The Advisory Board
The drone that I had yet to name had circled around the small hatchery space several times in confusion, their face scrunched up in a mixture of annoyance and frustration. A few eggs had come close to hatching, though it was only a matter of time before they fully gathered the strength to break through their cocoon. As this was happening, I was observing the single white drone that had hatched with curiosity. Perhaps this one was supposed to be the Caretaker advisor? That would explain why it was pacing around so much and its frustration with what was going on right now... or it could just mean that the drone thought that being a Caretaker was it's purpose. Regardless, seeing my drone so agitated was upsetting me. While they were distracted I maneuvered myself around the edge of the hatchery to stand alongside them, causing the drone to be startled.
"M-my queen! I apologize, I didn't know you were walking this way." They blurted, moving away from me and bowing. Their head was nearly to the ground; horn level with the floor and their eyes closed tightly shut. Were they afraid of me?
"What is wrong, drone?" I asked as softly as I could, using my hoof to lift their head from the ground in order to look into their eyes. "Why do you behave this way?"
The drone tried to avert their eyes from my own, replying in a wavering chitter. "T-there are patches in my mind... things that I should know, but can't remember." They grew more frightened as their eyes focused on me. "I-I don't want to be drained! I can still be useful!"
I lowered my hoof to release them while I thought. Drained? I had seen Queen Chrysalis do that to injured drones in the tunnels, though it occurred to me that it also might be a reason I had never seen a drone with a white carapace. Maybe they were drained as soon as they hatched to save the love for a drone that would know its purpose from the start? I frowned at the thought of doing that to my own drones. There was no need! My friends had always provided more than enough love for myself; enough love to create a hive. I wouldn't need to drain any of my drones, white carapace and faulty memory or not. I pulled the drone closer to me in a hug, causing it to chirp uncomfortably.
"M-my queen?" It asked uncertainly, wiggling in my hold.
"Yes?" I replied, redoubling my hugging efforts. Maybe I was doing it wrong?
"One of the eggs is hatching... and you're crushing me..." It squeaked, and I hastily set it down, brushing off its shell.
"Ah... right. Thank you for letting me know." I replied awkwardly. I would probably have to let me drones know what a hug was before I gave them any. I certainly didn't know anything about them before coming to Earth.
After the momentary awkwardness had been replaced with the anticipation of seeing another egg beginning to hatch, myself and the drone eagerly awaited the changeling we would meet as the small horn of a drone broke through the top of their cocoon. A more standard changeling with a dark grey carapace greeted me, their eyes mirroring my own coloration with a blueish-purple glow. Still not as defined as a Queen's, but that was expected anyway. Their shell was still blue with a white stripe down the center, and they had my own version of wings instead of the holed ones of Chrysalis' hive.
"Queen!" It chirped excitedly, flinging the top of the shell from its head. It then looked to my side and spotted the White changeling. "And... defective?" A look of confusion spread on its face before it looked at its own body in a panic. Seeing it was darkly colored, the drone sighed in relief. Then, it observed the white drone and its proximity to me before it became even more confused. "Why the defective alive?"
The white drone and I shared a look of concern. It motioned for me to lean down and whispered into my ear. "Are you sure I'm the defective one?"
My head raised again and I addressed the newly hatched drone. "What is your role, drone?"
Said drone quickly toppled out of their cocoon and landed on the floor face-first. Before I had a chance to smile, they had righted their stance and stood proudly in front of me. "I am Hive Adviser! I advise on hive!"
I bit my lip. "Ah-huh..."
The adviser then looked to the floor that I had coated in dirsime, and then immediately to the ceiling. "No no-no!" It complained. Completely forgetting that I was present, the Hive adviser began surveying the room making chittering and chirping noises of agitation. "No, not cave! Not underground! All wrong, wrong!"
I tilted my head in confusion, noticing the white drone doing the same.
"Queen!" The adviser shouted from across the chamber, causing a mild echo. "We build outside! Open air! No ventilation here; very hot! Hot is bad for mountain!"
"Oh." I blurted quietly. That would probably help with the issues my friends were having with me... melting everything. Though that brought up another issue. "We can't build outside, Adviser." I called back.
"What!?" They shouted, using their wings to zip over and land directly in front of me. "Why no outside?"
"Ah... danger?" I replied uncertainly. The directness of their speech was throwing me off.
The Hive Adviser then whipped around in search of something and grumbled. "Where Warrior?" It asked, before looking at me, and then the white drone. Pointing, it asked. "They warrior adviser?"
The white drone and I looked to another, shrugging in unison. "I have no idea." The white drone replied.
The Hive Adviser buzzed in annoyance. "Great."
Our attentions were taken by the sounds of another cocoon hatching, and the three of us moved quickly to the edge of the hatchery once more. One of the larger cocoons was hatching now! After a moment, a slightly larger and armored horn pierced its way through the cocoon.
