Honor the Dead

by BinaryTroll

21: Changing things up.

Honor the Dead
by BinaryTroll
Pre-read by Honored Service (HE'S BACK!)
Chapter 21: “Changing things up.”

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“Nice place you got here.” Joel said, looking at the rusted doors and barely working mechanisms.

I pulled on one of the handles and watched as the door creaked it's way open. A small room was inside, with a bed, a cupboard and nothing else. I looked at the bed and back to the doorway. “This seems strangely large for a pony...” I murmured to myself.

Joel poked his head round the doorway. “Wards, what are you doing?”

I snapped out of my thoughts. “Stuff and things.”

“Oh yeah, love me some stuff and things”

I got up and walked out of the room, my curiosity abandoned. “Meh, I'm just hungry.”

“Then lets get some food.”

We jogged back to Shyvanna and Half. “Yo, got any food?”

Half-Life looked at me questioningly.

“You know, the stuff you eat? What are you, a changeling?”

“How dare you accuse me of being a changeling! I am a proud earth pony.”

I stared at him silently.

“What is it human?” The pony spat.

“You're a unicorn, mate.”

“I am?”

I turned to Shyv. “Is he a unicorn?”

“Yup.” She replied, looking surprised at the unicorn's stupidity. Or at least, incapability to look in a mirror.

I turned back to Half Life. “How the hell do you not know you're a unicorn?”

“I- Umm. Follow me.” he managed to stutter out before cantering off down the corridor.

I stood still, staring after the odd pony. “What.”

“Vaults man. They do thing to you.” Joel said, tapping his temple.

“I know, but still...” I set off after Half Life.

We finally caught up with him in a large, mostly empty room. I flinched as the door clanged shut, cutting me off from my friends.

Half Life slowly turned towards me. “Well aren't you a stupid little monkey? But you're an observant one, I'll give you that.”

I snorted. “Observant? I pointed out that you were a unicorn. All that requires is eyes and a brain.”

“A minor slip up.”

“Waiiiiit. What?”

Green flames rushed from Half Life's hooves to the tip of his horn, revealing a pair of incectoid wings and a coat of black chitin. I heard a quiet chirp from above me and looked up, just as another changeling dropped onto me from the ceiling.

“Oh fucksticks.” I managed to say before my vision went black.

An unknown amount of time later

The first thing I noticed when I awoke was that I was wet. And sticky. And upside down.

I sighed. “You know, two weeks ago I would have been proud to claim I had never been knocked out in my life.” I said to no one in particular.

I opened my eyes and looked up towards my body. I was coated in green goop that had hardened to rock. It was translucent, and I noticed that I didn't have any weapons with me at all. In fact, I was naked. Again.

“Fucking hell.” I muttered. “Two weeks ago I probably also would be able to proudly say I had never been naked in another person's home before too.” I let my head drop to stare down at the rusty metal floor.

“Why did I have to be captured by changelings? I like changelings.” I sighed again. “And they didn't even have the decency to let me keep my goddamn clothes.”

I raised my head again and looked around the room. It was covered in more of the changeling gunk, and only had a single exit. My pants were encased in one of the larger clumps, but the rest of my clothes were nowhere to be seen.

“Well, if I manage to get out of this thing, at least I won't have to do it entirely naked.” I muttered, wriggling inside of my giant cocoon.

I could only move a small amount, and very slowly. I felt like I was inside an egg. Filled with treacle. I groaned. “Fuck this.”

I relaxed completely, defeated. “You just had to give me a prison I couldn't escape, didn't you?”

In another cell

“I starting to get used to getting knocked out. That's probably not a good thing.” I opened my eyes. I was completely encased in a green glass cocoon thing, with only my head left free. My clothes were soaked with the disgusting goop that filled the cocoon. I searched for my weapons but didn't find them. Not that they'd work in this goo anyway. At least I still had my clothes, even if they probably are going to end up a goo soaked mess.

I slowly spun myself in the cocoon, taking in the full splendor of the room. It looked like a typical vault bedroom, except for the gunk that coated the walls, giving it the feeling of a cave. “Dammit Wards.” I muttered, not really knowing why. It just felt right.

Another nearby cell

Being upside down is a weird feeling. I thought, looking up at my gelatinous cell. My wings had been awkwardly smushed against my sides, making them cramp. “Ouch.” I muttered, slowly extending them through the goop. I tried to blast my way out using magic, but the flow seemed to blocked for some reason. I tried again with the same result.

“Celestia damn it.” I ran through my other options. Busting out of here was out of the question, the goop made sure of that. My magic doesn't work, so I can't use that either. The only shout I learned was Ice, and that probably wasn't going to be very helpful, especially if I freeze myself. I could probably kill myself doing that

I could try to melt the cocoon, but that might just harden it further, not a risk I was willing to take. I wasn't strong enough to break out, and even if I was, the goop restricted movement, not allowing me to build up enough speed to strike hard enough anyway.

I sighed. Not much I can do but just hang around.

