Don't Bug Me

by Starscribe

Chapter 73

Tailslide did not run when he saw the true state of Amie's body. Maybe it was his feelings for her—or maybe it was his experience with the royal guard, imparting an unusual tolerance for biology. Either way, he remained by her side through the subsequent days.

Amie didn't rely on loyal campers to help construct the nest, as much as she believed she could trust them. There was enough to do to build the upper levels of her little colony to keep them all busy, and potentially very little time to do it. But thanks to Stella Lacus's previous management, she had plenty of other bugs who could help, bugs who depended on her contact for any chance of a real recovery.

For a few days longer, Amie could still use the occasional worker mixed in with the regular population to check in on everyone, and make sure that each task was progressing at speed. Most of the camp's weapons were already secure underground, with work now focused on carrying furniture in from the hotel across the street. The mattresses were old and the beds plain—but considering most of the camp had spent the last four months on cots, they still represented a significant improvement.

More exciting was the tunneling team, her first application of Queen Kaya's secret knowledge. With the right technique, those bugs could excavate nearly ten meters a day. Difficult, dirty work—but without it, every resupply mission would represent a dangerous test of their magical abilities, and the ponies' complacency. Given their behavior the last time, Amie didn't doubt bugs would die if they couldn't complete their better way.

Her brother and the former hunters traveled slowly, conserving their limited currency by walking where they could, and catching spare space in cargo trains. But Amie only had one chance to check in with them before she lost the ability completely. She had only one set of eyes for her last few days—albeit with Tailslide for company.

It took the queen's knowledge to know how to construct wax cells for each egg, to know their spacing and the proper temperature and humidity they would require for their best chance at life. But once Amie knew, the workers could construct them with very little input. She tried not to think on the disturbing implications.

She had one final meeting with the camp's leading bugs before her delivery came, in the nest itself. She would've done it elsewhere, but she'd grown too large to move very far, too dependent on the food Tailslide or workers brought her. Besides—they would all discover the truth sooner or later.

They did not react with Tailslide's initial horror, when they stepped into the nest for the first time. Its walls were entirely transformed, covered by green wax and shaped stone that destroyed every remnant of its natural beauty. Whatever disgust might come naturally to a human being was superseded with something more instinctive.

Albrecht was the first to arrive, and the first to react. "This is the true source of your victory. You were... endowed with biological advantages. That's why others can't recreate your powers."

She hadn't obeyed every stricture of Kaya's instructions for a nest. Where the changelings relied on wax since all fabric would rot, she could have a little more comfort resting on soft, waterproof sleeping bags. "I guess so," she answered. It wasn't completely true—on her arrival, she looked no different from any of the other young women in camp. Maybe any of them could've changed the way she did, given the right encouragement.

"I'm sure you already guessed as much, given you've had a thousand young people stuck in a confined space with nothing to do—but changelings are sterile. The... females are, anyway. Except for nymphs, and queens. Without this, we go extinct."

The camp director seemed in better spirits than their first meeting, despite the waxy nest around him and the magical blue glow from captive spells. Maybe it was the weight of responsibility he no longer carried—or maybe it was seeing his campers finally get to eat. "It's worth considering whether we even should reproduce, Amie. If we can return to Earth, what would become of those born to this cursed place? And if we're banished here for good—maybe it would be kinder if our lineage does not continue. They will be parasites like us, won't they?"

Danelle appeared in the doorway, along with Mrs. Sobol and the current leader of her scouts, Andre. They stumbled in off the elevator, showing some of the same slack-jawed surprise at what they found.

"Our food is... unconventional," Amie said. "But I don't think that means we don't deserve to live. Ask Tailslide—does he feel weaker for having fed me?"

Tucked away against the nearest wall was a cloth tent, one of many taken from camp. Tailslide had turned it to makeshift quarters, a respite where he could be surrounded by things he understood instead of gross bug stuff. The walls were thin enough for him to overhear everything, including his own name.

He popped his head out, eyeing the assembly of changelings. They watched him emerge, with that characteristic blend of hunger and curiosity. "Amie?"

She waved him over. "About the way changelings live. After the Canterlot Invasion... you said that the bugs there did terrible things, didn't you? They hurt a lot of ponies for food."

"Oh." His ears folded, and his face paled. "They showed everypony the photographs when they assigned us here. Gruesome... I don't know if it's appropriate for these ponies, Amie. They're too young."

Danelle was, anyway. Amie nodded her agreement. "But when you were with me—did you ever feel drained? Like you had a parasite? Or... did you see the bugs living with me hurt anypony else?"

"No. That's how I knew you were different. I mean—I already knew. But when you weren't there to watch them, I still saw what they were doing, heard them talking sometimes. It would've been a problem if they hurt ponies, I'm not sure what I would've done."

