Chapter 6 (Rewrite)
In the end, we decided that I would claim the Undiscovered West now rather than later. If anyone tried to settle there afterwards, I would deal with it. I already had ideas for infiltrating castles as a bug, kidnapping and holding hostage or assassinating whoever I needed to until they surrendered and pulled their people out of my territory. I would probably discover them squatting in my territory late, since I couldn’t have anyone patrolling over there, but that was an inconvenience I’d just have to deal with.
With that settled, I had international politics and foreign relations to deal with. Much to my dismay. Though, as frustrating as this was sure to be, it was an opportunity to seek out potential allies other than the ponies from Equestria. Well, “allies”. If the Ponies wanted my hive as a puppet state entirely reliant upon them, I sincerely doubted they had invited anyone that would be of any significant use to me. At least when it comes to opposing Equestria.
Regardless, as Luna had promised, they had made accommodations so I wouldn’t have to starve myself while I was in Canterlot. Apparently there were several servants and royal guards who had volunteered to let me feed on them. I would apparently be required to attend breakfast, lunch, and dinner with the princesses where they could watch me feed to make sure I wasn’t going overboard. Also because they had things they needed or wanted to discuss with me and meal times were just a convenient opportunity to talk.
At first I had expected to have a bunch of individual meetings with various ambassadors. However, apparently that wasn’t going to be the case. At least, not until later. Instead the princesses were going to be holding a ball, where I would be expected to meet with and talk to the nobility and foreign dignitaries. Fortunately, it seemed that I wouldn’t have to do any ballroom dancing, especially since I was missing a limb. Guests were allowed to dance if they wanted, but most didn’t in political balls such as this.
The ball was a couple days after I had arrived. I was already wearing the dress Rarity had given me, having put it on after my shower that morning. Normal though it may apparently be in Equestria, I just couldn’t stand not wearing clothes or at the very least portraying a façade of clothing with my shapeshifting.
I was in the guest room I had been provided and was currently reading about the physiology behind the teeth and jaw strength of dragons. I was still trying to wrap my head around the odd mechanisms that allowed them to chew diamonds like rock candy. It was weird. It was purely biological, but it involved structures that seemed more at home in a hydraulic press or some weird tinker tech crushing mechanism than in a living thing. The forces their jaws could exert were insane. I could not fathom how or why anything would have ever evolved to be able to bite that hard let alone have teeth and jaws strong enough to survive the pressures.
The grandfather clock in my guest room gonged and I glanced over. It was time for the ball.
Getting up I straightened out my dress a bit since I had been laying down. Then I made my way to where I was supposed to be meeting up with Princess Luna. Apparently she was supposed to come with me just to help me out since I wasn’t familiar with Equestrian politics. More like to keep an eye on me, I thought, but I didn’t complain, I just wanted to get this all over with so I could get back to more important matters.
Instead of finding Luna, I found a nervous looking maid. “Q-Queen Weaver…?” She muttered, timidly.
“That’s me. What is it? Where’s Princess Luna?” I asked.
“She… She s-sent me to let you know, s-she… she’s going to be r-running late…” The maid stuttered. I could feel the fear radiating off of her. She was completely terrified of me.
I sighed but decided not to address the maid’s fear. I would only end up fucking things up and making her even more afraid of me. Just like the other times I had tried with other servants. “So, why will she be running late?”
“Th-there was an accident w-with her makeup… S-some spilled on her d-dress and stained it…”
“Alright, fine. Tell her I’ll be going on ahead. I’ll be waiting for her in the ballroom. I’ll be fine on my own for however long it takes for her to finish getting ready.” I told the maid before turning and hovering off towards the ball room.
The maid tried to stutter a response that sounded vaguely like an objection but failed. So I just continued on my way.
I entered the ballroom and was greeted by the sight of a bunch of well dressed ponies, and several other non-pony dignitaries. Everyone had different emotions upon seeing me. Some were uncomfortable, others were disgusted, some didn’t care, and a few were outright angry and hated me.
I saw Shining Armor in full guard regalia standing off to the side, talking to a couple other guards. He was in charge of security for the ball. I decided not to bother him. Instead, in an effort to build diplomatic ties, I made my way over to two of the dignitaries who simply didn’t care about my presence one way or the other. Prince Hasani and his wife Princess Faras. Apparently they were from Saddle Arabia and the prince was the son of the Sultan. Plus the prince was one of the dignitaries who recognized my hive as its own Kingdom.
“Hello, Prince Hasani, Princess Faras.” I greeted.
“Ah, Queen Weaver. Good evening.” The prince greeted, his accent sounding arabic.
“It’s good to finally have a chance to speak with you.” Princess Faras said politely.
I nodded. “Likewise. I have to thank you both for recognizing my Hive as its own nation. That legitimacy is going to help a lot.”
The prince laughed. “Of course. We were more than happy to. Equestria isn’t the only kingdom who has had troubles with Changelings. There have been plenty of instances where members of Chrysalis’ swarm have kidnapped and replaced important people in our lands. She even had the gall to try to kidnap our firstborn son and replace him with one of her own…” His tone and expression darkened for a moment.
I could feel a flare of pure rage and hatred from the prince and fear and worry from the princess.
His smile returned and he continued. “Luckily we discovered the plot before they could carry it out and our son is safe. However, I believe it’s safe to say our whole family still holds quite the grudge from that incident. So when my father received word of your existence and your opposition to Chrysalis our stance was already decided. No offense to you, but we recognized the legitimacy of your hive purely to spite Chrysalis. Otherwise… Well, what is a Queen without citizens, hm?”
