Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining
As predicted by the Princess, Silverline’s recovery took a week more than it was initially anticipated. By that time the stallion started talking, mostly answering routine questions such as “how are you today?” or “does anything hurt?”. He seemed more talkative around the Princess, the royal mare coming by almost every day to check up on her friend.
“You really don’t have to come visit me so often, Princess,” protested the stallion, still welcoming Celestia with a warm smile. “Some ponies might get the wrong idea, you know.”
“Let them talk. I'm just glad to see you're alright,” giggled the mare, leaning in gently to embrace the pony.
"Knock me down, and I'll keep getting back up," replied the soldier with a small sigh.
Silverline saw golden magic from the corner of his eye and remained silent. He observed as the Princess put up a glowing bubble around the two of them, a field in which they could talk more freely. And there was a lot to talk about.
“Silverline, I think it is high time we discuss our... plans,” stated Celestia, carefully sitting down on the bed. “Now more than ever it is imperative that we take steps towards securing the safety of Equestria and her citizens. If what you said back then is true, we might be facing an invasion of never before seen magnitude. Our only hope is that the enemy is unaware of us knowing their modus operandi. We must act fast and unnoticed.”
“I understand, Princess,” replied Silverline, bowing his head slightly. “It is unfortunate that only I made it out. We lost a lot of good stallions back there. The enemy has superior numbers, training and most importantly, managed to learn a lot about our defenses. They could read us like open books. A most dreadful feeling, my lady,” he finished, a chill visibly shaking his bandaged body.
“I’m sorry I put you through this. I promise I’ll make it up to you in time,” replied the sun goddess, lightly nuzzling the soldier. “As much as I would prefer to see you rest more in bed, every minute we spend not preparing is the enemy’s gain. Our only chances right now are you and the changeling who defected to our side, providing us with valuable information about their race.”
“A changeling traitor?” gasped Silverline, his ears perking up immediately. “Princess, you should not be trusting any changeling! Their methods, their cruelty, everything about them is simply wrong and-”
Celestia put a hoof up, silencing the soldier. “I understand your concerns. If it wasn’t for his invaluable help, we would have not gotten as far as we did with our preparations. I do believe that we are on the verge of creating a means to detect and disable changelings.”
“We are? That is great news,” grinned Silverline. “I would still keep a wary eye on the defector. Their race is skilled at deception.”
“I will, friend. Leave that to me. Your task, I’m afraid, is far more burdening though. I am forced to ask you to rebuild the special forces and train new recruits as fast as you possibly can. I have already completed a list of potential trainees, ponies who have shown prodigious skills in certain fields. I’ll have it delivered to your office tomorrow.”
“Thank you, Princess. There just ain’t no rest for the wicked, now is there?” he chuckled, standing up and shaking himself off. He saluted the princess. “It will be an honor to rebuild and serve in the special forces again. Thank you.”
Celestia saluted back with a warm smile. It was a great weight off her heart to see Silverline in good shape, both mentally and physically. The doctors didn’t seem to give him enough credit - he was, after all, one of the toughest survivalists in Equestria.
* * *
Silverline sighed deeply, sitting behind his small desk in one of the many rooms of Canterlot castle. His office was nothing much compared to what the rest of the building had to offer - simple four walls with some unremarkable paintings, a few chairs lined to the right and one in front of himself.
He pressed a hidden plate under the desk, a part of the marble floor popping up to reveal a secret stash. The stallion reached inside and scooped up a single folder with red tape wrapped around it. It had a warning written all around it, cautioning the reader that any unauthorised opening would cause the document to combust, potentially inflicting burn marks or blindness.
Slowly, he removed the wrapping, opening the file. It gave a small hiss, the protection spell recognising its reader’s features and dissolving. Silverline always joked that one of these days somepony would weave the spell wrong and he’d have to deal with having no eyebrows to furrow at his ponies.