Amie touched his shoulder with one leg—that was about the motion she could handle right then. "Thank you. That was my point, Mr. Albrecht. We can live well without hurting anyone. I'm... still figuring out how it works. But my best guess—" And what Kaya thought, but there was no need to get complicated. "—sapient species on this planet produce glamour naturally. It's part of their native emotional energy, inherent in everything they do. We can harvest it passively, collecting what would otherwise be wasted. We eat, and they're not worse off."

The old director grumbled his dissatisfaction. "I still think this whole... process... should've waited a few years at the very least. I know you haven't been outside—but the first frost has settled on the mountain, and not melted with morning sun. Campers have to choose between the multipurpose building's central heating, or this mine. The last thing a delicate situation needs is another source of unpredictability and destabilization."

"I didn't intend it," Amie admitted. "But I... don't think I would be a queen otherwise. This was the moment I changed. Without a queen, we can't survive against Equestria."

Mrs. Sobol cleared her throat, stepping past him. "Miss Blythe. I have other concerns. First, I should be here until this... process is completed. I have delivered many children into this—another world. There can be complications. Second, you appear to be—exceptionally pregnant. How many are you expecting?"

She couldn't stand anymore, but she did her best to meet the nurse's eyes anyway. "I would be grateful for your help. Unfortunately, the problem is worse than you imagine. I'm carrying... eggs. Individually, they're small. I'm told a queen can produce a hundred or more every few months. They will take that long to hatch again and spend six more months as larva after that."

Danelle laughed nervously. "That's... weird. This is weird, Amie. I don't think it's a good idea. That sounds like a lot of work! Will there be bugs down here in the nursery all the time?"

She nodded. "Like an ant colony or a termite mound. I think the... brain-damaged bugs... will make for good candidates, along with the youngest campers. Much safer than staying up on the surface where an army or a hungry wolf might catch them."

"Campers need something to keep them busy," Albrecht said. "Maybe this will help. My long-term plans for banishment here already considered the construction of a school. But that's your problem now."

"Just keep everything running for the next few days. Once the eggs are in the nursery, I'll be able to help again. I want the other hunting teams ready to leave by the end of the week."

They left her there not long after, returning to their duties on the surface. Mrs. Sobol remained, but she was grateful for her help. Even if a changeling birth would be nothing like the human equivalent—there was something comforting about a medical professional with equipment on hand.

She didn't have long to wait. Without the sun to measure time, without the need to sleep, Amie spent the next while in a semi-delirious state. All the same worries still boiled in her chest—Beth's visit to Ivy, their constantly draining supply of food, and fear over the “hunting” groups. If ponies caught and killed one, how would she live with herself?

When the moment finally came, it was nothing like she imagined. She didn't have a well-designed hospital bed, didn't have an epidural and a team of skilled doctors and nurses to care for her. Tailslide wasn't exactly the loving husband she'd imagined spending the rest of her life with. But he was brave, and devoted enough to watch something that Amie herself wouldn't even want to see on the Discovery Channel.

Once she was past her disgust, Amie realized that it didn't hurt. If anything, the process was... pleasant. It made sense—if queens went through torture with each new generation of eggs, they would not produce large colonies, and the species couldn't survive. She couldn't move much—but she didn't have to. There were workers nearby to take the eggs away one at a time, where they could be sealed away in waxy clusters for their first few days of incubation.

They would need to be moved every few days, kept at just the right temperature and just wet enough to keep from drying out. They would need to be cleaned, kept near fresh air, and handled in every moment with supreme delicacy, or else rob the bug growing within of their chance at a healthy life.

It must've taken hours, spent at the furthest edge of exhaustion. But eventually—through pleasure and pain and fear and heartache—the last of the eggs was finally gone. She collapsed back into her nest, feeling very much like a deflated canteen. The empty nursery walls were now clustered with many eggs, each one faintly luminous with magic. Their first few drops of glamour would have to sustain them until they hatched with spring.

"You're... healing already," Tailslide said. She hadn't seen him approach—but Amie was so exhausted that she didn't see much of anything past her nose. "Guess you would have to. The other changeling queen didn't look like... that."

Amie struggled to look up. This was what it felt like not to sleep for months. Now that the eggs were gone, it caught up with her in a wave. "Y-yeah. Guess... transformation magic... comes in handy sometimes. Don't have to waddle around like a pig the rest of my life. Little blessings."

He wiped her face with something damp and cool. "Wonder what it's like to have a hundred foals all at once. That's... more than anyone I've ever heard of, even in the old earth pony tribes. Will they look like me?"

