Chimera 10: The Nervous Life of a Changeling Prince
Lightning Dash and his friends spent several days on punishment before his mother and the Apple's father had gathered the quartet before Princess Luna one evening. His mom was still not happy with what he had done, but she had forgiven him. Rainbow Dash was sitting next to him, letting her sore colt lean against her as she bore a knowing and merciless grin for him. He had just finished scrubbing the ship's outer skin to prevent mildew from forming after going through another rain squall. After several hours of scrubbing with a thick bristled brush the work was deemed done by the meticulous detail officer. The Aurora was now above the clouds, the starry skies twinkling down through the warm evening breeze. Everything from his neck on down felt as though somepony had been beating it with a two by four.
Rainbow Dash swelled a little with pride as her colt had endured his punishment without uttering too much complaining. Sure, he had mentioned several times how much he didn't like his tasks, but never too loud and never in too sour of a mood. He still did the best he could. She hooked a hoof around his shoulders and mussed the top of his mane.
The chromatic mare was a bit nervous around Luna these days. She had not been told, nor had the rest of her friends Silent Wing could possibly be an Immortal. Nor was Luna inclined to let them in on the details she had placed before them at the table. She was having fun with this and wanted to ride it a little bit longer. Better still was letting Silent Wing in on her explanation to her friends to avoid problems. Perhaps this would be what he would need to pull him out of his shell around mares. It seemed to be improving his disposition towards them as well as herself. If he could just explain why he was so timid!
This would please the princess and perhaps give her more insight on changelings.
Survival was his instinct around females, she was beginning to understand. Changeling society, she found out could be quite brutal and especially to an adopted chimera, his rank not withstanding. Loneliness still plagued his dreams, as if something from his relationship (or lack thereof) with his father had made him instinctively reclusive. Both prince and princess shared an awkward face to the public and both had a difficult time being outgoing and making new friends. What ones they had seemed to stem out of circumstance rather than a desire to seek out friends. The glaring difference was Luna had forced her sister's hoof so long ago. The colt's upbringing was certainly less tragic as his imprisonment was due to the society in which he had grown. Luna had been imprisoned because of her jealousy of her sister. It had cost her a thousand years of loneliness.
Something Flamespyre had told her the first time she had visited the colt's dreams nagged at her. He had mentioned a familiarity to her ties to Nightmare Moon. Why?
She wanted the colt's friendship more than anything else, promising herself to not do anything he might misunderstand as an intent of something serious. It was beginning to dawn on her the most probable reason as to his apprehension towards attractive females. Silent Wing made a wonderful friend when it was made perfectly clear intentions were nothing but platonic. She also began to figure out his senses were very sensitive indeed. A conversation with his top changeling and best friend Frakas had opened a whole new perspective to Silent Wing and male changelings on a whole (though finding the little changeling was like trying to find a cat wanting to not be found). The Alicorn began to understand it was not just the visual stimulus affecting the colt, but the smells he was detecting had a great deal to do with it. He could also sense emotions like any changeling.
It had been a very interesting insight to changelings and Luna berated herself mentally for not understanding this earlier.
"Not until you are ready and only when you are ready," she had told Silent a little later on one of those nights he studied the stars - her night. "For now, I am pleased to call you and count you as a friend." They shook hooves. Luna had been very careful to conceal her emotions, though she was a little disappointed. Something about the younger appearing prince made her feel like a giddy filly all over again.
It worked somewhat. The progress was slow, but noticeable. He was squeaking with less frequency.
Silent still squeaked around the other mares, save for Applejack. For some reason, he had adopted her as a sort of mother figure. Perhaps it had something to do with the way she looked at him, as a colt and a friend to her boys. The plump country mare also treated him like one of her own and he responded in kind, his expression almost wistful as if to wonder what might have been. Luna could only imagine the sort of childhood he had under Chrysalis. What she did know was his bond with his adoptive mother was strong and unusual, a tough love relationship that had only recently begun to soften. Something more than just a typical bond between a mother and son existed between the two. No, it was something else entirely. Luna was beginning to wonder about this.
This had been several nights ago. Now she had to release the children sitting before her with their respective parents and assign them regular duties with the others. The Alicorn noted how tired they were and heard how hard they had worked to atone for stowing away on the airship. Captain Gilda stood off to the side, her eyes peering out intently from beneath the blue cap with gold braiding along the border of the bill. The griffin's expression was impassive.
