Spawn of Secundus

by TheOnlySaneDraconequus

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Thorax rolled over in bed, and sniffed. Still mostly asleep, he licked his lips at the smell hitting his nose. He then sat bolt upright, and gave a small whine like a puppy at Secundus. Used to this morning routine, Secundus passed him a cup of coffee.

“Morning,” Secundus said as Thorax drained half the cup of coffee in one gulp. “You know, one of these days, I’m going to have to gently wean you off of that stuff.”

“Never!” hissed Thorax. “It is the lifeblood!” Secundus rolled his eyes. “What time is it?” Thorax asked when he finished his vampire impression.

Secundus shrugged. “Ten-thirty. I let you sleep in, I thought you’d need it.” He then placed something on the bed in front of Thorax.

Thorax eyed it curiously. “I’m guessing you’re hungry? That’s a pretty big egg to have on your lonesome. Thinking of frying it?”

Secundus’s eyes grew wide in horror. “Thorax …” he said slowly, “It’s our egg.” Thorax froze. Thinking he hadn’t understood, Secundus said, “I’m not eating our unborn child for breakfast.”

Thorax let out a scream, before stammering incoherently. He finally got out, “Y-you mean – y-you went and – you mean you actually-?”

Secundus nodded. “Well, your … invitation to bed … last night was ‘Want to make a nymph?’” he said in a perfect impersonation of Thorax. “You didn’t mean it?” Secundus said in a worried tone.

“I did, I just forgot you take everything literally!” screamed Thorax. “I didn’t mean right this second! I just – AUUUUGHH!” he screamed. “Secundus, we are not ready to be parents! What are we supposed to do?!!”

Secundus shrugged. “Typically, parents raise, nurture, and protect the offspring as it grows and develops, trying to pass down their beliefs and values to the next generation. I could always burry the egg in the woods with the warning ‘If we meet again, I might eat you, so, I’ll check in on you in a hundred years!’”

“Please tell me that that was a joke,” Thorax muttered.

Secundus shrugged. “It works for snakes.” Catching Thorax’s expression, Secundus said, “Yes, it was a joke.”

“How exactly did you lay an egg?” Thorax said, trying to cling to his sanity by the tips of his hooves.

“I don’t have the requisite anatomy, and I didn’t have time to change genders, so … I coughed it up at about six this morning. It felt very weird, I have to admit.”

“I’ll bet,” Thorax muttered.

“Feeling better?” asked Secundus, noting Thorax wasn’t screaming anymore.

Thorax thought for a minute. “Just a sec.” He then cackled manically for three minutes, before finishing on a bout of hysterical laughter, somehow managing to summon lightning indoors. “All better!” Thorax said with a broad, happy smile.

“I can see I’m rubbing off on you,” said Secundus drily.

Thorax examined the black and green polka-dot egg with interest. “So, how exactly did we have a kid last night?”

“I just needed a bit of genetic material from both of us, that was easy enough to get. The rest just took a bit of,” Secundus spread his paws, and a rainbow appeared between them, “mmmaaaagiccc!”

Thorax groaned, it still felt too early for this. “So, whatever’s in that egg is a perfect hybrid of both of us?”

“Yes, but it’s ‘whoever,’ not ‘whatever.’”

“Forgive me.”

“I will, but try not to refer to our child as a ‘what’ or an ‘it.’”

“Sec!” shouted Thorax, “It was just a slip-up!”

Secundus grinned. “I know, but surely I can wind you up on occasion.” Thorax groaned, and buried his head under the pillows. Knowing full well that Thorax could still hear him, Secundus continued. “After the egg came out, … and the ensuing ‘my god what have I done?!’ panic attack, I traveled around the multiverse a bit, and asked the rest of the family what they thought.”

“And?” Came Thorax’s muffled reply.

“You know how I said that once in a while a Draconequus might fall in love with and marry a mortal?” The pillows moved in a way that suggested a nod. “None of them went so far as to have kids from any relationship. Congratulate me, I’m the first member of my species to have a kid! I can’t exactly Facebook my human family to ask them what they think I should do, so I’m about as lost as you are, but I’ve been reliably informed that nobody is ever actually prepared to be a parent.”

Thorax pulled his head back out. “Facebook?” he asked in a confused tone.

“It’s one of the human equivalents of dragon-fire mail,” Secundus replied.

“Oh.” Thorax said, knowing Secundus hard a hard time putting human things in pony terms sometimes. He then asked, “Do you have any idea when it will hatch?”

Secundus pulled a pocket watch out of thin air, before turning it upside down to make better sense of it. “Sometime late this afternoon, I’m not exactly sure.”

“That’s … fast,” Thorax said in a surprised tone.

