The Changeling King

by th3l0stch1ld

Return to the Land of the Living

To Amor, he was only unconscious for seconds. But those seconds turned to minutes, minutes to hours, hours to days, days to weeks. Amor opened his eyes to a blinding white light. Am I actually dead this time? His ears finally caught the sound of buzzing lights above his head. A constant beep came from somewhere beside him. His eyes finally adjusted to the lights, and he saw he was in some sort of white room. He couldn’t move anything, his whole body was numb. He was able to roll his head side to side to look around the room. To his right, he saw a heart monitor with wires hooked up to him. Beyond that, he saw another bed, a small changeling in bandages lying in it. She was unconscious, but breathing steadily.

Amor heard something that sounded like a light sigh beside him. He rolled his head to the other side, shifting to look down the bed, and saw Chrysalis, sleeping with her head on his chest. By this point, he was starting to get the feeling back into the majority of his body. He looked down over his body. Wires and tubes were attached to various places on him. His right shoulder was bandaged, along with his back and neck. A cast was placed around his left leg, holding it in place. Chrysalis began to move, finding a more comfortable position, but not waking up. Amor pulled his hoof out from under her and rested it on the back of her head, feeling her fine and smooth hair. He looked out the window to see the early sun shine through the window. The clock nearby showed the time as six-thirty.

Amor looked around the room, which he decided must be a hospital room. It was a large room, two heart monitors and two beds. The one monitor was hooked up to Amor, the other was attached to the changeling in the other bed, who Amor identified as Souls. Across the room was the clock, hanging in the center of the wall, above a wide dresser. Amor sat back in his bed, his hoof still holding Chrysalis. I couldn’t even protect one, let alone myself. Why? Why does this keep happening to me? Amor opened his mouth to take in a big breath of air. His throat felt dry.

A white mare dressed as a nurse walked into the room pushing a cart with a small tray of food on it. Amor had some trouble speaking, but finally the words came out. “Excuse me ma’am, but what day is it?”

The nurse jumped at the sound of his voice. She turned to see him sitting in his bed, her eyes wide at the site. “You’re awake!”

Chrysalis began to stir at the sound. “Sshh. Don’t wake her. Please ma’am, what day is it?”

The nurse spoke in a calmer and quieter voice. “It’s Wednesday.”

“Wednesday.” Amor looked up at the clock one last time, now reading seven. “It’s already seven. I’ve been thinking for half an hour.” The nurse walked over to the other changeling, gently nudging her awake. When she finally woke up, the nurse aided her up and helped her eat.

Amor watched for a few moments before falling back in bed, looking up at the light above him. How long have I been here? He pulled his hoof through Chrysalis’s hair, closing his eyes as it unraveled, the soothing feeling as it pulled apart when it caught on the holes at the edge of his hoof. How long have you been here? He then placed his hoof back to its original position on Chrysalis’s head.

“My king?”

Amor’s eyes slowly opened as he turned his head to the changeling beside him.

“I wanted to thank you for everything you did. You saved my life.”

“But I didn’t do enough.” He turned his head again, looking back up at the ceiling. “You never should have gotten hurt.”

“Don’t beat yourself up over it. I’m alive, you’re alive, everypony is safe. There was no way to expect that attack. I would have been dead if you wouldn’t have reacted like you did.”

“That’s true, but it’s best not to think about it, too many bad memories.”

“Yeah, good idea.”

“So, how bad was it? Are you going to be okay?”

“Well, it’ll take some getting used to.” The changeling pulled the blankets off of her body, revealing that most of her body was in bandages. Three of her legs were in casts, the forth, her front right, was all she could use to move. “A lot of my ribs were broken, along with most of my legs. There were a lot of spots where its teeth broke the skin, and my wings are mostly shredded. I’m not flying any time soon, maybe not ever.”

“I’m…sorry.”

“Don’t be. There was nothing that could have been done to stop it.”

Amor remembered what he said at the Sea of Memories. “I know that some of the things that have happened were things I had no control over.” He then looked over at Souls. “Could you forgive me?”

“Of course. You saved my life.”

Amor fell back in his bed. “I’m glad to hear that.”

Suddenly, Amor felt something moving. He looked down the bed to see Chrysalis, stirring and beginning to rise, Amor lifting his hoof from her head. She let out a yawn and began to stretch.