I nodded. “I get it. I expect that’s a pretty common sentiment. Chrysalis doesn’t seem to have very many allies internationally.”
“That is quite the understatement. She and her hive are almost universally despised. And if you wish to avoid the same I would strongly advise against repeating her hostility. Following in her hoofsteps will only earn you enemies. You can already see the fruits of her actions with how many nations have officially recognized your hive as its own kingdom.” The prince warned.
“I don’t plan to. Though I will defend myself if I have to.”
“Well that, at least, is less likely to earn you any enemies you didn’t already have. So, I can respect that. Though, to be honest, I can’t imagine you’ll be able to accomplish much being all alone. So tread carefully. The Minotaurs particularly despise changelings. Thus why they didn’t recognize your hive as its own kingdom. So I wouldn’t be surprised if they attempted to steal your land while you’re still all alone, just to spite you. And while Equestria may chastise them and apply economic sanctions and/or embargoes, King Steel Heart likely won’t care. And the Princesses most certainly won’t go to war for you over some tracts of land that you can’t even populate.” The prince warned.
I looked off to the side where I had seen the minotaur ambassador talking to some pony nobles. He glared back at me and I could feel pure hate emanating from him, mixed with a measure of disgust. The nobles around him felt similar, though not as intense. I had to wonder just what the hell Chrysalis had done to the minotaurs to make them hate Changelings so much. Whatever she had done, it had to have been absolutely horrific if even this ambassador hated me as much as he did. I decided to ask Luna about it later.
Looking back at the Prince and Princess I nodded, and in a slightly angry but still polite tone I said, “I can see what you mean. I can feel how much their ambassador hates me. If the King hates me even half as much, yeah he’s probably going to try something, assuming he’s that petty. However, if the minotaurs or anyone else expects me to fight their armies head on in a big open battlefield, they'll be disappointed. That isn't the most optimal way for changelings to fight, considering our natural abilities. Especially not in my case since I’m alone. I just hope it doesn’t come to that.” I said, choosing my words carefully. I didn’t want to risk giving away any strategies.
The Prince looked at me in confusion. “Wait, what do you mean? What would you do then?”
“I would prefer to keep my tactics to myself. I won’t tolerate any political bullying, especially for things I had nothing to do with, and I won’t make the same mistakes as Chrysalis. That’s all I have to say on the matter.”
Both of their eyes widened as shock and worry radiated from them. “I… am not quite sure what you’re implying… Are… Are you comparing yourself to Chrysalis?”
“No. I’m saying I won’t give you any concrete information on the tactics I would employ. Now, while I appreciate you recognizing my hive as its own kingdom, I would appreciate it even more if you stopped trying to dig for information.” I said in a more firm tone.
That apparently was the wrong approach to trying to change the subject as I felt fear bolt through them. The Prince cleared his throat. “Our apologies, Queen Weaver. We meant no offense. Well, it was nice talking to you. Do have a good rest of your night.” With that the two of them turned and walked away.
I watched them leave, not entirely sure what I had done so wrong to scare them off like that. Had I accidentally come off as hostile or aggressive? I hadn’t been trying to intimidate them. I had just wanted to change the subject.
Not quite sure what to do next I wandered off to the side of the room and just stayed there, waiting for Luna. I was disappointed. I had wanted to use this chance to possibly forge an alliance or two before Luna showed up, but that hadn’t worked out. So I didn’t want to risk scaring anyone else and ruining any more potential diplomatic ties. So I just sat there and waited.
I could feel eyes on me. People were staring at me as I just sat here. Some were creeped out. Others were outright intimidated for some reason. Why, though? I didn’t get it. All I was doing was sitting here! What was so creepy or intimidating about that?
After a moment a pony I recognized as Prince Blueblood approached me, with a small group of other ponies. Blueblood was reluctant and felt scared and judging by the emotions of the ponies around him, they were pressuring him into whatever he was about to do.
“Weaver…” He said, venom in his tone.
“Prince Blueblood… Is there something you want?” I asked, trying to stay patient.
“Hmph… You, out of Equestria or in a cell in Tartarus perhaps?” He said spitefully.
“I should have seen that coming. Sorry, but I’m not going anywhere.” I told him.
“Hmph… I can’t stand being in the presence of such a grotesque creature, so I’ll make this brief. I don’t know how you’ve managed to deceive my aunties, Weaver, but I refuse to fall for it. I was there when Chrysalis attacked. I know first hoof just how Changelings are. You are all inherently evil. It’s in your blood. Emotion devouring parasites that you are. So the fact my aunties are risking going to war with Chrysalis over you, a ‘good’ changeling, shocks and horrifies me. No Equestrian soldier should need to risk getting hurt, being kidnapped, or harmony forbid losing their lives just to protect you.”
To his credit, he actually felt very strongly about that. As soon as he started talking about the war with Chrysalis I could feel his dread and when he started talking about Equestrians getting hurt, his despair. He felt genuine despair at the thought of Equestrian soldiers getting hurt. Not quite what I had expected, honestly. Though I still wasn’t sure if there was a spell that could mess with my empathy so I decided to reserve judgment on that front for the moment. I didn’t want to give this jerk the benefit of the doubt.
Blueblood continued, “I find all of this extremely suspicious. I can only assume you must be using some sort of mind controlling magic upon them much like Chrysalis used on Captain Shining Armor. And the moment I find sufficient evidence to prove any of this, your malice or the mind control of my aunties, I will be reporting it and it will be over for you. I’ll make sure you get an extended stay in Tartarus! That’s all I wanted to say. Have a good evening, Queen Weaver…” He said before turning and walking away.
