Freeport Venture: Something Sweet and Sour

by Ponibius

Chapter 3: Sour Business

This one fled the manor with the wounded Shimmer-mare on its back. Under the cover of invisibility, this one ran past several individuals who were making their way towards the now-burning building. Likely, the taskmasters would soon be gathering the servants into bucket brigades to try and put the fire out, but such details weren’t this one’s concerns at the moment. What was its concern was to find someplace safe to hide, recover, and form a plan. We were, quite frankly, lucky to be alive after being ambushed by the Old Mind’s drones. It seemed highly unlikely that the Doo bodyguards we had hired had survived the attack, but the dead would have to wait for later.

This one silently cursed itself for not foreseeing the ambush. How had the Old Mind managed to sneak the better part of a swarm within Freeport’s territories without anyone noticing? True, the Old Mind had her tricks for infiltrating a society without its knowledge, but there were signs for when she had done so. People going missing, prominent individuals acting strangely, and other signs that the Free Minds and our agents knew to watch out for, lest the Old Mind succeed in exterminating us.

This one ran for the dock, reminding itself to worry about those particular details later. The small ship we had taken to Sweetash Isle should still be there—we had paid enough for the ship’s small crew to stay put.

As the charge for the invisibility bracelet wore off, this one forced itself to slow down and take account of the situation. In all probability, the drones that had ambushed us back in the manor weren’t the only ones on the island. Sneaking along the side of the warehouse near the dock, this one peered around the corner to examine the pier jutting out into the sea.

The ship hadn't left. Shame the only part of the ship this one could still see was the mast; the rest was underwater. The Old Mind’s work, no doubt. The three-person crew of the ship was also nowhere to be seen, which didn't bode well. It was possible they were only someplace else, but this one wouldn't have placed any money on that.

The merchant ship still sat at the dock, though, and its crew were busy at work. Whatever had happened to the ship we had hired hadn't concerned the merchant crew enough to make them stop. Maybe some changelings had managed to draw the crew of our ship away somehow without letting the merchant ship’s crew know what was happening.

Unfortunately, hiring the merchant ship to take us off the island probably wasn't a viable option. A ship wasn't nearly as fast as a flying changeling, and there was probably at least one drone watching the dock for this one to try just that. This one would need to find another way off the island.

Before this one could take time to look for any such scout, a sickly groan from the Shimmer-mare drew its attention. Right, first this one needed to check on her condition before it did anything else. Unable to think of any other better alternatives, this one found one of the side doors to the warehouse and snuck inside. Thankfully, the immediate vicinity was empty, though the sound of people working echoed from the far side of the warehouse. Crates and supplies obstructed the lines of sight, and the sunlight coming in through the windows only served to cast their area in a gloom. It was as good a place as any to hide for a bit.

This one carefully sat the Shimmer-mare against some bags of sugar and spoke softly. “Shimmer-mare, are you still with this one?”

Her eyes flickered open and there was a distant look to them. “It's ... hot.”

“Do not worry, this one is here.” This one quickly looked the Shimmer-mare over, and did not like what it saw. Her eyes were sunken, and her breathing came in staggered breaths and she acted listlessly—a vast difference from the vigorous and fiery mare this one was used to dealing with. She was sweating more than what even the hot and humid climate justified. Near as this one could remember, she never sweated, probably as a result of some spell she used to keep herself cool.

As if that were not bad enough, the fang marks from the drone that bit her had taken on a sickly green color. The veins around the wound had had turned a similar shade, and seemed to be spreading with each heartbeat. A quick spell confirmed the presence of venom, and a strong one. It was perhaps a small mercy that the Old Mind rarely used poisons that quickly killed her victims; the dead could hardly be fed upon after all. It was a common ability among the Old Mind’s drone, and even this one had been born with a paralytic agent in its venom glands.

This one rifled through its saddlebags and pulled out a first aid kit. While this one didn't know much about medicine and healing, it knew enough to at least deal with the basics. Within the first aid kit was a vial with a potion intended to counter poisons.

“This is going to sting,” This one warned. The Shimmer-mare did not react, even after it plunged a syringe into her. That lack of a reaction wasn't very encouraging. She had never struck this one to like needles, and her listlessness made this one worry about what damage the venom might have already done. To make matters worse, the poison might even be magic resistant, meaning the potion could be worthless.

What the Shimmer-mare really needed was a proper healer. There were some healers back in the city of Freeport that were probably equal to the task; the problem was actually getting her to one when the Old Mind was no doubt hunting us right that moment. Going by ship wasn't likely to work, and flying wasn't much of an option either. Most likely this one would be spotted if it tried to fly away from Sweetash Isle, and there was virtually no chance this one would be able to outfly multiple drones while carrying the Shimmer-mare, especially when the nearest island was many miles away. Even under the best of circumstances, this one didn’t have the endurance for the trip.

This one went about sterilizing the bite wound while it considered its predicament. “Are you still with this one?” this one asked again, hoping the potion would begin to counter the venom quickly.

“Have'n left yet.” The Shimmer-mare let out a couple nasty, deep-throated coughs. “Can't. Exiled, 'member?”

This one gave her a smile that didn't feel nearly as encouraging as this one intended. “Right, of course. How silly of this one.”

“Hey, Puzzle?”

“Yes?” This one answered as it applied a bandage.

The seconds ticked by and this one wondered if the Shimmer-mare had drifted off into some sort of unconsciousness when she spoke next. “Did ... I didn't kill anypony, did I?” There was a small plea in her tone; she hadn't exactly held back for much of the fight. She had probably seen the changelings that had attacked us as monsters, and hadn’t really considered that she might be attacking another sapient being at the time. To be fair, changelings were predatory by nature—Old Mind drone or Free Mind—and her prehistoric instincts had acted accordingly.

This one wouldn’t consider it particularly immoral to kill a drone. It might seem cold for one changeling to say about another, but for all intents and purposes, we are a different species.

The Old Mind, or Queen Chrysalis as she often liked to call herself to others, was a form of gestalt hive intelligence—simultaneously a member of the swarm, and yet a separate entity altogether. The average drone was little smarter than an animal without the Old Mind to guide them. Losing individual drones was of little more consequence than losing individual body cells to her. So this one didn't concern itself too much about the deaths of drones. Not when the Old Mind was a scourge upon the world that preyed upon the innocent.

Still, that left the Shimmer-mare’s question unanswered.

This one kept its face and tone very neutral before it answered. “No ponies, no.”

Though in truth, this one wasn’t completely certain of even that technical answer. While the Doo mercenaries had been overwhelmed by the swarm, this one couldn't be absolutely sure they had been dead when the Shimmer-mare had set the manor ablaze. If they hadn't been dead before, they certainly were after that. But now wasn't the time to put such a burden upon the Shimmer-mare’s shoulders. It wouldn't help either of us to talk about it, and all of us probably would have been killed or captured if she hadn't ended what she had in any event.

Something in her frame relaxed after my assurances. “Good. Mom'd ... be sad ... if I...”

Yes, this one could imagine what the Shimmer-mare’s mother, whichever one she was talking about in her haze, would say about such a thing. Near as this one knew, she had never killed anyone before coming to Freeport. Since her arrival, she had done the next best thing when she had left the pirate by the name of Mome as a vegetable, and then went on to kill a warlock that had tried to kill her. Those were the types of things that could weigh on a soul, whatever the justifications one might have for their actions. This one should know, considering how many deaths it was responsible for. Most likely the Shimmer-mare’s biological mother and the White Pony would not approve of what she had done. From what this one had heard, the White Pony always sought to solve problems without violence whenever possible, while the Shimmer-mare was much more ... straightforward in her approach.

