PONYVERSE

by TopWanted

Invasion of the Pony Snatchers

Invasion of the Pony Snatchers

===E8DB

Rainbow stayed in the hotel room with Pinkie until she was sure the mare had cried herself to sleep again. “Sorry, Pinkie,” she whispered as she tip toed to the door. “But we can’t leave just yet. I still need to figure out what’s going on with my home.”

Confronting Lightning had been a bad idea, but she was still determined to help her. Though the Sonic Rainboom barely let me keep up with her. She’s on a whole other level right now, and I think I need to find out why. Best way to do that was to visit the one pony that could provide the most answers.

The night was almost through and it was still pretty dark out thanks to the storm clouds above. The distinct lack of sentries flying around Sky Glaive made her uneasy as well but made it easy to sneak back into the camp.

She landed just outside the officers’ quarters where she wanted to be. It was a stretch to think that Spitfire would be in her office this early but even if she wasn’t she could maybe rifle through her files and find some clues. A noise alerted her and she ducked behind a bush. Two pegasi walked up to where she had just landed looking around suspiciously. Had they noticed her come in? She didn’t see them when she landed.

They investigated the spot a little bit more combing the earth where she’d landed and even sniffing the air. There was something odd about the way they moved. Stiff and jerking, baring their teeth a lot as well. Then there were moments when the light of the moon caught their eyes. A flash of green. Hadn’t she seen that before? They nodded away and flew off, Rainbow slowly exiting her hiding spot. Something was definitely not right here.

She entered the officers’ quarters and walked down the hall. Just like she suspected the place was mostly deserted. Spitfire’s office was at the end of the hall so she decided to fly across it stealthily to avoid noise with her hoofsteps. A shadow passed the wall at the end of the corner and she ducked inside a broom closet. The shadow walked into the bare light from the hall windows and solidified into the form of Spitfire, Soarin trailing behind her. They stopped in front of her office door.

“Cloud cover is looking nice,” she said. “Tell Lightning Dust she can take some time off now. She worked well for now but it’d be best to get that wild card out of here when the fireworks start.” Fireworks?

Soarin nodded numbly, his eyes looking dull. “Yes, ma’am.”

Before he could turn to leave, Spitfire caught him by the arm and put a hoof under his chin. “And try to cheer up. After all, those Hoofenbach fools are going to get what’s coming to them.”

Soarin’s demeanor seemed to change and his eyes turned angry. “Yes!” He left with a renewed vigor.

Rainbow tried to get a better look and opened the closet door a little more making a slight creak. She immediately shrank back as Spitfire turned toward her. She didn’t watch as she could hear the mare sniff the air like the pegasi outside. The sniffing soon stopped though and an eerie silence filled the corridor.

Rainbow was about to check again when a loud sound shook her. A moment passed and it happened again. It sounded like something hitting a wall followed by a creak. The doors. She was swinging the doors open checking every one. And it was getting closer. Rainbow had to find some way to hide in this cramped room.

Finally, Spitfire slammed the door to the broom closet open gazing into it with a stern expression. All she saw though was utilities and cleaning supplies. Still, she stayed a little longer than necessary in the doorway making sure to take it all in. A bolt of lightning cracked across the sky outside and thunder followed making her turn. “Already? Damn. I was hoping for later this afternoon. Still, get started in the morning and the fight could last all day. That would be fun.” She closed the door behind her and left, her hoofbeats slowly getting quieter.

Rainbow took in a huge breath as she rolled out of the laundry chute she had hid herself in. It had been used mainly for dirty flags and rags so it smelled like rancid disinfectant and grass stains in there. If she hadn’t held her breath she probably would have hurled. Still she was able to hear everything the commander had said. Something about a fight? And Hoofenbach. Were the pegasi purposely picking a fight with the ponies at Camp Hoofenbach? Why? It made no sense. “I need to know more.”

She slipped out of the closet and followed behind Spitfire as she left the office and headed to the barracks. Rainbow watched from afar, hiding herself behind a cloud as dozens of pegasi flew to meet Spitfire. “Report,” she commanded in an almost regal tone.

A flyer walked forward and grinned maliciously. “Pegasi of squads 4-6 are tapped out and ready for disposal.”

“As are squads 7-9,” another spoke.

“1-3 are taking a little longer than expected but they will be ready for the battle below,” said another.

Spitfire sneered. “Hrm. Regardless, I’ll make sure to riot their emotions when the battle begins. Squad leaders let your pegasi know and infiltrators let your squad leaders know of the attack as well.”