I watched him walk away. I could bring that up to Luna when she got here. I could, but I wouldn’t. It wasn’t worth the trouble. He wasn’t going to find any evidence because it didn’t exist, and I certainly wasn’t going to give him any. Plus complaining risked making me look weak.
A few moments later a pony who I assumed was a member of the nobility approached me. He was a unicorn stallion with pure white fur, a well maintained blue mane and tail, a small mustache, a fancy tailcoat suit with a blue shirt, a white collar with polished golden buttons, and a purple bowtie, and a monocle. “You must be the new Changeling Queen all of Canterlot has been talking about. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, your highness.” He said bowing his head politely.
I returned the gesture. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” I responded trying to maintain a similar level of politeness and civility. My response was awkward and clunky and I knew it but it was the best I could come up with on the spot so I tried my best to make it sound as natural as possible. “I’m Queen Weaver, yes. And you are?”
“Ah, I neglected to introduce myself. Please do forgive my blunder. I am simply so used to everypony recognizing me immediately that it slipped my mind. I am Fancy Pants. A member of the nobility here in Canterlot… I must admit, I have been ever so curious about you since I first heard rumors of you. A new Changeling Queen arriving in Ponyville of all places under mysterious circumstances. The mystique of it is quite enthralling, I’m sure you can imagine. That said, there has been quite the commotion amongst the nobility ever since you’ve arrived.”
I nodded. “So I’ve been told… So where do you stand on the subject?” I asked, maintaining a neutral tone so as to not come off as hostile.
“Personally, I trust the princesses. If they trust you, then I trust in their judgment. For the most part, anyways. I will admit I have been reserving my own judgment of your personality until I’ve had a chance to meet you in person. As we’ve only just met I’ve yet to come to any definitive conclusion.” Fancy Pants stated.
“That’s fair, I guess. And it’s a lot more fair than the people who want to execute me, send me to prison, or hand me over to Chrysalis just because I’m a Changeling. So I appreciate that. Thank you.” I said.
“But of course. I do believe all creatures deserve a fair chance. You are not Chrysalis so it would be unfair to judge you the same as her without actually meeting you. So, I hear you are making a hive in the Everfree Forest. How is it? Building in the Everfree, I mean. It is one of the most dangerous places in all of Equestria, as far as I am aware.” He inquired.
“Not as bad as its reputation would suggest. There’s a few dangerous plants and animals but I’ve dealt with a lot worse.” I held up the stump of my arm. He looked at it for a moment before I lowered it again. “So it’s okay, I guess. I found a good enough place to build it, where it’ll be hard to find and easy to defend. Right now I’m reading books on unicorn magic to learn how to enchant crystals so I can make lights for the inside.”
“Oh! I was unaware that Changeling and unicorn magic can translate like that! How fascinating.” Fancy Pants stated.
“Well, it’s not exactly one to one. I’m having to figure out how to translate it over. How familiar are you with enchanting?” I asked.
“Only cursory knowledge, I’m afraid. I know some of the fundamentals but I’ve had no reason to dedicate time to actually learning how to do it.”
“Good enough. Well, to simplify it, for unicorns enchanting a crystal it's sort of like pouring water into a cup except the water is energy. Well, for me, that doesn’t work. For my magic it’s more like having a swarm of insects burrow into the crystal and turning it into a hive or nest. There are other differences like that that I’ve been running into and having to figure out on my own. Unfortunately there aren’t any books on Changeling magic that I can read, or if there are they belong to Chrysalis. So learning what I can from unicorn magic and trying to find ways to translate it over to my magic is the best I can do.” I explained.
“Intriguing. Though, forgive me, but the way you describe it makes it sound like you aren’t familiar with magic at all.”
“That’s because I’m not.” I didn’t go into any details because I was pretty sure he wouldn’t believe me and I didn’t want to bother trying to convince him.
“Truly? I suppose you must not have had a chance to learn it from the other changelings then. My condolences. That must have been quite the struggle. Well, I wish you luck in your endeavors to educate yourself in the art of the arcane.”
“Thank you. I really don’t know much if anything about you, but how are things going in general for you?” I asked.
“Oh, quite well. Quite well indeed. I was present during the royal wedding and the invasion but other than that matters have been as good as can be expected.”
We continued to make small talk for a bit until the doors opened and Luna walked in. She was wearing a nice blue ball gown with an obvious night sky theme. She quickly spotted me and started making her way towards me. Seeing me talk to Fancy Pants she smiled and I could feel happiness radiating from her.
“Apologies for being late, Weaver. Good evening, Fancy Pants.”
“Good evening to you as well, your highness.” Fancy Pants said, bowing to Luna.
Luna smiled at him before looking at me. “I’m very glad to see you’re making friends, Weaver. Celestia will be happy to hear it as well.”
I gritted my teeth. I wanted to deny it. Fancy Pants wasn’t my friend. We’d literally just met five or ten minutes ago. We were acquaintances at best. But I didn’t want to burn any potential political bridges by saying that either. I didn’t know how sensitive this guy was or if he’d get offended by me saying it. So I just stayed silent.
Luna chuckled, “Well other than you two meeting, did I miss anything?” She asked.
“Not really. I talked to the Prince and Princess of Saddle Arabia and ended up scaring them off by mistake. Then I decided to sit here and wait for you to show up, since I didn’t want to scare anyone else.” I explained.
“Wait, Prince Hasani and Princess Faras?” Luna said, startled by this.
Fancy Pants was similarly startled by this
“Uh… Yes? Why? What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Those two are notorious gossips.” Fancy Pants explained
“Weaver, what did you say to them?!” Luna demanded.