“Draconequui develop almost instantly, so the baby’s a bit of a late bloomer in Draconequine terms.”

“Oh.”

Secundus cleared a spot on the floor, got down on all floors, and paced around in a circle a few times. He then curled around the egg, breathing fire on it to keep it warm. Seeing Thorax’s bewildered look, he groaned, “It’s instinct, I’m not going to fight it.”

“Okay…” said Thorax with a laugh. He started to walk out of the room to get the day underway.

“You could at least get me some potato chips!” shouted Secundus. Thorax rolled his eyes and shook his head.

Secundus whined pitifully at the unfairness and cruelty of life, that his mate no longer loves him enough to get him chips while he guards their child with his LIFE! “Fine, I’ll get you some chips!” Thorax laughed.

“Ooh! I’m just so excited!” cried a purple female Changeling named Pronotum. “It’ll be so wonderful for the two of you to hear little hooves running down the halls!” She then did a double-take. “Err, will the foal even have hooves? No offence,” she finished quickly.

“None taken,” said Secundus. “I honestly don’t know what the baby will look like. Draconequui can look very interesting. The baby is half Changeling, so I assume he or she will be slightly equipomorphic.”

“Hmm?” said an orange Changeling named Cornicle.

“Pony-shaped,” supplied Thorax.

“Oh.”

The Changelings were all gathered in a large wing of the Hive, looking expectantly at the egg, which had started shaking slightly half an hour ago. The tension was killing Secundus, and Thorax was every bit as nervous.

“What’s wrong?” piped up a green Changeling near the front. Secundus once again grumbled in his head that it was unfair that he was the only person in the Hive who wasn’t empathic.

“Thorax is worried about what kind of a parent he’ll make,” Secundus replied.

All the Changelings snickered. “Thorax, you’re a surrogate dad to the entire Hive! Even the adults! You’ll do fine!”

Seeing Secundus’s ears droop, another Changeling said, “You’ll do fine, too, don’t worry.” Secundus managed a smile.

The was a slight cracking noise. Everyling and one Draconequus crowded around the egg. There was a loud sneeze, and the eggshell blew apart. Three different Changelings took it in turns to say, “Oh …” “My …” “Goodness.”

No one had known what to expect, but they were still surprised. The baby wasn’t like anything they had ever seen. The front half looked a bit like a pony, and a bit like a Changeling. It was a dark grey foal, with the beginnings of a spiky black mane. He had the Changeling’s unique mix of fur and chitin, but was furrier than a Changeling. When he started to cry, everyling noticed a set of snake-like fangs in his mouth, and the same forked tongue as both his fathers. His eyes were a perfect mix of both his father’s; he had Secundus’s black sclera that matched his pupils, and his irises were the same shade of amethyst as Thorax’s eyes. His eyes were the same almond shape as Thorax’s, as well as all the other Changelings.

From the back, things got very different. Instead of having the hindquarters and legs of a pony or Changeling, he simply had a long snake tail, in shades of pastel blue and yellow that glowed the way a reformed Changeling’s colors did. He looked like the Equestrian answer to a naga.

Everyling started to talk at once, causing Secundus to clap his paws over his ears, and growl, “One at a time, please! Thorax, you first.”

“Is the baby a boy or a girl?” Thorax asked calmly.

“How do you even tell with snakes?” hissed a Changeling to another Changeling.

“He’s a boy,” Secundus replied. Everyling just stared at him. Secundus sighed. “No, I didn’t check, I just know somehow. Maybe it’s a plot device.”

Used to Secundus’s seemingly random statements, Thorax asked, “Our son is half snake?”

“Yes. He looks like some sort of boa constrictor, if I’m remembering the markings right. You don’t usually get those colors in snakes, though.” Thorax pointed at Secundus’s blue and yellow face. It took a moment for Secundus to figure out why he was pointing. “Oh, right. Hybrid. He seems happy enough,” Secundus said uncertainly.

A Changeling reached out to give the baby a cuddle, and he bared his fangs in a snarl, hissing loudly, before drawing back frantically. It was frightening, but slightly cute, in a weird way. “The baby doesn’t like to be touched?!” she said in shock.

“Neither does Secundus unless he’s in a really good mood, and wants to be,” said the Changeling next to her. “Even then, you still have to ask. Unless you’re Thorax, of course.” Thorax nodded.

The baby looked up at Secundus, tilting his head to both sides, and giving Secundus the most intelligent stare he’d ever seen on a baby. He then leaped into Secundus’s arms, curling up into a ball, and trying to hide in the fur on Secundus’s neck, which wasn’t long enough.

“He likes Secundus,” said the Changeling who’d tried to cuddle him.

“Well, you are his mother,” said Thorax with an evil grin.

