The Crossroads of Friendship and Love - Part 3
Spike was a tough dragon, or at least he liked to think so.
He didn't make cute sounds when he saw cute things, and he didn't ogle at cute things when they occurred. Well, unless you counted Rarity fussing with her hair. Or sewing. Or talking. Pretty much anything Rarity did at all tended to be an exception.
However, even a manly dragon such as Spike couldn't help but beam at the touching scene before him.
Thorax had drawn in the other changelings like a magnet, without even saying a word. Where before the half-dozen drones had evenly spread themselves around the table, they had now all converged around Thorax, pointing out aspects of the game for him. The impatience they harbored for each other mere moments before had melted away, replaced by an eagerness to help their leader learn the rules of the game, and watch him play.
And it wasn't just Spike who had taken notice. Twilight had once again put quill to paper, watching the scene with a scholarly fascination. From what she could see, it wasn't from a sense of obligation in the presence of royalty, as many ponies did with herself and the other princesses. It was something more. It was a genuine love and respect they seemed to harbor for their monarch past simple rank. Just being around Thorax made them more relaxed, more positive.
Was it shared love magic? Was the changeling leader capable of somehow influencing mood through it?
The feathery tail of her quill caressed the peak of her chin. This elusive force, intangible and undetectable by any species other than the changelings, continued to tease and elude her. It wetted her perpetually insatiable appetite.
"'Papa Thorax', indeed," Twilight whispered aloud.
"And this is my character, Thorax," one drone proclaimed, making sure he had the alpha changeling's attention before proudly pointing at one of Spike's claw-drawn game pieces. "He's called 'Phrixus the All-Seeing', and he has a crystal ball thing that lets him see into the near future. It also happens to shoot lightning bolts."
"Lightning bolts?" Thorax repeated with a chuckle, comfortably sitting back on his haunches. "Isn't that a bit much?"
"Nah, more than half the characters have magical abilities in the land of Spiketopia," Spike stated. "It's all about your level. 'Phrixus the All-Seeing' is only level four, so he's not very powerful yet. His lightning bolts could charge a light bulb, but it won't fry a beast charging at him."
"Not yet, anyway," 'Phrixus' changeling added. "Just wait, I'll be causing thunderstorms to rain down and obliterate all opposition in no time."
"Well, my character is 'Sir Demonax'," another changeling declared, "and he has the power to summon lost souls to fight for him. No beast, big or small, can deal with an army of the undead!"
"So what you're saying is he's a coward and can't fight his own battles?" a neighboring drone taunted.
"Hey, buzz off! There's nothing wrong in having helpers in battle. Always fighting alone is foolish and arrogant, kinda like you."
"Well, I think it's pretty cool you all have such different characters," Thorax offered, addressing the entire table. "Everyling has something different to offer, which means we're all the better when we work together, right?"
A few smiles broke out in response, give or take a few persisting scowls.
"So I guess it's my turn, now? Is there anything the team needs most? What's the roster so far, Spike?"
"Well, Tibia is a monk and he's our healer, even though everyone else signed a blood oath to never accept his assistance in battle," Spike said flatly. "Otherwise, including me, we have two wizards, two warriors, a warlock, and a rogue."
"Thorax should definitely be a paladin," said the drone to Thorax's left.
"Then we'd have three wizard types; three warriors, one rogue, and one monk," said the drone to Thorax's right. "Imbalance, much?"
"It’s not just about what the classes are. It's about your roles." The leftside drone leaned across in front of Thorax and rested his front hooves on the rocky table. "If you had been paying attention to Spike when he explained the rules, you'd know that."
The pair of changelings resumed their earlier bickering, and Thorax shook his head in surrender.
Spike turned to Twilight wearing an aching look of pride.
"Twilight, they've learned so well!" he whispered, glee brimming from every word. "Even the class-to-role ratios!"
"You're an excellent teacher, Spike," Twilight quipped with a giggle whilst organizing her notes. "All those games with Big Mac and Discord seemed to have paid off."
"Oh please, I was a master of Ogres and Oubliettes way before I made it cool." Spike sat down again and picked up his dice. "Now then, Thorax, it's totally up to you. A paladin is a mighty and holy warrior; they are pretty cool. But you could also be a monk or another healing type; or maybe a wizard, like me."
