//------------------------------// // Every Action Has an Equal and Opposite Reaction (Twilight) Part 6 // Story: dC/dt ≠ 0 // by I Thought I Was Toast //------------------------------// To this day I’m not entirely sure what Chrysalis’ original plan really was. Mo says I shouldn’t think of it as one plan, and that it’s more likely her actions were geared towards several different schemes instead of any one ploy, but I simply don’t understand how such conflicting goals could run in parallel. Such was the life of a changeling lord. Plotting. Scheming. Being ready to smile one second and backstab the next. It was all just routine to Chrysalis—Morpheus too, although he was always loath about it. I stirred awake to the quiet mutterings of my friends. My bed softly cried for me to go back to sleep, but there were things I needed to do. What were they again? Groaning, I sat up slowly, and the murmuring cut off briefly as my eyes blearily focused. For a second, everything was silent, and then my friends rushed forward as they cried out in chorus. “Twilight!” Pink, cyan, white, orange, and buttercup yellow converged on me, and my vision cleared to find myself about to be stampeded by love and affection. I melted into the group hug, and simply enjoyed the contact and chatter. I hummed as Applejack and Rainbow pestered me with questions of what happened, and Pinkie rambled her usual nonsense. Rarity fussed over how bandages were never color coordinated, and Fluttershy voiced her concerns too quiet for me to hear. They were my friends. “If ve can interrupt the party,” Morpheus echoed from outside my pile of friends. “Who exactly found you? Noling has come forward to claim credit.” He stood near the wall, watching us with an unreadable face. I squirmed slightly, trying to pick up something from his stoic stance. “Would you believe me if I said ‘your mom?’” There was a sharp intake of breath, accompanied by the clacking of rapidly shifting segments of carapace, and my friends were pulled off of me as Morpheus examined every inch of me. “Hey! What gives?!” Rainbow swooped back in to land between us. “I’m checking that she isn’t a changeling.” The prince’s buzz fractured slightly, and I shuffled back slightly at his words. Rainbow flared her wings. “Look! You’re scaring her after she probably just went through Tartarus. Get back to your corner, and let her explain first. You’re lucky we even let you in here, flyboy!” “I agree, darling. I already checked that she wasn’t a changeling.” Rarity had grabbed a brush from my vanity to fix her mane. “Let the mare breathe.” “How can you not understand?!” Morpheus’ wings buzzed violently. “Mother is the worst possible changeling to have found her. She’s just such a—” He uttered a harsh clicky whirring sound. “I would have been mad to ask her to join the search.” “That’s not a very nice thing to say about your mom.” Pinkie wrapped a foreleg around me. “Does this look like a monstrous shapeshifting bug to you? Just look at that adorkable face.” Morpheus snorted. “Really? She did tell you who my mother is, right?” He glared at me. “How much did you actually tell them? Because it is starting to feel like you kept out all the pieces you should have actually shared with the ponies you trust most.” “I thought it would color their opinion of you,” I mumbled, looking down as I kneaded the matress. “That’s not—” Morpheus opened his mouth to say something. His wings buzzed in such an errant fashion that they occasionally rubbed against each other—chirping out discordant violin notes. “Don’t yell at her or I’ll kick your flank out of here!” Rainbows tail flicked restlessly from side to side. He took a deep shuddering breath, and the echo quieted. “Does that really matter compared to letting them know what they need to know? Maybe you took my impromptu lesson on changelings the wrong way, or maybe Celestia is teaching you to be as enigmatic a ruler as she is, but you do not omit things of this magnitude to the few ponies you can trust here.” He looked off into the distance. “Believe me when I say they are your bastion in a sea of royal duties.” I cringed. “That’s it, jerkface. You’re out of here.” Rainbow took a step forward on seeing my reaction. “You got the rope, AJ?” “You bet your bridle I do.” Applejack popped her hat off and reached inside. “N-no!” My voice was shaky. I could see all my initial work falling apart. I had wanted to tell them, but Celestia had told me not to! My friends stared at me. “He’s right…. I-I didn’t tell you everything. Maybe I should have, but I didn’t. Some of it was Celestia’s orders, and the rest was just overwhelming me. I’m done with that, though. Right now I need you girls more than ever.” Another flash of color had me