The Shimmer-mare started fading before this one’s eyes, and it patted her cheek to try and keep her awake. Who knew if she would wake up again if she fell asleep. “Shimmer-mare, stay awake. The White Pony would be very upset with this one if anything were to happen to you, and that wouldn't do.” The EIS might very well pack this one into a crate and ship it to Canterlot to explain itself to the White Pony. This one didn’t particularly like that idea.

The Shimmer-mare blinked blearily a few times. “Y'know ... Mom'd like you. Maybe. Dunno.”

This one couldn't help but chuckle at that idea. “That so? This one would have a bit of trouble believing that.” This one didn't exactly have the most stalwart reputation, and the EIS probably put this one under the ‘necessary evil’ category.

The Shimmer-mare nodded vaguely. “Unless ... d’you trick me into using dark magic? Strum says you did, but she's a nag.”

This one sighed as it thought about its role in the affair dealing with the pirate Mome. “Sorry, but you made your own choices. In truth, this one thought you would be content with just blowing Mome's ship up, or at least destroying his mast and rigging to disable his vessel.” This one shrugged. “That struck this one as the simplest way to deal with the problem.”

Whether that made this one any better was another question entirely. Considering how flammable a ship was and the lack of means of escape, having one’s ship catching on fire was one of the greatest fears for a sailor, and this one had sent a pyromancer after that group of rebellious pirates. At the time, this one hadn’t known quite how ill-prepared the Shimmer-mare was for the job. She had a lot of the tools for this line of work, but she hadn't been taught to do what was sometimes necessary in an imperfect world. Especially in a rough-and-tumble place like Freeport.

“Ha! Knew she was wrong.” The Shimmer-mare’s sudden enthusiasm faded into a deep-throated coughing fit. “Strumming ... nag ... pays well.”

Preferring not to comment about the Heartstrings-mare at the moment, this one went about looking for any supplies in the surrounding crates and boxes. Maybe it would find something that could save us, or at the very least make the Shimmer-mare more comfortable. “The Heartstrings-mare was just looking out for your best interests, even if she went about it the wrong way.” This one shrugged. Perhaps the Heartstring-mare’s greatest mistake was not understanding the Shimmer-mare. She had tried to tell the fiery and stubborn young mare what she should do, and that had only made her charge dig in her heels. Meanwhile, this one was able to step right in and tell the Shimmer-mare much of what she wanted to hear while keeping her focused on her goals.

“She got into the same trouble a lot of spooks do,” this one continued. “Her thinking ... got a bit twisted. You start doing things like thinking every plan needs at least a dozen steps to it to throw off the enemy, that you need at least three contingency plans, and think about how everyone can be manipulated towards your own ends.”

A ghost of a grin came to the Shimmer-mare’s lips. “Sounds like you.”

“That is a bit of self commentary, yes,” this one admitted, thinking it best to keep her talking for now. “This one was quite the go-getter when it was younger. Always going about on new and exciting jobs and getting into all sorts of trouble.”

“How much younger?” The Shimmer-mare giggled woozily. “Cute little kiddie Puzzle?”

This one couldn't help but smile at the image of when it was a child. “Oh yes, this one was quite the adventurous little grub. Always plotting and coming up with its next schemes to make money and gain influence.”

“Tell me.” She shivered and wrapped her forelegs around herself. “S'cold, except where it's hot.”

“What would you like to know?” this one asked. “This one has been through a bit too much to recount everything in an afternoon.” Eventually, this one managed to find where they kept some of the supplies they must have doled out to the indentured servants on the island. Among them was a rather sorry-looking cotton blanket. Still, it was better than nothing, and this one wrapped it around the Shimmer-mare.

“Favorite story?” She pulled the blanket tighter around herself.

“This one supposes it owes you that much.” Looking around, this one selected a large, nearly empty crate and went about emptying what was left inside of it. After it had done so, it placed some blankets at the bottom.  “Though how about we wait until after you’ve gotten some rest?”

As much as this one had hoped otherwise, it didn't look like the Shimmer-mare was going to be able to recover on her own. If anything, she was steadily getting worse. That meant this one was going to have to do something sooner rather than later if it was going to help her. Since she wasn’t going to be able to walk, it seemed best to hide her in a crate for the moment. At least this one wouldn't have a big distraction to worry about if it got into another fight, even if the idea of leaving the Shimmer-mare was far from ideal as a plan. A shame then that ‘unideal’ pretty much described the situation we were in.

The Shimmer-mare eyes failed to focus on anything as this one placed her inside of the crate. “Strumming said she'd kill you if you ever fed on me.” She let out a pained grunt when she was placed down. “Pillow's too hard,” she complained as she placed her head on a sack of sugar.

“Try and put up with it for now,” this one asked. “We’ll get you a better bed here in a bit.”

The Shimmer-mare coughed and shifted to find a more comfortable position to sleep. “Can we have cake tomorrow, Mom?”

She was obviously delirious if she was thinking of this one as her mother, but there seemed little to be gained of arguing about it. “Sure, we can have cake tomorrow. This one knows a place that makes great cake.”

The Shimmer-mare’s lips curved up in a pleased smile. “Then you'll get rid of Cadenza and gimme wings?”

The question added further fuel to this one’s theory about what truly bothered the Shimmer-mare. There were very good reasons why this one strove to never let jealousy control its actions. It rarely led to good things. “We can talk about wings when you're better.”

Her smile turned into a frown. “'Kay.”

She didn't speak anymore after that, and this one checked to make sure she was still breathing. She was, thankfully, though with more difficulty than this one liked. To add to this one’s worries, the veins around the wound had spread to beyond where her bandage covered. Whatever this venom was, it wasn't something this one as familiar with.

This one was in a pickle on what to do next. The situation was not a pretty one; the Shimmer-mare had been badly poisoned, and wouldn't be of any use to saving our lives even if she survived the ordeal. We were trapped in the island without any support and hazardous means of escape at best. The Old Mind no doubt had more drones on the island. She had picked the ground for her ambush and wasn’t readily going to let us out of her web.

While dying was of course a disturbing thought for this one, the fact that she might capture us had the potential for far greater consequences. With the Shimmer-mare, the Old Mind would have an invaluable key into Equestria. She would have the option of either replacing her, or even trying to bend the Shimmer-mare to her will. This one wasn't sure which would be worse for the Shimmer-mare, but the idea that the Old Mind could get immediate access to the White Pony was a disturbing thought.

This one closed its eyes and took a long breath, steadying itself as it weighed its options. Hiding until the next night was one possibility; the problem with that plan was that the Shimmer-mare might not live long enough for us to pull it off, and keeping her from being discovered in her condition was going to be very difficult. There were only so many places to hide on the island, and the Old Mind had probably already scouted out all of its nooks and crannies. This one could probably have pulled it off on its own—it was very good at blending in and hiding from trouble—but this one wasn't alone.

This one reconsidered trying the merchant ship. It would have the advantage of getting us off the island and going someplace where the Shimmer-mare could get some help. With some luck, this one might be able to sneak the two of us into the ship and hide in its cargo hold, though that held a considerable risk to discovery, and few captains like stowaways. If this one was the Old Mind, it would also inspect the ship before it departed, or else just destroy it and eliminate the risk altogether.