Behind her stood her First Officer Flick with a pen and log book to annotate where the youngsters would be placed for the duration of the voyage. He had a dark brown plumage and was a rather burly griffin with a serious face and a crooked beak from some barroom brawl years ago. He wore a red and white stocking cap and constantly chewed on a corncob pipe. When he spoke, his voice was deep and cavernous. It was said he had a piercing cry that could be heard up to two miles away.
"Lightning Dash," Luna began, nodding slightly at the blue colt. "You are to be assigned to the air patrol. Captain Cruise will assign you to the proper group." She gave him a gentle smile. "Since you are already friends with Silent Wing, I believe you can also train with them for combat. I want you able to defend yourself should the need arise."
"Um, okay," replied the colt nervously. "Thank you, Princess Luna." He had to be prompted to say that with a tug on his mane from Rainbow.
"Note to logbook, Mister Flick," said Captain Gilda. First Officer Flick made the proper notation.
"Red Apple," continued the Alicorn, turning to the next colt. He stepped forward, standing tall and proud. "I notice you have an interest in mechanical things. The ship's Chief Engineer would love to have you join his team. You will be assigned to engineering."
"Yes ma'am. Thank you ma'am," said the colt with a grin.
"Red Apple to Engineering," noted Gilda to Flick. He dutifully jotted down the assignment.
"Green Apple," Luna nodded to the next colt. "You are assigned to the galley with your mother and Pinkie Pie. Try not to burn the bread."
"Dish washing?" he complained. His mother tugged on his ear with her mouth. "Ouch! Yes ma'am! Thank you ma'am."
"Green Apple to general assignment," chuckled the ship's captain. Flick scribbled into the logbook, not cracking so much as a smile.
"Unique." The Alicorn regarded Rarity's adopted daughter. She was the youngest pony on the ship at eleven years old. "Captain Gilda could use your help as her Cabin Filly."
The Unicorn blinked at her new job. "What does that mean?"
Captain Gilda strode forward, her yellow hawkish eyes boring into the filly intently. "It means you get to work directly for me. I'll let you know your duties in the morning. In the meantime, I suggest you get some rest, kid. I ain't gonna go easy on ya just because you're cute."
"I need an adult!" hissed Unique loudly to her mother into her ear.
"I am an adult," deadpanned Gilda.
Suppressing a giggle, Rarity glared at the griffin. "I only agreed to this because my daughter is too young to do any serious tasks, captain. Do not betray my trust in your conduct with my Unique." Next to her, Spike just shrugged and grinned helplessly. Rarity could be a bit overprotective at times, reminding the dragon of himself.
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Gilda snapped her beak shut and snorted. To Unique she said, "You'll pretty much be running errands for me. Nothing too hard. I promise."
"Noted," supplied Flick helpfully as his pen scratched away.
There was a yell somewhere up in the skies above them. All eyes lifted into the night sky. A large white form bathed in the light of the moon was locked in combat with a smaller, slightly darker form. The yellow form fell away, falling to the deck of the airship. Silent Wing fell, whipping his body in a tight arch from his back over to his belly, dropping his flanks low as his wings flared wide. He landed heavily, his hind legs absorbing as his tail swished. Golden eyes glowed softly in the low light, reflecting Luna's namesake in them as his mouth was set in a determined line. Gathering his legs beneath him, he sprang back up into the sparring match with as much speed or even more than the force in which he had been thrown down.
Tseng Tzu waited for his student, sensing him approach. The old teacher blocked the incoming roundhouse kick, deflecting it aside and going into a flip over the colt. Silent spun with his master, his hooves catching the claws he knew were coming in at him from one side. The two carried their fight down towards the gathered ponies.
"They're at it again," noted Spike as he picked up Unique and trundled over to where the others had moved. "Taking it up a notch or two, I think." He spoke generally, his green eyes following the fight with keen interest. "So cool to watch."
Frakas and several other changelings about to begin their nightly patrol paused in mid-flight high above the airship and watched silently. Only the sound of their softly humming wings told the ponies they were there. Nudging the others, the changeling reluctantly moved them off to begin their duties. Each one cast a wistful glance behind them as they drifted into the night. It was rare to see Master Tseng Tzu spar with the prince.
Again, Silent Wing landed, balancing himself on the tip of a hind hoof, forehooves weaving in front of him in smooth pattern of grace. His other rear leg was hitched up, dangling as his wings flared out to their full length and held there for a moment. Gasping heavily for air, he studied his teacher, waiting for the next strike.