pinned within a group hug—Rainbow and Applejack taking only the slightest hesitation as they glared at Morpheus. I sighed, knowing it wouldn’t last forever. “Morpheus… Morpheus is Chrysalis’ son.” The temperature of my pony blanket dropped fromwarm and fuzzy to icy cold, making my voice come out a whisper. “I thought you would all pick up on that from his title of Prince, and I didn’t have the heart to bring it up when I realized none of you figured it out.” “He’s what?!” There were gale force winds that knocked us over as Rainbow imposed herself between us and Morpheus. “Stop….” Putting a hoof to my chest, I wheezed as I became aware exactly how hoarse my voice was. I sounded like a downright mess, and that couldn’t be helping my friends’ impression of Morpheus. “You don’t understand what he gave up to be here.” I coughed at the worst possible time. “I’m with Rainbow here, sugarcube.” Applejack stepped forward, standing like a mountain between us. “Give us one good reason not to kick his keister to the curb.” I gritted my teeth. “For starters, he literally handed me his death warrant.” Applejack and Rainbow paused in their advance. Morpheus had been taking measured steps back, but ceased as my friends did. “Come again, Twi?” I sighed. “I mean he literally handed me a magically binding contract made of dark, forbidden magic that essentially said ‘If I screw up, you get to kill me.’” Rainbow blinked before shaking her head. “Doesn’t matter. Even if that took a lot of guts, it’s totally a trap.” I cocked an eyebrow. “What if I told you it was originally signed by his entire species? That’s how dedicated he is. Granted, it’s more stupid than anything else—” Morpheus coughed. “—but I’d call that real loyalty to his cause. He didn’t even back down when Celestia actually surged.” My friends were staring at me again. I’d thought I’d told them everything they needed to know, but looking back all I really did was just talk in vague circles. I had told them what they needed to know, but not what I needed them to know. Blushing under the scrutiny, I faked a cough awkwardly. Soon it expanded into the real thing only to collapse into wheezing chuckles. “Oh, it feels so good to actually tell you all this instead of acting all princess-y. I can’t believe I pulled a Celestia. I didn’t even realize I was doing it! I dragged you all in without telling you anything, and I’m sorry for that. I’m not supposed to be the cryptic one.” Applejack and Rainbow glanced at each other before nodding and backing down. They were still tense. All of my friends were, and grabbing them all in my telekinesis it was my turn to give them a hug. Wrapping my wings around them, I giggled. “Relax. This is why I didn’t want to tell you everything. I was worried you would all just fret over my problems when you didn’t need to. I need you to, though. I can see that now, and—just like you’ll be here for me—I’m going to be here for you.” I sighed as I felt them unwind slightly. “Alright, I think that’s the last of the old stuff. If you want me to elaborate any more on it, I’m sure Castle could provide me a lecture hall when I’m not so tired.” I giggled. “I know you all just love my lectures. Now, who’s ready for the more recent news?” “Oh! Oh! Pick me! Pick me!” Pinkie’s hoof skyrocketed, jostling our precariously balanced jumble of ponies. My bed had grown at some point—or perhaps we had shrunk. It was warm and cozy with heat rising from the mattress despite the covers being knocked askew, and we all settled into Castle’s comfy little gift. Fluttershy gathered the covers around her like a cocoon while Rainbow and Applejack nestled side by side at the corner. Rarity gathered the pillows I wasn’t using to lounge, and Pinkie shuffled in a couple circles before curling up like a cat, idly batting her tail. For my part, I simply laid back in the middle resting comfortably. Morpheus remained by the door. “Perhaps I should go….” I rolled my eyes, and gestured him over. “My friends can’t get used to you if you avoid us. Come on! Breakfast was fine, wasn’t it?” The prince’s eyes passed over my friends. “Perhaps…. May I at least don one of my guises?” Applejack arched her brow. “And what about that is honest?” Morpheus licked his lips—possibly mandibles. Lips seemed more appropriate, but it suddenly seemed odd. Lips weren’t made of chitin. There were little clicks and clacks that came out simply from him standing and breathing. I hadn’t really noticed them before, nor had I noticed the flow of the many plates of chitin across his body. I could see many of them shifting with the various activities of muscle underneath—clinking like tiny typewriter keys to his movement. There was even a slight beat to the scratch-scratching that