The alternative was for this one to go to the captain of the vessel and explain the situation, with a considerable payment on this one’s part to encourage an immediate departure. The problem there was that the Old Mind would likely attack if it thought we were escaping on that ship, and it seemed improbable a crew of merchantmen would be able to resist a concerted attack by changelings. It was possible they might be a tougher crew than this one had initially given them credit for, but it wasn't something this one particularly wanted to bet its life on. And then there was the fact that the Old Mind might do something clever like go into a bidding war with this one. Overall, going with the merchant ship seemed unlikely to work.

Then an extremely unpleasant, if very practical solution, came to this one: the Old Mind’s objectives, whatever they were, revolved around capturing the Shimmer-mare. Rationally speaking, it was only reasonable to deny her of her objective. Considering the Shimmer-mare was in no condition to defend herself and it seemed increasingly unlikely this one would be able to keep her out of the Old Mind’s clutches, there was one way to keep the Shimmer-mare from being captured.

This one could kill the Shimmer-mare.

It made a lot of sense, and relatively speaking, it was the safest course. If the Shimmer-mare was captured, the best she could hope for would be to have the love sucked out of her until all that was left was a withering husk. From there, it only got worse; the Old Mind could use her magics to bind the Shimmer-mare’s will and turn her into a puppet to no doubt be used against her home country and against the White Pony—the mare she considered to be a mother. The Old Mind had done such things in the past, even taking perverse pleasures in it. It wasn't a fate this one would wish on anyone.

It could be argued that killing the Shimmer-mare was even the moral thing, when weighed against letting the Old Mind have her. The Shimmer-mare might even have agreed to the idea, were she conscious and in a state of mind to understand the problem. This one would probably even get to live under this plan. It wouldn’t be that difficult to avoid the Old Mind’s patrols until sunset and escape into the night if this one only had itself to take care of. It offered a much higher chance of at least one of us surviving than attempting some doomed last stand against an overwhelming number of drones.

The seconds crawled by as this one wrestled with the idea. It could be done quickly—this one knew how to snap a neck cleanly, or else just add a little more venom to her system and let her drift away in an eternal sleep.

This one sighed and shook its head. Maybe this one was getting soft with age, but it just didn’t want to kill the Shimmer-mare in such a cold-blooded manner. Not unless this one absolutely had to. Not to mention there were a few reasons to argue against it. For one, this one doubted the White Pony and EIS would appreciate any excuses should they find out what happened, and they would put their resources to work to find the truth. At the very least, this one could expect to have a hearing with the White Pony over what had transpired—whether it wanted to or not. Then there was the fact that killing the Shimmer-mare would set back a number of this one’s plans.

Also, if this one was going to be honest with itself, it liked the Shimmer-mare.

Rubbing at its face, this one tried to think of any other options. This one likes to think of itself as clever, but sometimes you get into a situation where all the cleverness in the world won’t get you anywhere. The Old Mind had probably arranged this very situation because it took away all the resources and allies this one would normally be able to call upon.

If the both of us were to survive, then this one was going to need to fight and win. Shame this one was outnumbered against a hive mind.

Well, this one didn’t call itself the best problem solver in Freeport because it took the easy jobs.

This one made the Shimmer-mare as comfortable as possible within the crate, finishing by putting the lid on top and leaving a crack just wide enough to allow air to enter. It was far from an ideal hiding spot for a poisoned pony, but this one’s options were pitifully short. This one vowed to do everything it could to never get into a situation like this again. Maintaining control of the situation was something it prided itself on, and the crisis this one found itself in was anything but under control.

Still, we must make what we can of what we have, and this one had done what it could for the Shimmer-mare. Fretting over her like a mother hen wasn't going to save her life. No, what was needed was decisive action.

That was why, after a couple of minutes of thinking, this one slunk off into the sugarcane fields, using the crops’ natural concealment while this one made its way towards its objective. There, this one took the form of a plain-faced, unremarkable, beaten-down looking pegasus. Disguise in place, this one made its way towards the island’s sugar refinery.

The biggest problem this one was going to have to deal with was the sheer number of changelings that had to be on Sweetashe Isle. At least a half dozen drones had survived the Shimmer-mare’s inferno back in the manor, and this one would bet its fortune on there being more on the island. There was the added complication that those drones were no doubt wearing disguises of their own. It was possible for one changeling to identify one another, especially when actively looking for a disguised changeling, but it did take time and the Old Mind’s drones would be looking for this one, too.

Unlike the drones, this one didn't have any cover identities to explain why it was on the island. Considering the Old Mind had taken over the manor, she had probably had the entire island under her hoof. That was usually her way: replace the most powerful and influential persons of an area so that she could act with relative freedom. That meant this one wasn't likely to find any help on the island, in addition to sticking out like a sore hoof. Whatever mercenary guard the Sweetashe family possessed had no doubt already been infiltrated or bought off, or at least this one had to assume so if it was to keep its carapace in one piece.

It was unlikely the indentured servants of the island would be of much help either. Your average servant was a beaten-down soul that wasn't going to look for more trouble in their lives and was unlikely to be any good in a fight anyways. So with no help forthcoming on the island, this one was going to have to act alone.

Best of all, the drones also had a hive connection to the Old Mind. That meant that any fight with a single drone was very quickly going to become one with many once they knew where this one was.

All of this meant that this one needed to pick its battlefield very carefully. One mistake would result in this one’s death. In the end, this one had chosen the island’s sugar refinery. Using the stalks of the sugarcane fields as cover for its movements, this one drew close to the structure. It was a large building made of native tropical woods. Workers were pulling carts filled with recently cut sugarcane to be processed within while others were taking large sacks of sugar out. As was typically the case, the sugar plantation’s owners tried to localize as much of the sugar production in order to maximize their profits. Through the large double doors, this one could see individuals working at some vats. Seeing that there was a pony standing by the door with a notepad to keep track of everyone who entered and left through those doors, this one casually approached the side of the building. Openly sneaking would only have drawn attention, while walking around like you belonged there tended to cause people to believe the same.

This one came upon a simple door that led into the refinery. This one confirmed that the door was locked, then after taking a moment to make sure this one wasn't being watched, this one pulled out its lockpicking tools and went to work. It didn't take long before the door opened with an audible click. The lock had been a simple one built into the door, probably intended to keep out the indentured servants rather than a determined burglar.

Careful to peek inside before entering, this one found itself in a small office—probably belonging to the refinery’s overseer. Old file cabinets lined the walls while a desk sat in the corner. There were a couple small shaded windows large enough to allow one to look out into the refinery. This one could see workers milling about the vats and working the machinery, taking the milky sap of the sugarcane and transforming it into powdered sugar. Being harvest season, the place was a hustle of activity as the overseers drove the indentured servants to work faster and without error so that the Sweetashe family would see their profits.

Carefully timing the movement, this one opened the office door when no one seemed to be paying attention and walked back behind some of the machinery, keeping out of sight beside one of the large vats. Seeing if this one’s plan had any chance of success, this one scuffed its hoof along the floor, leaving a furrow in the white dust along the floor. Raising this one’s hoof to its muzzle, this one took a brief lick. Small surprise, this one recognized the taste of sugar.

As so often happened during the rush of the sugarcane harvest season and the drive to improve profits, the people in charge of the refinery had neglected more minor matters like keeping the refinery clean—against the safety laws of the Council, this one couldn't help but note. As a result, a fine coat of sugar dust had come to cover many of the surfaces of the building. Exactly as this one had hoped would be the case.

