A Changeling Tradegy

by Reddling Rain

Sacred Lie

Princess Prominence strode though the tunnels of the hive, trying to ignore any drones buzzing past her. The drones was extra alert with the presence of another hive visiting, and Princess Prominence did not want to add to the slight disorder surrounding her. The soldiers with Queen Lalartu stood aside as Princess Prominence approached, allowing her to grace through the throne room and stop short of her mother, bowing before rising. Lalartu had her eyes half closed as a few drones played with her hair offering her everything from mane massages to constant nuzzles.

"Speak." Lalartu ordered quietly.

"Hivemother, I've just met with Hive Pupae, and I discovered them living in an abandoned part of our hive. They had no provisions whatsoever."

"And?" Lalartu asked.

"Why is this?" Princess Prominence asked. "I've never seen drones treated so poorly."

"Provisions will be taken to them later." Lalartu did not seem particularly concerned by any off this.

"...Hivemother, with all due respect, they are our guests. We owe them nothing but if they have been invited in, we can surely show them reasonable accommodation?"

"I have shown that nymph all the accommodation she deserves." Lalartu was pointed and obviously annoyed now. the drones around her had ceased their grooming, their eyes turning to look rather coldly upon Princess Prominence. "We have no reason to welcome the daughter of a runaway."

"Hivemother..." Prominence raised her brow as she was cut off.

"This is my final decision." Lalartu said. "They will stay in the abandoned caverns, and while they are here, they will work for everything we give them.

---

Lazni watched gleefully as the little drones before her gazed at the giant core of the entire hive. the large lava-lamp like bio-lamp cast glorious shades across the all of their young faces. giving them a nudge with her hoof, Lazni began to guide the drones up the path, leading them towards the dining chambers. The chittering of other drones could be heard echoing down the tunnel leading to the caverns, which would have been eerie for any non changeling with the mixture of light darkness.

Lazni had the little drones in front of her headed down the tunnel before she became aware of a presence behind her. She felt a sharp pang in her empathetic link-- one of unhappiness and-- anger. Lazni turned around, backing up at the sight of Princess Prominence standing in front of her. Her face looked fierce and angry, but she gave a nod for Lazni to continue. Lazni turned-- a tight squeeze inside the tunnel-- and hurried the younger drones along.

The eatery of the hive was a bit of a cluttered place. Green goo covered every wall, the substance being very gluelike and versatile. Lazni stopped the young drones before some of the green goo and ordered them to eat. turning away from the room, Lazni looked for Princess Prominence, who was sulking in the hallway. Lazni happily trotted over, trying to put on a smile and make it seem like everything was normal.

"Prominence, what's wrong?" Lazni asked.

"It's Hivemother." Prominence's voice leaked with scorn. "--The hive that came here. You didn't tell me about them. Do you know where they went after they got here and you came to see me?"

Lazni thought about this for a moment before shrugging. Prominence's face darkened. Lazni felt something sting her from the inside out-- Prominence had a deadly serious anger around her, one that caught Lazni very off guard. While Prominence had always been rather fiery, this deep anger in her eyes was an emotion Lazni associated with ponies-- not with her fellow Changelings.

"Princess Prominence... What's wrong?" Lazni asked.

"Lazni... I need to think." Prominence nodded over Lazni's shoulder. "Please, feed the new drones. I would like you to join me with them later. I must rest and think, join me in my chambers in a few hours."

Lazni raised her brow a bit. Prominence bit her lip and then quickly added, "Be prepared to go on a mission." Lazni turned away, nodding to her Princess an uneasily returning to the drones-- one of whom was already looking up curiously.

"What was that about?" The drone asked hesitatingly.

Lazni hushed the drone, shaking her head. "Unsure... but do not worry about it. We will find out soon enough. Come, let us go have a meal and then a short nap. After that we shall go see Princess Prominence together." Despite Lazni's words of a food and nap, she found little solace in eating or waking sleep as she stood sentinel next to the young drones. Something was very wrong with how Prominence when she had spoken earlier, and Lazni could not put herself at ease.

It was several hours later-- nighttime, as Lazni knew it-- when she arrived at Princess Prominence's chambers. Much of the rich decor that usually decorated the place was in tatters now. Bedsheets and rugs had been torn up into strips, most of which were being used as makeshift bandages by Pupae's drones that stocked the entire room. A single banner had been left untouched, and Prominence was in the process of carefully rolling it up and stowing it into a saddlebag.

"Prominence-- what is this?" Lazni asked, stopping dead at the entrance to the room and causing the drones behind her to bump into her hind legs. Prominence did not immediately look up from her work, but instead finished rolling up the banner and tucking it away before climbing onto her bed, nodding at Lazni to enter the room proper. Lazni did not budge, nervously scooting the drones behind her to the wayside in case she needed to run. This all seemed very odd...