I could only assume was a heartbeat. It sounded a little fast to me, but it wasn’t like I was even close to an expert on changeling biology. He timidly kicked the floor and forced a smile as he was stood under my scrutiny, ear tubes splaying back just a little. The holes in his forelegs clenched open and closed, plates—or perhaps rods—clicking into and out of place. I had noticed how he had started shrinking his fangs when he smiled before, but it never occurred to me that the rest of his teeth elongated slightly, and faint swirls barely denoted what I assumed was the transfer of part of his fangs to the rest of his teeth. He was a pony, and yet he wasn’t. “Are you giving me an answer anytime soon, Twilight?” His smile cracked. I blinked. “Oh, right! Sorry…. I was just thinking about something.” Rarity raised a forelimb to her muzzle and tittered. “I thought you didn’t want me playing matchmaker.” I felt my cheeks flame hotter than the sun, and Morpheus coughed into his hoof. “I wouldn’t call it that,” he droned. “Such emotions have a rather… unique flavor. This was more like tasting a frog bathed in way too much orange-scented disinfectant. You know, the kind of curiosity that leads foals to pull the legs off ants or makes a scientist dissect a corpse.” The tittering had stopped, and Rarity’s cheeks had turned green. “No, I didn’t know. Also, eww-eww-eww-ewwwww…” The whimpering was joined by chuckling from Applejack and giggling from Pinkie. Rainbow half-heartedly followed, and Fluttershy just sat mortified, muttering at the mental image of foals needlessly picking legs off ants. I smiled, and shook my head. My cheeks were still rosy, but I could handle embarrassment from nerd humor. “Dissecting you would only work if I have backup specimens. I wouldn’t want to risk a mistake when a live specimen can provide more data.” Cocking my head to the side, I looked at him. “Jokes aside, would wearing a disguise make you more comfortable?” The prince’s eyes glazed over for a second. “Ve aren’t sure.” His eyes refocused. “I think it might help though.” I barely heard Applejack whispering to Rainbow. “He sure is an indecisive little feller. Five bits says he scampers off before the week is out.” “He probably won’t make it a day if you volunteer to take him tomorrow. Make it ten and a bottle of applejack.” Rainbow’s smirk was audible. “Deal.” I ignored them and waved Morpheus over again. “Come on then. I order you to wear the disguise of your choice for the night.” As soon as I said the words, Morpheus slowly shook from the tips of his hind legs up to his flank. The almost violent vibrations traveled down his barrel, splitting down his forelegs and up his neck. When it reached his head, his eyes rolled back, and his haws clicked close with a snap. It ended as fast as it began, and he beat a hoof against his chest. “By the Azure Veil, Twilight, try not to do that! A disguise I want isn’t necessarily one that you approved, and conflicting clauses feel incredibly weird while they sort themselves out.” “Sorry.” I grinned sheepishly while inwardly cringing. “I promise I’ll get better with that.” “I need to….” I muttered to myself. Snorting, he began shifting. His horn folded inwards to fit in a small nook in the plates on his forehead. Chitin flowed over and around him until cases were formed to allow his wings to rest against his back. The holes in his legs clicked close, and green fire consumed him briefly. Charcoal grey fur covered his body, and the teal mane was now lacking holes. Azure irises filled his eyes, and a cutie mark of a candle lit by a green flame was on his flank. He was also definitely male this time. “I see you chose to disguise yourself as the most changeling-like pony possible.” I couldn’t help but giggle. “Any particular reason for that?” He shrugged. “You still know it’s me. Ve thought you might think I was hiding something if ve choose somepony else.” Tentatively moving to the corner farthest from everypony else, he hopped onto the bed. A slight tremor rocked Castle as he landed. He wobbled slightly before settling. “I want it on the record that that wasn’t me. What’s about to follow probably is.” The lights flickered, and the wall was suddenly painted in bright vibrant red. “Incoming solar flare. Brace for impact.” The bedroom doors almost broke off of their hinges as Celestia opened them. Her mane was flaming, and her eyes were focused on Morpheus. “Where is she? I order you to show me.” He pointed meekly at me. “It’s definitely her. She’s already given me an order.” The rest of my friends gazed on in an odd mix of awe and terror I knew only too well. It was quite flattering—if a little worrying—to hear the ‘To the Sun’ voice being used in my honor. The