Amie chuckled. She fought to stay awake, but it was a losing battle. No one could go through such exertion without needing rest, even someone as strong and healthy as Amie. "I... hope they're like you. I hope they're brave, I hope they... do the right thing, even when they have to sacrifice. I hope they care about people who look different than they do. I hope they protect the ones they love."

He wrapped one wing around her, holding her close. Amie couldn't see anything else anymore—not the nurse, not the workers, not the glowing eggs.

But maybe that was okay. She wasn't alone.

Comments

[ABitterPill]

Congratulations Amie, you're a mom to dozens. Panic attack in 3... 2... 1...

[Thranx]

I hope Luna sees this if when she breached Amie's dreams or memories. It should clear the air a bit.

[redmar]

The eggs have arrived at least and they will be cared for. Now Amie has to deal with all the other problems that are still present.

[Gavier]

sleep tight bed bug, don't let the princess bite

[harts fire]

and the new generation has arrived.
now the work of brokering piece with the pony's needs to really get started.

[Alyarin9000]

Poor Amie. Slowly sinking into sleep when you 'know' there's a dream knife coming after you will be horrifying. At least she has Tailslide with her. I'm sure she'll be fine.

11625929
On the other hand, the new changeling queen / extraterrestrial invader immediately starts breeding new soldiers. She's not ruthless like Chrysalis, but it will be concerning. The biological drivers appear to be in full force from an external perspective - other than a desire to harm the ponies, anyway.

[ChakatRedstripe]

Awesome chapter

[MasterNotWriter6626]

Guess we’re finding out about the dreamknife now, and not later. Imagine it’s Jackie, crossing the Starscribe multiverse like a fully licensed plot device.

Nah, at this point I’m still assuming it’s either a literal blade slicing through the dreamworld, a blade directly wielded by Luna, or just Luna herself. I longer think it can be fake. It would be too anticlimactic to just have Amie get a good night’s rest after this cliffhanger.

[MasterNotWriter6626]

Oh, also…

Albrecht haters in shambles, LOL.

“Why couldn’t he just be Hitler, waaah!”

Disclaimer: this post not to be taken seriously.

[tsaukpaetra]

It will be interesting to see if having a live source of love to splurge on the incubating eggs will make a difference. Wonder if that's been tried before?
For some reason the idea just struck us: what if Amie set aside a few eggs, decorated them up like a "fun new education experience" product and then sent them to unknowing adopters.... No that sounds quite evil now that we think on it. "Hatch your own changeling!" sounds like a very short step from slavery.... 😅

[battleship]

dame really says something about me that I mainly feel disgusted mainly the Tailslide thing.

[minibox]

The fact that changelings could be commensal rather than parasitic will go a long way in improving relations between them and ponies. Though there will be issues with population and food supply and such, not to mention it may take a few decades or generations for ponies to fully accept changelings in their society. Regardless, there is a path to peace that doesn't rely on "reformation".

With Amie sleeping it's time to face the truth of the dream knife. The hive will either have a leader or a martyr come morning but at least we know it will have a fighting chance because of her.

[kvazar]

The path of exculpation need not be a lonely one

[FanOfMostEverything]

Wonder what it's like to have a hundred foals all at once. That's... more than anyone I've ever heard of, even in the old earth pony tribes.

"Even," he says, like it's comparable. What stories do they tell of bygone earth ponies?

In any case, wise or not, Amie's followed through on the biological imperative. Now it's time to see what her fellow rulers think of her.

[Cedric Bale]

Knowing that next chapter will likely deal with the whole 'dream knife' thing, waiting for next week's chapter is going to be really difficult.

[Mythic Night]

I just hope she's going to survive to raise her unexpected children.

[Frazzle2Dazzle]

But maybe that was okay. She wasn't alone.

And here’s hoping the sword of Damocles has a blunted blade.

[MasterNotWriter6626]

11626369
Why am I getting suggestive vibes from this? What's with the Dash emoji? I don't know if it's just my dirty mind, but you can't be suggesting that somehow this turns sexual, can you? The only theme I could think of for that would be "wake-up call". Yeah, I'm going to stop that thought there.

[Cedric Bale]

11627505
... Yeah, that's all you, buddy.

[MasterNotWriter6626]

11627512
Yeah, I figured. I'm going edit this here reply after a bit with a secret.

Secret:
Placeholder

[Kamata]

I’m hedging my bets on the dream knife targeting the “guilty”. What does the magic determine to be guilt?

[Cozy Mark IV]

They don't have a lot of details to work with, but if a queen killing 'dream knife's is loose in the world, I think the other queens have a lot more to fear than she does. Also, not mentioning this to the other queen may have been a mistake...

[Melody Song]

Amie, you're all those things too, don't forget that

[Werewing]

He wiped her face with something damp and cool..."Will they look like me?"

Yes. At least sometimes.