Tseng Tzu landed several feet from him, presenting his left side to the prince and regarding him with sightless eyes. They blinked as he sat down, his lion tail swishing comfortably as a serious visage presented itself to the colt. He stroked his long, thin white feather beard.
"Stop overextending, boy," he instructed, projecting calm patience. "You're exposing your flanks far too easily for counter attack. Far too aggressive. You are forgetting to flow with your opponent." Tseng wrapped a knuckle against the wood. "Calm your heart. You have so many emotions within you. Your chi is not stable. Focus! Too much mind! No mind!"
Silent Wing sighed audibly, but did not move from his stance.
"Perhaps some rest?" suggested Luna as she looked at the prince with some concern. He appeared ragged before her eyes.
"No," grunted the colt with a tired smile. "In battle, the enemy will not let you rest if you are tired. A warrior must fight until the battle is won or death claims him."
Lightning Dash was shaking his head. "Mom, there is no way in hay I am going to train like that maniac."
"Kiddo," Rainbow Dash whispered in his ear, "That's special training you're seeing. You'd get more along the lines of typical stuff. They've been going at it since after dinner and that was three hours ago. I wouldn't expect you to do that sort of thing. The program Silent does for everypony is more geared for those who haven't spent half their lives studying this style. It's more cardiovascular and conditioning than that hardcore flank kicking combat training."
"But mom, what if I'm bad at it?" he asked, his eyes darting between the student and the master. Silent and Tseng had both gone silent, one watching while his opponent sensed for when to strike.
"Hey, you won't be bad at all." She grinned, bumping his side with her flank. "You might even find it's fun. Even I've started taking his class. You'll get to be with your totally awesome mom."
Lightning rolled his eyes at her. "Okay," he said, not entirely convinced.
Applejack had instinctively placed herself between her two colts and the combatants, her eyes wide as she was seeing Silent Wing fight with full control over his emotions. She could see his eyes focused, completely relaxed even though he was very tired. He might have been on the small size for his age, but Applejack could already see him bucking apples in her mind's eye with cool efficiency. Definitely would be a nice pair of hooves to have helping around a farm for sure.
"Mama, you want us doing that training thing, too?" Red asked, utterly fascinated.
She adjusted her hat, flicking her eyes at him and smiling. "Only if you want to, sugarcube. Ah ain't worried if it comes ta fightin' and you boys. Yer Apples, after all." AJ went back to watching the two fighters. "Where's yer pa?"
Green cleared his throat. "He said something about checking the armory after dinner. He ain't been up since. I'll bet pa found some rust on some gear and went to hunt down the pony who wears it for a good scoldin'."
"Yeah," the country mare said with a chuckle. "That's yer pa in a nutshell."
Meanwhile, a certain filly was staring in awe at the spectacle between teacher and student. "Are we supposed to be watching this?" Unique asked Rarity. Both were side by side and watching the standoff. "This looks like something that should be private, Mother."
"Well dear," Rarity stammered, feeling her heart pound as she was reminded of Silent's little battle in the hospital. "I don't think he's dangerous at the moment." She was obviously thinking of something else.
"Mo-ther!" Unique bumped her. "You're staring at him like he's going to turn into a werepony or a vampire."
"He's already a chimera," pointed out Spike, amused at his special pony's over exaggeration. "How much weirder can you get?" He was enjoying the sparring match and wondered when the two would start again.
"My turn!" piped up a certain bubbly voice. "My turn! My turn! My turn, oh please pick me so I can have my turn against Silent Knight!"
"Silent Knight?" Rainbow Dash asked Pinkie Pie as the mare seemingly bounded in out of nowhere. "Where'd you come up with that?"
"Well, duh!" She grinned, hooking her friend's neck with a hoof and pointing to Princess Luna with the other. Pinkie Pie began directing her chromatic maned friend's face with her own pressed against its side. Together they beheld the Mistress of the Night. "Princess!" she informed informatively. Attention was then shifted to Silent. "Knight! Princess Moon and Silent Knight! It fits, don't you think?"
Raindbow grinned as the connection was very obvious and very cool, if mushy stuff was her thing. "Oh yeah. I do! Very cool, Pinkie!"
"What?" Silent squeaked. Pinkie's loud voice broke his concentration. Her proclamation shattered the rest of it. The colt turned and stared at the party pony.