The folder was full of profiles and pictures of potential candidates - most of them were seasoned veterans from the guard. Looking at their service records, quite a few have seen some action, two even receiving medals for valor. The ones that stood out were a batpony night guard, apparently incorporated into duty after being caught on stealing royal jewelry from an unopened treasury (a feat the perpetrator refused to explain even under the threat of torture), and a boot camp initiate, a burly looking earth pony who consistently scored top of his class and was noted for having huge strength and endurance, even for his race.
Silverline’s trained eyes didn’t see much potential in any of those - his squad was a rag-tag collection of unique talents that he needed in his line of work, forged and refined in the many missions they were part of. Maybe the batpony and veteran guard could be molded into something resembling his comrades, but even in dire need he would still prefer to spend a week or two browsing on his own.
As it were now, he had no intention to rebuild something that wasn’t lost anyway. His people had their orders, preparing the changelings for the takeover. All he had to do here was stall, focus all attention on himself. He would diligently interview everypony, pick a few and begin some mundane training. With some luck, he would condition them to listen to him above everypony else, which could be a nice little trick up his sleeve when the love of his life, Chrysalis, would finally reach Canterlot.
Silverline already had a plan - a few to be exact. He was glad that the Princess didn’t show any signs of suspicion. That would make his mission much easier, even if some of those stallions were there to keep an eye on him. The soldier would act out his normal routine, acting only slightly suspiciously to keep Celestia and Luna on edge, still guessing where his loyalties lied.
To be honest, he was still faithful to Equestria. What set him apart from the rest of the equines was his understanding of how the Changelings worked. Their true nature, their gifts. He knew that nopony would willingly accept his point of view, as he had resisted it for a longer time. Sometimes, the greater good simply has to be spoon fed to the masses. They would brand him a traitor of course, but that didn’t matter. With time and the loving care of Chrysalis, they’d understand.
Just as he did.
* * *
Chip was both excited and nervous. It took nearly a whole week longer for him to be called to the recruitment office for an ‘emergency’. Without much explaining, he was asked to follow a pair of serious-looking guards deep into the castle.
The changeling got led down a few corridors to the less known parts of Canterlot castle, curiously looking around and taking in the environment. The hold was mostly white with golden accents, the halls decorated with beautiful stained glass windows and incredibly detailed statues of ponies. It was a polar opposite of the rather dark and damp hive back at home, where the only decorative accents were rusty stains that peppered the floors, walls and even ceilings.
“Wait here,” said one of the guards escorting him. “You will be called inside in a few moments.”
A brief salute later, the two stallions simply turned around and left, disappearing behind a corner. Chip sighed and looked over his disguise one last time - the skin of Redberry was really getting old on him, and yet he’d have to endure it for Celestia knew how much longer. Whatever this was about, it all seemed pretty mysterious, which didn’t sit well with him.
Without much warning, Chip heard a click and the doors opened, revealing a small desk, a pony sitting behind it. Sure enough his budding suspicions were proven correct - Silverline was staring at him, now much more fit and less bloodied. He looked mildly irritated, clearing his throat and nodding for the changeling to come in.
With a small jump start, the shapeshifter entered the room, the door immediately closing behind him, followed by a blueish aura enveloping the room.
“Sit down,” muttered the unicorn, eyeing Chip with a cold, steel gaze. “Private Redberry, yes?”
“Yes sir,” muttered the changeling, looking around at the shield. It was most likely the same protection spell that Shining Armor and Celestia used when they wanted to talk in private. He would have to learn that incantation at some point. In fact, there were a lot of spells to be learned.
“I can see here you got a lot of praise,” said Silverline, still eyeing the red pony, spreading several pages of reports and reviews across the desk. “Pretty athletic. Good hoof-to-hoof combat. Top of class. I even see that Captain Shining Armor sent a letter recommending that you be trained in the direction of Celestia’s Personal Guard.”
“Correct,” said Chip, meeting the other’s gaze. He had to hoof it to the pony - his smell was very faint, as if he put his emotions under a lid. If more ponies knew how to do that, they would perhaps have a chance against the hive. “May I ask what is this about, uh, sir?” tried the changeling, playing the role of a clueless initiate the Princess told him to assume.
“I will be asking the questions here,” bluntly replied Silverline, standing up and going around his desk. “All you need to know is that I outrank you and everyone you can think of, save for Her Majesty Celestia. Now, hit me.”