"I have made the decision to leave Hive Lalartu." Prominence announced. Lazni let out a horrified shock, the only one from the crowd of changelings, all the rest of whom seemed unphased.

"Princess-- no, you cannot!" Lazni protested.

"I must and I will." Princess Prominence declared, jumping down from her bed and approaching Lazni. "Lazni, I would have you join me. I am leaving tonight with Pupae and her drones."

"But why!?" Lazni demanded, tears starting to soak into her eyes. She could feel ripples of fear from the drones behind her as confusion and panic swept across the room like waves, overwhelming the empathetic link they all shared. These feelings were met with equal responses of anger from Prominence-- not the kind that was white hot and burning out of control, but rather the smoldering of coals in a furnace, ready to burst to life anew at the slightest provocation. Lazni gulped, standing up straighter and doing her best to try and show some semblance of composure, hard as it was. She needed to be a source of comfort for the drones behind her, and not be a catalyst for Prominence's fury.

"Because this is a hive built on lies, and I can no longer abide by them. Lalartu would have let Pupae and her drones die before she would care for them. Look at them, they've shredded my bed for bandages." Prominence motioned to her destroyed quarters, a lick of fire spiking into her voice as she gave a hiss of displeasure. Lazni had observed this behaviour before in ponies who had their things taken or destroyed, but she found it odd that Prominence placed any real value on these material goods.

"Princess, how can you be sure? Hivemother promised us that she would take care of Hive Pupae." Lazni pleaded, hoping for some return to sanity in her superior.

"Hivemother lied," Prominence said shortly, advancing to Lazni with frightening haste. "Hivemother lies all the time. Lazni-- please listen to me. I know that you don't like this, I know you are having a hard time understanding-- but I need your skills. hive Pupae and Hive Prominence will both need your specialization to survive. Please help us."

Lazni took a step back, feeling the fiery eyes of Prominence burn past her chitin and into her soul. She glanced towards the drones laying on the ground, doing their best to mend their wounds and take care of their bodies for what was no doubt a long march ahead. A third emotion now washed over the room as Lazni focused on Hive Pupae, feeling them as she felt her own hive and Prominence. The first feeling was weariness, but even more deeprooted than this was hopelessness. they were all resigned to see, in their minds, the inevitable end of their queen and hive.

"Prominence, the skills you require are yours." Lazni nodded. "Changelings must look after their own.

"Indeed."

The hivemother's voice cut like a knife through the air. Lazni flipped around with a start as Prominence gave a hiss, sinking into an attack position like she was some manner of cat. The hall leading to Prominence's quarters was now blocked by countless soldiers, all of them sanding in front of the Hivemother, who gave a disapointed shake of her head towards Lazni and Prominence.

"I had hoped for so much more.: Lalartu looked down at her soldiers and gave a curt nod, stepping backwards and disappearing down the hallway as the guards advanced , fangs bared and mad hisses echoing from their jaws. Before any changeling could react, Prominence had lept past Lazni and the younger drones, her horn letting out a burst of brilliant flames in the face of the soldiers. Sparks flew from Prominence horn as she held a living flame in front of the doorway, impeding any advance by the soldiers, at least for the moment. Changeling chitin was a hardened shell, one that could allow those with thicker bodies to step through the fire. No sooner had one soldier bravely decided to test his luck than he let out a loud screech of pain.

Lazni's eyes snapped over to Pupae, who was now on her feet with what looked like a small spear of light held above her head. A similar weapon had just flown from in front of her, impaling the invading soldier and causing him to collapse into the flames, the fire licking at it's fuel hungrily. Lazni had to bite back bile rising up from her stomach as the urge to puke almost overtook her. She couldn't understand how things had gone bad so quickly. She wasn't even sure what Lalartu's order had been.

"Don't just stand there, dig!" Prominence yelled. "Dig a hole out of the hive!"

Lazni spun, watching as Pupae's drones tackled the far wall of the room, their gnarled hooves tackling the wall and ripping it down, their bloodied limbs beating on hard stone as they tried to carve a path out. Lazni lit her horn, giving herself light as she threw herself into the fray of hooves frantically trying to beat their way out of the hive. it was only seconds before she felt pain echoing through her carapace, jolts of pain rocking her head.Meanwhile, she could hear the sounds of fighting behind her. Prominence was hissing and snarling in ways that Lazni wasn't aware changelings could, a chorus of yells and screams from soldiers that tried to fight back echoing around her battle cry.

Minutes seemed to tick by, and Lazni turned, letting her hooves rest as she felt pain wrack her body. She wasn't built for this, not like the worker drones next to her. Prominence was now beginning to fade, and her living flames were now little more than a circle on the ground, enough to discourage the advance, but not enough to hold them forever. The air was thin, leaving Pupae, Prominence, and the younger drones gasping for air. Lazni hurried over to the young drones, trying to coach them up and towards the tunnel that had been created by Pupae's drones, but to her shock she felt fang greet her hoof. One of the drones had reached out and bit her, offering only a snarl. As little time as they had spent in the hive, they were already loyal to Lalartu.