“Er… Well… They were telling me how the Minotaurs hate Changelings and might try to take land in the Undiscovered West just to spite me. So I told them I would defend myself if I had to. However if the Minotaurs or any other country expects me to fight their armies head on in big open battlefields they would be sorely mistaken because that’s not an optimal way for Changelings to fight. Especially not in my case since I’m alone. They kept pressing me, I think they were trying to get tactical information out of me, but I didn’t tell them any strategies I’d use. All I said was that I wouldn’t tolerate political bullying and I wouldn’t make the same mistakes as Chrysalis. Then I tried to change the subject but I guess I came off too aggressive because that’s what scared them off.”
Luna grimaced. “Well… That’s not as bad as I had feared. It’s still not good, but it could have turned out much worse…”
“Nothing we can do about it now.” I said.
“Ehem… Well, perhaps there is, actually. Weaver, I must say you’ve been nothing but polite this entire time. I do not mean to brag, but I do have quite a bit of social influence here in Canterlot. A far cry from the monsters other Changelings present themselves as. So I’ll do what I can to help curtail and dispel the rumors that arise from this as much as I can. And, besides, I’m afraid the comparisons to Chrysalis are already there. So nothing should really change in the end except perhaps causing a bit more polarization on the side of the faction that already dislikes you.” Fancy Pants stated
“That would be very much appreciated, Fancy Pants. Thank you.” Luna said gratefully.
“Yeah, thanks.” I nodded.
“But of course. Now, I should be off. Do enjoy the rest of your evenings, Queen Weaver, Princess Luna.” Fancy Pants said before turning and walking away.
“So, is there anyone you’d recommend I try to talk to next? Preferably someone who won’t be scared easily.” I asked.
“Well, I would introduce you to Ambassador Stone Horn to try to smooth over things between you and the minotaurs, but I’m not so sure that’s the best idea. And besides, Celestia is a lot better at that sort of thing than I am… Hm… Somepony who isn’t scared easily… Ah, I think I know just the pony! And I think I see him. Come, I’ll introduce the two of you.” Luna said before turning and leading me into the crowd.
We walked up to an old griffon with one eye and an odd red cap, in his talon was a glass of what I assumed was either brandy or whisky based on the color.
“Ambassador Gruff.” Luna said in a polite tone.
The ancient looking Griffon turned to face her. “Whaddya want?” He demanded bluntly.
“I would like to introduce you to somepony. Ambassador Gruff, this is Queen Weaver. Queen Weaver, this is Ambassador Gruff. He also goes by Grandpa Gruff, at least amongst the Griffons.” Luna introduced us.
“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” I said, trying to be polite.
“Nice to meet ya… Ya got any bits?” He asked.
“No?”
“Bah… Then I’m aint interested.” He grumbled.
I blinked in surprise. “Fine. Never mind then. Let’s go, Princess.” I said, turning to leave.
“Hold on, both of you. Ambassador Gruff, Queen Weaver, I believe you two have a bit in common. Gruff, you were a knight for King Guto before the collapse, and Weaver was a warrior in her previous life as well. Please, at least give each other a chance.” Luna requested.
He grumbled a bit before saying, “Darn it. Fine! Your hoof. How’d ya lose it?” He asked, sounding annoyed. I could feel his disappointment. Though what he was disappointed about, I had no idea.
I glanced at Luna. “Do you and Celestia care if I tell the truth?”
Luna shook her head. “I wouldn’t have introduced the two of you if I thought revealing your past would be a problem.”
I turned to face Gruff again. “It’s a bit of a long story. I’ll tell you, if you tell me how you got that scar on your eye.”
“Hrm… Deal…” He said, reluctantly. I could feel he wanted something. The bits he asked about maybe? It was weird.
“Alright. Like I said, this is a bit of a long story. First, though, there's a bit of background information necessary for this story." I proceeded to explain how there were other worlds and universes, that I used to be Human and came from a world called Earth Bet, how Scion was the source of powers in my world, and how Scion went on a rampage and started destroying everything. Then I told them the story of how I lost my arm in the Cauldron Base. Gruff was skeptical at first, but Luna vouched for me. I was surprised by how easily that convinced him. Did Luna vouching for someone being honest really carry that much weight? Well, I suppose it might if she had some sort of magic that let her know when someone was lying. But then she could be lying. Why would they just take her at their word that someone else is telling the truth. Especially with a story so outlandish as mine. I knew how crazy my story sounded.
Gruff scratched the back of his head. “And you say she’s telling the truth?” He asked, looking at Luna.
Luna nodded. “Yes. I’ve seen it first hand in her dreams. She led the army that defeated this monstrosity. I’ve seen the end, when they were tormenting it with images of its mate. It essentially just gave up and let them kill it.”
He sighed tiredly. “Welp… My story doesn’t compare to that… Ya still wanna hear it?”
“That’s what we agreed on. So, yes.” I responded.
“Well, my story needs a bit of background too. It begins with the fall of Griffonstone. The first griffon king, King Grover, united our kind like we've never been united before or since! And he did it all with that incredible Idol of Boreas. That idol brought pride to the heart of every griffon that saw it! From one king to the next, Griffonstone had our golden idol. We were the envy of all other species. It held us together — it gave us an identity — right up until the reign of King Guto. That's when Arimaspi came to steal our griffon treasure! King Guto tried to fight him off, but Arimaspi managed to get away with the idol! They say when our treasure fell into the Abysmal Abyss, our pride went with it. King Guto was the last king of Griffonstone.” Ambassador Gruff explained.