"Yeah, be a paladin, Thorax!"
"No way, be a rogue! We get to sneak around and collect treasure!"
"Be a wizard, Thorax! We can start a wizard guild with Spike!"
All eyes turned to Thorax. The big changeling looked rather unsure of what to do with himself. He glanced around at the various faces, all watching him with gripped anticipation.
"You guys never make things easy for me, do you? Well, I guess I'll go with-"
"Thorax, we finished the last of the watchtowers! The hive is complete!"
The bated breath held across the table was condemned, and all attention turned upwards. A red and yellow drone had emerged from a morphed hole in the ceiling, with a small squad following behind him. They all landed before their surprised monarch, and saluted him with proud grins.
"Wait, it's done?" Thorax repeated, blinking in disbelief. "But, we didn't have any work on it scheduled for today. Didn't you guys hear me when I announced that Princess Twilight was visiting today? Everyling had the day off."
"We couldn't wait!" the lead changeling replied, the drones behind him nodding in agreement. "I hope that's okay. There were just a couple of towers left. We saw that Tarsus and Tibia stopped work when the princess got here, so we wanted to surprise everyling. And now it's done! Our new hive is finally done!"
On cue, the squad broke into cheers, and the rest of the drones at the table quickly joined their jubilation. Spike clapped for the sudden accomplishment, and Twilight watched as everyling tackled and embraced each other.
"I'm so happy for you all!" she said, emerging from her nest of knowledge and joining Spike by his side. "It feels wonderful to put the finishing touches on a new home. I found that out first-hoof myself quite some time ago."
"That deep tissue massage still gives me aches and pains, sometimes," Spike mumbled, rubbing a claw along his back.
The cluster of drones landed by their king, clamoring around him excitedly. Chuckling at the sudden assemblage, Thorax laid a hoof against each head in sequence. Some changelings shied away, staring up at Thorax with disoriented stares, while others nudged into the hoof, accepting the affection like a badge of honor.
"I guess we have an announcement to make to the rest of the hive," Thorax said. "Thanks for finishing the towers, guys. I can't believe how hard everyling's worked. You finished it all so quickly, even with all the damage it took."
"You're telling me! The entire throne room blew up!" a drone exclaimed. "Which, by the way, still doesn't make sense to me."
"You've helped us stay energized, Thorax," said another. "And you've been helping us stay organized and efficient, too. It was a group effort, and you're a part of that group now."
Suddenly, another drone jumped on him, and then another, and another. A heaping pile of changelings twisted and rolled at Thorax's hooves, losing themselves in a fit of laughter. Thorax spectated the play with a paternal fondness. He was a part of them now. Another thing he regularly had to remind himself of these days.
"Thorax?"
He shook himself from his thoughts and turned to the princess.
"I just talked with Spike, and we've decided that we'd like to stay the night, if that's alright with you. I planned on the possibility of not returning to Ponyville until tomorrow as it was, just to be safe. I'd love to understand what changelings do during nightly routines. We also have much to discuss regarding your plans, and I’d like to be there when you make your announcement to your subjects."
"Of course!" Thorax answered with no second thought. "I was actually hoping you'd want to do that, all along."
"I think Twilight just wants to see cuddling changelings. I mean, let's be honest," Spike commented. Twilight swiftly aimed a piercing glare at him.
"That is not true!" The alicorn tried to defend herself, though her frazzled voice was obvious. "I happen to have shared love magic as the main topic of my next chapter of notes, mister smarty dragon."
Thorax broke into a fit of laughter that Spike quickly shared.
As the golden sun neared the end of its journey across the sky, the excited group of changelings eventually settled down. To the pouting disappointment of several, Thorax had decided to go down the holy paladin path. Rallied by 'Xalvador the Noble and Just', Garbuckle the Magician and his crusaders managed to save Gadaric the Gallant from the hungry hydra and proceeded to storm the frightful castle of the evil squizard. Though inexperienced, their teamwork proved to be too powerful for the calamari's evil minions, and they were pushed back until all that remained was the demon himself.