Lazni wrenched herself away, feeling tears wash into her eyes as Prominence's flames failed. Several drones pulled themselves away from the tunnel and rushed to the front line, clashing with the soldiers as Prominence, Pupae, and Lazni withdrew into the tunnel together. the drones were now scratching and breaking up dirt-- they were close to the surface, but they weren't in the clear yet. Pupae's drones were butter before the soldiers' who had quickly pushed them back to the entrance of the tunnel. Lazni had stopped as she watched the horrible carnage, being able to see around the corner as the soldiers bore down on what she knew to be loyal young drones, destroying them without remorse.

"Cry later, dig now!" Prominence said, Grabbing a screaming Lazni and throwing her face into the dirt. Lazni tackled the dirt and mud with a broken heart, feeling Prominence slice into the soil right next to her. As the last of the drones failed, the feeling of mud and the sound of rain burst into the tunnel. the drones at the front scrambled to get out, Pupae stepping over several of them to hoist herself free of the mud sliding down the tunnel. Lazni could feel the ground filling her mouth as she stared up at a cloudy night, faint light appearing from Pupae's horn. Struggling to get any traction, Lazni reached for the light, trying to get free of the darkness below-- the dark soldiers of Lalartu, the sliding mud streaming in from all angles, and the blackness that was aching at the edges of her eyes. Lazni had never felt like this in her life-- the feeling of drowning while not underwater. the harder she reached to get out of the mud, the deeper she seemeld to slide under with the other Changelings.

Through the cracks that were her vision, Lazni saw a burst of light, and then a hoof reach down and grab hers, pulling her free. She still could not see very well, but a pair of hooves hoisted her out of the mud, tossing her aside onto a boulder located against the hill. Thunder filled the air once more, and then another great flash echoed through the world, showing the changeling soldiers and drones alike drowning in the landslide left behind. Ahead, a scant few drones lead by Pupae were striking out down the hill, trying to shake themselves free of mud as they made a break for nearby trees. Lazni gasped as she felt Prominence breathe in one of her ears, and the breath of a drone in her other ear echo past her. Lazni pulled free of both of them as she separated herself from the landslide, sticking close by the other two changelings as the slide down rocks towards the trees, very close behind the remnants of Pupae's hive.

The only sound louder than the death and rumble of thunder was the ceaseless licking of the rain as it stabbed the earth and anything in it's path towards joining the massive mudslide.

---

There was another rumble of thunder overhead as the group finally stopped to catch their breath, Prominence and Pupae both using their horns to check who was still with them. Lazni coughed, motioning angrily at Pupae and Prominence. "Ex-extinguish them!"

"Excuse me?" Pupae asked with hostility, her spirits clearly as low as everyone else's mood.

"Turn off the lights!" Lazni sputtered, gesturing at their horns. "There are many exits to the hive, if they follow-- they will see the lights!" Prominence and Pupae exchanged nods, dimming out their horns and letting darkness overtake the forest. Lazni felt her legs give out as she curled up against an inch of mud that made up the earth. She was freezing and not totally aware of her surroundings, but she knew that she and Prominence were in danger. All of them were in danger.

"Up, Lazni." Prominence said, her own legs buckling as she tried to pick Lazni up off the ground. "We can't stay here. They might find us. "

'In this weather? How do you-- know that? Without light they're as blind as we are." Lazni gasped, using her blurry vision to look at her surroundings. She was, in her heart of hearts, an infiltrator. She always told herself she had escaped from worse, but this time she really doubted that normally comforting thought. Grabbing at some leaves and a discarded branch, Lazni pulled Prominence against herself. Although Prominence was much larger and much stronger in almost every regard compared to Lazni, all of her energy had been spent on magic. her body gave out as she fell into the mud with Lazni, the latter using the branch to cover them up.

"Pupae!" Lazni called out, gesturing to the queen with a gnarled hoof to join them under the foliage. Pupae bit her lip, obviously turn. Lightning cracked as she turned to her drones, shouting some order that Lazni could see by the light, but not make out as the storm made her deaf. Pupae's drones turned and ran from the forest, leaving their queen to slide under the branches and leaves, sandwiching Lazni between herself and Prominence.

"I have sent my drones to get help. They will find some ponies and manipulate them." Pupae hissed over the screaming rain. "They'll say ponies were caught in the mudslide, ponies will assist us! Ponies fools like that!"

Prominence let out a cough as she grasped at her words, leaning close to Pupae and grabbing her so she could not pull away. Lazni only listened as she stared at the Princess and the Queen in front of her, both staring at each other with horrible venom. Prominence let out a shallow breath on berating her, "You are the fool, Hive Lalartu controls all the towns close by-- they'll be caught! You've sent them to their deaths!"