Loyalties

by GJT_Productions

Winged Contagion

"And you did a bang-up good job bringing those foals from your class out to the meeting, Glowworm!"

"Thank you, Daddy! But why did you want them coming here without their parents? A lot of them said their moms and dads..."

"Don't you worry your little head about that, Cozy. Run along now with your new friends, Uncle Kriegspiel and I have grown-up stuff we need to talk about now."

"OK, I guess..."

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The two Changeling drones disguised as Cozy Glow's father and her uncle Kriegspiel watched as Cozy Glow scampered away, the filly happier than she had been in a long while. Alas, she was blissfully unaware of the real purpose of recruiting her new Cloudsdale classmates to the P.U.P. (Pegasi Uplifting Pegasi) meeting, as would be laid out by the two drones when Cozy was out of earshot:

"There's something different about the young ones... easier to feed off of them..."

"Yes, but we need to convince their parents to get in on the act soon..."

"A story coming from Canterlot gossip will help us with that."

"Is it from another one of us?"

"Yes, another of our mind. They started a rumor of a 'magic contagion' - the fillies will lead the parents right to us because of fear of the contagion."

"What you had Cozy Glow giving out at the school?"

"Yes, and knowledge will soon spread across the city. Eventually we will be able to take it back to Canterlot and accelerate the weakening there as well..."

"We must beware the Wonderbolts, though. They still have enough status here to be able to stand in the way."

"True, but it will take time because of the fools they previously..."

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The drone stopped talking when he noticed his partner looking around, then taking a few sniffs, as if trying to figure out a scent that had just hit him. Then the conversation resumed, quieter than before:

"What's wrong?"

"I smell something. I fear we are being watched."

"Not the filly?"

"... No, another Equestrian. Look around for them."

"Got it."

The drone was briefly enveloped in green-colored magic, and quickly a manticore appeared out of the blast of magic! The drone looked around, growling and using the advantages of feline sight in an attempt to find the one spying on them. A few moments passed where the only sound was the deep breathing of the manticore, then the disguised drone found a quivering outline, previously undetected due to being concealed in the deep shadows under a nearby desk.

The manticore let out a roar that shook everything around it, flushing the spying pegasus out on hoof and sending him smashing through the wall of the building the drones were meeting in. The drone that had turned into a manticore was again enveloped by green-colored magic and returned to his previous pegasus disguise.

"Should we go after him?" the disguised Changeling asks, peering through the new hole in the wall of the building.

"Nah, no one will believe the story - they'll assume it's 'the contagion' or else otherwise he's telling tall tales." his partner dismissively replies.

"So, where were we?" the first drone asks again, continuing the conversation from the point it had been interrupted.

"The Wonderbolts. I do not believe they will be able to effectively interfere."

"Right. And we should be careful to keep it that way..."

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MEANWHILE...

The young stallion that had been spying galloped over the cloud streets of Cloudsdale, not even caring to look for weak spots that might cause him to sink into the cloudbank the city was built upon or dump him down altogether. Fueled by the sudden scare, he galloped for a minute or two, then turned down a side alley, panting and resting himself by leaning against a wall. It was only at that point that the adrenaline surge ebbed enough for the stallion to hear his own thoughts: "Get it together Flash, get it together, it was just an illusion of magic, it wasn't real..."

Nevertheless, the young Guard began debating with himself over what it was he had just seen and what he should do next:

"These aren't alicorns, but they do possess very powerful magic. And they seem to be brainwashing the foals based on fear of the unknown about the supposed 'contagion' from Discord... what should I do now?"

"Go to the Wonderbolts?"

"I already know they won't listen to me."

"Go to Canterlot and the Princesses?"

"Would take too long, don't have enough evidence."

"Don't some of the Element Bearers have family in Cloudsdale? Can you try them?"

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea, I'll try to find their families..."

Having recovered enough, the young guard Flash Sentry proceeds back out of the alleyway to the main street, moving at a more professional cantering pace in an attempt to find - and convince - the families of Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy still living in Cloudsdale about the danger Equestria was in...