“Infiltrators?” Now that she thought of it, she recognized some of those ponies below. Some were squad leaders like her while some were simply recruits. It was an eclectic bunch to be sure. But what better way to insinuate themselves into all aspects of the Wonderbolts. Still, Spitfire seemed to be their leader. That couldn’t be possible. She’d known the mare almost her whole life. There was no way she was a traitor or whatever these ponies were.

Spitfire pulled a pegasi to the side as the rest flew off. “Go below and tell the others when the battle commences. And remember, they have to throw the first volley.”

The flyer saluted and flew off. When she was sure the flyer was out of sight and sound from Spitfire, Rainbow followed. She trailed behind them as they passed over the edge of Sky Glaive and headed for the ground. To get there they had to pass through the dark shadow Sky Glaive cast beneath it. Rainbow made her move there. With a burst of speed, she was in front of the flyer. At first they looked surprised but then Rainbow saw it again. A flash of green in their eyes. They scowled at her and charged with a yell.

“Woah, hey!” Rainbow shouted as the flyer actually tried to bite her. They snapped at her as she held them off with her back legs and pushed off with a kick. The flyer didn’t even seem fazed by the kick to the jaw, moving it back and forth to make sure it wasn’t broken then returning to the attack. “You’re a lot tougher than you look, huh?” she asked. The flyer didn’t respond as it flew and swiped a hoof at her that she dodged. “Not gonna talk, huh?”

With a swift movement she flew underneath the flyer and slammed into them from below. She pushed them up as they crashed into the bottom of Sky Glaive. Not as painful as she would’ve preferred it to be because of the clouds but it did the job as the flyer was now lodged in the building material. They struggled but to no avail. “Feel like talking now?” The flyer stopped fidgeting and simply looked at her, an evil smile on their face. “Okay, if I wasn’t already sure you’re up to something, that creepy smile just proves it now.”

Suddenly the flyer began to clack their teeth together. At first Rainbow thought they were just chilly but it didn’t seem like the chattering teeth of somepony cold. It was more deliberate and repetitive. “Hey, what are you-” A hit to the gut cut her off.

Rainbow felt the breath knocked out of her as three more flyers steamrolled into her from nowhere. Where did they come from? She flipped in the air, still trying to catch her breath as one flew up behind her and grabbed her arms. Another flew over to the flyer entrapped in cloud and helped to pull him out. The last flew in front of her a hungry look in their eyes. “She smells so good!” they said licking their lips.

“I thought all the Wonderbolts had been drained?” the one holding her asked.

“They were, this must be somepony else.”

“But she’s wearing the uniform.”

“We should let the Queen know,” the third said.

“Yeah,” the one glaring at her said. “Or we could have one last snack before the battle. Seriously, she’s dripping with compassion.” The others seriously seemed to be thinking about it.

Rainbow had to act fast or she’d be overwhelmed. She struggled with her captor, her movements loosening her neck line and letting the necklace she’d been wearing fly out. That’s it! If she could just grab the Zapp necklace and maybe hit them with a lightning bolt. She nipped at the necklace as it bounced but another attacker saw her doing this and grabbed it, wrenching it from her neck with a snap. “Hey! That’s mine!”

He sniffed it and flinched. “Smells like magic.”

“Better get rid of it.” The attacker drew back his hoof and threw the necklace up into the sky where it landed somewhere above on Sky Glaive.

“No!” Rainbow shouted at them, still trying to get out of the hold she was in. “Just what are you guys?”

“What are we? We’re hungry!” A green flame surrounded them and in an instant they had changed. They were no longer pegasi or even ponies. They were black with green insect like wings and eyes. Holes riddled their feet and they stared at her with fanged smiles.

“What the hell?”

The first creature tapped its chin. “Now, what form would get the most reaction out of her?”

Rainbow felt a shiver run down her spine as she felt something alien and tainted reach out and touch her mind. It felt like something slowly caressed her feelings rifling through them like a file cabinet. It made her want to throw up. “Think I got it!” another one said.

It changed again but this time into a face she thought she’d never see again. “Easy Rider?” The older mare looked the same as she did when she died, even the slightest wrinkles were familiar. Rainbow felt an overwhelming sensation of love flood her and then with the same tainted hands it was wrenched away from her and all she felt was pained emptiness.

“Mmm,” the creature that wore Easy Rider’s face grinned. “That was good.”