It was about then Luna reluctantly decided to shed a little light on the past of Silent Wing and the fear behind his squeak. She would miss it, but this was for the best. "I think that is more than enough for one evening," she called out calmly. "I am sorry, friend Pinkie Pie, but with your energy, the good prince would not fare well against your enthusiasm, I fear."
Pinkie Pie pouted. "That stinks. Oh well!" she beamed at the prince, the scent of cotton candy lightly tickling his nostrils.
Silent Wing sat down and began to understand why Frakas and the others referred to her as the Pink Terror. Did she even have an off switch? Cold sweat made him shiver as he began to consider the possibilities of what made Pinkie Pie tick.
"Now is as good a time as ever," noted Tseng Tzu to Luna. "Truth be told, changelings are very secretive about their society. He is no different. They should know his greatest waking fear and understand why life for a male changeling is harsh."
"Arey they ready to hear it?" she asked him.
"The better question is if the colt is ready to speak of it." The old teacher chuckled. "How about after breakfast in the morning? You have your own duties to see to, if I am not mistaken. On top of that, the prince is on his last hooves as it is. Let him rest. I shall convince him to speak of his changelings."
"Thank you, Master Tseng Tzu. You are most kind to offer. I shall accept it." She nodded and gave the gathering a nod. "Sleep well, my little ponies. I shall see you all in the morning." Without waiting for a response, she lifted up into the air to begin her solitary duties.
Silent Wing was a very, very sore changeling prince when he rose from his bunk the next morning. Remembering Luna's chastisement and lecture given to him while she had preened his wings on that most memorable of evenings, he did find he had feelings for her, though they were confusing him. Given the history of changelings and how their society had evolved, it was hard to blame him. He was discovering Equestrian mares were not seeking to dominate their male counterparts, rather accepting them as equals. The prince found this odd and conflicting. Certainly, he was a prince and this did entitle him to some protection from the ancient laws of changeling kind, but he was also adopted, which meant blood rights were only upon the whim of the queen and could be overturned by the majority of the great houses.
He preened himself carefully, remembering the techniques Luna had told him to use to make the process faster and more efficient. Already he could see the difference the self-help books had failed to give him. It felt good, too. Having done that, he settled for a quick shower, then realized right after he should have preened after showering. Oh well. It showed him the feathers and a few other spots he had missed. The colt fixed that. Then he sought out the necklace his sister had given him and put it on. Then he put on his leather armor, more out of the insistence from Captain Blazing Cruise for those who could be in uniform wear them when on duty. Silent's duty began the moment he woke up.
Before leaving, he cast a look upon the great book taking up an entire table to itself. It was very large, very thick, and very black. A foul energy emanated from it, taunting the prince with its secrets. Sighing inwardly, the colt trotted out the door and went to breakfast and the morning meeting in the captain's cabin.
Breakfast with Captain Gilda was professional, with any changes to the schedule for the day discussed as well as anything that might have occurred during the night. The griffin herself did not seem to care for the prince and rarely asked his opinion for anything unless the topic concerned his changelings. It was clear she wanted little to do with them and especially Silent despite the reassurances from Princess Luna.
She summed it up earlier in the voyage cutting off the prince's attempt at friendly conversation with, "Look prince. I'm paid to get you safely from point A to point B and back again. I don't mind you want to learn new things and I don't mind lending you the tools and equipment to learn. I am not a big fan of changelings, given the history between your country and mine. Long story short; I don't trust you, which means I am not interested in being your buddy. Got it?"
The hostility between griffins and changelings had extended to this mission, though the anger so far was thankfully confined to agreeing to disagree. The female griffin tolerated the changelings on her ship, but barely. Unfortunately, that was how the world worked. Not every soul was going to get along with allies they had not chosen. He had already sensed the hostility from the other griffins on board the airship, far more so than the mix of ponies who at least tolerated him and his soldiers.
After breakfast, the prince quietly made his way to the parlor. The ladies would be finishing up their own morning meal. Princess Luna would be there, as she personally found the captain abrasive, but knowledgable in her job and more than capable. Tseng Tzu had asked him to educate those interested about changeling society last night and the prince thought it might not be a bad idea. Perhaps it would be good for him as well.
A sign on the wall near the entrance to the parlor read "Understanding Changelings".