That part of this one’s plan in place, this one peeked around to examine the people working in the refinery and extended its senses. After a few minutes, this one found what it was looking for: a yellow-coated earth pony mare was ordering around the indentured servants. Unlike the other overseers this one could see, she seemed distracted. She continually glanced about the room—not to watch the workers, but the entrance every time someone new came in, or around empty parts of the building. The indentured servants were even working at such a sedate pace as to draw the ire of the other overseer from across the room. Needless to say, this was unusual behavior for a pony that was supposed to be constantly cracking the proverbial whip (literal ones having been made illegal some time ago).

Seeing the odd duck in the room, this one focused its full attention on the pony, though it was careful not to be spotted during the brief periods of time when her attention turned towards this one. It didn't take long for this one’s inborn senses to confirm that the pony was in fact a changeling, and by the looks of it, keeping an eye out for this one. That suited this one just fine.

After a few more minutes of watching, this one was reasonably confident there weren't any more changelings in the immediate vicinity. It was about as an ideal situation as this one could hope for. A lone changeling drone in exactly the building this one wanted it to be in. It normally would have been completely foolish to have a scout go off alone where it could be ambushed in isolation, but the Old Mind cared little about the health of individual drones. She would probably even consider it a worthwhile cost, for once this one attacked, the Old Mind would know exactly where it was and probably have all of her drones converge on the refinery.

This one grinned at that idea. For the clever, there were ways to turn a strength into a weakness.

Now the question was how best to proceed with this one’s plan. Opening its saddlebags, this one pulled out its potions intended to enchant its abilities and drank them one after another. This one shivered as it felt a shock run through its system and the potions took effect. The world seemed to slow down by half a beat, as though everyone was moving in a slightly staggered manner. The world became sharper, louder, and the details of everything around this one sought to grab this one’s attention.

The light beaming in through the windows stabbed at this one’s eyes, flecks of dust darting around drew its eyes, and the clangs and clatter of the activity of the refinery were a cacophony of booms to this one’s ears.

This one was forced to close its eyes and count to ten as it tried to regain control over its senses. It had been some time since this one had used this many potions all at once, and it had nearly forgotten what it felt like. Though this one knew its heart was beating significantly faster than normal, this one heard each slow, rhythmic beat of its heart thanks to the slowed-down sensation of time. This one counted carefully as it worked to regain its balance; it was difficult with this one being out of practice with using so many potions, but it managed.

Confident this one was in control of its own body, this one opened its eyes. While the world still moved too slowly, too loudly, and too busily, it had fallen into a place where this one could manage it.

That settled, this one returned to its natural form and pulled out a dagger and a bag of tanglehoof. The changeling drone this one had chosen as its target was still warily glancing about the refinery, but hadn't moved far from its original position. This one waited for the drone to turn its back to it before it struck.

This one threw the tanglehoof bag at the drone with as much speed as it could manage. Before the drone knew it was under attack, the tanglehoof bag collided with her rear. The bag exploded as its wax-like exterior broke and a gray goop spread over the changeling. The drone blinked in surprise as it looked back at the sticky substance that now held it to the floor.

This one didn't hesitate, bolting forward out of the cover that kept it hidden. A few of the indentured servants cried out in surprise as this one darted its way past them, dagger held in its telekinetic grip. The drone’s eyes widened as its doom fell upon it. It tried to move, but it was held fast to the floor.

The world moved slowly to this one’s magically enhanced senses, and this one felt like it had plenty of time to aim its blow. This one’s dagger deftly found the gap in the drone’s chitin along its neck and struck up. The enchanted dagger easily slid in and up into the drone’s skull.

The drone jerked and went slack as it fell to the floor its disguise falling away in a final burst of green fire. Cries of surprise and horror echoed through the refinery as the workers registered the sudden act of violence in their midsts. Most took cautious steps away from this one while a few others, no doubt deciding that caution was the better part of valor, quickly fled.

Now that the drone was dead, every second was precious. It would only be a matter of time until the Old Mind sent others to spring the trap. Through the drone, she would know where this one was.

That being the case, this one walked over to the trigger for the building’s fire alarm, something the Council had mandated every sugar refinery should have. This one was unsure about pulling it. Having so many confused people about would have helped this one remain hidden once it had transformed to hide among their numbers once again, but there was the risk they would find some manner to get in this one’s way. Not to mention there would be casualties among their numbers if they were in the refinery when the drones showed themselves. No, it was best to clear everyone out while there was time.

Before anyone could overcome their shock, this one set the alarm off. The harsh ring of a bell rang throughout the refinery, jolting many of the stunned onlookers out of the shock of seeing their overseer suddenly killed. They fled towards the exits in a rush that was just short of a panic. This one doubted they ever had fire drills during harvest season, and under normal conditions the fire alarm going off would have meant that there was actually a fire. No one wanted to be in a regular burning building, much less a sugar refinery.

That taken care of, this one shapeshifted into one of the zebras it had seen working in the refinery and cantered deeper into the building,where the final stages of the refining process took place. Here sat dormant machinery intended to fill large sacks with powdered sugar. This one needed an appropriate hiding spot where it could watch from without being seen.

Thus, this one hopped into a pen where they had stacked the finished sugar and then quickly buried itself in the mounds of white dust. Making sure this one was completely covered, it transformed so that its carapace was a solid white to match the sugar. This one only left its eyes and nose uncovered, as the plan wasn't likely to work if this one couldn't see or breathe.

That done, this one waited. It wasn't long after this one had hidden itself when an orange pegasus stallion ran into its vision, whipping his head this way and that as he looked about the refinery.

That would be at least one drone, then. Another in the disguise of a female gryphon promptly closed a set of double doors leading outside, chaining them shut with a padlock and standing guard nearby. This one wouldn't have been the least bit surprised if more drones weren't doing the same to the other exits of the refinery. It wouldn’t have benefitted the Old Mind to let this one slip through her hooves, after all.

It wasn’t long before more drones in disguise showed themselves. Slowly and methodically, they inspected every nook and cranny of the refinery in their search for this one. Thanks to the gestalt connection of the Old Mind, they didn't even need to say a word to one another as they silently went about their task.

This one fought to stay perfectly still as the drones looked for it. It was no easy task as the minutes dragged on, especially with this one still under the effects of its potions, but this one had a great deal of experience at remaining hidden. Revealing itself would ruin this one’s plan and most likely doom both this one and the Shimmer-mare. Thankfully they didn’t find this one—yet, in any event.

After this one had let enough time pass, this one considered how best to proceed. There were at least six of the drones where this one could see; one stood by the double doors used to move around cargo and the smaller door intended for more personal use, while another was on one of the sugar distillers, watching the windows and refinery floor. It was clear that attempting to sneak out would not be easy under such circumstances.

So came the difficult part of this one’s plan: how to get out of the refinery without being overwhelmed? Staying perfectly still in a concealed hiding spot was one thing; moving where everyone could see you was quite another. To this one’s profound regret, its invisibility bracelet had already been used up for the day. It would have been simple to escape if this one still had access to it, but it didn’t, and there was no point crying over spilt milk.

Besides, just because this one didn’t have its first pick of options didn’t mean this one didn’t have backups.

This one waited for the drones to look away, then carefully withdrew the three smoke potions from its saddlebags. Aiming to give this one the best coverage, this one tossed the potions. They flew through the air briefly before they crashed on the floor. A gray smoke quickly spread to fill the whole section of the refinery with its obscuring vapor.

