Devourer

by Croabadrake

Bloopers

Prologue:
Chrysalis herself did the same, cloaking herself in the signature green flames that indicated a changeling's dive. Her trajectory changed from a gentle slope downwards to a rapid, intense fall head-first into the ground… but she wasn’t going to clear the trees of the far-end of the Everfree Forest. Just as she was about to collide with the uppermost branches in a spectacular clash of fire and nature, she heard a voice of one of her swarmlings to her right.

“DO A BARREL ROLL!”

Chrysalis turned mid-air in surprise to see what changeling could speak in the middle of the dive, but she caught sight of nobody. Ironically, the turning motion continued and turned the dive into a drill, helping her shake her way through the branches with more ease than she would have just diving straight through. The impact was jarring, but no more so than any other dive she had ever done and a quick glance around after recovering proved that it was the same for the swarmlings that surrounded her. She looked around carefully; the voice was unfamiliar, and she couldn’t find the source. She passed it off as being a side-effect of flying for so long as she turned to her gathering swarm as they recovered.

Chapter One:
The princess turned and looked towards a particular stained glass window; the one depicting a white unicorn and a pink alicorn casting a love-based spell against a pony-like creature that fed off of love. The window that was made in honor of Shining Armor and Cadence's triumph over the Changeling Queen, Chrysalis, though the sheer power of their pure love.

Just then, there was a screaming outside the window. Children screaming. Celestia and Shining armor rushed to the window to try and look through the stained glass, but found themselves under a protection spell cast by Shining Armor on reflex when the glass suddenly burst inward, showing the shield with colorful glass shards.

Celestia and Shining Armor gaped at the massive hole in the glass, and followed the trail of brittle, see-through carnage with their eyes until they came to rest upon a single round object near the far edge of the field of glass: a baseball.

The two looked out the hole in the window to see three familiar fillies, one holding a baseball mit awkwardly in her mouth and another holding the handle of a baseball bat. Scootaloo dropped the bat at seeing the princess herself looking back at her through the important historical window.

The three ran off into the gardens panicking. Shining Armor turned to Celestia.

“What are they doing here in…?”

“That’s… a mystery for another time, I think. There are more important things to worry about at this moment,” she said, keeping her gaze out the window.

"This creature is reported to be covered in a hard black exoskeleton, exactly like...." she turned back to him, "exactly like Queen Chrysalis and her changelings."

Chapter Two:
The crowd began murmuring yet again, many of them nodding.

…except for two. A changeling commander and a normal one seemed to be having a disagreement; whether it was on the matter at hand or not was debatable. The two began yelling at each other oblivious to the stunned silence that surrounded them, including from their queen.

After a few more moments, the two broke out in a hoof-fight. The changelings that surrounded them in the crowd made a circle around them, chanting “Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!”

Amidst the wooden mallets and other out-of-place and completely inappropriate objects for a changeling to have that they seemed to be procuring from nowhere to aid in their endeavors to flatten their opponent, Queen Chrysalis face-hoofed.
Perhaps directing the swarm after a flight like that was going to be harder than she anticipated.

Chapter Three:
Ohoho, I did not expect that. They searched both possibilities.
Oh, would you two quit struggling! I can only hold you safely if you stay either still or limp!
They’re probably panicking because they can’t see through this darkness like I can. Oh well.
So now I’ve got two more….. very nice, my first double-takedown hee hee!
The darker sister now has fewer guards with her…. Maybe I could—
STOP. THAT.
*sounds of struggling*
GAAAAAAAGH. AAAAGHH, HAAAAAGHAGHHHHH.
You little… HAGH…… THE BOOK IS STUCK IN MY THROAT, GAGH!!
*thud*

Chapter Four:
Celestia levitated a newspaper to Luna that she had been keeping next to the throne. Luna took it and read the headline.

THE SHIPPING OF SHIPS
Can there actually be love between Albert Neighton’s new inventions, the Land Boats?

Luna stared in utter bewilderment at what she was seeing. There was an illustration of a boat with wheels, and for some reason there was another one on top of—
Seeing the expression on Luna’s face, Celestia quickly reached over and pointed out the headline below it.

THE CANTERLOT CASTLE MONSTER
Is there something in Canterlot Castle that even the Princesses can’t best?

Luna threw the newspaper to the floor. “Who would do this!?” she said, nearly yelling.

Chapter Five:
Luna waited for the glow through her eyelids to recede before she opened them. She was surrounded by a dark void again, but this time there were objects floating around. Some objects were small while others were large, while the range of the numerous objects’ natures varied: some objects were fairly normal, like a chair here or a flower there; others were strange, such as a large gray cylinder of some sort filled with holes or a small whirlpool made of what looked to be stone. Luna recognized that she was not fully in the dream yet, as it sometimes happened: instead, her being was still aligning with it, basically "loading" the dream, and until then she could glimpse little bits and pieces of the dreamer’s psyche. Of course, what she saw was very rarely of any use but it was still usually interesting.

Chapter Six:
A total of eight elite guards in the room, all of them firing at the Devourer… and not a single f*** was given.

Chapter Seven:
Just reread it until you get to the Devourer with the Elements.

Chapter Eight:
One. One pony was being sought, with all the desperation, panic, and hatred that one eldritch abomination could muster. A fate of untold horror awaited them if they were found involving an unending tide of feathers, twelve liters of tar, and an excited horde blindfolded colts and fillies wielding long, sturdy sticks.

Fun Facts:

– I originally planned to write in my pony self as the informant to the press in Canterlot, using my fanaticism for the Changelings as a motive!

–I really, REALLY wanted to tie in the very end of Chapter Eight into another story here on this site, but suddenly realized that there was one detail that would ruin the whole thing!

–I was tempted to use the Chapter Six blooper line in the actual story!

And now… FIGURE OUT MY NEXT STORY!
(by this cryptic riddle!)
(a name is emitted to prevent… things! Just trust me.)

Sorceress _______ eats her favorite food
In her cave with all of her brood
And their names are:
Hot, Tot, Jin, Jod,
Fie, Fly, Zan, Zod,
Pik, Snik, Lun, Lod
And the dreaded Ichabod.
Each child holds a slimy toad.
On each toad squirm two fat grubs.
On each grub ride two fleas brave.
How many living in _______’s cave?

Good Luck!

Author's Note:

Riddle was solved immediately, but if you know the answer to the riddle itself, then by all means congratulations :D

Comments

[Radiant Sunsets]

DELTORA QUEST!
(PS: There is 106 living in Thaegan's cave)

[Croabadrake]

1844099 Spot on, was wondering how long it would be before someone got it!
..........which turned out to be not long at all. Which is still great :D

[Radiant Sunsets]

1844105
I really like Deltora Quest.

[Leux]

1844105 thats a great work ^^.
i like it, really ^^, nice; a sweet and caring Chrysalis. A sweet, caring Queen like she should be. ^^ (and not a dump plain villain)...

[stalkinabout]

1844099 Actually only 14 live in the cave the frogs and fleas are only being held by them.

[Razzy]

Heh, nice bloopers.