The flight back to the Temple was quiet, this time Cimmerian in no mood to enjoy himself. Too much was on his mind, too much that was beyond his control, too much that could go wrong. The truth of his origins was spreading, how long till others learned the truth? Would the Temple be able to take that kind of stress? How would his trip to speak with the thestrals go? Would the council all quail and flounder like the ambassador they sent had? Herrick had taken off soon after he'd been told the truth, what was he doing? Was he spreading the truth of the alicorn's origin, telling all how he wasn't to be trusted?
So the alicorn brooded, not noticing Princess Isana's attempts at conversation, and almost not registering the squad of changelings that approached them to escort them to the arrival zone. The griffon princess' squawks of fear did manage to catch his attention, however.
"Relax, princess. Look closer, they move in formation. The feral creatures that attacked High-Talon were a wave of fangs and chitin." One of his guards soothed, doing it for her own guards as much as the princess. The alicorn smiled at the welcoming, noticing Pandinus out on the field even as they began to approach. With an excited grin, the alicorn sped his descent.
Almost the second his hooves had hit the ground, she was on him, latching onto him with a powerful kiss that nearly knocked him off his hooves. Properly situating himself, he returned it, finding the queen's apparent addiction to him funny.
"Cimmerian, I thought you were going out to speak to a thestral, what's this?" Pandinus asked him as she sidled up to him.
Two beings separated from the group, neither seeming very certain of approaching the pair. It was almost funny in fact; Jasmine Breeze was still looking at him with undisguised fear, while the griffon princess was looking around at the gathered changelings as if they'd change their minds all of a sudden and attack her. So the alicorn took the initiative and approached the group, laying a wing over the changeling queen's back.
"Princess Isana, Ambassador Jasmine Breeze, I welcome you to the Temple of the Shadows, new name pending of course." Cimmerian offered them with a respectful bow of his head. "Not exactly a mere temple anymore. This is Queen Pandinus, leader of the changelings at the Temple, and my wife."
Din smiled warmly at the two as they came closer, Isana seeming fascinated by the appearance of the larger, strange looking changeling, and the Ambassador more willing to approach the queen than the alicorn. Stepping away from Cimmerian, Pandinus offered her hoof in greeting to the Princess.
"Hello, Princess Isana, I assume you will be moving on toward Shadowtalon after a quick tour?"
"Yes," Isana said with a smile, eyes darting over the queen's form and even looking between the changeling mare and the guards in the field. "I've never seen a changeling queen before, you're bigger than I had heard. Not nearly as horrific, either."
Taking the comments as a compliment, the queen smiled good naturedly. "My size is definitely on the large size compared to others of my kind. Lestidae would likely be closer to what you'd expect. Unlike most of my kind, I have had ready access to an abundant supply of food, and I've found my body changing to adapt to my new circumstances. If you'd like, you may ask Lady Thrisha most of the questions I'm sure you have. She's already written down most of the questions and myths griffons have developed about my people, and I'm sure she'd be willing to give you a copy to return home with."
The hen brightened at the thought "I would appreciate that. Not that I would find asking you the questions less appealing, but-"
"It's fine, princess. I know you don't fear me as much as my children. We're empaths, remember?" Queen Pandinus explained with a smile before turning to the thestral.
"Jasmine Breeze, welcome to our home. You do not need to fear for yourself here. If changelings and gnolls are free to walk the city, what makes you think thestrals would be any different?"
The thestral just stared at her for a moment, her eyes darting to the alicorn behind the queen once, twice, three times before the mare stuttered an apology, directing her gaze to the ground. Barely suppressing the urge to roll her eyes at the display Din issued several commands to her drones, one of them stepping forward and standing beside her.
"If you'd like, Isana, you may have some of your guards use one of our spare barracks for housing, or send them straight to Shadowtalon. A tour with about twenty griffons may be a bit awkward. Also, would you join us for dinner? I've yet to hear a griffon complain about Slop's cooking, despite his being a pony. When you decide what you wish the soldiers to do, tell Deflection and he will direct them to their destination. I will leave you to Cimmerian for now, I have a, friend that's just waking up that I must deal with." With a quick bow Pandinus turned and left, her wings taking her to the Temple.