flames went out as Celestia sagged for a second, sighing. “Thank Faust.” My friends scattered as Celestia leaped on the bed next to me, and the bed groaned at the extra weight. “What did you do?” I hissed to Morpheus as Celestia began to fuss over me like a mother hen—a very powerful mother hen whose crow actually raises the sun rather than the poor roosters who herald it. The prince rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Would you accept ‘I told your mom that my mom found you alone in the middle of the woods?’” Celestia glared at him. “You didn’t have to inform me with my least favorite pony from the Department of Taxes.” The meekness disappeared behind a steely glare. “Spi is my best agent in Canterlot! Ve let you know he was there as a sign of good will. Do you know how hard it is to get an infiltrator that deep and keep him there, especially now?” My friends and I turned our heads between the princess and prince. Celestia snorted in a manner quite unbefitting royalty while examining my wings. “You shouldn’t have agents here at all.” Her magic fluxed for a second, tickling them, and I might have giggled if I hadn’t started hacking up my lungs. Morpheus chuckled grimly. “And, if I hadn’t been able to set up a search party through the Hivemind, Twilight would still be in the Everfree. Mother only found her first because I appear to have some double agents in my ranks. I don’t know if I should be thankful or not. Ve started investigating the minute she told us who found her. The one agent who has confessed so far says she was farther in the forest than anyling was ordered to look.” I sunk into my pillows. “There was a teleportation mishap….” Celestia stared at Morpheus some more before settling next to me. “I expect a report on your agents identities and movements tomorrow.” The prince rolled his eyes. “Of course you do. I’ll assume you’ll want the much more important details I’ve gathered on the other lords, too? That’s more than half the reason I even have agents in Equestria. I’m sure reading about their insufferable games will make you feel right at home—as if they were your own nobles.” “What a joy that will be.” The normal serene smile was back, but Celestia was using her ‘tolerate’ tone. He nodded. “Hrmm… I don’t taste any cotton candy coming off you, but what do I know? I’m sure it’s possible somepony as ancient and wise as you has found a way to mask emotions. It’s odd you don’t cover up the sour milk, though.” Celestia opened her mouth, but she was cut off as Morpheus shrugged. “Do not worry. All infiltrators are trained to get by scrounging up ambient love in the field, and you can’t stop any lords except me, so let it go.” He grinned and momentarily let his fangs grow in. “Besides, if any infiltrators are stupid enough not to follow the ambient emotion protocol, it’ll give me the perfect excuse to move on their lords.” Celestia ruffled her wings before turning to me. “Fine…. Would you care to tell me what happened, then, Twilight?” Blinking slowly, I nodded. “Sure. I was just about to tell everypony when you—” I coughed suddenly to cut off the first word that came to mind. It may or may not have involved flat bottomed ships that carry significant amounts of cargo. “I was just about to tell everypony when you came in.” As everypony’s gaze finally settled on me, I gulped. “Alright, let’s begin with the most confusing part of the whole ordeal. We all know how much Chrysalis probably hates me for stopping the invasion. We’ve all met her briefly, and we’ve seen how nasty and manipulative she is.” I glanced at Morpheus, and he shrugged. “Don’t expect me to defend her. Even if it was in my best interest, you aren’t exactly wrong. Mother is not a social butterfly.” Rainbow snorted. “That’s putting it mildly.” Applejack shushed her. “Hush, you. It’d be rude for him to insult family—even if it is truer than a possum doing more than just playing dead.” I forced a smile, looking to the other girls for more positive support. “When Chrysalis found me, I wasn’t exactly as hunky-dory as you see me now.” I coughed again for several seconds, and stretched a bit to find a more comfortable position before continuing. “I was pretty much at death’s door, and I really don’t want to think about it right now, but it’s important I bring it up. Chrysalis didn’t just find me. She saved me.” There was a sharp intake of breath from everypony before Rarity ventured a response. “Surely you jest, darling.” I shook my head. “Nope. Don’t get me wrong, though. She was anything but pleasant about it. She taunted me, and said some rather provocative things, but in the end she saved me.” Morpheus cocked his head to the side. “Now when you say she saved you—” “There was a direct transfer