In a climactic and legendary duel to be remembered for generations to come, Xalvador engaged the evil squizard atop his tower. With the aid of his trusty healer and a little luck on the side of the dice, the evil creature was run through by Xalvador's Sword of Light, banishing the squizard to darkness for all eternity. Thorax had never seen so much cheering from the drones.
Spike could scarcely contain his elation in the end, now having successfully taught changelings how to play his favorite game, and witnessing his friend vanquish his in-game nemesis.
After packing the game away, and being told by Thorax about the hive's hot springs, Spike ventured off for a bit of relaxation.
Once the victorious changelings dispersed to various parts of the hive, Twilight accompanied Thorax outside for a much-needed breath of fresh air.
"Thorax, there's something that just fills me with this sense of joy," Twilight said softly, as she enjoyed the chilled breeze against her face and the tickling grass beneath her hooves. "The changelings were never meant to be monsters. All this time, ponies and other creatures have lived in fear of changeling attacks. They feared for their lives, their freedom; they believed that changelings were evil. But in the end, only one out of them all was proven to be truly evil."
Thorax's colors dulled in the shroud of the moon. When he turned to examine Twilight's thoughtful face, his deep-set eyes seemed to glint.
"I can't say whether or not Chrysalis will ever see a way of life without conquest," Thorax began, shifting his gaze to the grass below. "What I do know is that the shrewd and dark creatures that attacked and tormented others were taught from birth that they were outcasts, and that the only means to obtain food was through dominance. I may have been the first to escape and seek out a better way, but many of us simply never thought there could be a better way. Chrysalis was all there ever was, and for all we could tell, all there ever would be."
"I think you were born different for a reason, Thorax. You sought out a better way because you had a spark no other changeling had. Seeing you all so happy, so full of life today is proof enough that your actions are leading toward a better future for your kind. I think I speak on behalf of all of Equestria's princesses when I say that Equestria is happy to be a part of that future with you."
Thorax thanked her with a meek little smile.
"Now, to that end, what's on your mind?" she asked. "You've helped me so much today, so please allow me to help you. As a princess of Equestria, and as your friend, I am here to support you."
"Well, one of the things Princess Celestia brought up was the Crystal Empire. It'd be a good place to start introducing my kind to the public eye. I planned on contacting Princess Cadance as soon as the hive was completed, but that happened a day or two sooner than I had planned. I'm just not sure what the best approach would be, yet. Building relations with other lands still makes me nervous."
Thorax fluttered his wings. Just thinking of the daunting work ahead of him was both exhilarating and terrifying. He bit his lip in an attempt to calm himself down.
"To be honest, Twilight, I'm so new to being a leader, and it's really intimidating at times. I want to do what's best for my kind, but I don't even know what that is. The Changeling Kingdom was built around Chrysalis, by Chrysalis. I don't even have changelings I can turn to for advice because Chrysalis never had use for advisers. I mean, I can appoint some, but they'll be learning along with me, right?"
Twilight found herself relating to him more and more as he spoke. His anxiety, especially.
"Well, first of all, I think the Crystal Empire is a great first step. In fact, I'm sure the changelings and the crystal ponies have a lot more in common than you might think. The crystal ponies know a thing or two about evolving when happy and full of love."
Twilight placed her hoof across Thorax's back.
"And Thorax, I completely understand. When I was crowned as Equestria's fourth princess, I was confused, too. I was unsure of myself and the role I was meant to play in Equestria. Granted, I had the support of the other princesses and my friends from the start, but it was still my own quest to discover what my purpose was, and it was intimidating."
Twilight laid against the grass, and Thorax followed suit. The stars had begun to pierce the darkening sky.
"You may not have any changelings to help guide you, Thorax, but you do have us. We can help you get started on your journey to discover yourselves, in the same way that Princess Celestia once guided me to establish myself as the princess of friendship."
The king's quivering lip boasted invisibility in the dark, but his sullen stature did not, and it was something Twilight knew all too well. With the help of her hoof rubbing along his magenta shell, Thorax slowly digested the princess's words. The cool air filled his lungs and he labored a sigh.
"Why don't Spike and I accompany you to the Crystal Empire tomorrow afternoon? Princess Cadance is my sister-in-law, and Prince Shining Armor is my brother. And, of course, we're both aware of Spike's reputation there. I'm sure with two princesses and a local hero with you, every pony in the Crystal Empire will be happy to give your subjects a warm welcome."