The alicorn watched her leave for a few moments before turning back to his guests. "If you'd ladies like, we can start the tour now. Shrike, if you'd be so kind as to guide the ambassador, I'll watch Princess Isana." The alicorn turned to the thestral mare, who flinched a few steps back at his gaze. "Jasmine, enjoy your time here, and don't hesitate to ask anyone if you have any questions or find you need something. I know you weren't planning on being away for too long, but sometimes we need to adapt as the situation around us changes. Princess Isana, this way if you please."
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Pandinus found her right where she left the older queen; in pile of blankets and misery. While Zelus was slightly disoriented from the overdose of extremely potent love, Lestidae was reacting quite negatively.
"My friend," the older queen greeted with a forced smile as she saw Pandinus enter the room, rising to her hooves unsteadily. "My dear, good friend...you dirty, lousy, sheep-herdin-"
Din winced as the older queen tripped, the floor cutting off the rest of Lestidae's tirade. Stepping closer, Din watched as the smaller queen struggled to get her hooves under her again.
"What the hell did you do to me?" Lestidae muttered drunkenly. "What did you give me?"
"Just love, Lessy. Just a nice dose of love." Din replied, using her aura to pull the other mare to her hooves and keep her there.
"That wasn't love, there was no way in Tartarus that was love." Lestidae growled, her eyes attempting to focus on Din but not quite able to.
"Of course it was. It just so happened to be actual love, love Cimmerian has for me. Not that stolen stuff you'd always enjoyed as a treat back when you were just a proto queen. Not the stolen love all the other queens seem to covet like a dragon seeks gems. Flush the rest of it, Lestidae, it's too much for you right now. Flush it to the rest of the hive, let it disperse amongst them; let it feed the hive and clear your mind."
Lestidae did so quickly, her anger and presumption that it wasn't love leaving her much less hesitant to do so than Zelus. Her mind clearing now that she was no longer floating , she quickly straightened and glared at Pandinus.
"What the buzz was that stuff? And don't tell me it's love, there was no way it was love."
"Follow me for a moment, Lestidae, I'll prove it to you." Pandinus told her, heading out into the rest of the Temple. Lestidae followed, muttering darkly the entire time. Before long, Lestidae spotted the dark alicorn, Pandinus headed straight towards him as he spoke merrily to a young griffon hen. The older mare blinked, focusing for a moment on the griffon before recognizing her.
"What's the griffon heir doing here?"
"Cimmerian, do you remember my experiment last night? I offered that love to Zelus and Lestidae, a proof of concept." Pandinus said to the alicorn, drawing a nod from him. Din giggled, looking back to the smaller mare and then to the stallion. "She absolutely refuses to believe it's actual love, thinking I tainted it somehow. Would you be a dear, and help me prove her wrong?" she said, leaning into the alicorn and nuzzling into his neck. He chuckled, looking to the griffon hen for a moment.
"Princess, you were asking how the changelings kept fed here, correct? This is how." With that the alicorn sat on his haunches and pulled Queen Pandinus into a crushing hug, kissing her deeply. Pandinus pulled lightly at the emotions, feeling the torrent of love wash over her. By the First Mother, she hadn't even spent a day out of his presence and she was looking forward to this.
"What are they doing?" Isana asked the elder changeling, watching the alicorn and changeling queen wrapped around each other. Suddenly Din slacked, her hooves going slightly limp as her eyes drifted open, rolling back into her head. Still holding the queen upright as her head slightly lolled, a pink tint to her eyes, the alicorn chuckled, trailing kisses up her neck.
"You're not the only one who missed their other, Din," he said with a devious grin. "I have a trip coming up, we're going to have to make sure you guys are well supplied."
Din giggled senselessly, pushing the love she'd just been gorging on to a very specific part of the link and smiling even wider when she heard the older mare gasp in shock. Feeling that part of the link no longer capable of accepting more emotion, she began dispersing it to the workers in the storage chambers, the drones immediately setting about putting it into the proper pools. Finally able to see clearly again, Din tightened her grip on the stallion, nuzzling into him and catching a wonderful view of the griffon staring at the drooling form of Lestidae.