“My turn!” The next one did the exact same thing, rifling through her memories and choosing one that would suit it. It changed into Fluttershy, not as she was right now but as she used to be, the filly she’d been friends with. Rainbow once again felt her emotions fill and then drain away. The process was excruciating, sapping her of most of her energy until she had begun to just hang from the creature holding her from behind.

“Stop… it,” she managed to croak out struggling to get her legs to move or her wings to work.

“I’m still hungry,” the last one said. Rainbow felt its touch and almost blacked out because of it, then Lightning’s face greeted her. “Ooh, this mare is friends with the Stormbringer.”

“Huh. Then she might prove useful in case that tank of a Pegasus messes with the plan. Don’t finish her.”

“Aw,” the Lightning faced creature sighed.

The Easy Rider creature lifted her chin and gave her a toothy grin. “The Queen is going to want to see you.” The wind began to pick up and they covered their faces. “Storm must be getting worse. We better get back before it starts.”

They tried to fly away but the lead creature was flipped to the side as a strong wall of wind began to form around them. “What the heck?”

A strong cylinder of wind began to rush around them, entrapping the creatures inside. Rainbow tried to stay awake and see what was going on but she was so drained. Something like a pink lightning streak flew from below and slammed into the creatures then it crashed into the one carrying her and she felt herself falling. She blacked out just as the streak of light shot down to catch her.

---

“Lightning!” Rainbow shot up fully awake now. She was back in the hotel room where she’d left Pinkie. But she was in bed now, the pink mare nowhere in sight.

Then the door opened and Pinkie strode in, still not in her Fili-Second suit but looking particularly better than the last time she’d seen her. “You’re looking better.”

“Yeah, I, uh…” the events of the past couple hours foggily resolved in her mind. Including that lightning bolt at the end that saved her. “Was that… you?”

Pinkie shrugged and gave her a small smile. “Yeah. Tornadoes are easy to make with enough speed and then I can usually ride the air pressure up them. It’s a lot more scientific than that but I was never that good with explaining stuff.”

Rainbow scooted out of bed. “No, I’m glad. I had no idea you were so cool.” Pinkie blushed.

“I’m… sorry I’ve been such a mope,” she apologized. “When Twilight… Matterhorn appeared after being gone for so long, lets just say a lot of memories came up. She’s still my friend and I know there’s the Twilight I knew deep down there somewhere. I want to help her.”

Rainbow put a hoof on her shoulder. “Pinkie, I know exactly how that feels.”

“But first we’ve got to do something about this place, your home is infested with changelings!”

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “Changelings?”

“Those insect things that could change shape. We came across them a couple times while traveling. They feed on the emotions of others, specifically love and compassion.”

Rainbow rubbed her chin. “That would explain how they changed into ponies I knew. It would probably also explain why everypony here is acting weird. If they’ve all been drained of their compassion then of course they’d be at each other’s throats.” But something still didn’t add up. “But, if the changelings have turned Sky Glaive and Camp Hoofenbach into a feeding ground, why are they planning a big fight to wipe them out?”

Pinkie shrugged. “Don’t know. Changelings are kind of hard to predict. In some worlds their smart and hide well and in some their dumb and can’t stick to a character. No way to tell what these ones are thinking.”

“Still, Shining Armor has been here for over a week and he never noticed them. Probably means they’ve been able to hide pretty well. We need to stop this war from happening.”

Pinkie nodded resolutely. “Yeah! I’m with you all the way.”

A roll of thunder cracked outside and Rainbow frowned as the pitter patter of rain began to pelt the window. “Spitfire is their Queen and she had Lightning rig up this storm for something. Plus, those guys that attacked me said that Lightning wasn’t one of them. Maybe I can convince her of the threat and she can help us stop this before it begins.” It was a long shot, but she needed to believe she could get through to her friend. “Pinkie, could you find Shining Armor and warn him? Both of you can search the camp for whatever changeling is supposed to start the war.”

Pinkie saluted. “Aye Aye, Captain Dash.” She disappeared in a pink streak leaving her super suit behind.

Rainbow opened the window letting the rain pour in and preparing to go find Lightning. “I made a promise to Fluttershy. But it was meant for more than her. I’m gonna help you too, Dust. Even if you don’t want me to.”

Comments

[Mal Masque]

Changelings... Why did it have to be Changelings....

[raven618]

7662133
Because we've seen nearly a dozen different worlds recently, and in none of them have we yet encountered a Changeling. (To our knowledge)