“Excuse me?” blurted out Chip, raising an eyebrow.
“Hit me. That’s an order.”
“Sir? I can’t-”
Silverline shot out like an attacking viper, his forehoof aiming straight at the private’s exposed torso. To his surprise he didn’t feel it connect, merely sliding on the soft red fur of his target. The initiate was twisting his body, his hooves closing in to lock Silver’s elbow.
Just as Redberry was about to grab the hoof, he got cast back by a magical pulse, the chair he was on tipping and causing him to fall. The spec ops commander followed up by leaning his body forward, using if to lift his hind hooves for a sideways kick.
Again, the initiate showed near in-pony reflexes, arching his back for a backflip. His forehooves firmly heaved him over the powerful kick that sent the wooden chair crashing against the wall.
Chip wanted to say something, but he managed to only put a single hind leg on the ground before the crazy soldier struck again. This time he was diving low, blazing horn first, a fire spell lingering on the tip.
This wasn’t a brawl, that much the shapeshifter understood. This was an all out battle in which Silverline wanted to hurt him. Every instinct in his body told him to drop the disguise and swat the soldier away with telekinesis, but then he’d be exposing himself and failing the mission. In his current form, all he could do was evade, never having enough time to gain sure enough footing to launch a counter. Or did he?
With a bit of surprise Silverline saw Redberry drop down as well, his teeth bared and maw open. Just as the spec ops pony was about to release the flare he had prepared, he felt a pressure on disrupt the spell. The private bit him, crunching down on his horn.
Chip felt his jaw was on fire as he dragged along with the pony’s movement, finally managing to pull him far enough to begin tracing an arc. Silverline’s momentum was used against him, the stallion unable to halt his imminent collision with the door to his office.
* * *
The battle lasted maybe two or three seconds. Without even a word of explanation or the slightest hiss, Silverline picked himself up and limped over behind his desk, shaking off the numbness that overcame his leg. Chip felt confused and quite angry, adrenaline slowly but surely dissolving to make way for the pain of a strained back and burned mouth.
The two sat in silence for a longer while. Redberry had to retrieve a new chair, keeping his singed lips slightly agape and flinching every now and then. Silverline wanted to caress his bitten horn, feeling it throb dangerously. It would be a dishonor to himself and his trade to show this kind of weakness, though, especially to a lowly initiate who barely got his first teachings at boot camp.
“That was a reckless move, Redberry,” hissed the commander, scooping the files on his desk to a bin. He’d light them on fire for emphasis, but any amount of magic he gathered would simply dissipate in the stinging pain. “It’s not something they teach you at boot camp.”
“No sir,” mumbled out Chip, suppressing his hisses.
“Why did you do it?”
“What was I supposed to do?”
“I ask the questions. Why did you bite me?”
“You wanted to hurt me. I fought back.”
“You disobeyed my command.”
“With all due respect, I don’t even know who you are, sir.”
“Ponies have to work hard to earn that knowledge,” said Silverline, thoughtfully stroking his chin. “That will be all for now, though. You are dismissed.”
“W-What?” stuttered Chip, his mouth hanging open even more.
“Get out. Remember that this meeting never happened. You were given leave to visit your sick parent and will resume your training in three more days. If you so much as mention any of what happened here, I’ll have your memory wiped two years back. Understood?”
The changeling was dumbfounded. He didn’t like Silverline the moment he saw him back when he was just a bloodied shivering mess. The real deal was far more irritating, arrogant to a level he didn’t think possible in a pony. Still, his demeanor would make escaping the changeling hive at least a possibility.
“Now, get out of my office private.”
Slowly, Chip stood up, gave a half-hearted salute and left the room. From the corner of his eye he noticed that the stallion had to trot over to the doors to close them with a bang. He couldn’t help but smile.
* * *
“So, I can do whatever?” asked Chip, making sure he heard correctly the first time around.