Outside Joel's cell

My name is Viridi Apis. And I am an idiot.

I slowly buzzed my wings, emitting a series of vibrations to express my annoyance. I had helped Stulte capture the two humans and half dragon, knocking out the green haired one. Apparently that means I had to take responsibility for him. I found myself wishing that Queen Crysalis was still alive, everything had been much simpler then.

I sighed and stood up, pacing and buzzing my wings again. It had been hours and I hadn't heard anything from the human locked behind the door. I picked up one of the two L-shaped weapons from the small pile of possessions that the human had had on him. It was a marvel, just like everything the humans made. As I studied its simple design I found myself wishing I could be a human. A real one, not an imitation. They could innovate, something changelings could never do. We're all just copycats, taking from others but never improving or improvising.

I dropped the weapon like it was on fire. I need to stop this, I cannot go against the will of the hive.

But a small voice in the back of my mind asked what kind of hive doesn't have a queen? Is this even a hive anymore? I tried to ignore it but it persisted.

“I need to do something.” I said aloud, and opened the door to the human's cell.

I looked up at the now conscious human. His hair was a leafy green, so different to the neon green of changeling web, yet, so similar. He was lean, thinner than Honored and looked almost cute in a way.

“Yo. Can you let me out of this thing? It's getting kinda hot. And my clothes are getting ruined.”

I was taken aback at how straightforward he was. “Um, no.”

“Damn, I thought that would work for sure.” He grinned. “So, who are you? Besides obviously my captor.”

I debated telling him my name. In the end I decided there was no harm in doing so. “My name is Viridi Apis.”

“Nice to meet you. Also, interesting to meet you. I've never had a conversation with someone upside down before.”

“Do you have a name?” I asked, curious at the human's mannerisms.

“Joel. Now can you let me down?”

I blinked.

“Fine, I'll just boil myself in here.”

“It's not that hot.” I replied defensively.

“Have you ever considered that I have a different anatomy to you? And may have grown up in different conditions?” The human countered.

“No actually.”

“Well let me down then.”

“No.”

“Please?”

“No!”

“Pretty please?”

I walked out of the room and kicked the door closing mechanism, shutting off the human's voice. “What a mess.” I muttered, slumping back against the door again.

I continued to wait, wishing I hadn't opened the door. I heard a small cough from the human through the door. I ignored it.

It came again, slightly louder. I put my ear against the door. The human was gasping for breath, as though he was...

“Oh shit.” I opened the door to see the human slowly writhing in the cocoon, apparently burning. Without thinking, I jabbed my horn into the cocoon and opened it, spilling the liquid webbing onto the floor, along with a sickly looking Joel.

The human struggled raised his hand and pointed to the adjacent room. “Get Wards...” He said weakly, before collapsing into the puddle of liquid web.

I rushed out the door, hurrying to find the cell the second human was held in. I found the door and slammed a hoof into the unlocking mechanism, opening the door. The human inside looked fine, if rather bored. He also didn't have any clothes.

“Oh hi, you mind getting me my pants? This is kind of embarrassing.”

“You're not dying?” I asked.

“No. Why would I be-”

I realized I had left the door on Joel's cell wide open. “Shit.”

I felt something cold press into the back of my head. “Don't. Move.”

“Hey, where did you find your clothes?” The hanging human asked.

“What?” I felt Joel look up. “Oh god dammit Wards.”

“Yeah yeah, can you get me out of this thing?”

I felt the cold metal press a little harder into my skull. “Open it.”

I walked forward and cut the cocoon open, watching the human spill out onto the floor. He picked himself up and ran over to where his pants were, tugging them out and putting them on.

“Fuck me, everyone just wants to take my clothes in Equestria.” He muttered, checking the pockets. He laughed a little. “I can't blame them, my clothes are amazing.”

“Shut up Wards.” Joel said, laughing with him.

I shifted uncomfortably, the metal was starting to dig in a little too much. “Can you stop please?” I asked quietly, not really thinking I would get an answer.

To my surprise, the metal lifted from the back of my head. “Yeah, alright. It's not even loaded anyway.”

I turned to the green haired human. He was holding the large, dull green weapon, resting it against his shoulder. I didn't know what to say. Thanks?

“So who's this?” The blue haired human asked.

“Viridi Apis.”

The human looked around the room, presumably searching for the rest of his possessions. “That sounds a bit like Latin.” He mused, giving up his search and heading to the door. He stopped just before and turned to me.“Alright Vi, where is all my stuff?”

“Vi?” I asked, confused at the name.

“Viridi takes too long.”

I found myself surprised again at the human's thinking. Viridi wasn't that long, was it? “Stulte took most of it, I think.”

“Stulte is Half Life I'm guessing?”

“Yes.”

The human clenched one of his claws in the other, emitting a loud crack. “I'm going to fucking kill him.”

Comments

[Zarose]

3100536 Ahhh. Now I remember. Thanks for clearing that up

[Ignis Mortis et Doloris]

yay