He entered the lavishly decorated room and found everything had been arranged so a podium faced several small rows of folding chairs. Each one had a pony or (surprisingly) a griffon sitting in it. Every face in the room turned to the prince as soon as he passed through the door, mostly smiling at him expectantly. There was more than a few neutral faces as well as one or two expressions plainly wanting to be anywhere but here. A few 'good mornings' were tossed his way, to which he smiled and nodded nervously back. Tseng Tzu and Luna waited for him expectantly. Frakas was crammed into a corner, waving at his prince excitedly. Pinkie Pie mimicked the changeling as she stood next to him unnoticed by her unwitting victim.
"I wasn't expecting so many," he admitted, laughing sheepishly.
Every off duty pony seemed to be crammed into the room. Some even stood against the walls, squeezing to one side to let the colt work his way to the front. Finally he was at the front of the room where he turned and saw more than two dozen faces peering up at him expectantly. Somepony coughed.
He cleared his throat, shifting his mind for dealing with an audience. "Everyone is here to learn about changeling society, I assume?"
"The ladies were kind enough to go about the ship and asked any who wished to learn about your kind to come and listen." She paused, noticing something, then asked, "No notes?" Luna's voice was quiet so only his ears picked her up.
He grinned and shook his head. Silent Wing was completely relaxed. "Before we begin, how many of you here saw your first changeling when you came on board this ship?" Roughly half of those in the room raised a hoof. "All right. How many of you are familiar with the Canterlot incident some years back?" Every pony indicated they had. "Good. Now, how many of you noticed all the changelings with Queen Chrysalis and those who are with me on this ship are all male?"
Pinkie Pie was the only pony to raise her hoof, grinning happily. She also spoke loudly and eagerly how she knew and always known. The pink mare also hopped up and down in her seat, nudging Frakas. "Here's one!" she cried out, much to her companion's startled annoyance.
"Do you know why?" Silent asked her, arching a brow.
Nopony knew. Not even Luna, despite her vast pool of knowledge within her mind.
"Crack a few windows, my friends and grab some drinks. This might take a while." Silent Wing pulled up a stool and sat on it next to the podium, resting his elbows on his knees and slouching forward as if he was going to whittle a piece of wood. "Feel free to leave if you find this takes too long or you have your duties to get to. One simply does not explain five thousand years of culture in a mere hour."
He cleared his throat and began:
"All changelings families have a matriarch. It had been so since the beginning of time, since the first changeling became aware of being. As young mothers, they were often the only ones able to raise their young as fathers often did become food for expectant mothers which in turn would feed their children. Of course this was speculation and conjecture as only very powerful queens were still susceptible to such urges.
"Child bearing changeling mares lay eggs in clutches of three to five eggs. The males could and did have multiple fathers with only half surviving their first year. Female hatchlings were doted over and treated with lavish affection. Males were almost left to fend for themselves, though their mothers did care and feed for them. As changelings developed from hunter gatherers and became civilized, the care for their males did improve, however female foals were still preferred over males. They still are to this day. For one thing, females were stronger, better apt at magic, and bigger. Males became viewed as expendable and viable cannon fodder for their warlike tendencies matriarchs had towards each other as they vied for land and power."
"Is that like two cities constantly fighting each other over say, a gold mine?" asked a stallion in the audience. "And they'd just send the males to fight each other?"
Silent straightened, nodding as he spied out the speaker. "Very much so! Early on it was a struggle for matriarchs to gather resources to feed their families, so fighting was constant. The Dread Wastes were just as inhospitable then as they are now, perhaps more so with the creatures that used to roam the lands. Peace was simply taking a breath to regroup and recover until the next war flared up."
He continued his story after letting the audience absorb his words. Silent Wing cleared his throat and continued.
"Eventually, the most powerful matriarchs came together after the Great War and determined there must be a queen to rule over all the changelings. The advantage was a united front against the other races of the world who had just exhausted themselves after a century of constant warfare. Having tasted unity under the power of Flamespyre, the matriarchs gathered to find among themselves their first queen. As the other changelings in other parts of the world were exploring their own means of government (they had come to the same conclusion for the most part), the Emerald Changelings eventually settled on five of the most powerful matriarchs to battle each other until only one was standing.
"The first changeling queen of the newly minted Emerald Kingdom was named Chrysalis, the greatest ancestor of the current Chrysalis and the only other changeling to have ever borne the name. As an appeasement to the losing matriarchs (heads of houses were never killed out of mutual respect), Chrysalis selected from among their houses the most capable males to serve their new queen to fill in roles. Female changelings were almost never chosen, as it was viewed as the queen favoring another potential rival to the current house matriarch she lived under. To avoid such a conflict of interest, only males were chosen to serve the ruling house. Thus the losing houses still had a say in how the queen decided to run the kingdom.
