The Confederation of Changeling Hives was always a house of cards, reinforced with steel yes, but made of cards. Queen Vesali Chrysalis always knew that any compromise with the other queens would be like that, which is why she had to prove herself to all her subjects and peers. And what better way to do that than to invade their ancient enemy of Equestria.
In the standard Equestria at War timeline, this ended unfortunately, with such a defeat costing thousands of changeling lives and destabilising the hives for several years. Thankfully(?) in that story, Chrysalis returned safe and sound - if bitter - to her homeland, and through her leadership, the Confederation held together.
This is not that story.
Months after a disastrous invasion against Equestria, everything is beginning to boil over. Chrysalis, Queen Vesali and One Queen of the Confederation, is currently… no longer able to fulfil her duties. Her government fell and has been replaced with a military junta. Now, Hivesregent Cimex of Gardis rules Vesalipolis. For reasons no one could guess, he has declared the felling of the royal Vesali line and announced the creation of a presidential republic to eventually take over the reigns of Vesalipolis.
However, many are skeptical, many are angry, many are scared. Factions are forming in opposition to Cimex and his plans: Stallionists led by Gold Muffin seeking a continental revolution are surging in popularity without the Queen’s Authority; a splinter group of militarists following former Hivesmarschall Synovial Vesali are actively opposing any moves away from the stability of the millennia-old changeling autocracy; and the Queen’s Guard remains under siege in the heart of the city, standing in defiance of Cimex’s republic.
As tensions mount, the city’s coke stores are being emptied, and the winter refuses to leave, Pharynx Amartus is left feeling betrayed by the inaction of his superiors. For him, it is finally time to stop sitting around, and start solving problems - even if the solutions require smokeless powder.
“The city must not fall.”
- Frostpunk 2
The worldbuilding is based on Equestria at War. Supplementary changeling worldbuilding comes from Steel and Chitin, a project by me and another person to flesh out the EaW changelings. This takes place in my alternate timeline, Smoky Skies, which asks the question no one has asked before: what if the Cutie Re-Mark, but with a touch* of Rozalskian technology.
Seems like a fun idea. You can make an art in any AI art generator nowadays, so it shouldn't be a problem
Best of luck with your writing!
Then why do you post it, rather than finish it in peace and post it when it's done? It's a fanfiction site, not Bethesda.
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To put it bluntly, I realised that it could be a lot better, so I decided to edit it while it was still being approved. Didn’t wish to risk unsubmitting it, and now I am embarrassed. Releasing it like it’s Starfield was never my intention, and I’m sorry.
And as a side note, i’d imagined that it’d sit in its own corner of the internet, and not get noticed, so since I expected like ten people to see it in 3 years, I feel like I’d have any pressure if it did get approved while it was 10% away from completion.
great start mate keep it up cant wait for the next chapter
I like it, (except for the part where Chrysalis is dead, long live the queen, she will come back and fix everything), will it be some kind of political thriller? I love those.
Be that as it may, I can only tell you to take it easy, I am also writing something (some humorous scenes that could later be a real fanfic) and I understand that it is quite complicated to do so and that one is never completely happy with one's work, one is simply not Let that absorb you, without further ado I wish you the best.
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I’m amazed you found this, since I intentionally hoped to bury this. I’ve got a massive rewrite for the first chapter about half-done (it’s over three times as long as originally was!), and then maybe I won’t feel so bad about the story as it currently exists.
While the story will revolve around politics, I wouldn’t call it a political thriller, per se. More like a “thriller” (still figuring out the exact progression) set in a political landscape that resembles a poorly assembled bomb, and how Pharynx will survive the events that are about to unfold rather quickly.
Anyway, thanks for the follow. I hope that when I finish the rewrite and get this story back on the rails, it’ll actually be good, unlike what I’ve currently got.
“It took three months to build this republic; it took three hours to destroy everything we sought to save.”
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He will be a hero or the waves of fate will leave him as a footnote in history?