“Har, har,” said Secundus. He then got a gleam in his eye, and said, “Would everyling excuse me, there’s just one tiny thing I have to do.” He then teleported both himself and the baby to the highest balcony on the Hive, which overlooked the gardens, and gave a good view of the Badlands. Secundus concentrated for a moment, and see-through images of elephants, zebras, giraffes, and wildebeest filled the garden, all of them kneeling in front of the balcony, which would have been impossible in real life. Secundus held the baby out, and sang “It’s the Circle of Life! And it moves us all! In the Circle, the Circle of Life!” Rather than trumpeting and cheering before the newborn prince, the images just disappeared.

Secundus walked back into the Hive, to find everyling walking up the stairs into the room leading to the balcony. “Well, I can cross Reenact The Lion King With Any Potential Offspring off my bucket list!” he said cheerfully.

“Sec,” said Thorax warningly.

“Oh! When he’s older, I can take him back up there and do the “Everything the light touches” line and mean it!”

“Sec,” said Thorax with a grin.

“Sorry,” said Secundus with a smile, snapping out of it.

“You are aware our son isn’t a toy, right?” said Thorax jokingly.

“Yes,” said Secundus with an eye roll.

When the baby yawned, his fangs displayed prominently. “Is the baby venomous?” asked a yellow Changeling named Aphid nervously.

Secundus nodded. “Probably…” he said in a hesitant tone. He then conjured up a bottle of a pale pink liquid.

“Is that … strawberry milk?!” Thorax asked in mock horror, pretending to faint. “It can’t be!”

Secundus nodded. “Not every Draconequus likes chocolate milk, you know. I just got the feeling he’d prefer this. Maybe he’s telepathic, who knows?” Secundus held out the bottle. “Would you?”

“Hmm?”

“He is half Changeling, therefore he requires food, in this case love. I’m not as good at sharing love as a foodsource as a genuine Changeling.”

“Sure,” said Thorax with a smile. His horn lit up with its lilac aura, and concentrated. “There, that should do it!”

A few other Changelings added some of their love as well. “Just making sure he gets a square meal!” one joked.

As the baby ate, Thorax asked, “It had crossed my mind that with your hoodoo it might be possible to have kids, but … this was a bit sudden. We didn’t get to pick out names. What do you want to call him?”

Secundus watched their son intently. “Well, I have no idea how pony names work, since somehow their names describe either them or their talent perfectly, I have no idea how Changeling names work, and he might grow up and discover his name like I did, in which case this name won’t be his anymore. Hmm.” He looked thoughtfully at his son for a minute, before pronouncing, “I hereby name thee ‘Albert.’”

“What kind of name is ‘Albert?’” asked a Changeling.

“A perfectly respectable one,” said Secundus, looking affronted. “It means, ‘Nobel,’ and ‘Bright.’ I just thought it fit.”

“You would give your foal an alien name!” laughed Cornicle.

“I like it,” said Thorax diplomatically. “It’s strange, but it does fit him.” Thorax pulled Secundus’s ear level with his mouth and whispered, “It’s a human name, isn’t it?” Secundus nodded. Thorax shrugged. “Albert it is then. You know we’ll have to tell everypony about this.”

“Later. I’m a bit tired at the moment.”

Thorax pulled his family closer to him, and to his surprise, the baby snuggled next to him as well. “Well this is not what I expected when I got up this morning, but, thank you.”

“You’re welcome, but you might not be thanking me later.”

“I doubt it,” said Thorax. He tried to give his son a tickle, but his son hissed at him. Albert then changed his mind, and moved from Secundus to Thorax. “Well, we’ll just have to see what comes,” Thorax said optimistically. “After all, what could happen?” Secundus swallowed nervously.

Author's Note:

Something any version of me has yet to learn is that just because someone says they want something, doesn't mean they actually want it, let alone want it right that second. Magic doesn't help with that.

Sec has an adorable mutant baby! *Sniff!* I'm just so happy!

Comments

[Rammy]

“After all, what could happen?”

NOOOOOOOOOOO YOU FOOL!

[TheOnlySaneDraconequus]

8801285
Yeah, there are some phrases you just NEVER say!

[ShadowEclipse-Wolficorn]

awww hes so cute!

[Black--Soul]

Simply epic... Wonder how Twilight will react to it... Also what will the Councils plan be for it i wonder...

[Black--Soul]

“What kind of name is ‘Albert?’” asked a Changeling.

Albert Wesker would be awesome

Just out of curiosity, how many females Draconequus are there, while it is kinda superficial, with them able to change at a moments notice.
Still... I remember only 2 so far.
One Is love the the other... was it time or space?

Funny that the not born Draconequus has the first in existence born hybrid.
Maybe that is why the God choice was on the former human, forcing change. After all, they had eons to get it done...