"Ah, that warrior adviser!" The Hive Adviser cheered. "Please no defect!" it added with concern.
I really need to name these drones, I thought Idly. I can see why ponies and humans are so concerned with names now. It makes everything so much simpler to understand.
To my surprise, the top of the cocoon flew away into the air before cracking on the ground some distance away. The drone that had emerged from the goopy insides was heavily armored, looking somewhat close to myself when I had been a proto-queen, minus the regality and... well, ferocity of my previous appearance. Now they looked like a standard drone, albeit larger and with heavier armoring. Their carapace was black instead of the dark grey that my Hive Adviser was given.
"My Queen." The drone buzzed in a deeper register. "I am ready to serve."
"Well, they're very serious." The white drone muttered. This drew a thought of curiosity from me, as they were starting to remind me of my friends. Maybe they were a Human Adviser?
"You! Warrior Adviser, I-" The Hive Adviser blurted out before being interrupted by the Warrior.
"You will speak when the Queen allows it, Adviser." They warned, shooting the other drone a harsh look. The Hive adviser backed away, their wings slightly chittering. The Warrior then looked to me a second time before finally noticing the white drone. "A defective!" They shouted, dropping down and looking ready to pounce.
I moved in front of the white drone just as they moved behind me for shelter. "Stand down, Warrior!" I shouted at them, giving them a mild shock. "Do you not remember what I told all of you as grubs?"
The warrior backed away for a moment, apparently lost in thought. They blinked several times, scratching their head with a hoof. "I..." It muttered.
"All changelings must work together for the good of the hive." I re-stated, hoping to rekindle the memory. "No changeling should look down on another because of their station. If we don't all work together, we will only die alone."
The warrior was struggling for a moment, but soon bowed their head. "Yes, my queen. I apologize for my outburst." they then looked towards the white changeling and asked, "What of the defective?"
"All changelings." I replied sternly.
"Y-yes, my Queen." The warrior bowed.
"Warrior Adviser?" The Hive adviser requested. "Queen need help. Area dangerous, though not know why. Must build outside- open air. No build if danger. You fix danger, yes?"
It took a moment for the warrior to process what the Hive Adviser was even trying to say, though the message was eventually understood. "I will... look into that. As soon as the rest of the warriors hatch, that is."
"Yes!" the Hive Adviser replied. "You make safe, we build hive!" they paused shortly after their finished thought, and looked towards the hatchery again. "Where infiltrator?"
The two drones then looked to the white drone, which also drew my attention. Nervous, the white drone backed away from the group. "I-I don't know!" They replied defensively.
The warrior's eye twitched for a moment before sharing a look of annoyance with the hive adviser.
"This is going to get very confusing, very quickly." I stated, drawing their attentions.
"What do you refer to, my Queen?" The warrior asked.
"What wrong?" asked the Hive adviser in simpler wording.
"I can't continue to call all of you 'The Hive Adviser' or "the Warrior Adviser' in my head all day long. I'm going to be in charge of perhaps thousands of drones, all with different personalities and roles within the hive. At the very least I can give names to my advisers; maybe the other drones can give themselves names..." I hummed in thought.
"Y-you name us?" The hive adviser chittered excitedly, looking to the warrior adviser with a smile.
"Do you know what that implies, my Queen?" The warrior asked before being nudged harshly by the Hive adviser.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"N-nothing." The warrior blurted at a poor attempt in lying. At the moment, however, I was more concerned with what to even call them. Maybe my friends would have a better understanding of how to name my changelings? They had given me a name after all, why not my drones as well?
A loud cracking sound came from the hatchery once again, drawing me from my thoughts towards it.
"Again? More adviser?" the hive adviser announced in surprise. "So many!"
The four of us gathered around the outer edge to see where the noise was coming from, and I soon spotted a cocoon towards the bottom of the hatchery with a glowing horn sticking through it. The top lifted off and was set neatly aside, allowing the drone to pull their body to the edge of the cocoon and heave themself out.
"I h-hate goo." They complained, shivering on the ground.
"Eh... maybe not adviser." The Hive Adviser quietly added.
The drone looked around for a bit until it spotted me and flipped itself over quite nimbly. "My queen!" The drone replied in a higher register of chittering. Their carapace was a dark grey, similar to the Hive Adviser, so I knew they weren't 'defective'.
"What is your role, drone?" I asked, my other advisers at my side and the white drone staying behind me, perhaps out of sight.
"I am the Infiltration Adviser, my Queen. Ready to serve!" They chittered happily.
"That explain that, but not defective." the Hive adviser hummed. "We have Hive, Warrior, Infiltrator... oh." They then shared a look with the Warrior adviser as the thought dawned on them as well.
"Whats going on?" The Infiltrator Adviser wondered aloud, flying next to us. "What's wrong?"
