//------------------------------// // The surprise // Story: Shining Chitin // by Damaged //------------------------------// Shining dropped back from the rest of the group to the poor pink mare. "Lucky we came when we did, huh? I'm guessing you saw the scroll we sent to Mr. and Mrs. Cake?" When he saw the worry on Pinkie Pie's face, he stopped. "Hey, I'm impressed you've been able to keep our secret this long!" Mentally Shining was running through the preparations he had planned. It was lucky he brought his own little army of drones, they were out hiding the special notes. One thing changelings could do well was follow orders. "So you're gonna tell Twilight now?" Pinkie Pie looked relieved and seemed ready to dash forward. Lifting a hoof to gently block the earth-pony's path, Shining shook his head. "You're gonna have to wait just a little bit longer. We have something special planned. It'll be worth it, I promise." "It'd better be." Pinkie didn't look impressed with the promise and Shining smiled a little more. "What about if I made it more worth your while, how about I promise to tell you an amazing secret that nopony in Ponyville knows… except Twilight?" Shining flashed his smile that had won nations into allies. A new secret intrigued Pinkie enough that she almost forgot about the old one. Almost. "Okay, but it better be a good one!" "Okay, the morning went well. You have Pinkie under wraps?" Cadance looked at Shining. She had to admire how the slight shift in the stallion's perspective, thanks to his new species, was aiding in all sorts of ways. "Piece of cake. She was all ready to blurt it out then and there, I promised to tell her a new and better secret if she didn't." Shining felt a brush at his side and looked to see Flash Sentry. "Oh, hay Flash… what are you doing here?" Chrysalis stood proud in her double disguise. "I got orders to-" She froze, Cadance was looking at her and tilting her head. A slight pulse of fear ran through the queen. "Give it up." Cadance gave a sigh and reached out a hoof to the changeling's shoulder, pouring love out. "Oh don't look so terrified, we aren't going to hurt you. What is your name?" The gig was up so quick that Chrysalis didn't know what hit her. She was reeling from the wave of food sent her way but she couldn't help but slurp it up; love freely given was the most delicious. "Um, Chitin." Shining was at the changeling's side. "Drop the disguise, let's get a look at you." There was command in the stallion's voice unlike Chrysalis had ever heard in another before, it was all she could do to only drop the first disguise, revealing the drone shape she had chosen. "There, see? Not so terrible are we, Chitin? I bet all kinds of nasty stories have been said about us. Some drones even expected we would hurt them." "My Queens!" Careful trotted in, wearing his usual 'royal guard' disguise. "Who are you?" He tilted his head at the strange drone. "My Queen, who is this?" "She said her name was Chitin." Cadance replied, checking the last of the decorations. The Cakes had, thankfully, left them in the main room to finish the preparations. "The latest drone in our hive." "I don't recognize her, what part of the hive were you from?" Careful lived up to his name, walking around the other drone. Chrysalis' mind ran fast, she wasn't even sure which drone this was, why did they call the princess 'queen'? "The nursery, I took care of young drones…" It was as good an answer as she could formulate, she really hadn't been ready for this situation. "Very well, I guess. I didn't spend any time down there myself." Careful turned to Shining. "My Queen, happy to report your sister and her friends are on their way here now." Shining reached out a blue hoof and gave the drone a pat on the shoulder. "Good work, Careful. Now take Chitin here and hide." Saluting, Careful turned on the other drone who was now looking at him in shock. "What? Don't you recognize our new queen? Move!" He yelled at Chrysalis and she jumped a little. Her nerves had to be because she was in this new shape. It had to be. "And now we have another announcement." Cadance looked out over Twilight's friends. "This is another big one but I think we are going to need to ask that you keep this a bit more of a secret." Pinkie glared at Shining. Trotting over to him, she looked up at the stallion right in the eyes. "This better not be the one you promised!" "Uh, yes?" Shining was pushed up against the wall by the mare, her shaking hoof waggling at his nose. "You were going to tell me anyway, how does this count?" Pinkie deflated though, he hadn't told her he wouldn't tell anypony else. "Okay, before you tell the others, tell me." It was only fair. Shining leaned down toward the mare's ear and whispered softly. "Pinkie Pie, I am turning into a changeling." The pink pony froze, every muscle going stiff. "What?" The word was spoken so loudly it could likely be heard in Canterlot. Shining took a deep breath and let his disguise drop. Green fire poured around him, revealing his bald, black, and holey hooves, the now crooked black horn on his head and the green streaks through his mane and tail. "Tada!" "It's a changeling!" Rarity squealed and reared back from the revealed Shining. "Twilight!" She spun to her friend. "Uh, Twilight? Why aren't you doing anything?" Twilight smiled and trotted over to take the opposite side to the one Cadance was on as each put a wing over the half-transformed pony. "Because this is my brother." Twilight smiled and squeezed Shining a little more. "My BBBFF. And LSBFF don't attack their BBBFF." Thankfully somepony had positioned a couch beside Rarity because the mare fainted clean away and landed on it. "There is a bit more, Chrysalis did this to him and she seems to be trying to find out more about what is happening. Only her drones like us better than her." Cadance clopped her hoof three times and the Cakes, who had been at the party the whole time, flashed with green fire and revealed themselves to be changelings. One changeling, peeking her head in from the kitchen, had clearly heard everything. Chrysalis didn't know why, but hearing that her drones had just walked away from her actually hurt her. The problem was, she was bloated and full on love freely given by Cadance, which made it quite hard to be really angry.