A snakelike hiss pierced the smoke as the drones were swallowed up by the smoke. This one didn’t miss a beat to pull itself out of the sugar and dart for the doorway, using the mental map it had made.

This one drew its dagger as it approached the exit. Even knowing there was a drone guarding the doorway, this one still nearly ran right into it. Though while this one was only startled, the drone was momentarily paralyzed with surprise. This one didn’t waste that invaluable split second of hesitation and jabbed its dagger into the drone’s neck.

Not even bothering to retrieve the dagger as the drone fell, this one rammed itself against the door with its full weight and momentum. Thankfully, the door gave way, and this one stumbled outside.

This one stopped itself before it could leave the doorway completely and turned back to look back into the smoke-obscured refinery. With no time to waste, this one pulled out a pair of fire gems from its saddlebags and threw them at a high arc into the refinery, making sure the gems would take up the maximum amount of time to hit the ground.

After that, this one turned around flew away from the refinery as fast as its wings would carry it.

There is something everyone should understand about dust, and it’s a danger that almost everyone on Freeport is very aware of. Specific forms of dust can be very dangerous under the right circumstances; whether it be coal dust, sawdust, grain dust, or sugar dust, if you have a large enough concentration in the air of a confined area, there was a significant danger of an explosion in the event of a fire.

All you need for a good fire is oxygen, fuel, and heat. The oxygen and fuel were in ready abundance within the refinery itself. The sugar plantation owners were notorious for failing to meet safety codes for the sake of profit, especially during harvesting season. With the former two ingredients of the fire triangle already in place, this one had just introduced the heat with the very explosive, very heat-inflicting fire gems.

The first indicator that this one’s plan had succeeded was when the shockwave hit this one like a sledgehammer. All the world became a confusing jumble of movement, roaring sound, and pain as this one was sent rolling into a sugarcane field. Stalks of sugarcane broke and bent as this one tumbled to a jolting stop. This one rolled to its back as pain overwhelmed its senses.

Blinking through the spots that covered its vision, this one saw the looming refinery burning furiously as flame spread to the rest of the building. It seemed highly unlikely anything inside the refinery had survived. Any drone that had survived the initial explosion wasn't going to survive long in that inferno, and knowing the cheapskate nature of the owners of the refinery, they probably hadn't invested much capital in firefighting capabilities. What capabilities weren't being used to put out the manor fire, in any event.

Now that this one thought about it, it hoped none of the workers of the refinery had been foolish enough to stay inside after the fire alarm had been pulled, or close enough to get hit by the debris from the explosion. It wasn't hard to imagine that a few incautious souls hadn't taken the alarm too serious and had mistaken it as yet another of the bi-yearly drills that the refinery was mandated to have, and thus had not walked far enough away to be safe. Considering how everything in this one’s body was aching in pain at the moment, this one was probably very lucky to have survived its own haphazard plan to kill the bulk of the remaining drones on the island. This one was far from a saint, but this one never reveled in the idea of killing innocents. This one wasn't a monster.

Or so this one told itself as it watched its handywork consume the refinery.

But such philosophical musings could wait for more practical concerns. Lying there on the ground, this one carefully moved each of its limbs to make sure nothing was injured. Just about everything was sore, but at least at a quick inspection this one wasn't seriously hurt.

With a grunt, this one rose on shaky legs. This one’s vision swam, and it had to take a moment to balance itself against some of the sugarcane. It was as this one was regaining its balance that it heard someone slowly clapping. It snapped its head toward the sound and saw a changeling lowering itself to the ground in front of this one.

Stifling a curse this one’s mother would never have approved of hearing, this one kept its face as neutral as it could. It seemed that at least one drone had survived the refinery explosion. That had been one of the core problems with that plan: there was no guarantee the Old Mind would send every drone she had into the refinery. Still, this one was still alive and at least a few more of the drones weren’t, so that was something.

The drone finished its sarcastic applause and let out a chittering chuckle. When it spoke, it was not with its own voice, but that of a being this one was all too familiar with. “So, was that the best you could manage?”

This one rolled its neck uncaringly. “Decided not to throw all your eggs into one basket then, Old Mind?” This wasn’t the first time this one had seen the Old Mind talk through one of her drones. Thankfully, her actual body wasn’t here, and was hopefully nowhere near the island. Her drones could of course be very dangerous, but they were relatively manageable under the right circumstances. The Old Mind in person was an entirely different prospect.

The Old Mind smile maliciously. “You really think I’m so stupid as to fall into such an obvious trap?”

“Didn’t keep you from putting your hoof into said obvious trap with your drones,” this one shot back.

She scoffed and flicked her hoof. “A few drones are more than worth the sacrifice to flush vermin like you out into the open.”

“You always were quick to sacrifice pawns.” This one tried to think of why the Old Mind was suddenly talking to it. It probably wasn’t for a good reason—it wouldn’t surprise this one if she was just delaying it until remainder of her swarm could arrive. This one’s fight-or-flight instincts were in full swing; unfortunately, it wasn’t in shape to do much of either.

“What can I say? If I don’t use them I’ll eventually lose them anyways.” The Old Mind shrugged. “And finally killing a pathetic abomination like you is going to be worth the loss of every drone today.” She stepped closer, prompting this one to drop into a defensive stance. If this one’s readying itself to fight worried the Old Mind, she didn’t show it. “That’s not even getting into the greater prize I’ve won this day.”

This one’s eyes narrowed, wary of her tone. “If you have a point to make, go ahead and make it. Maybe you have the time to talk all day, but this one is a very busy changeling. And no offense, but this one can’t help but feel you’re not a particularly trustworthy individual to do business with.”

The Old Mind’s smile lost some of its luster. “Don’t get smart with me, you little failure. While you were busy with my pawns, I was busy getting my hooves on the larger prize—your princess.” The maliciousness returned to the grin on her face. “Well, wanna-be princess, in this case.”

It was only thanks to years of experience this one had in its line of work that it kept anything from showing on its face when she said that. Had she really managed to find the Shimmer-mare already? Best to probe the Old Mind and be sure. This one couldn't afford to make a single misstep now.

“You know the problem with dealing with someone that's as prolific a liar as you?” this one asked. “This one can never really tell when you're telling the truth. For all this one knows, you’re only saying you have the Shimmer-mare to try and get this one to reveal where she is.”

“Fair enough,” she said as she stopped right in front of this one. “You left her all by herself in a warehouse, hidden away in a crate. You used a bag of sugar as an impromptu pillow and stole a blanket from the supplies intended for the servants. A touching gesture to make her comfortable, I'm sure.” The mask this one was wearing must finally have broke, for she tilted the drone’s head back and laughed. “Oh the look on your face. I've been waiting so long to see you so ... despondent.”

This one’s heart sank as the facts of the rapidly deteriorating situation came together. If the Old Mind had the Shimmer-mare, then this one had been checked-mated. Possibly fatally so. If the Old Mind was smart enough, she would have grabbed the Shimmer-mare, taken over a ship like the merchantman at the dock, and then sailed away to parts unknown. With the big prize at hoof, it would have been a simple matter to clean up any evidence of the fact she had even been on Sweetash Isle. But that wasn't exactly the Old Mind’s style, not when she was taking the time to gloat over this one. This one needed to figure out what she was up to; at the very least keeping her talking might give this one time to come up with some sort of plan.

“So, how do you want this to go down?” this one asked, keeping its voice level. “You're talking, and when you're talking instead of taking something, it's because you want something that you can't easily take.”