"That, princess, is how changelings feed. If we're linked in a hive, we can share the emotions over short distances. For the most part though, we store excess emotion as a gel, as my dear companion Lessy is demonstrating right now." Din said with a laugh, drawing attention to the pink fluid slowly dribbling out the comatose mare's mouth. "As I've learned here, if a changeling is exposed to too much love for their body to process, they begin to leak it in what appears to be a glowing saliva. It's actually the overflow of her honey-pouch. Her body is trying to produce more, but there's no where to put it."
The alicorn chuckled at the information, watching as two drones approached and carried Lestidae back to the tunnels. "That explains a lot about that first night. I guess I'm just too much man for a changeling queen."
Din shoved him, moving past him and the still gaping princess to the dining hall. "If you're done stroking your own ego, I must acquire my other source of nourishment now." Pausing at the doorway to look back at the alicorn, giving a slight flick of her tail she smiled seductively at the stallion. "If you're good, perhaps I will stroke your ego myself later tonight."
She didn't need to see his response. She could hear his wings snap open even as they pinned several passerby against the walls.
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Despite the constant attention of an amorous queen, the meal went off without too much trouble. The princess was shown a little more of the Temple, and as it was too late to escort her to Shadowtalon, she was granted a room at the Temple. Specifically, Cimmerian's old room.
"You aren't trying to imply something here, are you Din?" Cimmerian said as they made their way through the halls. "I mean, I didn't actually sleep in there too often but moving my stuff into your room seems a bit presumptuous, don't you think?"
"Well, since my room is made with the hive material, it's a bit easier to clean," she responded simply. "Besides, I think I felt your bed strain last time. We've both grown since we've come together, and while my bed can be reinforced, there's only so much you can do with a simple wood bed."
The stallion chuckled at her response before becoming serious. "Thrisha told me she wasn't ranked high enough in griffon society to perform a marriage ceremony, but Isana is. Would you let me ask her to make this official?"
Pandinus looked back at him, cocking an eyebrow before stroking a hoof over her barrel. "More official than this?"
"Okay, maybe official is the wrong word.," he said, tapping a hoof to his chin. "Legal? While I'm sure there was a time when marriages didn't exist they do now, and we need to set a good example for the rest of the country. Can't have the rest of the kids thinking their rulers think they're above the law. By the way, what happened to Zelus? I'd have thought she'd be present to watch Lestidae get gorged on love."
"She's in the storage chambers, undergoing a forced chrysalis-state. She should be finished in a few days, well within the time it will take you to prepare for your trip." At his questioning look she explained further. "I asked her if she would be willing to carry out a task for me, and offered her the resources to repair herself and undo any changes she may have had to undergo in the last few years. She is currently in hibernation as her body makes the changes. This kind of focused transformation takes a lot of energy, so she's in one of the love-pools. My drones will keep it filled until she finishes. I'm not certain how much love it will take, but I know there's a good chance she may use at least a full pool."
"Whoa." Cimmerian breathed. the sheer amount of energy the queen was discussing was staggering. While not as big a n issue with their plentiful supplies, for a single changeling to burn that much in a few days? "What is it you're having her do?"
The queen climbed into her bed, fluttering her wings and looking at him with a fanged grin. "Protecting the heart of my hive, of course. Your trip should be an excellent first job for her."
The dark alicorn looked at her in disbelief. "You have a queen willing to work with you and the best you come up with is making her my personal guard? Wouldn't she be better suited for defending the city? I mean, she's going to start laying as well, right? Won't she need access to an egg chamber or something?"
"She won't have the intense drive I did when I first made my transition because she's in a hive, one that also has an alpha queen that she's serving under. Yes she'll have her own clutches, but many of those will likely grow up here in the hive as siblings and clutch-mates with my own children." Pandinus giggled in excitement. "It's never been done before, you know. Sharing egg chambers, the broods of two queens growing side by side. In fact, if we keep adding queens to this hive like this, we could have a larger hive than any before. A queen can only maintain so many drones via the link at a time, but when queens link like this, that's no longer a problem.
"Is this how we were supposed to live?" she asked him as he laid down beside her. "Multiple queens presiding over a single link, sharing food instead of fighting over it, guarding each other's children and resources instead of wasting so much time and energy fighting? Besides, Zelus wants this more than I do. She wants to wander, she wishes to see the sights this world has to offer. This allows her to do so. I'm certain that after we win, you'll need to visit other countries as well."