Thorax looked at her with puzzlement. "But it's already nightfall. How can we possibly get in touch with Princess Cadance before tomorrow? Won't it be rude to show up without prior notice?"
Twilight giggled to herself, which only served to deepen the changeling's bafflement.
"It'll be fine, Thorax. I'll have Spike send a scroll to Princess Luna tonight before we all turn in. Princess Luna is rather special, you see. She protects the night in Equestria, and she can communicate with ponies in their dreams. I'm sure if we ask Luna nicely and explain the reasoning, she'll let Cadance know of our visit without even waking her up."
Bafflement skipped right on past hesitation and embraced its good friend, shock.
"But isn't that invasive?" Thorax asked. "That almost seems kind of rude. Are you sure she wouldn't mind?"
"Oh, not to worry," Twilight assured, waving her hoof dismissively. "Luna visits ponies in their dreams all the time, and usually for reasons not nearly as large-scale as this one."
"Well, alright. It sounds like a good plan to me. Well, the 'you coming with me' part, at least."
"Excellent!" Twilight’s gleeful anticipation now strangled any hope of a good night's rest. Not only was she assisting her friend with a first major step in politics, but she'd also be paying a surprise visit to her brother, sister-in-law, and absolute favorite niece.
"Let's hold off on diving deeper into things until tomorrow then," she suggested, getting to her hooves and enticing Thorax to do the same. "Princess Cadance is even wiser than I am. I'm confident she'll have plenty of ideas on how to integrate changelings with the crystal ponies."
Thorax nodded, once more finding an alicorn's logic to be flawless.
"That sounds great. If that's the case, would you like to head back inside now?"
Twilight gave a slight shiver before smiling sheepishly. Thorax mirrored it.
"I think now might be a great time to show you just how well the walls of the new nesting chamber keep us warm."
Situated at the hive's core, slightly below sea level, the communal nesting chamber was impregnable. It boasted the capacity to house every changeling within its walls, and it served as a heat trap. With walls three feet thick, a mere three tunnels acting as entrances/exits, and over thirty feet of earth separating it from the open air, not even a Windigo-fueled snowstorm could inconvenience them.
With such open space came recreation as well. Roughhousing, mock fights, and all manner of aerial activities during bad weather were common occurrences. The acoustics also provided Thorax a great deal of assistance in addressing the hive whenever needed. Even the nymphs benefitted—the hive nursery sat just east of the chamber, providing adult drones the ideal place to spend time while awaiting the young ones to wake from naps.
As dusk turned to night, the once empty chamber began to flood with changelings. They poured in like a released river from each available tunnel, their wings blending into a loud, monotonous buzz.
Thorax watched and waited at one side of the cavern as entire groups of changelings seated themselves on their haunches in long rows. Now and then, a drone would accidentally bump or shove another, and a resulting hiss or grumble could be heard.
Tarsus and Tibia stood before the front row, keeping an eye on the crowd and ensuring that everyling remained calm. Tarsus stood tall and proud, firm as a statue. Tibia paced to and fro, dropping his serious facade periodically whenever he spotted a bug he knew.
From between them, Thorax stepped forward, signaling the crowd's attention with a wave of his hoof.
"Thanks for coming so quickly, everyling. This will be a very brief announcement, actually. Other changelings may have already told some of you, but I wanted to make it official because I believe it's important."
In an ocean of blank expressions, a handful of faces were bisected by grins.
"This afternoon, a squad of changelings decided to finish work on the last of our watchtowers, as a surprise. Henceforth, I'm excited to say that, almost two days ahead of schedule, our new hive is complete!"
The resulting explosion of sound made Twilight jump from her modest corner. Every changeling in the cavern erupted into cheers. Hooves stomped, surprisingly intricate aerial displays launched, and the unrelenting chirp of hundreds of rubbing wings stroked the air. This assault on the ears went unperturbed for almost a minute before a combined effort from Tarsus, Tibia, and Thorax managed to regain calm.
"I'm really, truly thankful for all the work everyling has done to rebuild our hive. Just know that I'm proud of all of you, all of us, and that I couldn't be more excited to see what we can accomplish next."
Another round of cheers and stomps erupted, albeit far tamer.