The warrior and hive adviser pointed behind me, and I moved to the side to see what was wrong. They were pointing at the white drone.
"A defective?" The infiltrator asked in confusion.
"No, worse." The hive adviser stated.
"A defective Caretaker Adviser." The warrior finished.
Well, that confirms my suspicions at least.
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Yaaaaaayy... More development. Gud stuff. Much wow, verry storry, drone much? Oh haie world.
Queen Blue Sun
Caretaker Advisor Nurse White
Hive Advisor Terra-Cotta (Like the paint colour, the old word for Earth, and "Cot" a word for a bed)
Infiltrator Advisor Scintillating Shift (Changing colours, changing forms)
Warrior Advisor Captain Scarlet (He's a Mysteron)
I got names
Rough edge for the warrior
Smooth silk for infiltrate
And that's all I got
Something tells me that the advicer will annoy everyone
7869565 How about we use our names together?
I dont know why, it may be that im not very creative, or maybe its just the way I imagined him, but I feel like the warrior advisor should just be named Tank.
And the defective caretaker should be Bob.
7869572
Well I was aiming for Colour-thing name to keep the theme from "Blue Sun" going, so combining would be...
Scintillating Silk (Scintillating is a colour that shifts almost hyponotically)
Scarlet Edge (I threw out Captain Scarlet as a joke, but it did fit the theme)
Sound good?
7869539 Good vocab SWORDS LIKE do more good word!
7869593 that sound great!
Typical, the first to arrive is the committee. Be about the only time they do anything quickly.
7869597 Okay. (there's no thumbs up emoji, I feel betrayed)
Mr Sanguine Dreams, if you see this, Lone Shadow Wolf and I have come up with names for your Changeling advisors, using the same them of Colour / Object from Blue Sun, and several, several, puns
(Caretaker) Nurse White
(Hive) Terra-Cotta
(Infiltrator) Scintillating Silk
(Warrior) Scarlet Edge.
What a quirk of instinct--the drones are hatched having an adult level of innate knowledge that their queen lacks.
She still knows what she's learned, of course, and probably should discuss those matters with her new advisers before more soldiers hatch.
I like how they're born just educated enough to think they know what's what.
A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
Like grad students.
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7869565
Cool names but I feel they are too... expected
but at least they are related to their purpose as well.
Although I would suggest names (to relate to their unique location aka Earth) and pretty unique
Franklin, Theodore, Newton, Sino, Wilhelm, Roosevelt, Alvin, Burke, Kim, Kennedy, Vladimir
OR obvious prophetic names that may correspond to their destiny or fate (although may not be) like
Noah, Jeremiah, Christopher, Cain, Benjamin, Isaac, Peter, Abel, Seth, Judah, John etc
But meh
From what we've seen, the first three could be called Larry, Curly, and Moe.
Blue asks Warrior advisor to make area safe
Warrior advisor becomes Dictator
For whatever reason, this line makes me giggle.
Maybe it's the "So many!" part?
HAH! i knew i wasnt the only one thinking the warrior sounded like worf.
i love the differing sets of personalities.
Hive Advisor sounds like a higher pitched version of Steve Blum's Starscream to me.
My recommendations for names, though they are human names, so they might not fit in the story along with reasons for the offerings.
Theresa for the defective, named after Mother Theresa or possibly Hippocrates, named after the father of medicine.
Bond for the infiltrator, named after James Bond or possibly Sly, named after Sly Cooper.
Hannibal for the warrior, named after the general who took elephants over the Alps or Temujin, named after Genghis Khan.
Tesla for the engineer, named after Nikola Tesla.
I hope the Caretaker Advisor ends up being the best. The Hive Advisor is a jerk. The Warrior Advisor seems alright. I really like the different personalities these Advisors have.
Warrior Advisor = Myrmidon
Hive Advisor = Dig-Dug (just to be funny)
Infiltrate Advisor = Spectre
Caretaker Advisor = Nightingale
7869565 Seconding Nurse White.
It's OK Nurse White, Queen Blue Sun isn't going to drain you.
I think the hive adviser should be called doge
queen blue sun is starting to learn the in's and out's of being a queen.
and I like the feels of this chapter.
so much love.
Interesting chapter I like it. I'm guessing the Hive advisor represents the tunnelers then? If so I pity them "Stripe" as I called him in my had, has an odd method of speech that takes a bit to process. But it makes him interesting none the less.
Though what I'm most interested in is the implications hinted at with names, and why defectives are apparently so resented that "Terminate on site" seems to be the instinctual reaction to them. Hope that doesn't happen as he seems amusing and I liked when he was being snarky about Stripe's manner of speech. If I had to pick a name for him I'd either call him Salt, or Platinum just because I think it'd be a cool name. Tough I don't think that's the color he's meant to be, likely Titanium white if anything but meh.