He then raised a claw and said, “And that’s where my story starts. Griffonstone didn’t dissolve immediately after we lost our Idol. Oh no. After king Guto lost it, all of Griffonstone fell into complete chaos! There was a huge war, with disillusioned Griffons trying to depose the king for his failure. I’d been a mere cub when Arimaspi came and by the time I was old enough the war had already been raging for about… eh… twelve years or so. I ended up joining King Guto’s army as soon as I was old enough. A dumb decision made by a naive young griff lured in by promises of wealth, glory, and claims King Guto would get the Idol back and restore the unity of the Griffons! Never happened… I regret my decision to join him to this day…”
He sighed and I could feel the heavy regret, sadness, and resignation radiating from him. “Still I fought for him for years! I still remember the day I lost my eye like it was yesterday. It was the coldest winter in Griffonstone history. I was stationed at a fort up north of Griffonstone proper. The clouds were so thick everything was dark, and it was snowing like there was no tomorrow! The air was still, though. There wasn’t even so much as the slightest breeze. I remember thinking how much I appreciated it, because I was on patrol duty and the wind would have just made the cold that much more miserable! Made it a bit stuffy though. Especially later… I remember seeing ‘em coming. Dozens of ‘em! More than enough to overwhelm our fort.”
I could sense the dull feeling of remembered dread and anticipation. The phantom of the emotions he must have felt in the moment. I let him continue to tell his story.
“I was the first to spot them. So I rushed to go raise the alarm. A big brass bell that was loud enough to alert the whole fort, even if everygriff was sleeping. They weren’t sleeping, though. It was mid afternoon. So the whole place was ready in a matter of moments. Most of us stayed on the ground, planning to use the fort’s fortifications to our advantage. Some of us went to intercept them in the air, planning to take as many of ‘em down as we could to reduce the pressure on the defenders inside the fort. So, spear in claw, I took off and joined the others! We didn’t last long. There were just too many of ‘em and they surrounded us. Still, we sure as sugar gave as good as we got!”
I could feel his pride. He was still proud of how hard he and the other griffons with him fought, even if they’d lost. That was sort of admirable, I supposed.
“There was this one Griffon, maybe twice my size. He had a sword and I had a spear. I had the range advantage so I thought I could take him. Ha! I poked him once and the big brute broke my spear! Then all I had was a broken stick half the length and my talons. I whacked him across the beak with the stick and tried to tackle him. We tussled in the air for a bit, blood and feathers flying everywhere! He was a lot stronger so he threw me off and managed to cut me across the eye, knocking off my helmet. I suppose I hadn’t tightened the straps properly. I barely even realized what happened until later. I kept trying to fight but that brute broke my wing and I fell to the ground. I tried to angle myself to what I assumed was a snowdrift as I fell. Turned out, it was a boulder and I bashed my head right into it! Knocked me out cold!” He chuckled. He apparently found that part of his own story humorous. The humor disappeared almost immediately as he continued, becoming uncharacteristically calm and quiet..
“I woke up later. I’m not sure how long I was out but I was cold, in pain, and completely covered in snow. I managed to dig myself out. I saw mounds of pink and red snow and ice all around me. It was the others who flew to fight with me, and some of our enemies too… Fortunately, by the time I’d managed to march my way all the way back the others in the fort had managed to drive them off. No idea how, really. Probably just got lucky. Our commander was an idiot, so it wasn’t because of his leadership. Anyway, I was able to get my wounds taken care of. They put a splint on my wing and it healed up just fine but they couldn’t save my eye. We didn’t have these fancy shmancy pain killers we’ve got nowadays either! They just handed me a cheap bottle of booze and told me to suck it up! The next few days were the hardest part, though. We had to dig the bodies out of the snow and bury them. Fortunately we had plenty of time since the ice and snow kept them from rotting… It was still a nasty job though.”
He quickly downed the rest of the alcohol in his cup in one go then perked back up and continued. “The war lasted for three years after that! In the end we lost. King Guto was captured and executed and we never recovered the Idol of Boreas. Then the rebels split into different factions and started tearing each other apart, trying to decide who the next king would be. In the end no one won, our kingdom and population was in shambles, Griffonstone was a shadow of what it once was, King Guto was the last king of Griffonstone, and we all lived miserably ever after. The end!”
I nodded. Our circumstances were very different but I could relate to an extent. I was curious about something though. “So, there were efforts to retrieve the Idol of Boreas. Even if you couldn’t get it back, for whatever reason, did you ever find where it was?”
“Find it? I see it every time I fly over the Abysmal Abyss! It’s just sitting there on the side of the cliff! But it’s just too darn windy to fly down there and get it.” Gruff declared.
I blinked. “Wait… Seriously? You know exactly where it is, but it’s just too windy to fly down and grab it? Could you not just use a rope and rappel down or something?”
“King Guto tried that. Didn’t work. The ropes just break.”
“Right… Okay… So if someone went down and managed to get the idol back for you griffons, what would happen?”
“Whatever Griffon got the Idol would be crowned King or Queen of Griffonstone! That was part of the agreement that stopped the second war. They decided that anygriff able to get the Idol would be declared the new ruler. It’ll never happen though. They tried for decades, and nogriff has ever succeeded. It’s impossible!” He said dismissively.
That gave me an idea. Maybe I would have a chance to get allies outside of Equestria. I’d have to go to Griffonstone and see for myself just how “impossible” it was. If I could get it, I could give it to Gruff or some other Griffon and make them the new king or queen. Then they would be in my debt. Maybe I could get a handful of soldiers to help defend my main hive or help me fight Chrysalis? Some extra military aid from a source I could trust more than I could trust the ponies would be nice. That or any other aid I could get, really. I’d have to negotiate and draw up a contract with whoever I gave the Idol to, assuming I was able to get it in the first place.