of harvested love energy.” I responded before the question could probe too deeply. It was enough though. He hung his head in his hooves groaning. “Mother… why do you do these things?” Soon he slammed his head into the bed, and we heard a very muffled scream of frustration. When he surfaced his eyes were glassy. “Please tell us the method of enzyme transfer. Ve’d really like to know that mother does not need to answer to certain crimes.” Everypony else cocked their head to the side, and I scrambled for a nerdy enough answer to not die of embarrassment. “Lingual lipase was exchanged.” He paused scrunching up his face like his next words physically pained him. “Frontal or rear input method?” It was my turn to scream into the bed, trying to hide my blush. “Frontal. Now can we please drop it?” Celestia raised a knowing eyebrow while the others continued to remain puzzled. Of course my millenia old mentor could read the undertone like a book. I could only thank the sun that she knew me enough to decide dropping it was best. My other friends weren’t that wise “Any idea what they’re talking about, sugarcube?” “Beats me. Egghead stuff, probably. You heard Twilight’s answer.” Pinkie was counting on her hooves as if it were a math problem, and Fluttershy darted her eyes between everypony. “Enzyme exchange… Why does that sound familiar? Which book was it?” It was surprisingly Rarity who suddenly wrinkled her face in realization. “Eww-eww-eww-eww-ewwwww! She kissed you like the mad scientist in Eternal Singularity? Ewwwww!” I hung my head in my hooves, groaning. “Of course there’s bound to be at least one trashy romance novel that phrases it like that. Where did you even find a book that far down the rabbit hole of the genre, Rarity?” Rarity gave a half-smile as the rest of my friends started choking on air. “You gave it to me when you realized it wasn’t non-fiction on black holes. I believe you said, ‘I don’t want that filth in my library.’” Another scream into the bed later, and I was avoiding looking at anypony directly. “Alright. Now that we’ve all suffered through the awkwardness—and I’m the hollow shell of the first mare to die from embarrassment—can we please drop it?” My friends nodded. Morpheus opened his mouth. “Don’t you dare ask me anything else about it, or we might find out if you like chains as much as your mom,” I snapped. Both our pupils widened at my statement, and our faces crashed into the mattress in unison. “Please don’t remind me of Mother’s rather… exotic tastes….” Morpheus groaned looking up from a solid minute of muffled yelling. I had been starting to wonder if he would ever surface for air. “Speak for yourself.” I snarked. “I had almost forgotten that comment of hers on my brother.” I shook my head and forced myself to look at everypony. “Let’s just… get back to the real matter at hoof. No matter how she did it, Chrysalis saved me. I don’t know why, but I have a feeling at least part of it might be the Morpheus here.” Morpheus scoffed, and I studied him for a second, head tilted, before continuing. “We can puzzle that out later, though. Chrysalis saving me is something we can count as a blessing, even if it is confusing.” I shivered slightly at the moment of truth. I didn’t have to tell Celestia the changeling detection spell was no longer a reliable option in front of my friends. It was nice to enjoy their support. I didn’t want to lie to them like before though, and if that meant repeating last night’s changeling scare I was ready for it. I opened my mouth only to hesitate and close it. I wasn’t ready. I wasn’t ready at all. But this wasn about more than me. “Chrysalis has found a way to fool the changeling detection spell.” I winced as there was silence—a good half minute of silence. “By the Hive, the reports were true then.” Morpheus’ pupils had dilated. His breathing was coming faster. Looking to Celestia, he stammered. “Y-you have to realize I can’t do that. N-none of us can! It shouldn’t be possible. If it was, I never would have been able to get the other lords to follow me. If they find out and figure out how to replicate it, ve won’t be able to stop anything that happens.” He jumped off the bed and began pacing. “Tell me you have something to deal with this, Celestia. You’re the Hive-blasted sun goddess. You better have a way to deal with it, because this lines up with all of our worst projections.” “Calm yourself, Morpheus,” Celestia intoned. Morpheus snorted. “Calm? You want calm?! It’s a little late for calm! My emotional dam has burst, and a sea of sour flows forth only to flow back in and repeat the process. It’s a giant feedback loop of incredible proportions, and your confusion at my rambling is not helping me think logically!” Like