"And now, before a lot of us turn in for the night, our gracious guest, Princess Twilight Sparkle from Equestria, would like to say a few words."
Twilight blinked. Wait, what? Her? In front of every changeling in the entire hive? But she hadn't prepared a speech, or-
Her anxiety wasn't given time to trigger a meltdown. Thorax was smiling and beckoning her on, and every pair of eyes was on her.
"Hello, everyone," Twilight began with a shaky voice, taking a few steps forward. "A lot of you may know me. I'm Princess Twilight, also known colloquially as the Princess of Friendship. I'm sure I've met at least a few of you before. A few of you may have even been me before."
Absolute silence. Sweat boiled off her forehead.
"Well, um, I guess the most important thing I'd like to say is that my friend Spike and I will be having a sort of sleepover tonight with you all, to try and better understand how changelings share love, especially while you sleep together in mass groups."
A brave hoof rose from near the back of the room.
"You mean you're going to watch us sleep so you can understand how we sleep?"
A few changelings snickered.
"Well, sort of. You all gain energy through communal resting now, and you all share love instead of taking it, and I know the ponies of Equestria would find that information very interesting. I know I sure would, or do, rather. For those who normally sleep in clusters with Thorax, please feel free to do so tonight as well. Spike and I will be here too, but please don't let our presence bother you."
Twilight could only manage her most awkward smile to date. The throng of drones blinked back, many of them exchanging confused looks with one another and shrugging. Eventually, however, Twilight was bailed out by her status, and the room filled with nods of understanding. She breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
"I'd just like to say 'thank you' to everyone for having us today. It's been a pleasure." She cast a glance at Thorax in hopes that he'd catch on that her speech was over. Thankfully, he had already stepped forward, drawing every changeling's attention with a flare of his wings.
"Alright, everyling, for those of you who'd like to turn in, please remain here with Princess Twilight and I. If the rest of you could please use the other main chambers for staying up, I would greatly appreciate it. Oh, and don't forget who's on the night shift for the nursery, please!"
Thorax dismissed the drones with another wing flare, and they took to the air in a synchronized takeoff, briefly obscuring the cavern from view as they filtered out through various tunnels. A fair number stayed on the ground, standing up and venturing over from their spots as soon as the path had been cleared.
"Twilight! Thorax!"
Twilight turned to find a waterlogged dragon emerging from a side tunnel, holding his knees and gasping for breath.
"Spike?" she said, her voice peaking. "What happened? Where have you been all this time?"
"Asleep...in the hot springs...didn't realize...what was going on until...I woke up, and everyone was gone," he panted. "One changeling came back and got me, said he saw me and wanted to make sure I didn't get lost trying to find this place."
"Well, you're just in time!" Twilight snaked a hoof around the young dragon and pressed her cheek to his. "The changelings are about to go to sleep, and so are we. We're going to have a big day tomorrow—we're heading to the Crystal Empire with Thorax before heading home. But first, I'm going to try and document the phenomena of shared love magic in person!"
"I knew exactly where your priorities were this whole time," Spike chided, accepting his fate as an obscene facial growth. "Poor Thorax and his struggles are just the day job. You're here to see cuddling changelings."
The mouthy dragon was gently discarded, not to mention ignored. In a brilliant flurry of magenta magic, quills and books danced from Twilight's saddlebags in a now-established routine. She laid down near where Thorax had staked out a spot, swirling her belongings around an orbit before slowing them to their writing stations in the air by her head. Once there, quills merrily spun in anticipation, while open journals gently rose and fell like breaths.
Somedragon coughed. Twilight continued to ignore the glare she knew was assailing her from behind. No, she was absolutely not showing off.
On a seemingly first come, first serve basis, a modest group of drones seemed to 'claim' Thorax. These select few pressed into his sides, securing their sleeping spots for the night. A few even shot mocking tongues at those unable to do the same, nuzzling Thorax extravagantly as a means to taunt them. Grumbles emerged from a few jealous individuals, but most settled just fine for resting nearby.
Thorax exhaled, accepting the notion of merely existing a moment before sleep. He stretched his gossamer wings and laid them across the shells of those few changelings closest to him, and playfully ensnared the drone by his hooves in a cuddle. A few wings ventured to chirp in a display of contentment, and a few drones unable to reach Thorax settled for embracing a receptive neighbor, instead.