“What about you, Princess?” Gruff asked, pointing a talon at Luna.
“Me?” She asked, confused.
“Yes, you! The two of us told our stories now it's your turn! You’re the one who made us talk after all. It’s only fair!” He squawked spitefully. Grumpy old Griffon that he was.
“I… I don’t exactly have any stories where I ended up getting horribly maimed…” She said, uncertainly.
“Clearly. You and Celestia are a thousand years old, right? If that’s true, you must have fought in a war at least once in your life.” I added, siding with the Griffon on this.
“Well… I suppose there were a couple of wars before my banishment… Hm… Ah, I know. How about the story of the first battle I ever fought in?” Luna inquired.
I shrugged and Gruff didn’t really seem to care either way.
Luna sighed. “Right… Well, a thousand years ago, just a few years after we became alicorns and became princesses, the dragons attacked Equestria. At the time they were ruled over by Lord Inferno. Dragon Lord Torch’s immediate predecessor. He was giant. Not as big as Lord Torch is now, but still quite big even for an elder dragon. He was also highly aggressive, highly expansionist, quite greedy, and just all around an unpleasant individual.” Luna explained.
“My first battle was the first true battle in the war with the dragons. I was by myself as Celestia was off on a diplomatic mission with the hippogriffs to plead for aid in the form of food and other essentials. We needed them desperately with individual dragons coming and burning our farms and supply lines to soften us up for what was to come. One of us needed to stay behind and lead our armies in the defense of Equestria, however. Since I was always the most aggressive and Celestia was always the better negotiator, the choice was easy.”
“Our scouts had reported an army of dragons coming straight towards one of our biggest cities. At the time it had a different name, but today it’s known as Baltimare. That was extremely bad as it was our main port in the Celestial Sea. We couldn’t afford to lose our main port for trade with the Griffons. So I took our army and headed there. We had to be fast so we had the Pegasi and Thestrals pull flying chariots to carry other soldiers who couldn’t fly to the city. Unfortunately that meant our numbers would be limited. So we prioritized taking unicorns, because their magic would be more useful against the dragons than the raw strength of the Earth Ponies. It was close but we had managed to muster our forces in Manehattan just in time.”
I could feel her sorrow as she remembered whatever happened next. Whatever it was, it clearly had left a lasting impact on Luna for her to still feel so strongly about it even a thousand years later.
“As the unicorns led the evacuation on the ground, the pegasi, thestrals, and I met the dragons in the air. The soldiers all had clouds which they used to shoot lightning at the dragons. I, on the other hoof, was using my magic. I was still quite strong at the time but it takes time for Alicorns to grow and reach our full potential. As one could see with Princess Cadance. In fact I’d go so far as to say I was about as powerful as Cadance is now. However, I was inexperienced and still found the thought of taking a life intimidating which caused me to hold back. So while we put up a valiant effort against the dragons, It wasn’t enough. I… The dragons… They tore into the soldiers with their claws and teeth. The truly unfortunate were caught in their flame breath and burned alive. I was horrified. I was still young so it was the first time I’d seen anything like it. Then I grew angry. They were killing my loyal subjects. So… I responded in kind.”
Feelings of grief and loss engulfed her. “I still remember the first one. I can picture him in almost perfect detail. From the glint of his scales in the sunlight to the fresh blood dribbling from his maw. He was a large green dragon bigger than a house. He had just eaten a thestral. One of my personal guards whom I had been close friends with… When I cried out, the dragon laughed and mocked me… That had been the final straw. I blasted him with a powerful spell and near tore him in half. I watched the corpse fall from the sky, too stunned by what I had just done to even move… That was a turning point in the battle… I was sad, angry, and appalled by their callousness and barbarity so, when I recovered from killing that dragon, I stopped holding back against the rest.”
From the way she had been talking I had half expected her to be ashamed, but no. There was no shame there. So she didn’t regret killing the dragons. Though I did detect a sense of conflict within her so I assumed she must have felt like she should regret it, but she didn’t.
She sighed and shook her head. “Still it wasn’t enough. They got past me and my soldiers and started destroying the city. I had to fly down to go help the unicorns that were fighting them on the ground. That was where it became truly horrible… Ponies that had been in the middle of being evacuated were running screaming for their lives as the city burned around them and their lives were torn apart. I saw ponies trapped in buildings or under burning rubble. I saw families torn apart. Mothers holding their foals and pleading for mercy as fathers stepped up to try to defend them, only for the stallions to be slaughtered with the mares and foals to follow soon after or for the entire families to be burned alive at once.”
Tears welled in her eyes and she sounded like she was on the verge of crying. “I tried… I tried so hard to save everypony I could… but…” She sniffled and stifled a sob. “But I failed… So many ponies died… it was my duty to protect them… to save them… but I couldn’t… And I have nopony to blame but myself… I was naive… arrogant… I overestimated myself… I should have had generals commanding the battle… but… but I took charge myself… In the end, due to my own hesitation and lack of military experience we lost that battle… All those deaths are on my hooves…” She couldn’t hold it back anymore and she started crying.
Uncomfortable, I looked around and saw a bunch of ponies staring at us. I looked at Gruff, not certain what to do in this situation.
He looked back at me and shrugged. He was at just as much of a loss as I was.