Also for as much as I pick on Stripe I wonder if he knows what he's talking about when it comes to hive being open air, as Blue herself says that may be what's causing the heat issues.
Anyway fun chapter as always hope you're still enjoying writing this.
Ah, I wanted to see some of the 'defective' caretaker advisors stuff.
All well, gotta wait till the next episode of BLUE SUN, THE BEST CHANGLING MOM
Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice
Their entire personality is programmed... they're nothing but robot bug monsters.
Like xenomorphs! Kill them all before another "Prometheus" happens! *looks to upcoming movies* NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I'm too late!
I'm going to make a wild guess and say you modeled the Hive Advisor after the Salarian, Mordin Solus from Mass Effect 2-3.
If the warrior advisor sounds like Worf, have the humans name him Worf. It would fit and be equally amusing.
Caretaker Advisor = Deacon
Infiltrator Advisor = Arbiter
Warrior Advisor = Rais
Hive Advisor = Clockwork
7869700
Sounds like teenagers to me...
As for Defective, just call 'em Nato. Ha! Wait. Huh, that actually kind of works for nursery caretaker too (neonatal). I suspect a human advisor will pop up eventually, unless it's the white changeling? I do wonder what the observing humans have to say about the latest additions to Blue's hive?
Some suggested names. The queen's friends might need to be called on to help with these:
- Warrior Adviser: The role Michael Clarke Duncan had in Sin City: Manute
- White Defective Caretaker Adviser: Dinklage ("He's just so dinky and cute!" exclaimed Soft.)
- Infiltrator Adviser: Gray Mouser (books and comics with Fafhard) or Phillipe Gaston (Ladyhawke)
- Hive Advisor: Can only be one choice: Jafar!
Following the idea of the queen being named Blue Sun (a type of body on space):
Caretaker: White Dwarf/Nebulous
Hive: Black Matter/Titan I
Warrior: Ares/Mars
Infiltrator: Halley/Dark Side of the Moon (DSM).
I third calling defective one Nurse White. (Though before reading the comments, I want call them Siberia. Just because every one want to kill off them. Racist pun about russians totally intended. But because I from Russia, it's OK for me to write that )
Hive adviser - Straight Point (because how blunt and robotic they sound )
Warrior adviser - Bronx
Infiltrator adviser - Any common human name (because their purpose demand be more closer to target in every possible way.)
Also if you like, I advise you to use Straight Point as running joke: someone call them straight to the point and their take that as their name. If anyone try rename them or say *** to them. Than their said:*** not my name - I am Straight Point.
*** - any two convenient word that can be used as a name.
Brain go words will later pancakes!
7870643
as i see it the magic passes knowledge down based on the egg type, while Blue Sun has none of that as she was a queen who was not actually hatched from a royal egg.
im still waiting on an update to your awesome cherngelerng story.
So many advisors. So, naming a drone is considered an extreme honor amongst the 'lings I presume. Blue should have pressed for details.
Or later... unless she forgets
Well, let's see how effective will the defective advisor be. They'll cope. Plenty of love after all!
But that ventilation can be an issue. Probably time to ask the humans for help? That will certainly draw looks of confusion and/or panic from the advisors.
Yeah, with the harsh reality changelings faced back on Equestria and the near constant lack of resources, it figures any defective ones would end up being drained.
... Why does the hive adviser speak broken English.
7871791 The other queen isn't doing much better in the Attention Defficit-OOH SHINY department either.
7869587 Because the warrior's theme needs to be...
7871165
7871125
I like these ones right here. Space-themed names and the running joke one I really like.
7871125
This would be pretty cool.
I am third for the white one to be Nurse White.
Engineer could be Glanderson Blooper, name that was made up by my favorite podcast.
Warrior should be Worf.
Infiltrator could be Shadow Walk.
7873428
Thank you very much.
Well then...I think Whitey (or whatever we're going to call him) is going to be in a very unique place to influence change in the hive. The other advisors seem preset to a more Queen Chrysalis-style of managing the hive, but Whitey, not having that, has a more open mind, and seems more willing to not just listen to Blue, but also heed and enact upon her advice and words, even if they're radical by changeling standards. By being the caretaker advisor, Whitey can then pass on Blue's wisdom and wishes first-hoof to other changelings and help get them up to speed.
Only problem is that Whitey still seems unsure of itself and what it's supposed to be doing, so a crash course in the basics might be in order...or we cross our fingers and hope it recalls it instinctively; its behavior while waiting for the other changelings to hatch suggests its instinct as a caretaker is still intact, Whitey just hasn't realized it yet.
Huh.
Changeling Racism.
Caretaker should be named "White Privilege".
The Caretaker advisor should be called Blanck Field. It's like his mind, a blank canvas, ready to be painted. I think he(it?) should be open to new ideas.
This was inspired by Portal turrets, wasn't it? If palette-swapped.