"If she wants to see the world, why can't she just go? Nothing's stopping her, right? She's a queen. After she pays back her debt she's free to do as she wishes." Cimmerian said, allowing Din to crawl on top of him and begin buzzing her wings. The stallion slumped, his own wings going limp at the vibrating massage.
"That may work for your people and even work for ponies, but changelings need a purpose. We must have duties. As a queen hers would be to guide her hive, but as a beta queen, she can be tasked with other things, things that allow her to see the world as she so strongly desires." The queen buried her muzzle into his mane, breathing deeply. "Hmm, I think we need to make sure our stores are topped off, don't you? Hah, you wouldn't believe how bland honey tastes after being able to feed directly from a stallion."
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The rest of the week had passed before the alicorn could blink. Isana made her way to Shadowtalon after apologizing profusely to the alicorn for being unable to perform a marriage. It turned out she was considered of high enough station for such a ceremony, but hadn't actually been certified for it. It wasn't surprising, but he'd kind of hoped it would be something he could accomplish while waiting for the boat that would be arriving in Zarris. Instead, all he was able to do was wed about forty griffon pairs. It turned out the chance to get your marriage sanctioned by the princess was quite a driving force, many pushing their weddings weeks, if not months ahead to have them while Isana was visiting.
Din wasn't helping him, either. He'd pestered Pandinus about Zelus' state several times, curious about the changes the smaller queen would be undergoing and wanting to know what to expect. Every time he asked, however, all he received was a 'you'll see when she's ready' or a 'I don't know, but how about we make sure she'll have enough energy?' Cimmerian shook his head in exasperation. That mare was capable of being absolutely insufferable when she set her mind to it.
Speaking of insufferable, Lestidae was on the verge of being kicked out of the hive, the differences in the Temple's hive being too much for her to accept. She'd been in several arguments with the alpha-queen, and had even threatened to attempt to take the hive and run it as a hive should be run. Despite his misgivings, Din had actually brushed it off, citing Lestidae as not only being physically weaker from her starvation but not even having an actual powerbase to launch her takeover from. Instead Din said she was going to try one more thing, and if it didn't work, so be it. Lestidae loved the old ways so much, Pandinus would treat her as they demanded.
Finally, after nearly a week of paperwork, weddings, and a clingy queen, it was nearly time to leave. Cimmerian sat in the field he'd designated the 'airport' with his supplies and a good amount of gold for both his passage on the ship and any extra supplies the group may need. Beside him sat his guards from last time, minus the changelings as Din had them tasked elsewhere. Off with a few other thestrals sat the ambassador, no longer shaking in his presence, but still not willing to speak to him directly. Finally receiving well-wishes from nearly every griffon that had been able to make the trip, Princess Isana stood with her own contingent of guards. The princess had apparently had a blast in the port, the only depressing incident having been the night before, when she'd run across Cadance.
It turned out Isana had known the pink mare from before the Mad Queen's rule, and seeing the alicorn in such a state had hurt her deeply. Still, the two had been able to spend some time talking, discussing the whereabouts of friends and mourning those they'd lost. Even now Cadance sat nearby, wishing to see the young hen off properly.
The larger alicorn smiled, the pink mare just barely beginning to notice the world around her again, just beginning to do more than exist. Maybe by the time he returned she'd be even farther along. Din certainly seemed to be doing well with her.
Speaking of the queen of the hive, the shape shifter was now approaching him, and if her smile screamed 'I know something you don't' any louder she'd be carrying a sign.
"Hello Cimmer, you almost prepared?"
"Just about," he told her, sneaking a quick peck on the queen's cheek. "One last snack for you before I leave. You take care of everything for me, Din. Tell Weaver and Gleam-"
"Or you could tell us now." The unicorn mare said, the Weaver walking along beside her. Sure enough, the two were almost intimately close, their sides bumping into the other's every now and again. The pair approached Cimmerian before bowing.
"I'm sorry I let my fears get the best of me, Lord Cimmerian. You've done nothing but help us, and I should have been able to take that as proof," Gleam said looking up with a sad smile. She waited a moment before nudging Shadow Weaver with a hoof.
"I know, I know," the unicorn muttered at her. "I came here to free the spirit in the armor. I achieved my goal, and even learned that I could have a home, a place that didn't hear my name and assume I was some sort of warlock of the same breed as Sombra. I'm sorry for letting my fear get the best of me, Lord Cimmerian. I wish you well on your trip, and you can count on us to still be here when you return, helping Queen Pandinus in any capacity she may require."