“Good morning, my queen.”

She stopped mid yawn, her hooves above her head. Her eyes shot open and she looked straight at Amor.

“Amor! You’re finally awake!” She then jumped at him and hugged him tight. Amor felt a sharp pain in his neck, but ignored it as he put his hoof on her back. “It’s been so long since I heard your voice.”

“Chrysalis, it’s only Wednesday.”

Chrysalis sat up in her chair, looking Amor in the eyes. “Amor, you realize you have been in a coma for almost a month?”

“A month!?”

“Yes, you blacked out from blood loss and haven’t waken up since. Thankfully the changelings who witnessed it all brought you back.”

Amor listened to Chrysalis, but the thought that he had been out for a month was stuck in his head.

“A month.”

“Yes, and I stayed by your side the whole time.”

Amor looked over at Chrysalis. “You stayed by my side? The whole time I was out?”

“Of course.”

Amor felt true love for Chrysalis, but then another thought appeared in his head.

“Wait, if I’ve been here for a month, then-“

“The hive has been built, and Purity has been leading the hive.”

“Purity has been leading the hive?”

“Yes, she has matured and is proving that she has earned her place.”

“Our little Purity.”

“She isn’t so little anymore. And that’s not all.”

“What do you mean?”

Chrysalis smiled. “She has a cutie mark.”

Amor’s eyes widened as he tried to process everything that was going through his head. It was then that he realized the nurse had entered the room once again.

“Excuse me, ma’am.”

“Yes?”

“Would it be possible to tell people that I have awaken?”

“Of course. Who would you like to know?”

Amor thought for a moment. “Send one letter to Princess Celestia, and another to the changeling hive.”

“Of course, I will get right on that.” After doing what she came in the room to do, the nurse left in a hurry.

Amor looked down at Chrysalis. “You stayed for a whole month?”

Chrysalis slid down and held Amor, her head on his chest. “I told you, I’m not leaving you.”

Amor put his hoof back on her head, her hair sliding over it. He closed his eyes. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Amor and Chrysalis sat like that for an hour, until finally, a knock on the door. Moments later Celestia entered the room. Behind her was Purity, who due to the rapid growth and maturity of the changelings, stood almost as tall as Celestia. Atop her head was a crown very similar to the one Chrysalis wore. Behind her rushed in Avispa and Escara, Amor’s loyal guards.

Celestia spoke first. “We are glad to see you have finally awaken.”

“It feels like I was only out for a few seconds.” Amor then turned to Purity. “How has the hive been treating you, Princess Purity?”

Purity stepped forward, and Amor could clearly make out the cutie mark, a cluster of hearts, on her flank. “It’s hard work, but I’m adjusting.” She truly was beginning to look like Chrysalis. Her main was slightly shorter, and was a slightly duller color. Her horn was similar to Chrysalis’s, but there were some minor differences in twists. Her back, instead of fading from green to cyan, was blue, and faded to a lighter shade. She walked to the side of the bed and gave Amor a hug. ”It’s good to have you back, father.”

Father. This was the first time Purity had called him father. He didn’t want to say anything else. When she stepped back, Avispa and Escara stepped forward.

“Sir, please forgive us.”

Amor looked on, puzzled. “For what?”

“It is our fault that this happened to you. We should have been outside instead of working in the hive.”

“Don’t talk like that. You were following orders, nothing less, and nothing less or more than was expected from you.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Amor sat up in his bed. “”So, how long until I can leave here?”

“The doctor said it will be another week,” Celestia said in an upbeat tone.

“One week. I can wait.”

Chrysalis spoke up. “And I’ll wait with you.”

Author's Note:

More headcannon again. Changelings grow and mature rapidly, but their lifespan is the same as a normal pony. In other words, if a changeling were to live with a pony and they were born on the exact same day, the changeling will grow much faster, reaching full maturity in as little as two months, while a pony could take years.

Comments

[Dream Seeker]

You have good head cannon. Such an adaptation would be necessary for changelings, as they have to mature quickly before they starve themselves and/or their parents. They drain the hive as a baby for a short time, before producing.

[Razzy]

I wonder if royals have longer life spans.

I'm kinda hoping Chryssie's cutie mark might be restored one day.

Cya
Raziel-chan