• Published 22nd Jun 2012
  • 19,337 Views, 2,502 Comments

My Little Changeling -- "I" is Magic - Wing Dancer



In the far north, where changelings live, change begins -- a single changeling learns to think...

  • ...
42
 2,502
 19,337

PreviousChapters Next
Fruits Of A Plan

Inside his den, Chip had to wrap his head around the chaos that ensued. The new mares were all over the place – screaming, clawing at the magically closed exit (yet another handy spell the changeling had to learn fast) or simply fainting. Night Star and Hope Dawn tried to control the situation, but it was more than they could handle. Their fur was ruffled and they suffered a few bruises trying to explain the situation. Irritated, Chip cast his teleportation spell and left the hiding place. Hopefully, it would be a lot easier to calm everypony down without his presence.

A sundering headache hit him upon arrival – he cast the spell with less concentration than was reasonable and had to make due with a migraine for the next couple of hours. The soothing night wind, clear, dark sky and tingling stars didn’t help much – the colt was tired, a bit hungry and on top of that wanted to crush his head against a wall. With determination worthy of a better cause he started vacuuming the nearby grass, paying no attention to the tasteless food.

Having somewhat pleased his stomach, Chip turned his focus on the head-splitting sensation he had. It could be anything – from incomplete teleportation, leaving half his brain flopping around in his skull (he begged his Queen that would not be the case) to just plain stress and over usage of his powers. Shape shifting, although a natural ability to changelings, seemed to be a kind of magic that put strain on the user. It wasn’t physically changing his appearance, as that would require time, energy and would probably be painful. Chip understood shape shifting as altering the world’s perception. He told the world he was someone else – the better he could communicate, the better he was understood and the guise would be more accurate.

If it really was that way, did that mean that the world is responsible for shaping things? A unicorn with sufficient knowledge and…uhh…instincts? could probably be as good as a changeling as he was. In fact, if one could tell the world that he was something different, could he probably point to, let’s say, a chair and say “That is a carrot?” Would the chair really become a carrot, with all its juices and edibility? If it would turn back, would the splinters harm the consumer?

Another throbbing spike crashed Chip’s train of thought. And the timing couldn’t be any better – the changeling sat on the barren ground for at least a few hours, probably transcending into sleep a few times – it was but a few moments till dawn. Deciding not to risk any more teleportation feats, he spread his leathery wings and dashed north, towards his home. Hopefully, he would be able to cast an invisibility spell. Or find a good excuse for being outside.

* * *

Back at the cave, the chaos was under control – the new mares sat silently and listened to the tales of Night Star and Hope Dawn – how they were kidnapped, how they met Chip, what he was like. Some of them were more confused than the others, but it was generally agreed upon that they would try their best not to freak out when the colt came back.

Thankfully, none of them made a Pinkie promise – Chip appeared in their midst, towering over them, sparking another fit of panic and chaos. Torment on his face, the changeling took a deep breath.

“SILENCE!!” he bellowed, strength and a death-threat in his voice overpowering the girls. For a second Chip was sure he overdid it – the silencing spell at the entrance bent and warped, but eventually held. The changeling made a mental note to refresh it sometime, as it was getting quite old.

“Chip, are you alright?” finally spoke Night Star. “You didn’t have to yell so loud, you know…”

“I’m sorry,” whispered the colt, shaking his head slightly. “I just have this gigantic head ache…ugh…”

“Now, now,” chimed in Hope, “you’ve had a tough day. Just relax, okay?”

“Uhum,” replied the changeling weakly.

* * *

When Chrysalis called him, she could swear she never saw Chip in a fouler mood. His head was swaying and the colt snapped at the changelings that were exiting the lair. A smirk graced her royal lips. At least someone else was having a bad day yesterday as well. Curiosity of the stallion's “adventures” had to be restrained for now, as today would be the last day of the shape shifting training for her student. A mere formality, but important nonetheless.

“Chip,” she started, rising from her throne, “ today is the last day that we will learn transformation. I have to make sure you are doing everything like it was supposed to, so I will bury myself into your mind and watch you perform.”