I wanted to believe this was a trick designed to garner sympathy. That the emotions I was sensing weren’t genuine. However, unless Luna was a very good actor that could cry on demand, I couldn’t see that being the case. Plus I didn’t really see the point of trying to trick me like this. So, with a grimace, I reluctantly stepped closer and awkwardly patted her on the back with my hoof. “I’m sure you did the best you could…”
Luna looked up at me in surprise. “Weaver…?” She sniffled.
“We’ve all made mistakes. God knows I have… There were several times in my life where people died because of my mistakes. I don’t want to go into detail. We just have to accept our mistakes, move on, and try not make the same mistakes again. Not very comforting, I know, but that’s just how it is.” I said.
Luna smiled at me.. “You’re terrible at comforting others… But… Thank you, Weaver… I appreciate you trying.” She took a breath and seemed to be trying to force herself to calm down.
“I… I apologize… Even a thousand years later, that failure still weighs heavy on me… After that, I began studying tactics and learning proper combat magic… It was… bad… That’s all I’ll say on the matter… Celestia managed to pull me out of it, thankfully. However I continued my studies even after that, albeit in a more healthy fashion. Eventually we managed to win the war with the help of Lord Torch and some other dragons who were more than ready and willing to overthrow Lord Inferno. It was hard working with them… I loathed dragons after what they had done in that first battle. It took me decades, but I did eventually manage to overcome my hatred. Unfortunately, my fall was not long after that… Well, was my own war story satisfactory?” Luna asked, calming down more and more as she talked.
“Yup. Now is that all? I need to go get another glass of this nice brandy.” Gruff grumbled, holding up his empty cup.
“I suppose… Thank you for talking with us, Ambassador Gruff. It is appreciated.” Luna said politely.
Without another word Gruff turned and walked back towards the drinks table.
After that Luna introduced me to several more individuals but none of the conversations were as long or in depth as the conversation with Gruff.
When the ball was nearly over, we were approached by the Minotaur Ambassador. “Queen Weaver…” He growled. Hatred practically dripped off of him. It was so intense I could practically taste it.
“Good evening Ambassador Stone Horn. What is this about?” Luna asked, immediately stepping between us.
He completely ignored Luna and continued glaring at me. “I’ve heard you said some very threatening things towards Minos…”
“Funny how words get twisted as they pass from person to person. No. All I said was that if your kingdom attacked me, I would defend myself. Leave me alone and I’ll leave you alone. It’s as simple as that. Attack me and I promise you, you won’t like what happens next.” I said, staring him dead in the eyes.
“Weaver…” Luna said in a warning tone.
Stone Horn snorted and I could tell he probably wanted to gore or strangle me right then and there. “Funny how you think your threats scare us, tick… I won’t start a scene here. However, I’m not happy that you’re allowed to roam free. Nor is King Steel Horn… Tread carefully, insect. That’s all I had to say” He then turned and marched away.
I watched him walk away impassively. “They’re definitely going to be a problem.” I commented as soon as he was out of ear shot.
“Weaver, just let Celestia and I deal with the Minotaurs. And for the love of harmony, whatever you do, don’t provoke them any further.” Luna warned.
“Doubt they’re gonna give me a choice, but fine. I’ll let you two try. I’m curious, though… What did Chrysalis do to the Monotaurs to make them hate Changelings more than everyone else?” I asked.
Luna winced. “The Changelings nearly wiped out the Minotaurs on several occasions over the centuries. Millions died or were captured in multiple campaigns against them. It’s simply a case of the Minotaurs being impacted by Chrysalis and her hive more than most. Combine that with the Minotaurs aggressive personalities, ability to hold very intense grudges for long periods of time, and the impact this continued harassment had on the Minotaurs’ culture. Hatred of Changelings is practically ingrained in them from birth.”
So they hated the Changelings because Chrysalis had essentially committed multiple genocides against them. Now the hatred had effectively become a part of their culture. Yeah, I definitely saw where that hate was coming from now. It was just a major pain in the ass that their hatred was being pointed towards me now.
“In that case, I guess I can sympathize to an extent but I’m not the one who did any of that. I’m not Chrysalis. It's annoying that I’m getting blamed for what she did…” I told Luna. My jaw then stretched in a yawn. “I’m getting tired… I think I’ll be going to bed soon. Good night, Princess.”
“Good night, Weaver. Please don’t do anything reckless.” Luna warned as I walked away.
“I don’t plan on it.” I responded.
After that I did as I said I would and just headed immediately back to my guest room. I wasn’t looking for a fight, so I didn’t try to go find the Minotaur ambassador or anything like that. I just went to sleep thoroughly exhausted after the ball.
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Good chapter.
This probably didn’t help Taylor’s mental stability much. I hope that Twilight does reach out soon and start trying to help her. I feel for everyone here but until Chrysalis is brought forward for her crimes everyone will be on edge.
Personally I like Luna as the warrior princess, it makes here stand out more distinctly against Celestia, shows a clear delineation of roles that's makes the whole diarchy thing make more sense, and highlights the struggle she has acclimating to modern times.
it actually makes a lot of sense, Celestia has ever been the Shield of Equestria, but every Shield needs a Sword and Luna does fit that role well, even in Cannon!MLP.
Should probably put the disclaimer on the top because I was very confused as to why you were posting the same chapter again. You could also add (rewrite) at the end of the chapter title to indicate this, then scrub the added part in a week or two.
Dude, you may have overcorrected with Taylor talking to Gruff... It wasn't BAD, nowhere as off as the prior version of the chapter, but it was still weird. Her story came off as word vomit. Gruff and Luna's stories were well laid out, so that just made Taylor's stand out even more. Though I will admit that might be intentional on your part. Just because she didn't put her hoof in her mouth, that doesn't mean she should be perfect. And talking about THAT battle in particular must have been RAW for her... Plus, she isn't a professional storyteller, so I suppose it's only natural for Taylor's words to be a bit awkward.