The Old Mind shrugged in a nonchalant manner. “Well, I could just tear out her pretty little throat right here and now, but that seems like such a waste. I have other plans for the likes of you.”

Most likely those plans involved a lot of torture to get as much information out of this one as possible. This one knew a great deal about Freeport and beyond, including where a great many of the skeletons were buried. She could cause a great deal of damage from just a tenth of what this one knew. Hence, why this one had zero intentions of ever letting that happen.

“Let's make a deal,” she continued, malady lacing her words. “Surrender, and I promise to spare her life. I even have an antidote for the poison that's slowly eating her alive. It would relieve her of all that excruciating pain she’s experiencing right now. I've tested the venom used against her on other subjects, and their deaths were quite unpleasant.”

“Please.” This one shot her with a smirk. “You're not going to kill her, whatever this one does.”

The briefest flicker of doubt danced over her features. “What makes you think that?”

This one kept going, feeling more as this one stepped back onto familiar ground. “As you said, it would be a waste to kill her. Too big of a waste for you. You wouldn't throw away the Magus of Freeport and former student of the White Pony. The Shimmer-mare gives you too much of an in with the two nations you want to infiltrate the most. This one would dare say you would be tempted to let her go before killing her, because you could at least get another shot at her. After all, all of your drones are expendable at the end of the day, while the Shimmer-mare’s one of a kind.” This one grinned and took a step closer to the Old Mind, nearly bringing us muzzle to muzzle. “You're just too greedy, like that.”

The Old Mind’s smug smile slowly dissolved into a baleful glare, and this one was reasonably sure it could hear her grinding her teeth. “You really are an annoying little bug.”

“Is it because of what happened in Lubeak?” this one asked. “This one is really proud of what it did to you in Lubeak. Or is it just because this one is smarter than you?” This one’s grin widened. “Or is it because this one is prettier than you? It’s alright—this one can understand if you’re jealous.” Taunting the Old Mind probably wasn’t the wisest thing in the world to do, but it would at least throw her off a bit.

The Old Mind’s eyes narrowed. “You’re not convincing me to make your death any less unpleasant than it’s already going to be.” She straightened herself to try and reclaim her dignity. “But you're right: I won't kill her.” Her lips peeled back in an unpleasant, toothy grin. “I'll take her back to my hive and break her. Slowly. Which is why you'll come to the meeting. Because you know it will be your only chance to save her.”

“You seem awfully confident about that,” this one remarked. This one was starting to wonder if the Old Mind wasn’t as self-assured about taking this one as her triumphant swagger suggested. “The Shimmer-mare is a pony with a strong will, and you know the usual issues with trying to bend such a pony to your will. They tend to break completely, rather than bend, and she wouldn’t be much use to you broken. Other than merely being replaced, that is.”

She started circling around this one. “By all means, feel free to abandon her. Much as I would enjoy killing you, Sunset's just too valuable to give up.”

The Old Mind was baiting this one, this one was certain of it now. Why else play with this one in this manner? She wanted this one to give up by using the Shimmer-mare as a hostage. Her history was sprinkled with incidents where she had used such tactics against her victims. After all the drones she had lost thus far, she might nearly be out—or at least low enough that she worried about being able to kill this one. If this one escaped and warned the Council that she had a hive on Sweetash Isle, they could cause all sorts of trouble for the Old Mind’s plans. The Council would use whatever forces it had available to utterly crush her within Freeport’s territory, and if the Shimmer-mare were not found, they would probably send a message to the White Pony to tell her what happened to her former student. This one doubted the Old Mind would enjoy having the White Pony breathing down her neck.

Shame doing just that was unlikely to result in the Shimmer-mare having a happy ending. No, this one needed to try and find another way. There might just be a way to turn this around. It was risky, but nothing ventured...

“In that case, I could hardly turn down a meeting.” This one gestured at the warehouse with a slight bow. “Feel free to lead the way.”

“Good to see that you’re finally seeing reason.” The Old Mind smirked, and turned the drone’s back to this one to lead the way.

This one sauntered up behind the drone and craned its neck to whisper to the Old Mind. “See you soon, Old Mind.” Before she could reply, this one tackled the drone and drove it to the ground, biting down on the back of its neck in the same motion.

“Fool!” The drone struggled to get out of this one’s grasp, but this one’s paralysis venom was already running through its system. Not to mention this one held the leverage in the grapple thanks to the sneak attack. “Do you think killing one more of my pawns will change—”

This one didn’t let her finish as it wrenched the drone’s neck with a swift, jerking motion, and the drone’s neck broke cleanly with a wet snap. Spitting the dead drone out of this one’s mouth, this one said, “Of course, it makes for one less drone on this island to deal with.”

Killing the drone also gave this one more freedom of movement. It would be much easier to sneak around without one of the Old Mind’s drones to keep a constant eye on this one, and keeping the Old Mind guessing about its next move was one of the few advantages it had.

There wasn’t any time to waste. Now that her scouting drone was dead, it was only a matter of time until the Old Mind moved the Shimmer-mare to someplace more secure, assuming she had not done so already. She might even take her off the island completely. She might have a sky carriage somewhere on the island, and it wouldn’t take much time to pack the Shimmer-mare into the carriage and fly away. It would then become extremely difficult to find her again.

This one headed towards the warehouse without delay, once again using the tall sugarcane to hide its movements. This one slowed its steps once the warehouse came into view. The Old Mind had to know this one was coming, and would haven taken the necessary precautions. This one stopped in its tracks and lowered itself to the ground when it saw a sentry on top of the warehouse. While there was little time to waste, it wouldn’t help this one or the Shimmer-mare if this one were seen too soon.

If this one could sneak inside, then maybe it could disable the drones inside one at a time. There was still one firegem left in this one’s saddlebags, another dagger, a pair of thunderflash stones, and the shock bracer on this one’s leg was still at a full charge. There was also the fact that while the drones could swarm this one, a Free Mind was on average significantly stronger, tougher, and smarter than the drones the Old Mind gave birth to. While Free Minds put a significant amount of love magic into their offspring, the Old Mind tended to favor quantity over quality. The odds were still much longer than this one liked, but the situation wasn’t impossible. If it could keep the fighting between it and one drone at a time, this was winnable.

Watching carefully, this one noted that the drone keeping guard on the roof was constantly moving, no doubt trying to minimize its blindspots. Still, it was just one drone with a limited field of view. It was also another sign that the Old Mind must not have many drones left. If she had them in abundance, she probably would have had more than a single sentry in place.

If the drone had any inkling that this one was watching it, then it didn't show it as it continued its patrol. Once this one had a reasonable idea of how long each loop took, this one moved towards and then up the side of the warehouse, using its natural ability to stick to surfaces.

Reaching the edge of the roof, this one carefully peaked a look to try and spot the drone. As this one had hoped, the drone was still on the same circuit and was turned away as it looked out to the harbor. With all the silence this one could muster, this one climbed onto the roof and crept towards its target.

The drone didn't turn around as this one closed the distance, and the only indicator it got that anything was wrong was when this one stabbed its dagger up through the drone’s neck and into its brain. This one caught the drone before it could fall and slowly lowered it to the roof.

This one had just set it down when every window in the warehouse shattered. A second later, four changelings came crawling through the roof hatches, and close behind them were more drones flying up through the broken windows.

The sentry had been a trap. The Old Mind must have guessed how this one would go about infiltrating the warehouse to save the Shimmer-mare and planned accordingly.