the night before, a butter yellow bullet shot towards him. It’s incredible how fast Fluttershy is when somepony needs a hug. Celestia murmured to me while keeping an eye on Morpheus. “Do you think you can find another spell?” I shook my head. “Maybe. I’ll definitely need to work for awhile with Morpheus to do it, though. Please don’t blame him for this.” Celestia stared at the prince neutrally. “Are you sure?” I nodded. “Morpheus is genuine about wanting to try for peace. I believed that before today’s incident and facing Chrysalis only strengthened that belief. I don’t know about any other changelings, but I know we should at least try to trust him.” Celestia gave an almost inaudible sigh. “Morpheus, how many harvesters would be required to extend the point of no return on extinction to a year?” The prince’s head slowly grated around like a rusty clock to lock onto the princess. “How can you even ask that right now?” “Planning has higher priority than panicking at the moment. Twilight says she can make a spell, but it’ll take a while. If that means giving you more time to make sure we can develop a counterspell, so be it. Do not shun this generous concession.” Celestia’s mask of tranquility had no cracks. Morpheus’ mask was nowhere near as lucky. “And how do we even know that is Twi—“ I flinched at both his unfinished sentence and the very loud clatter of a hoof meeting chitin at near sonic speeds. Morpheus fell out of Fluttershy’s grip to the floor with a quivering Rainbow Dash above her. “Dude.” The force of her wings flapping kept a small breeze circulating the room. “You so did not just go there when Twilight defended you to both Princess Celestia and us.” She pointed to me. “She is Twilight.” Swooping down, she stared right into the prince’s eyes. “The rest of us were probably ready to throw you out the minute she told us what Chrysalis could do. If I learned anything from Twilight rambling on last night, though, it’s that a changeling would have done that too. It’s safe, cowardly, and the most plausible route to take—whatever the hay that means. “She didn’t do that.” Rainbow fumed. “She stood up for you. You should bucking believe in her like you told us to.” She turned and slapped him with her tail on the way out. “Loyal my flank.” There was silence again of a different kind. Eventually, I worked up the courage to break it. “Could you all leave me and Morpheus alone for a second?” My friends’ cries of protest were drowned by Celestia’s response. “Of course, my faithful student and friend.” She looked meaningfully at the others. “We would love to. I’m sure we all need to get going anyways. Simply send me the report on Morpheus’ agents and his requirements for our concession in the morning.” The remaining girls grumbled as they followed the princess out. Applejack in particular was glaring at Morpheus with an intensity I had never seen before. I struggled out of bed, and shambled towards the unmoving pony on the floor. Morpheus had stayed on the floor since Rainbow had hit him, eyes beyond glassy. As I approached, he shed his disguise, and I found those eyes were hidden behind an impenetrable wall of azure blue. His mouth opened and closed a few times, but nothing came out. Finally, he managed a hoarse buzzy whisper that I could barely understand. “I-I’m sorry…” I shook my head, sighing as I picked him up. Making sure none of the others were watching through the doorway—because stars forbid the ideas Rarity would get—I hugged him. “It’s alright. They made the same mistake yesterday, and now—thanks to you—I know it won’t happen again.” Letting him go, I limped towards the door. “We all have things to learn here, and I, for one, am up for an all-night study session. It has to be at least midnight outside, given how dark it is out the window. I couldn’t have been lost that long, so a good six or so hour nap means I’m all set for a proper binge. You coming?” I looked back to see Morpheus staring at me. Without saying a word, he slowly rose to follow me. I fell asleep before making it past the first page. I woke up after noon the next day—in bed, confined to a very restricting yet incredibly cozy blanket cocoon. In that cocoon, the day would be spent relaxing in bed when I wasn’t futilely trying to free myself from the blasted thing. The forest must have left me more tired than I thought, because it didn’t actually occur to me to teleport out of it for at least an hour. Even when I thought of it, I just got Castle to bring me books and snacks. Only a trip to the little fillies room finally drew me from my silken prison. Morpheus, on the other hoof, had gotten up before the crack of dawn to accept a challenge Applejack and Rainbow Dash didn’t even realize they had made.