"With the establishment of the Emerald Changeling Kingdom came a code of laws that grew and expanded the following five thousand years. First of all, only female changelings could own property. Only a matriarch was allowed to make decisions for her family. A male could speak on her behalf and this was usually done by her favored consort. Marriage did not exist for changelings then as ponies might understand marriage, but multiple unions of several males from several minor houses could be chosen by a young changeling mare and courted. Mares could and did choose which male would father their fillies. Courtship could be done singly or at the same time and it was not uncommon for males to fight each other to the death to gain the favor of a rising matriarch to be. The more powerful houses sought alliances with equal houses to prevent aggressive males from overstepping themselves in an effort to curb their enthusiasm for fighting. Armies were commissioned by the monarch and wars were constant as the early Emerald Kingdom expanded its borders. Stallions were given no say in the matters of law and were treated more or less as expendable assets to be used and abused.
"This is the first I've heard of you calling yourself an Emerald Changeling," said a dark mare with a light blue mane. She was one of the Pegasus under Blazing Cruise's command. "Are there other kinds of changelings?"
Silent tilted his head to one side as he recalled them. "Yes. There are a total of five different changeling kingdoms. I'm from the Emerald Kingdom. The other four are Topaz, Ruby, Diamond, and the Broken Kingdom."
"Broken?" she pressed, eyes wide with curiosity, echoing the general feeling in the room now. "What does that mean?"
Silent Wing pursed his lips, answering the query slowly, "The Broken Kingdom never really established a queen. It's a confederation of changeling houses and considered the most violent due to their constantly fighting each other. It's said they live in the middle of a vast desert near the Topaz Kingdom, our destination."
"Wonderful," she groaned, eliciting some laughter from the crowd.
"That's why you ponies have me coming along. Changeling laws are more or less the same with slight cultural differences. If we do encounter any, we should be able to use my mother's name as she is still respected by the other matriarchs around the world. They might no know the Emerald Kingdom, but the name Chrysalis should inspire the right dose of fear to get us where we need to go with minimal problems." Mentally he added, I hope.
"Of course, there were wars. The Changeling Kingdom was almost in a constant state of open warfare with her neighbors in the first millennium she existed. As the changelings fed upon the emotions of their enemies and grew in power, they discovered the elusive power of love to be the greatest emotion of all to feed upon. It was an addictive sensation of feeling and queens found they coveted the power it gave them for themselves. Millions of male changelings spent their lives to the last breath seeking out and bringing this power to their matriarchs, who in turn would offer to their queen her allotted portion. While the stallions fought and died for love, the mares consumed it and grew more and more powerful.
"One mare believed this to be wrong. Shattersong had come from a minor house, having just assumed her role as matriarch. She petitioned the queen, then an aging monarch who was without an heir save for a son who would inherit nothing at her passing. Only death awaited him as he was viewed with scorn by the other noble houses. Already the most powerful prospective queens were jostling each other for position when the old mare died. Shattersong was granted an audience with the dying queen upon a fanciful whim. The young mare presented herself before Queen Talxis and asked to know why the stallions were dying for nothing as the matriarchs had become greedy and did not share their love with them.
"'Greed and avarice,' she was told by the tired queen. "They will not share as they care only for empowering themselves.'
"'But good queen,' Shattersong did ask humbly, 'What will be done if the stallions refuse to fight? Can you not sense their distress? They call upon the wind and within my mind I sense their despair. If they would have but a little love from the mares they die for, then all the harder would they battle for such a small favor.'
"They debated for some time, the old queen and the petulant young matriarch of a weak house. Finally, Queen Talxis did ask of Shattersong, 'I will consider your words if you were to consider my son as your First Consort, from the moment you bond until the end of days. Upon which I shall abdicate my throne and allow you to do deeds of merit instead of uttering useless words.'"
"Question!" Rainbow Dash held a hoof up, her face a mask of confusion. "If you stallions are so small, how does that explain that one big one that followed your mom around like an angry rottweiler?"
"Myzanum?" Silent Wing's tone dropped to a frozen chill as he spoke the name. No, there was no point to lose his temper over such a simple and easy to explain question. "Sorry. I'll answer that question, Lady Dash," he chirped, smiling suddenly as he waved a hoof at her. She blushed visibly at being called a lady and glared at him hard. The prince either did not notice it or blatantly ignored her expression. "Gigantism does occur in our race. Usually if it happens to males, they are immediately destroyed or left in the wilderness to fend for themselves as it is usually debilitating. The only way they are allowed to live is if their proportions are perfect and there is no defect."