The alicorn nodded staring at the ground for a moment before lighting his horn with power. The two unicorns squawked in surprise, soon finding themselves crushed against the larger being's barrel.
"I owe you two too much for you to be apologizing to me," Cimmerian told them, placing them back on the ground. "I just asked that you keep doing what you're doing, and helping to keep everyone here safe. My offer still stands, though. If you like, I can preside over the wedding as soon as I get back."
The two sputtered, their faces turning red for a moment before they stopped, looking at each other and laughing softly.
"Maybe we'll be ready by then. I just have to try a little harder to convince him." The mare said, nudging her nervous stallion back to the Temple. "Come on, Weaver. We still have a lot to do."
Din looked back to the Temple of the Shadows, a soft curve of her lips slowly morphing into a full-blown smile accompanied by giggles. She turned and addressed the gathered.
"Cimmer, Lady Isana, Lestidae, I think she's ready." Pandinus said, her glee poorly contained. The mare was all but bouncing on her hooves as she looked back to the Temple, a shadowy figure moving out of the smithy and headed straight for them. As the figure approached, Cimmerian's jaw dropped.
It was Zelus, but the only reason he could identify her was because he knew she and Din were planning a big reveal. Where once stood a skeletal changeling mare barely clearing his shoulders, Zelus now stood just shy of his own height, actually a bit taller than Pandinus, but nearly twice as thick. The mare's chitin was jet black, the traditional changeling shell color only being interrupted by stripes of deep blue flowing from her eyes and to her mane as well as a faint pattern of the same stripes in an almost zebra-like pattern along her barrel. The plates that had once looked chipped and cracked now gleamed in the noon-day sun, some of them looking thick enough to turn away even spell fire. The mare's horn was also altered, a wickedly curved protrusion that looked more like a small blade on her forehead than a horn. Finally her body was sleek, the plates being thick and strong, but not being so bulky as to slow her down too much. In fact, the plates almost seemed to have veins deep inside. The impressive sight didn't stop there, though. She was also wearing a saddlebag bulging with supplies, with several blades hanging from different straps on her body. She even carried two chakram's, the weapons anchored to either side of the saddlebags.
"What do you think, Cimmer?" Din said as she approached the restructured queen. "She wished to be a warrior queen, and has trained with many weapons. I had the smiths create a few, though the two of you may wish to purchase something from a griffon or minotaur smith on your travels. Sterling wanted to do an armor suit, but with her current form, Zelus and I both believe it would just get in the way. The blades are all straight from her memories. I had them forged while she was undergoing her transformation."
The alicorn stared long and hard at Zelus, trying to overlay the new form with the one he'd seen not a week prior. The changes were so radical, so unexpected... "That's, I didn't know you could do that..."
"Normally it's both too difficult to do and too expensive energy-wise, but I think it's worth it. Don't you Zel?" Din asked the mare.
Oddly enough, while her physical form was now very intimidating, the queen inside the shell had apparently not changed at all.
"Oh definitely! I can't wait to get going. I hope something happens, like pirates or bandits or, or...Oh! We'll be close to Equestria, right? Can we hit the Everfree Forest? I want to fight a manticore like this!" Zelus squealed in delight, hopping about on her hooves like a little filly. "I even managed to add two extra emotion pouches to my body besides the normal one, so I can go longer without actually feeding!"
The mare of war giggled excitedly, sidling right up next to Cimmerian, "Of course, with a willing source I won't even have to worry about feeding, will I?"
"Back off, Zelus. You can find your own alicorn" Din said, using her aura to pull the still tittering queen away from her stallion. Queen Pandinus looked straight at the other queen, making certain she had the mare's attention. "You keep him safe, and you can enjoy the travels for as long as you are with this hive. Do that and any nymphs you bear will be cared for as if they were my own. That is all I ask."
"Zelus' giggles died down, though she still wore a large smile. "I will, Din. Thanks for the chance to do this."
With that the armored mare's elytra split open, revealing large double-pair of diaphanous wings that rivaled the alicorns own in sheer size. She took a few test strokes then took to the skies, calling back to the rest of the group, "What are you all waiting for? We're burning daylight!"