“Yeah. The official story is that you got a few days off due to your father’s sudden illness. None of the teachers will ask a thing, and you’ll need to think up a story to tell the recruits, at least those that you usually talk to. This is all very convoluted, I’ll admit,” sighed Shining Armor, rubbing his temple. “I mean, for a spec ops pony, this excuse sure is sloppy. It’s almost as if he’s not trying. Anyway, here are the keys to your apartment. You live alone, but you’ll still have to keep your disguise on.”
“I can go wherever I want? I mean, nopony will be watching me or anything?” The changeling was really starting to get worried, trying to suppress all the hopes that immediately threatened to overwhelm him.
“I guess so. I was surprised myself. Apparently the Princess trusts you a lot, and it would be kind of weird if you’d just vanish into thin air for those three days. Just act normally...as much as you can, at least,” sighed Shining. “Report back to the recruitment office on day four, first thing in the morning. We’ll have to decide an alternative course of action in case Silverline doesn’t pick you - at this point, nothing is certain. Judging by your story alone, I have no idea what he tried to achieve-”
He wanted to continue trying to guess Silverline’s plan, but Chip was already focused on something else. With a bit of worry, the white stallion observed the changeling stare at him intently. He recognised that look. He could almost see the cogs whirring under that skull of his.
“So, uh, I guess, if I were to say, book a train or chariot...you know, for a little vacation out in the, uh, countryside. I heard that the weather is quite nice near the Everfree this time of year. There’s this little place that-”
“You really want to see Twilight that badly?” bluntly asked Armor, rolling his eyes with a deep sigh. “Sorry Chip. You have an imaginary father to tend to. You can’t go to Ponyville.”
Despite not being able to feel emotions like a changeling does, the captain flinched when the shapeshifter let out a long sigh, slouching in resignation. Shining looked away, frowning slightly and bracing for the inevitable. “Coincidentally, though, I invited Twilight over to Canterlot for a small get-together. It just so happens that she will be visiting a small cafe tomorrow, around one in the afternoon. It’s a really nice place, you should go there sometime if you like good-”
The rest of the air that would be dedicated to finishing the sentence was crushed out of Armor’s lungs in a hug so tight it could bend metal. Chip glued himself to the fidgeting captain, showering him with thanks, rubbing his cheeks all over the stallion in unbridled affection, the painful pricking of his burned muzzle ignored completely.
“Don’t...make me...regret...my...decision,” gasped out Shining, his struggle for air futile in the face of the most thankfull changeling alive.
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Just as I was about to finish chapter 70...
*ding*
I get an email telling me that chapter 71 got posted up!
4869329
Was there ever any doubt?
I saw that coming! I was hoping that it wouldn't happen but hey, where'd be the fun in that? Ah Silverline, when will you learn? Chryssi only has eyes for one pony. And that's herself on the throne.
Chip, winning fights like a BAWS. Earth pony master race proving their superiority once again.
E-he-he-he. Chip is stubborn kid.
4869351
What did you mean exactly? That he'd still be under the changeling influence?
4869376
Technically, he still had his predatory senses and boosted stats to fend for him, but yeah, let nopony tell ya that an earthie can't fight good
4869379
Hey, research is pretty important for him, okay?
4869384
Just remember. Twilings belong to this story: for_the_hive
4869544
Oh my. Guess I should give it a read, no?
4869577
Try it.It may give you several good ideas.
Ahh, happy times. Reminds me when I was much younger, fell off a wall, twice, landed face first on a tarmac on stone road. Got bruised. Several other occurances, makes me feel like Chip in the loading, and avoiding. Never got into serious training, exercise or such, otherwise a doubling o ability wouldve given me free climber, parkour or even martial art.
Surely it shouldnt take long for Silverline to be brought into suspicion, after all, he Is supposed to be training a Special Ops squad, and if he isnt, even to the minimum acceptable training regime, somethings wrong, so instead Luna has to take over Secret Special Ops training instead. With more Canterlock overacting?
4869381 Yeah. It's almost a classic. Usually there's a reason why there's ever "only one survivor." Either because he's carrying a virus, a host, a spy, a double-agent, or to carry a message. Then again I haven't seen it used in a long while, so it was a good throwback!
