The Friendly Changeling

by WezzaHD

Chapter 6: Family

Shadowflight got up for work, as per usual. Got into his usual disguise, and left. He was going to Rainbow Dashes house, where she would show him her book collection of Daring Do. She insisted instantly after she found out that he didn't read books.

"Can't read books? Ha, can barely read at all, is more like it" He thought to himself, as he left. He flew up, and saw Ponyville from down below. Beautiful sight, as always. He flew past all the clouds. This made him glad he didn't have the weekend shift, unlike Bulk Biceps and Thunderlane, who were chosen to do this weekend shift. The ponies who had to work on the weekends was different every time. He wasn't sure when it would be his turn, but if it was, he hoped it would be with Rainbow Dash. The two had gotten closer over the time they spent together. It had been a mere two weeks, too. It surprised him that they had gotten so close, as well. It was nice, especially since it distracted him from his, hunger.

It got stronger every day, and he could feel it. He was slowly getting weaker. So far, it wasn't weak enough for anyone to notice, but bit by bit, they would, which he didn't want, especially from Rainbow Dash. She shouldn't have to worry about him. He sometimes considered showing his true self to her, but it wasn't the right time, but he didn't know how much time he had left. He needed love, and soon.

"You know, plenty of ponies have tons of love in this town, nopony would miss it if you just took a bit of love" That voice again, that voice. He hated it, he wished it would just go... wherever voices went.

He flew off into the bright blue sky of the day. It was lovely, as always. He saw the ponies, down below. He saw the three he saved the other day, hopefully they were doing something a little less life threatening, to earn their cutie marks. Changelings didn't have cutie marks, they didn't know what their special talent would be, they were only trained to fight, hunt, and deceive prey. Now, he wasn't doing any of those. He saw Pinkie Pie hopping around on her never- ending sugar rush. He also saw a grey earth pony mare with a long black mane and a cello, who scared him a bit.

He flew up higher, and saw- no, marvelled at his friends house! It was beautiful, a house on a cloud. the outside was a white as the cloud it sat on, various rainbows circled the house, with a pond, outside. Was it filled with rainbows? He knocked on the front door, and stood there for a couple of seconds, until she answered the door.

"Oh, hey Shadow" She said "You want to come in?" He nodded and entered her house. The inside was a cyan blue, just like her coat. It had a TV in the corner, with a sofa, a guitar in the corner and a Wonderbolts poster, as well as doors leading into other rooms. She lead him upstairs, and he saw that her room was a darker shade of blue, looking almost purple, a single bed, with a bookshelf beside it.

"Here it is, the first book" she reached for something on the top shelf, and showed it to him.

"Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone?" He read aloud. Rainbow Dash nodded.

"Yeah, it's also my favourite. I have all of them. I'm trying to get the first editions of all the books, and I nearly have, except for that one, but I WILL find it, someday"

He chuckled inwardly at her determination to find a book she already read. But then again, that was one of the things that drew him towards her. He guessed he was destined to, as she had spared his life When she could've ended it. Why? That question ate away at him almost as much as his hunger did.

"As Daring Do trekked through the tropical jungle..."

---

Rainbow was reading the first book to Shadow, who was listening intently to her, despite never reading before and she remembered how she responded to reading on first glance, maybe it was just her, she thought. It was nice to have someone to read with besides Twilight, maybe they could all read together, sometime. He was determined, nice and had a bit of mystery to him. He was awesome guy, and she liked it when he complimented her.

"Wow, this is good" Shadow said. "And she's a lot like you" She blushed

Wait, blushed? She blushed? She quickly covered her face with her wing.

"Uh, I have to go to the bathroom" She quickly said and zoomed upstairs to the bathroom to look at herself.

"Rainbow, what's going on?" she said to herself in the mirror. "Why are you going red? Why do you feel weird every time he says something nice about you?" She took a while to get the red off her face, and she wen back downstairs.

Shadowflight was looking around the room. He pondered about his interest in Dash. He knew he wanted to somehow find out why she let him live, but he could feel himself wanting more that just that.

He saw everything in the room, and noticed one family picture. One was a pink pegasus mare with a purple mane, who looked like Rainbow Dash except for the colours. He other was a stallion who was also a pegasus but had Rainbows mane and a light indigo coat. It was a family, all connected to each other, all happy.

---

Shadowflight had just finished the obstacle course. He, his sister and brother would soon be going in for battle training. Changelings were trained for a year to learn how to fight, transform and deceive prey. He was the best at what he did, and he captains thought so. Of course, that was because his mother had also had a hoof in training him, but she mostly focused on his sister. He still tried his best to hunt and kill. The ponies were but prey to him, as means of their survival. There was a a war that would soon begin with the ponies, so he had to be especially ready, unlike his brother.

"Oof!" his brother just missed the mark and crashed to the ground. Shadowflight sighed.

"Again, Nightcrawler? Why do you have to be so clumsy?"