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Yeah... I see your point. I might go back and just cut it entirely and say something along the lines of "And Taylor explained her backstory" since it probably isn't the most necessary section of the story anyway and it's a bit expositiony.
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Done. Thank you for the suggestion.
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Oh and if I may add one extra peice of advice... The new chapter is better, there are still problems, but I think the primary one is time.
If you had the original story of the previous chapter play out over the course of in-universe months, and interwove them with other minor arcs, and characters, you could have done the same thing well. Its all about time, and making sure things dont feel rushed. Slow down, let your story breathe, it will make your character's reactions feel more normal and will help with flow.
The number one mistake new authors make is sprinting through their list of events they want to happen and turning the story into a checklist rather then a true story.
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Fair criticism. I'll keep that in mind for future reference. It would be a bit difficult to go back and change the chapter to fit that scale. However, I will try my best to stretch things out a bit more where I can and hopefully let them flow a bit more naturally.
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Yeah that was just an example to show my point, not helpful critism in itself.
And keep on it friend, I know you can do it.
I liked how this chapter is, I think you did a good job, especially after that last edition. I agree with xbox432's criticism (although I wouldn't call it a word vomit), Gruff might need to hear the whole Weaver story, but for readers?, there's no need to rewrite it again, not if you don't offer new information about it. You did the right thing, even though I think some good things were lost in the change.
A minor nitpick (or maybe something you may think need your consideration):
How is she doing this? She is in her Changeling form, isn't she? She is a quadruped with only three functional legs (at the moment). Do you catch my drift?
I have read stories here in wich the autors write some characters with one missing leg, specifically front leg, but write them like if they were humans. They don not give them a prosthesis, a wooden leg or a crutch, as if what the character lost was a hand and not one of the four limbs to keep them balanced and not fall to the ground the moment one of the three remaining leave the ground.
I personally love the idea of Luna being a warrior and someone who has fought on front lines and killed before! It seems like it would open up more opportunities to bond between her and Taylor. Loving the story so far!
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I was actually considering her quadrupedal form and was thinking of having her morph into her human form for this but I decided against it. I will readily admit I could be remembering this wrong, but if I am remembering correctly, in the show it's shown that if ponies sit down they can lift both hooves off the ground and make vaguely human-like motions. That was my logic for this scene. She sat down so she could rear back and use her hoof to pat Luna on the back. I suppose I should have specified that she sat down first. I am willing to change it if that explanation doesn't make sense.
That said, someone on SB asked about a prosthetic leg. To be honest, I plan to treat Taylor more like an insect and have her regenerate her missing limb after molting. That said, I think I vaguely remember Rainbow Dash having an artificial wing in one of the alternate timelines Starlight Glimmer caused. I'll have to go back and look, but if it is a thing I am considering giving Taylor a temporary cybernetic limb soonish.
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Like I said, it was a small nitpick, if you're not going to make her do a lot of things, don't feel the need to specify that she sit down, or whatever, to do said things. Of course, do not forget that you are writing a character with a physical disability (even if in the future you intend to get rid of it); if the disability isn't going to impact the character's story in any way, then why write that said character had a disability to begin with?
For a good example, in one story, an author writes that Chrysalis had lost a front hoof and writes that she flapped her wings to stay afloat to explain how she could do things with her good front hoof without falling to the ground.
Regular prosthetic legs are a thing in Equestria, just look at the character of Kerfuffle.
I would figure the Griffonstone "embassy" is primarily Equestrian-run (and funded) anyway, just so they have a line to the neighbors and have someone to ask to interfere if needed. Comp the embassy, feed the "ambassador", and leave them alone the rest of the time, and they'd fight over the position.
Hm. So now Tanya has learned that the pastel pony world is just as violent and backstabbing as her paranoia said it might be (and now she'll feel justified in using aggressive tactics).
Also, I do believe "Warrior Luna" is pretty common fanon, so it's fine by me.
I like the updates to the chapter. Really opens up the n world, and warrior Luna is always fun to see, though behind Taylor's suspicions it'll definitely draw lines in her relationships with everyone.
Looking forward to the next update.
update it we want more
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one is Shard of Magic, the other is Ladybird
of the two, i recommend Ladybird
update?
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Hopefully soon. I was having a bit of writers block and difficulty focusing, so this chapter has been a struggle. But I've started taking medication for my ADHD. So I'm hoping that will help me get this next chapter out.
that was short Skyrim kind f old battle
while... it was milder compared to the original at least was example what not to say in politics meet
We already know about this and no new information was revealed, so "I explained my process" or something would work just as well here.
I don't know if this is just a politeness thing, and Taylor could just be awkward, but you could just take out the "much if" here. She didn't even know he existed until now.
Is there something missing here somewhere? "You're a far cry..." maybe?
The comments suggest this was much more detailed before. I think it could still be a bit more succint. Specifically, while some context is needed, I'm pretty sure Scion being the source of powers isn't strictly relevant, and even her previous humanity does little beyond making the story less plausible in this context. I'm sure she'd want more people knowing eventually, but in a political ball right before telling a story I think it'd just raise too many questions. Though maybe she just realizes her audience won't care. Still, other ponies are certainly listening in.
...Sure. I mean, optimism is great, and I'm all for outside context problem-solving, but sometimes things are deemed impossible because they are. What I'm saying is I expect either failure or a good explanation for why nogriff ever tried the method used before.