' balance, the changeling slowly tipping over much like a tree that was harvested for lumber. The reaction drew a giggle from Pandinus, who then stared expectantly at the only queen remaining on her hooves.
"I told you, Lestidae, we were not living, we were surviving. Taste it, and tell me anything you've ever come across even comes close. Taste it, and tell me you wouldn't give your wings and horn for a sure supply of it."
Lestidae glanced worriedly at her glass, fear appearing on her face. 'Poison? No, she wouldn't heal us just to poison us, and she's had some as well, unless she's already taken the antidote. What happened?'
Pandinus giggled, using her magic to move the insensate queen to a small pile of blankets by an empty pod. "Oh that's priceless. Can you hear her, Lestidae? She's not moving, but she's high as a kite at the moment. I think I was just as bad the first time I tasted it. In fact, I remember waking up drooling love, with everything being tinted pink."
Lestidae focused on Zelus, and to her surprise heard the queen over the link. As Din had said, the younger queen was giggling uncontrollably even as she lost all control of her body. Was it truly that powerful?
"Try it, Lestidae. Or do I need to start calling you Lessy as well?" Din said with an impish grin.
With only a small remaining amount of hesitation, the older mare drank the honey, quickly settling herself into a reclining position and setting the glass on the floor. She rolled the taste around in her mouth, enjoying the sweetness that love always carried, but there was something more, something...
The world went pink for the elder queen, and she was aware of no more.
Din giggled as both queens ended up practically drooling over themselves from a love overdose. It would be even funnier if not for the fact that it highlighted the primary problem she'd been seeing lately. Give them an actual source of love, and most are so sensitive they instantly turn into a gibbering mess. How could her species live if they weren't even capable of feeding properly without getting high?
She'd have to change that over the next few months. The nymphs would obviously be the best suited for the new lifestyle, growing up with plenty of food and having other species hatchlings to teach them the drive they would need. The drones may be capable of it, but there was the possibility some would never achieve the level of culture ponies enjoyed. The queens?
That would be a long hard road, but they would live long enough to be able to adjust.
Or maybe the stress would kill them? Can't say she didn't try.
The queen watched as Cadance trotted into the room, looking curiously at the two queens before hopping up onto the central bed and pressing against the changelings side. It was exhilarating, the things she was planning. Hundreds of changelings, all of them living in comfort. Queens speaking of her and her mate as the ones who brought their species into a golden age after approaching the cusp of extinction. Would it be a golden age for them? What would a golden age of changelings entail? She'd found a few books in the library detailing the advances ponies enjoyed during such times, and they set her imagination ablaze.
Yes, it was definitely a good day to be the queen of the hive.
Her attention was suddenly drawn to the door as it swung open once more, admitting the mobile armor of Cimmerian. The glowing eyes of the armor took in the sight of the comatose queens before turning back to her and asking a single question.
"Din, what the hell did you do to them?"
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Cimmerian stretched his wings just outside the building of the Talon compound. The thestral ambassador was due in about an hour, and he would likely be stuck inside for the rest of the day. The storm had passed, leaving an overcast sky and only the faintest rumbling in the distance and a damp scent in the air. Well, damper than usual. Zarris was a seaside port town, after all.
His stretching complete, he turned to walk back inside when he noticed a griffon just exiting the main building.
"Good morning, Princess Isana. Did you sleep well?"
"As, well as can be expected, Lord Cimmerian."
"Cimmerian is fine, if you'd like. Once more, I apologize. It was an attempt to break the silence with humor, and it fell so flat you couldn't pick it up with a spatula." He said with a chuckle.
"I understand." Isana responded hesitantly. "I, er, once insulted a minotaur diplomat by asking why his horns were cracked strange places. It seemed innocuous enough but apparently it was a deformation, not battle related, and calling attention to it was seen as a grave insult. It was done in private, so the matter was quickly explained by my mother and apologies were given, but the experience remains."
"Something to take home, I suppose. I know there's a few gestures that while where I'm from they're positive things, there's another place where it's a grave insult. Culture can be a strange thing, even your own. If you truly look hard enough, I'm sure you can find something in your own culture that confounds you."
The hen giggled daintily, holding a talon over her beak. "It is true. I don't remember them at the moment, but I do remember asking my nanny several questions regarding insults and greetings. Oh, that was it. Stone-Talon is fine, but never call someone a Stone-Wing."
"Ah, bad luck, right? Or maybe it's a curse?" Cimmerian mused aloud.
"It could be both, actually, though as an insult it's more the latter." The princess looked around the compound worriedly for a moment before whispering to him.
"Why do you consort with changelings?"
The dark alicorn looked at her in confusion for a moment, before understand sparked in his eyes. "Ah, the guards. A request from my wife, actually. She asked that I take some guards, and one of my organizers set me up with a full group of flyers. Changelings are in the majority at the Temple of the Shadows, though, so it's easier to grab more of them. That and Pandinus probably picked those four out herself."
It was now the hen's turn to look confused. "Pandinus? Is that another alicorn I've not heard of?"
"Queen Pandinus of the Temple's Hive." He clarified, taking a seat beside the griffon. "When I first found her she was nearly insane with hunger, now she's the strongest changeling I know, possibly the strongest on the planet. She's grown a lot, from a single-minded nymphomaniac to a wonderful leader and a kind mother. If you'd like, I'm sure I can spare a guard for your questions. Learn about what you fear, princess. Often enough it's the unknown we fear, not the actual creature."
"Sir, the ambassador's arrived and is waiting for you in the designated room." A Talon mercenary said, approaching with a nod to the alicorn and a bow to the princess.
"Must have used the array." Cimmerian muttered, standing up and stretching his wings for what was likely the last time for a few hours. "I'm on my way. Oh, and princess? You're not wrong saying I consort with changelings. Din's my mate."
Watching the princess's white fur somehow light up pink was well worth it as he walked back into the compound. 'Dammit, I still need to find out how a ruler goes about getting married. I can't exactly marry myself, and I'm the only actual ruler in the area.' Sure he could just say he was married, he could even make up the paperwork and sign it off himself, but would it really mean anything?
'Sides, Mom would never forgive me if I had kids outside of an official marriage. She'd find a way to cross dimensions and kill me. It's going to happen, so now I need to make it official,' he thought with a smile.
The door swung open with his aura, allowing him entry into the well kept room the talks would be taking place in. The alicorn walked in, his guards closing the door behind him. As he took his seat, he noticed the thestral ambassador staring at him wide-eyed.
"L-Lord Cimmerian?" The mare managed to stutter out, her brown eyes locked on his own.
"I am. You're the ambassador sent by the Thestral Council in response to my letter?"
"I, I..." The mare's words were caught in her throat, so instead she followed her instinct. Before the alicorn could blink, the mare had kicked out of her seat and prostrated herself on the floor, teary murmurings and fearful requests for forgiveness only barely reaching his flicking ears.
Looking at the mare, the alicorn only barely suppressed a sigh.
'This is going to be one of those weeks.'