"I don't know, I can just never get that bit right, I guess" His brother replied. Shadowflight wasn't convinced.

"Brother, do you still have this foolish illusion that ponies and changelings can live in harmony?"

"Can you blame me? I just want to know a way we can both live in peace"

"There is no way! We absorb love, they have that love!" It's either them or us, Nightcrawler! Why can't you understand that!?" He all but yelled at his brother. He loved him, but he was a fool to believe that. He looked at his brother, who He had just upset. He sighed.

"Listen, Nightcrawler, it's just impossible to think that we could co- exist. We need to feed off of them to survive, until they're drained. It's a shame we can't live side by side, yes, but we need to ensure the survival of our race first before anything"

"I know, but..." He trailed off. "Dont you ever think about what ponies are feeling, when you drain them?"

"What?"

"We deceive them, make them think we love them, then consume that feeling, as we kill them, and make them suffer. Do you ever think that maybe, they could give us their love willingly, so they don't die when we just force it all out of them?"

"We can't love us willingly, Nightcrawler. To them, we are monsters. The same monster that their fillies see under their bed. Maybe, we can change that"

Shadowflight rolled his eyes. "You've got to bury this notion, at least for the invasion."

"Okay"

"Alright, now let's see you with your armour on"

---

"I'm back, Shadow."

He looked up from the picture, and saw her. He noticed she was wearing a smile, wuich seemed both forced and natural. She came down, he suddenly began to feel slightly stronger, which he knew could only mean one thing.

"Sorry, I, uh, have to go home" He said in a worry and quickly went home in a hurry.

He rushed back home, and felt both excited, and scared. There was a pony that loved him. Maybe he could drain her, and be up to full strength...

No, that wasn't who he was, anymore, but it could just be a small amount, and after all, it would be his life on the line if he didn't do something quickly, but no. He wasn't the monster who took he love of ponies and fed on it, he wasn't the soldier that had killed countless times, anymore. He wasn't sure how he felt about her. His feelings were conflicted with her, he was interested in her, but he wasn't sure what way, now. He felt like knowing more about her than just why she left him alive, but he still strived to know.

---

Silkshade and her soldiers were disguised as pegasi, and flying north as fast as they could. They were in a hurry, as soon as they could confirm that he was where they thought he was.

"Princess, the squad is tiring" one of the soldiers informed Silkshade

"Well tell them to get over it! We're almost there." The changeling princess disregarded the information and flew on.

"But we must rest, we have been flying at full speed for four hours straight without a break-"

"And like I said, get over it!"

"What if he does not come willingly, princess? We must be at full energy if he resists!" He tried one last time, hoping to get through to her.

"Very well" she sighed "We are taking a short break. You all may rest" the changelings behind her sighed in relief, and dropped to the ground like flies. The group rested, while Silkshad fast on her own, distant from the others. She didn't want them to see her sad.

---

Shadowflight was ready. He spent a week contemplating with himself on this, and in the end he finally decided to leave. He couldn't live with what had had happened to Nightcrawler, and knew he had to leave. He had only brought one thing with him, his beloved sketchbook, which he always carried with him.

Now, he was standing on the border of the changeling hive, afraid to step through. He knew that he had to get approval to leave from the Queen, and others, so they would probably try to find him.

"Where are you going?" His sister, Silkshade was calling behind him. She was flying as fast as her wings would carry her.

"Away from here" He simply replied, and began to turn around.

"but you can't" she said with growing sadness

"I can and will" he began to ready his wings, when she stopped him.

"Leaving won't bring him back"

"Maybe not, but I can still honour what he always believed" he replied.

"He was our brother, yes. But you know as well as I that he was an idiot to believe that" she exclaimed "Ponies will never accept us, making friends with them will not save our race."

"And war will?" He asked rhetorically. "Look around you, our race is dying more than ever, thanks to the invasion, and now Nightcrawler's dead!"

"He died because he was careless-"

"He died because of the invasion!" Shadowflight interrupted. "Did you ever consider that maybe he was right? Maybe co- existence is possible?"

"And if it isn't?" she said, using circumstances to get him to change his mind.

"Then I'm sorry I doubted mother" he replied as he once again left.

"Wait!" She shouted, her voice breaking slightly "Please, I've already lost one brother, I don't want another to go! We've been through so much together. Without you, mother will be all I have with me." Tears began to well up in her eyes. Ever since their mother had began training her to control the magic that was was in their bloodline, and to be princess. Ever since then, she had begun to grow more distant with her brothers. Then Nightcrawler died, and her relationship with her only other brother had gotten even worse. "Please, don't go"

He hugged her. "Goodbye, Silkie" he knocked her out, as the tears dropped from her eyes.

---

Her tears dropped to the ground, as she cried away from the others, she just wanted her brother back.

Comments

[Talondor]

This is ridiculously good man. Please keep up with the story. I am extremely interested to find out what happens next!