It took a moment for Chip to process the information – and the sudden realization flushed his mind clean. The Queen would sit in his mind, monitor him? His thoughts? His MEMORIES?! What if she found out? What if she saw the image of 7 mares sitting in his cave, waiting to be safely taken out of custody?

As if reading his mind, the Queen said: “I’m also very curious to see how you fared with your victims. You seemed pretty tired last time you came around…and today it must’ve been even more interesting.”

Blank thoughts, don’t think about anything. The presence of Chrysalis was there. She was looking around. He wasn’t paying attention to what he was doing. He fumbled. Does she already know? She smiled! She knew! No, she was just laughing at him, he could feel it. Don’t. Think.

“Eh eh, Chip…” said the Queen, visibly displeased, “you are so tense. And your mind is so…bleh. I can’t stand being there. If your Queen so much disturbs you, I guess I’ll make do with what I have. Transform for me Chip.”

Her presence lifted from his mind. It was the most precious feeling he ever felt – he managed to keep his thoughts to himself, shield himself from the Queen. Without breaking a sweat he finally mimicked the screaming victim. He was so happy, it showed. This would be the last one. Then he would officially learn magic, in the meantime releasing the captives and continuing with his plan without a hitch. He didn’t listen as his Queen made a snickering remark about the time it took him to master the skill – he simply took the prisoner with Chrysalis’ blessing.

* * *

Bracing for another fit of panic, the changeling cautiously entered his den. It was still light outside, but he could not see any mare in sight. The wall spell that he left behind was untouched, so they couldn’t have gotten out. The new victim broke from Chip’s embrace and pressed herself into a corner, screaming wildly. Moments later, random piles of items started shifting, revealing his “friends” – the changeling sighed slightly with relief.

“All right, ” he said, muting the screaming pony. Everypony else was calm – they kept their distance, but at least nothing indicated that a wild storm would erupt in the den anytime soon. “Today is the last day I was being tested. Today is the day I will start setting you all FREE!” He had to yell the last word out as screams (this time of delight and joy) ensued.

The scent of positive emotions nearly drove Chip mad. Saliva was dripping from his mouth and he had to focus hard not to lunge at the now prancing mares. Fear and the still fresh memory of hurting Dawn fortified his will – with a bit of pride in his willpower, he steered his thoughts towards organizing this escape. There were 8 mares in total, so he would have to perform the spell around 24 times – transport a pony, move himself to check if she was all right and return. Such stress could be unbearable even for him…yet the challenge felt tempting. He even considered keeping track of the time it would take him to finish the operation.

“So…when will we start?” asked one of the bolder captives.

“Soon. Maybe even right now,” replied Chip, setting his horn aglow. The mares went silent and watched the changeling.

“I’ll go first,” said Night Star. “I trust you. And thank you.”

The bit of nuzzling she did didn’t break Chip’s concentration – still, it was a lot harder than he had anticipated. He knew his body full well and creating the mental image for that was easy. Focusing on another being called for much more precision and keeping track of other things. On top of that, his target was a pony! Chip strained under the pressure of keeping the spell together – without knowing it, he reeked his hooves against the solid rock of his den. That and the huffing and puffing he made were the only sounds to be heard – everypony had their eyes on the valiant mare, wrapped up in a green light. With a pop, she disappeared. A gasp went through the room as Chip followed.

The changeling’s head was starting to throb. That was a bad news. The good news was that Night Star was hugging him, tears in her eyes and words of praise on her lips. She was set free. She could return to her husband and foal. This emotion, as any other, smelled delicious and caused salivating – but Chip knew he would not dare to devour it. It was the same feeling as the desert wind, one that he felt with Chrysalis – a most precious thing offered to him, something he wished he could feel for the rest of his life. It was a balm that could sweep away all the wrongs, soothe all the pains.

With a final wave, the mare trotted off towards the Equestria border that was an hour or less away. The beautiful feeling left Chip, replaced by a lurking migraine. He could do it. It would take more time than anticipated, but it was possible. Finally something was going according to plan. And it was great.

PreviousChapters Next