What Does It Mean to Be a Prince?

by Mike the Red

A New Menace

TS teleported us back home. "Magic battery level, 92 per cent," she advised flatly.

"Thank you TS, I will refill it for you soon," I said. I turned the car off and Brenda and I went back into the house.

"Careful Brenda, I don't know what might be waiting for us." Now, truth be told, Xaviera and her kids had been behaving normally as they usually do, but there were subtle clues I had picked up but had been ignoring, as sometimes her behavior could be a little erratic, and her kids were always acting silly anyway. I had dismissed the behavior as being mostly normal, but now I was worried. Could they be changelings? I had to find out.

My first instinct was to check downstairs, since they spent quite a lot of time down there watching TV. No one was there. I then checked the room they normally sleep in. Nope, not there, either. I checked our room, as they have a tendency to watch TV in our room when we're out. Not there either. Brenda and I checked the house, and found Xaviera and her kids gone. Brenda called her other daughters to see if she was over at one of their houses, but go no answers.

"I hope she hasn't turned into a Queen," I said. "That would be BAD."

"What do you mean?"

"It means she could go around town, finding her siblings, and turning THEM into changelings!" I said, my worry starting to tinge my voice. I was still trying to locate them using magic, but again, not having any luck. How could she avoid my detection?

"If she has, can you turn her back into her normal self?"

"I believe I might be able to, but I am not quite sure. Changelings feed off love, as that's what nourishes them, but the Queen has a taste for blood," I said.

"What, you mean like a vampire?"

"Worse. A Queen spares no one, just kills for the blood if she wants it. Usually, she looks to enlarge her hive. She does this by turning whomever into a changeling."

"What do they look like?"

"The worst thing about changelings is they can take on ANY appearance, and no one will be able to see this unless they are extremely perceptive. I can tell, but Xaviera is keeping herself concealed, which might mean she's already a Queen. I am concerned for the safety of ALL your family members now. If THEY have been converted into changelings, things are going to get really bad."

"We should go to Katrina's house, since it's closest," Brenda said. "I hope we're not too late."

We got back into the car and drove over to Katrina's house, which was only about half a mile from ours. Katrina has three kids and her husband Mario lives with them as well. I knocked on Katrina's front door, and Mario answered.

"Who are you?" he asked me. "Brenda, who is this guy?" he asked as soon as he saw her.

"That's Mike, Mario. He has changed his appearance somewhat."

"What can I do for you?"

"We came to see if Katrina's all right," I said. "Has Xaviera been over here?"

"No, I haven't seen her today."

"When was the last time she was here?"

"She stopped by yesterday," Mario said. I used my magic to see if he had been changed. He was still normal. I scanned the house to see if anyone else had been changed. Everything was normal, and I sighed in relief.

"If she comes by, call me immediately please!" I said.

"Why, what's wrong?"

"I have some concerns, and I need to speak with her," I replied. I just hoped it wasn't too late.

"I will call you if she comes by," he said, and closed the door.

"Okay, now we head over to Tasha's house," I said to Brenda. She was looking quite worried, and let me know she was afraid.

"What do changelings look like if they're not taking someone's appearance?"

"They look like big black beetles that walk around on their hind legs, and have holes in those legs. The Queen is differentiated by a long serrated sharp jagged horn and a small crown, kind of like the crown I wear in my Alicorn form."

"How big are they?"

"About three feet tall, but the Queen is about five feet tall and takes a more equine appearance, more or less. I am not sure if Xaviera will look like a mix of human and changeling or what. I think most likely she will be disguising her appearance so as to fit in with society. That will make her especially dangerous, more so since she is still avoiding my detection. I am still scanning for her and not having any luck. She must have become quite powerful."

"If we do run into her, what are we supposed to do? She's still my daughter, and I don't want you to kill her!"

"It largely depends on how powerful she is. If she is truly a Changeling Queen, we might be in a little trouble. I will do my best to keep from killing her, and I seriously hope I don't have to. I don't want to see you become assimilated into her hive, and I will have to try to keep from being hypnotized by her gaze."

We drove over to Tasha's house, as she is Brenda's second oldest daughter. She lives with a few friends who share the responsibilities of maintaining a household. We got out and went to the front door. I knocked a few times, and had to knock harder as I heard loud music coming from inside the house.

"Tasha! You in there?" Brenda asked. Tasha came to the front door.

"What do you want, mama?" Tasha asked impatiently. She took quite a few mannerisms from her mother. "Wait, what happened to you? You look like you're younger than me!"

"Tasha, has Xaviera come by today?"

"Uh...not today, but she did stop by yesterday," she said, still looking quizzically at her mother.

I did my scan, and found that Tasha had been assimilated. "Tasha, did she do something to you?" I asked her.

"NO! What are you talking about?" she shouted. I used my cleansing magic on her, restoring her to human status. She shuddered, and moaned in pain as I did this. Then I heard a small crying noise as the changeling spirit was banished.

"What happened?" Tasha asked.

"I had to cleanse your spirit, which had been taken over by a changeling," I said. "Are there any more in here like you? What about YOUR kids?"

"Xaviera came by yesterday, and I forgot what happened after that -- she was here for a while, and then left. I don't know which way she went from here, she was walking with her kids, that's all I remember," Tasha explained. She was animated, gesturing wildly as she spoke, as though she was very worried about her youngest sister.

"Alicia! Mason! Are you in here?" I asked. Tasha's kids came forward, and I scanned them as well. More assimilation. This was a very bad sign. I cleansed them as well, and asked to be let in. I checked to see if everyone else was okay, and for good measure, put a ward on the house to prevent further assimilation. I just hoped it would be strong enough to deter Xaviera from returning to try to expand her hive some more.

"Do you remember which way you saw Xaviera go?" I asked her.

"She went that way," Tasha pointed to the west. "Thanks for helping me."

"Okay, Tasha, be careful now," Brenda said. We got back into the car.

"There's no telling where she would have went, unless she walked all the way to your older sister's house," I told Brenda. Her older sister lived on the north side of town, about three miles from where we were. We drove over there, and pulled into her driveway. On our way there, Brenda asked TS to relay a message to Princess Celestia regarding Xaviera.

"Dear Brenda, it is with great concern I receive your message. If what you say is true, that your daughter Xaviera has become a new changeling queen, I may have to return to your world to assist Tasavir. I shall bring Twilight Sparkle with me for further assistance, as she has some experience in identifying a queen. We will arrive at your house at your request. I have asked my sister to temporarily continue my duties. She insisted on coming as well, but there needs to be one of us to look after the Castle and meet the responsibilities our duties require of us. I look forward to meeting you once again, but regret the circumstances our visit necessitates."

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