Half on instinct, this one whipped out its thunderflash stones and tossed them to the opposite ends of the warehouse. This one only had time to close its eyes and cover its ears and eyes before the piercing light and disorientating boom exploded over the rooftop as the thunderflash stones went off. The drones let out a collective screech of protest as the onslaught overwhelmed their senses.

The gambit had bought this one a couple seconds, but only that. This one couldn't hope to fight against ten-to-one odds. With few escape options, this one blinked against the spots in its vision and ran for the skylight where there was cover within.

This one dove through the open skylight, but to its horror, there was almost nowhere to hide within the warehouse. Instead of crates and other supplies spaced all about the warehouse, nearly everything had been shoved to the sides of the room.

Before this one could re-orientate itself, a drone from within the warehouse struck this one in the side. Flashes of pain temporarily blinded this one as the two of us tangled together. The crash jolted this one painfully and the two of us rolled along the floor before the drone came free and rolled past this one. It used the momentum to roll to its hooves and let out a hiss as it charged this one.

Years of experience from having to fight for its life let this one have enough sense to push off the ground and roll out of the way of the attack. The bite from the drone scraped against the chitin on this one’s side. The drone pivoted in place as it halted and readied itself for another charge.

Seeing this one’s dagger on the floor, this one scooped it up with its telekinesis and stood in the same motion. With feral savagery, the drone launched itself at this one’s neck, fangs bright even in the darkness of the warehouse. This one deftly stepped to the side and slashed at the back of the drone’s foreleg. The dagger sliced the tendons of the drone and sent it stumbling. This one’s hoof then slammed into the knee of one of the drone’s rear legs. The knee gave out with a crunch and the drone fell to the floor. The drone disabled, this one aimed and then stabbed down, the magically enchanted dagger easily cutting into flesh and severing the drone’s spine.

The fight couldn't have taken more than a few seconds, but that was the next best thing to an eternity with the rest of the drones closing in.

This one wrenched its dagger free and was about to figure out what to do next when a bright beam of green energy struck the dagger. The dagger was blown from this one’s telekineis and sent sailing into the wall.

“Now that is quite enough of that,”  the Old Mind’s voice chided.

This one’s head whipped to see where the magical blast had come from. Standing on the far end of the room was the Old Mind, horn glowing a green aura. More accurately, a drone she had possessed and imbued with a measure of her power. Rather than just using one of her drones as a mouthpiece, the drone had gone through a transformation that made it look like a smaller version of the body the Old Mind normally used.

Worse still, she had a leg wrapped around the Shimmer-mare’s neck in a headlock and was holding her listless form above the floor.

While the ascended drone was not as strong as the Old Mind’s proper body, it was still an order of magnitude stronger than a typical drone—even if the possession would eventually burn out the drone in about a day’s time. It was far more than this one wanted to face in a direct confrontation, and this one started towards one of the doors of the warehouse.

That plan was cut off when all the doorways flashed and became blocked with green fire.

“Running away already?” The Old Mind stroked the Shimmer-mare’s cheek with a free hoof, a contemptuous smile creased her lips. “I thought your plan was to save your friend?” Her hoof struck the Shimmer-mare across the cheek. The Shimmer-mare let out a groan of pain, but she didn't stir despite the hit. “Though that plan has something of a snag, hasn't it, Puzzle?”

This one grimaced and faced the Old Mind directly. Already the drones were falling into position all around this one, hovering in place as they waited for this one to try and make an escape. This one had been caught, and this one couldn’t see any viable ways to escape.

“It seems this one has been becoming a bit too obvious in its competence,” this one admitted. That fact felt like bile in this one’s throat. For the past few moves of this game, this one had been completely outmaneuvered by the Old Mind. This one should have realized the Old Mind would have expected the most likely tactics this one would have used to save the Shimmer-mare, but this one hadn't. Now we were going to pay for that mistake.

“Oh yes,” she cooed. “You and the other so-called Free Minds are pathetically predictable. And so stupid half the time too. Look at you. You could've gotten away cleanly and have warned everyone that I was here. But instead you came into an obvious trap. I even told you it was a trap, but you came anyway! Why? Because you care about this pony.” She held up a small vial hanging on a chain around her neck for this one to see. “Did you really hope that you could save her by getting the cure from me? Pathetic. You've become just like our prey.”

Despite the grimness of the situation, this one grinned. “This one is sure the nuances of friendship escape the Old Mind.”

The Old Mind rolled her eyes. “Please tell me you're at least feeding on her. Or have you completely abandoned what it means to be a changeling?”

“This one is a Free Mind,” this one said. “It decides for itself what it means to be a changeling.”

She let out an annoyed sigh. “This is the problem with individuality. You are such a small being that thinks in such small terms. I don't know why I thought creating drones capable of thinking for themselves was ever a good idea. It’s caused me nothing but headaches.”

“Likely because you were desperate to have someone else stroke your ego for once,” this one commented.

The Old Mind scoffed. “Is that the best you can do? How disappointing. I’ve been waiting a long time for this day, so don’t go and make this boring. I hate it when my revenge is boring.”

This one was desperately trying to think of a way out of this predicament, but it was drawing a blank. With no other options, it kept talking to buy time. “So, now that you've won, what exactly do you plan on doing with the Shimmer-mare? This one doesn't doubt the Old Mind would love to brag about what you plan on doing with her.”

That brought a laugh to the Old Mind. “Oh, I would absolutely love to, but I've learned long ago not to reveal my plans to someone who's going to die anyway. Every once in a while, they're terribly unsporting and decide to live just to spite me. And you’ve been far too annoying already.” She let out a bored yawn. “I suppose it's time to kill you then. Thanks to all the trouble you’ve been causing here, I’m going to have to leave sooner than I would have liked. No sense letting the Council know about me. How would you like to die?”

“A very old changeling in a soft bed surrounded by friends and family.” This one rubbed its chin. “Either that, or while putting an end to you once and for all. Both have certain appeals.”

“Such a shame, but the correct answer was ‘Horribly dismembered by my drones.’” Her smile became all the more malicious. “Though I would have accepted ‘on my knees begging for mercy’ too. Time to die!”

Before this one even had the chance to fight back, nearly a dozen drones piled onto this one. It wasn't long before the drones had a firm hold on each of this one’s legs and were wrenching them painfully. This one was caught, and it couldn’t stop a growing sense of hopelessness. The fact that this one wasn't going to be tortured for information was cold comfort in face of the knowledge of what the Shimmer-mare was going to suffer.

This one’s failure burned as the drones slowly increased the pressure on its limbs, the pain building as it felt like something was going to break at any second. This one thought desperately of what it could do as the drones slowly worked to pull this one to pieces. Through the pain, only one idea came to this one, and it wasn't a pleasant one.

“I'm curious, which of your legs do you think will come off first?” the Old Mind asked, clearly savoring the show.

This one grinned through the pain. “How many drones are you willing to lose to find out?”

For lack of any better ideas, this one activated its shock bracer on its leg. This one knew the value of having an offensive trump card, and the shock bracer was the magical tool this one had come to lean on. This one had once flash fried a large shark that had thought to turn this one into its latest meal, so needless to say, the bracer had a charge to it.

And considering all of the drones were currently holding this one, everyone got to experience a world of pain as electricity coursed through us. This one convulsed as agony this one had rarely felt struck it. It was a period of time that both seemed to last forever and end yet end abruptly as soon as it started.