4869623
I wanted to somehow defend the point that only he made it back, but you caught me - I just thought that only the commander would be sturdy enough to believably escape from a place that nopony (save for a couple of mares in a single instance) ever got out from. Alive at least
4869610
Ya. I can imagine it. I wonder how sign language would look in the Royal Canterlot Voice. Probably involved a morning-star or flail.
4869662
I would suspect Nunchucks.
Made of Tree trunks and mooring chain.
4869544
I was.....unimpressed with the sequel. A lot of the characters and events that happen in it feel rushed and poorly developed because he fell into a trap that I've seen more than a few writers on this site fall into: he got so focused on Twilight that he completely marginalized the supporting cast. I lost patience with him when he called all the scenes that would have developed Rainbow Dash's connection to the hive and to Twilight "filler".
I enjoyed the first story (except for the last chapter, because that's where the lack of development for RD started), but the sequel was poorly developed, despite the many unique ideas it had.
lol Another cute update.^^
Two silly schemers are making their move. Celebrate Shining Armour who will work against them!
A light breaks this dying night,
for soon may bliss return to your soul.
Beware the machinations so vile the coming moon;
then perhaps will the sun remain behind so dear.
Awaiting further releases.
4871471
Since it can be cracked, bruised and shattered, it's not exactly as hard as metal. Real chitin would never make a spider's guts reverberate, only make his surface a bit tougher to squish
4871500 It's all about the impact speed and recoil. I've practiced on beetles. I can kill them without so much as putting a single crack in their shells, with one well-placed flick.
Martial arts masters can do the same thing with a punch, focusing the shock wave a full inch in front of their fist at impact. I'm not quite at that level yet, though I can now punch concrete at full force and not damage my knuckes.
It's all about the physics of conserved momentum and kinetic energy transfer!
Yep, Silverline's a double agent, and has some sort of cherngelerng fetish.
Makes me want to kill him several times over now.
4871627
Oh, very interesting. Thank you for the fun fact
Do spare your knuckles though, you might need them someday
4871675 I did shatter my left pinkie knuckle when I was punching through ice and one punch tilted ever so slightly.
It still broke through the ice. The impact point looked like what happens when you shoot a bullet through two inches of glass, with a tiny entry hole and back side of the ice blasted out.
Doubt I could do that anymore. That was back when I had much more time to practice the timing and get my muscles toned for ultra-fast-twitch responses.
Sooo clooose!!! I have a feeling that the momentum of this story is going to pick up really soon. Not sure when, but soon.
Why does time have to be so slow? And why does writing have to take so long?
Curses to mortal limitations!
I want more!
4873713
I wuv all my readers too 
Awwww
4873032
Confound time and space, for it limits our potential like a royal douche!
If time permits, I'll write the next one today and publish it later tommorrow
4874238
She's DIABOLICAL 
Evil is a point of view
4874243 That's why she's so adorable!
4874281
Glad to hear that!
Do they teach that at boot camp?
4871627 You can't cheat the laws of physics. If you're punching concrete full force and not taking any damage, the most likely explanations are A) you're underestimating the amount of damage you cause to your body with each punch, B) you're overestimating the amount of damage punching concrete should do to your body, or C) you're subconsciously pulling your punches.
“Thank you, Princess. There just ain’t no rest for the wicked, now is there?” he chuckled, standing up and shaking himself off. He saluted the princess. “It will be an honor to rebuild and serve in the special forces again. Thank you.”
During the fight between Chip and Silverline, I found myself thinking: "I wonder who would win in a fight, Chip or Xenith from Fallout Equestria?"
My vote would be on Xenith, when you can take down ponies in advanced mechanical armor, not to mention giant irradiated monsters with nothing but your bare hooves...yeah.
Fallen Caeser style for the win!
7083434
I'm not familiar with the Fallout Equestria universe, but comparing the two makes just as much sense as pitting Son Goku against Saitama. They are both pretty strong in their respective settings
The changelings here are pretty tough, though.
a specific set of skills, you say?
Yes Morrison
He could always just change back to Wub and teleport to the Golden Oaks Library…