"Destroyed?" Rainbow was still trying to get over being called a lady. Such a nice boy! He deserved a...what was the word? Beating! Yes, he deserved a beating. "Do you mean killed?"
"Yes. Unfortunately, it's a practice still used to this day and it extends to any male born deformed. I'm alive because my mother has certain rights that allows some of her personal decisions to override common law." The prince explained it with little emotion, not thinking it would affect the room with the shock now exploding in his face.
"What about fillies?" asked Rarity bravely, almost afraid of the answer.
"They're held on pedestals just as if they were normal fillies. Mares, if you remember me explaining are considered superior to stallions. They lead armies, pick their favorite stallions to play at being generals, run the noble houses, determines who goes to school and what education is needed by specific members of the family. Every day life and law is determined by mares. Besides, they're the only ones who can bear more changelings. Stallions just have to deal with it."
"That's brutal," Lightning Dash said with a shudder. His follow up question sent chills through the room. "Is it true mares eat males?"
"Every time Soarin' forgets the child support," his mother muttered to him on the side.
"It used to be rather common, especially when a powerful matriarch just conceived a daughter. All though the actual reason as to why the father was devoured has been lost over the years, it's commonly believed it is done to prevent his genes from making another filly. Think of it as extreme jealousy. It's also thought to help prevent interbreeding as houses are constantly shifting power and whichever one is in position to take the throne from a barren queen can do so without worrying about birth defects in the bloodline. It still happens from time to time." Silent found he was enjoying this little class immensely.
Pinkie Pie was loving it! Every fiber of her being was getting into it as she absolutely loved a great story. This one was far better than she had been expecting. "This is so totally not boring!" she crowed. "Go back to the story about that old timey queen and that mare Shattersong!"
Silent Wing straightened himself up, unsure as he played his audience. "Oh, I'm sure you guys don't want to hear some old story that's one of the most beloved legends in changeling lore." He offered a sly grin to Frakas who was trying very hard to maintain a straight face. The changeling was very proud of the oration of changeling lore.
Applejack tipped her hat to him, "You'd best start yappin', hun. Ah don't think anypony is gonna let ya leave the room now that you done started yer story." She grinned as her boys nodded for more.
"Very well, then. Where was I?"
"So did Matriarch Shattersong take unto herself her for consort the son of the queen. Upon the announcement, the great houses rose to strike down this upstart as she was now the heir to the throne, but from a weak and insignificant house. They sent their armies to crush Shattersong and her changelings, but she came before the amassing armies and did something no matriarch had ever done.
"She opened her heart and shared her love with them all, giving every ounce of her being freely, crying unto them, 'Behold, that which as been denied you I cannot give in full restitution, but please take what I have, for it is owed. Join me and I shall see to it your sacrifices and the sacrifices of your forefathers have not been in vain. Join me, you neglected stallions and I shall be your voice to the queen the troubles in your souls!'
"Those who accepted her love found their power grow from within. Her consort stood with her proudly and gathered them under his wings to lead in the name of his Chosen Mate. The first civil war began, lasting three years. The love between Shattersong and her consort fueled their armies and slowly they began to bring the greater houses to heel. It ended with the great houses broken and their mothers bending knee to this upstart mare, acknowledging her claim to the throne. Thus did the Emerald Kingdom come to first understand the power love could give her changelings.
"Over time, the centuries passed and the changelings were content for a while to build their kingdom up from within. Wars were set aside and great cities began to spring up across the land. Matriarchs established them for their families and in turn the common changelings flocked to these places where learning became a focal point, not war. For a time, there was peace as her subdued neighbors paid tribute in the form of love to the Emerald Queen and her subjects.
"The rise of Discord shattered the peace, broke the treaties, and ended the tributes. The word Equestria became known for the first time to changelings and the love from within its borders did call to the matriarchs. Discord was petitioned by the queen of the time and he did allow changelings to be a part of his love for disharmony. As the Eternal Sisters Celestia and Luna did battle with the Lord of Chaos, changelings snuck in and stole what love they could, going from city to city, town to town, and village to village. However, at the moment of Discord's greatest need, they abandoned him at the word of the queen, who had what she sought and had no desire to confront the Sun and the Moon directly. Fearing the wrath of Equestrian power and having seen what the two princesses could do with their formidable magic, it was decreed no changeling would ever set aggressive hoof in Equestria ever again. It was even determined to hide ourselves from their notice, our fear of reprisal from them great.