One by one, changelings surrendered to the night and ceased all motion—all but Thorax and his immediate company, who watched the observing princess with heavy eyes.
Twilight experienced every waking moment, her toothy grin as subtle as a strutting peacock.
"So precious!" she squeaked.
"Aaand we've lost her," Spike announced quietly, laying down against his backpack and sealing his eyelids.
"From what I've been able to gather, the closer we are, both physically and emotionally, the faster we regain energy," Thorax explained, promptly gifting Twilight's quill ammunition. "Regaining energy through being close can't completely substitute actual sleep, but the amount of time you need to sleep per day is greatly reduced when being close while being asleep. Um, if that makes any sense."
"Fascinating," Twilight whispered to herself, her nose firmly planted in her journal. "Do you know if resting together is the only form of affection that works?"
Thorax cocked his head in thought. The drone trapped between the monarch's hooves twisted about in his sleep and abruptly clutched the big changeling's leg as a comfort object. He let out a long yawn before growing still once more.
Twilight suffered an out of body experience.
"Good question. I'm pretty sure even simple gestures like hugs or head patting work, but since they're so short-lived, they probably don't do anything substantial."
"Makes sense. Perhaps it's something that'll change with proficiency." Twilight’s twinkling eyes darted from drone, to cuddled leg, to Thorax. "Oh, how about distance? Have you noticed any trends regarding the effectiveness of energy transfer?"
"Well, I'm not sure if there's a limit." Thorax let out a small yawn of his own. "I guess as long as I care about them, they can receive some kind of energy from me if they're at least within my view. If they have any close relations with any others also nearby, that helps too. That's why sleeping in large clusters is so effective. It multiplies love magic exponentially."
"Like an intermingled web of power sources. Oh, this is just amazing! I can't wait to have these notes published!"
Eventually, only Thorax and Twilight remained awake. The curious princess's questions acted as a siren against the changeling monarch's onset fatigue.
But Thorax could feel his alertness dropping steadily, anyway. The noble cause of science was not the only force pining for his attention. Five changelings firmly pressed up against him as heated pillows, their rhythmic breathing and soft snores hypnotic, lulled him closer and closer to sleep.
Thorax gently laid down his head upon the awaiting shell of his captured drone, and his fate was decided. When a ceasefire arose between Twilight's questions, the young king was gone.
Amidst Twilight's racing thoughts, her quill nearly stabbed through her theorem on shared love magic field intervals. Her grin receded to an ugly realization.
In all her earnest, the alicorn had forgotten a rather important factor.
"Spike! Spike, wake up!" Twilight hissed, prodding the young dragon with a jittery hoof.
Spike turned over. The rules of the ignore game had been reversed.
"Spike, please? I really need you to help me with something, then you can go to sleep, I promise."
She prodded him a few more times and levitated an empty scroll from one of her saddlebags. With a head turn as slow as molasses, Spike faced the sheepishly grinning alicorn with a look of death.
Elsewhere, in the majestic city of Canterlot, a magical scroll burst into life from thin air, right in front of a blue alicorn's nose.
"A letter? From Twilight Sparkle? At this hour?" Princess Luna focused on the letter at once and untied its decorative ribbon. Her brows suddenly furrowed.
"Actually, no. She is up into the central hours of my domain quite often, isn't she? This makes too much sense."
Luna unravelled the pristine parchment and began to read. As she did, her lip slowly steamrolled to a perfect edge, while an eyebrow peaked at a nasty, jagged point.
An oceanic aura crumpled the offense and hurled it from her view. Luna snorted.
"Pray tell, Twilight Sparkle, when did I become little more than a mail pony?"
The final part of the Twilight Saga! 
Tally-ho, readers! Here's a beautiful artwork made by an artist I met recently. We had a brief conversation about the changelings and my story, and we both agreed that 'Papa Thorax' was a great nickname Thorax's new subjects might call him, whether teasingly or legitimately. 
They posted this artwork just as I had begun to write this chapter, so I wanted to commemorate it and give it a spot here in said chapter. 
--
Papa Thorax by RossmaniteAnzu
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I was just listening to the soundtrack from that movie.