This one didn't know how long it just lay on the floor, gasping for breath as its body ached with pain. Vaguely this one became aware that it was being crushed under a pile of bodies, followed by the realization this one was still alive. Honestly, this one hadn't expected that to happen. Perhaps it was the enchantments in the bracer intended to protect this one from its own weapon, the talisman around this one’s neck designed to protect against magical attacks, or this one’s superior constitution compared to the drones. Or perhaps a mix of the three. Whatever the case might be, this one was at least breathing, even if the only thing this one wanted to do was build itself a cocoon someplace dark and go to sleep for a month.

Shame there was a sudden stab of pain as new light flashed into this one’s eyes, as one of the drones was moved from the pile it found itself in. Blinking through the agony, this one stared up to see the Old Mind, her face contorted with pure hatred as she levitated the dead drone out of the way.

“You really are starting to annoy me,” she said as she tossed another dead drone to the side. The Shimmer-mare was lying on the floor behind the Old Mind, having been discarded for the moment. “Perhaps I should have just tried to buy you off instead.”

This one coughed painfully before it was able to reply in a hoarse voice. “Sorry, this one isn't in the habit of working with monsters. Those jobs have a way of going very badly.”

“So does getting in a monster's way.” The Old Mind gave this one a rough kick to the ribs strong enough to send this one rolling and knock its breath out of it. 

“Noted,” this one wheezed. Gritting through the pain, this one drew on its magic to recast its telekinesis spell. In a single motion, this one pulled the last firegem in its bag and tossed it at the Old Mind.

Rather than strike her as this one had intended, the firegem stopped just short of the Old Mind’s chest as it became enveloped in her own telekinesis. She lifted the gem up to look at it, then scowled down at this one.

“Is this the best you can manage?” The Old Mind tossed the firegem out of the window, and the sound of it going off in the sea soon followed. “This is just getting sad now.” Her horn glowed and with a pair of green energy blasts she blew away this one’s saddlebags. “And that’s the end of your nasty little tricks.”

The Old Mind swung her leg back and aimed another kick at this one’s side. Knowing it was coming, this one caught her by the pastern and twisted to try and bring her to the ground. If this one could just get her down, it might be able to choke her out.

Her knee bent, a moment of surprise flashing over her face, but she stopped her momentum before she could be dragged down. The two of us struggled for a hooffull of seconds that seemed to drag on forever. This one brought as much strength as it could bring to bear, but this one was exhausted and had poor leverage while the Old Mind was fresh and possessed an unnatural strength. Slowly but surely, she straightening her leg.
 
Narrowing her eyes, she once again summoned her magic. “I swear, you’re one of the most persistent little bugs I’ve ever had to crush.”

She blasted this one in the side with a green bolt of magical energy and sent this one flying. This one was carried by the power of the attack until it hit one of the crates pushed against the wall. The world became a flash of white pain as this one nearly lost consciousness, but this one fought against the screaming protests of its body to stay awake. This one knew it would not wake up again if it let the darkness take it now. Not that there seemed there was much this one could do anymore; it was unlikely this one could make itself stand up again, much less fight. All of this one’s tools were either exhausted or destroyed. Still, this one opened its eyes to watch the Old Mind’s approach.

This one couldn’t help as its eyes fell upon the Shimmer-mare. She was watching the two of us with a distant look in her eyes. The poison running through her blood seeming to have disabled her. At this point due to delirium, she might not even be able to recognize what was even going on.

Laying before this one was the broken remains of this one’s protection talisman, finally having been pushed past its limits. To be fair, it had been put under a lot of abuse over the last few hours. If this one somehow survived this, this one would thank the person it had commissioned to make it.

The Old Mind chuckled to herself as she stopped to lord over this one. “Any last words?” She pressed down a hoof where her attack had cracked this one’s carapace, and a fresh wave of agony jolted through this one. “You always seemed to have something to say, so I’m sure you have something clever. So come on, let’s hear it. Curse me, show me defiance in the end, plead for mercy. Give me something I can remember.”

So, this was it. This one was tapped out. It would only be a few seconds before this one was killed. All this one’s plans for the future would be for naught. Years of effort gone to waste. This one had even failed the Shimmer-mare. All she could do was stare on as this one was slowly killed by the Old Mind. At least this one wasn’t going to live long enough to explain to the Council and the White Pony what had happened.

This one blinked and then smiled as a devious thought came to its mind.

There was a green flash as this one did about the last thing it could: transform. This one increased its size to as big as it could—though with a decidedly feminine physique, gave itself a lustrous white coat, and a big, flowing, multi-colored mane unlike any other in the world.

With the White Pony’s voice, this one reached out and called to the Shimmer-mare. “Sunset, help me!”

The Old Mind blinked and took a step back. “What—”

She never got to finish what she was saying as the Shimmer-mare’s eyes snapped into focus—a baleful light lit within them as she saw the White Pony—her mother—in danger. A blast of pure light shot from her horn and punched a hole right through the Old Mind’s chest.

The Old Mind’s face contorted with confusion as she looked down at the new hole. After finally figuring out what had happen, she returned her hateful glare towards this one. “ I r-really ... hate y—” She fell unceremoniously to the ground, with even the Old Mind’s power being insufficient to keep the drone alive.

An unnatural silence fell over the warehouse. For a few seconds, this one could hardly believe it was still alive—that its last ditch plan had actually worked. It had been a long shot ... but sometimes long shots worked, and this one wasn’t about to complain about its good fortune. As they say, love has its own power, and the Shimmer-mare had plenty of that for the White Pony.

This one wanted to do nothing more than to let sleep take it. Rather than asking where this one was hurt, it would have been more efficient to ask where it wasn’t hurt. Shame, as was so often the case for this one, this one still had things to do.

Gritting through the pain, this one very slowly rose to its hooves. The pain caused a violent flash of nausea that nearly sent it toppling, but this one managed to stay upright—barely. Pressing a hoof to its bleeding side, this one stumbled to the ascended drone’s body. While difficult to concentrate to cast a spell, this one managed to pull off a telekinesis spell and ripped the vial off the drone’s neck. It hadn’t been damaged during the Shimmer-mare’s attack, for which this one was very thankful.

With another spell, this one confirmed it wasn’t filled with poison, meaning that it probably was the cure the Old Mind had taunted this one with. She would have kept that close at hoof; no sense accidently killing the Shimmer-mare with her poison.

Though this one knew the walk to the Shimmer-mare was a short one, it felt like one of the longest journeys in this one’s life as it slowly hobbled its way to her. This one all but fell next to the Shimmer-mare, its side heaving with effort. Still, this one drew the Shimmer-mare into its legs and gently shook her.

“Come on, Shimmer-mare, this one needs you to drink this,” this one said. “This one will be very unhappy if it went through all of this for you to die on it now.”

The Shimmer-mare groaned and her eyes flittered open. “M-Mom?”

It showed how exhausted this one was that it took a few moments for this one to realize that it was still disguised as the White Pony. This one resisted the urge to slap its forehead.

Well, no sense letting a good thing go to waste.

This one gave the Shimmer-mare the best maternal smile it could. “Sunset, honey? I need you to take some medicine. It’s good for you.”

The Shimmer-mare groaned but complied as this one offered the contents of the vial. After she drank what this one really hoped was the antitoxin to the Old Mind’s venom, she nuzzled this one’s chest and closed her eyes. “M-Mom ... I d-did good, right?”

This one’s lips turned up in the most legitimate smile this one had made in quite some time.

“Yes. You did very well, Sunset.”