"Now, it came to pass a certain Queen Chrysalis came to power, inheriting a kingdom in dire need of love. At the prompting of the great houses and their matriarchs, the eager queen sought to appease her restless nobles and asked them to give unto her changeling males they deemed disposable. Having forgotten the lessons of the past and wishing to find for herself personal glory and appeasement, the young queen did go forward with her army, having found a way to strike at Canterlot. Princess Luna was sent to stop a series of international incidents carefully crafted by the queen's agents. Stallions wishing to bring honor to their mothers and their respective houses eagerly volunteered to follow their queen, training for some four years while she sought a way to get inside."
"The wedding?" asked Fluttershy quietly in a pause as Silent drew breath. She had a tiny smile as she was enjoying the story, though it seemed a little scary to her. "Princess Cadence and Shining Armor?"
"There very one. I think everyone here knows how that story ends." Silent Wing sighed and shrugged as the room erupted with tittering laughter. "So basically, with that being said, being a male changeling is a hard life. Take Frakas here," he said, indicating his friend and added,"Please." More laughter filled the room as his friend gave him a flat and unfriendly stare. Eyes shifted to the suddenly uncomfortable changeling who smiled meekly and waved halfheartedly at the crowd. "He was sent to me because his family didn't want him. All the changelings under my command were discarded because their families felt they had no room for expendable assets. He has no rights, does not have a high enough standing in his family to vote in family decisions."
"But I'm a happier pawn since I started working for my prince," grunted Frakas dryly and in good humor. "We don't mourn for our dead for long," he added, piggy-backing Silent's speech. "We celebrate how they lived and by the means they died. My twin brother died literally giving his life to save the queen. The prestige and honor he gave my family cannot be measured. My mother will carve his name on the Tomb of Honor, along with the other changelings in her house who have fallen in battle honorably. To die for the queen will surely place him among the names of the Immortal and Unforgotten." His little chest swelled out mightily.
"Death in battle is the greatest sacrifice a changeling stallion is taught to believe," continued Silent Wing. "As we cannot have property, cannot vote, have few rights, and are taught to serve our mothers unquestionably, our lives are fraught with peril."
"So if a changeling mare is interested in you, your life is in danger?" a Unicorn mare Silent did no recognize asked from halfway back and to the left in the group of ponies.
"Well, there's not only that," Silent Wing could feel his skin burning. This had quickly gone uncomfortable for him. Still, he had agreed to be open. "Changeling mares view me as a political tool to gain access to the throne. If I were to be intended to one, there are plenty of them out there who would have my sister assassinated so they would have a clear line to the throne. As prince, I can reject them unless my mother decides she approves of the courtship." He found his eyes lingering over to Luna.
"You've been rejecting mares for a while, haven't you?" Luna asked in sympathy.
Silent Wing thought of the ones his mother had spent a couple of years throwing at him just to get him interested. She loved playing on his fears, not being serious, but at the same time hoping he would be a bit more vocal in his objections. The squeak annoyed her and thought him too timid around changeling mares. He found himself laughing before his audience, "That's the nervous life of the typical changeling male of the noble caste."
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It's probably not said enough but backstory is important. Chapters like this are great for providing information about WHY things happen. Not only is it tha authors take on how the world works but provides REASON. Without backstory I personally would not enjoy even a fraction of the stories and games that I do. Yes it seems like a waste to someone that just wants action but think about it: without backstory, the Legend of Zelda would just be a game of a guy with a shiny sword killing things for a woman that wont put out.
Best example of the purpose of this kind of chapter was in a another fic I read, The author in his notes said is was like the Source scene in the Matrix. A LOT of info with a boring way of telling it. But it was all Stuff you needed to know.
you get a 10/10 in my book.
3640438 Any and all feedback is appreciated! Thank you for your thoughts!
Interesting take on the changelings. {I have my own version in the works.}
Also I do so hope they weren't hard on Unique. I mean, she's just a little filly.
I like how you gave us some insight into the Changelings. Though I have a question, does Flamespyre employ other races as foot soldiers.
3642608yes
3642815 yay! this just gets better and better!
nice dbz abreg refrence
Nice lore. Though I think Chryssie has a different view on the matter now.