Imagining Thorax standing on a hill with a bunch of rainbowlings arrayed around him, interlinking love-beams into him so he can become a gigantic love-laser cannon.
7867263
Shhh, don't spoil the S7 Finale! That's how Chrysalis is finally defeated!
That ending made me laugh a bit.
"Otherwise, including me we have two wizards, two warriors, a warlock and a rouge."
and just one rouge and one monk." [ rogue ] I think, in both places
"No way, be a rouge! and again
That was fun, may I have another? Looking forward to more.
Keep up the good work. Deus tecum.
7867334 Correct. Rouge is a shade of red, though it's also the name of the bat from Sonic the hedgehog. Rogue is the thief class after the definition of a scoundrel or traitor or villain of some sort.
7867334
7867403
Autocorrect: Rogue? We do not recognize this as a word! You must mean rouge!
Me: Okay! *distracted with storyline formation*
7867421 Happens to me all the time too. X3
That art is so adorable, it's nice to see people not actively hate on the new looks.
7868333
Couldn't agree with you more!
I've been on a bit of a mission to spread love for the new designs, on account of how they seem to be getting nearly as much hate and mixed opinions as Twilicorn first did during the S3 to S4 hiatus. A lot of people will get over it as we get used to them in S7 and beyond, but I think the bug fairy design is pretty interesting.
I commissioned the story artwork, and have been writing this story as my sort of re-entrance to the fandom after a five month hiatus from the show.
Also, to kill people with changeling cuddling. 
Nothing turns frowns upside-down like diabeetus! Can't hate something if it's too adorable to handle, or at least very least, can't hate it quite as much. 
King or not, Thorax is still a cinnamon roll.
7869500
Changeling Food Policies Through the Ages:
Chrysalis: Hungry? Conquest! Conquer nations! Kidnap ponies! Steal love and take all you desire!
Thorax: Hungry? There's hive-wide cuddle parties from 12-2 and 6-8 every day, everyling! All you can eat buffet!
That was adorable.
I loved the ending, Poor Luna is not pleased when she finally realized she'd became a mail pony via dream walking. Aha!
It'd be kinda cool to see a queen changeling, but not chrysalis, like one of the colorful ones slowly getting taller and such.
Or maybe more on how new baby changelings are being made, since King Thorax is a King, I figured most of the changelings are a mixed of gender right?
I'd love it a baby just imprinted on Twilight and kept following her around.
This entire story is such a sweet thing to read!
I normally read only dark acion or mystery stories but I'm for some reason digging this.
Thorax should play as the tactician. XD
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One custom made King Thorax plush by a plushie artist, all I've seen so far. Certainly nothing mass produced yet. I'd buy three drones and Thorax and have them in a cuddle pile at the foot of my bed.
*Work on next chapter happening this weekend, folks*
Simba? Nala? Is that you?!
Oh wait, nevermind.
Curious though, are all your changelings male?
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All the named drones I've introduced so far are, doesn't mean they're all guys. Might see females eventually. I guess I tend to fill the estrogen-dominant FiM universe with boys whenever I write, gives it more balance.
This line made me laugh far too hard on a full stomach.
8039810 oh.... TMI Tats.
awwww
He possessed the Optimal Spark...
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But now Chrysalis will join with Megatron and be, like, the new Starscream! Only whinier and bitchier!
Well, good thing that ponies always seem to remember their dreams, because that method of leaving a message would be just ever so lost on me.
Even though the next part is weitten already, I would find it hilariously cute if teilight woke up surrounded by sleeping changelings
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Presumably, dreams in which Luna appears are remembered with greater clarity, as is typical of lucid dreams.
This was written before Luna being revealed to be a total fangirl for the postal service in S9.
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she likes the process, but not being a part of it
Lol That's sort of come off wrong 🤣
"So precious!", she squeaked.
"Aaand we've lost her," Spike announced quietly, laying down against his backpack and sealing his eyelids
Who can blame her This is pretty adorable 🥰
Wow so everything is all set up at there home now they just had to make their appearances at the crystal Empire this should be very interesting
Beautiful chapter for your story.
Great humor
lovely lore
nice world building
Well done.
I wonder what Chrysalis is doing...