The young prince stumbles upon the world outside of the hive, and when his curiosity gets the better of him, he decides to ignore his mother's warnings and tries to discover everything he can about the brightly lit day and the soft glow of the n
After emerging from the hive for the first time, the young prince finds a world lit by the harsh light of the sun, and the gentle glow of the moon. He becomes entranced by this new world and is determined to learn whatever he can about the world beneath the light and dark in the sky. As he develops relationships with the inhabitants of this world, he is pushed to question himself on whether or not he should stay and lead the hive, or walk amongst the ponies and the small group who call him "friend".
Deep underground the changeling hive has rested, not daring to brave the light of the sun or the moon, for fear that the ponies would take notice. It is daylight in the world above, and the hive is as calm as a cemetery, as the changelings sleep in the daylight. The insects sleep in cocoons, which are suspended from the ceiling, with just enough room between them as not to disturb each other. The Hive would be pitch black, if not for the translucent green pockets of luminescent fluid. At the end of the twisting catacombs, the queen's chamber is was a small din of noise, one of the few sources of sound in the entire tunnel system. Queen Chrysalis watches her single child in his slumber, able to read the emotions of his mind, as he cannot not yet process his thoughts...
The young insect was troubled, that much she could tell. He was constantly moving in his sleep, his jaw would go slack, and then snap shut a moment later. Periodically, his forelegs would twitch, and if his movements hadn't been restricted by the cocoon, he would likely have been rolling around and making too much noise. In the gentle glow of the lights, she could see his face, and as she reached out and quietly brushed her hoof over his forehead, his body became still and his breathing deepened. For all that her parents had done, she wasn't as cruel as they had wanted her to be. She let a small breath as a smile spread across her lips. "Be at peace" she whispered softly, her usually set-in-stone glare softening, if just for a moment.
These moments of emotion would soon cease, as her son would be able to gather thoughts and words into his young head, but before that, he would be fed a special serum that would shape his body into the Insect-Alicorn of changeling royalty. And when a changeling prince began to think for himself, it was the duty of the queen to guide him, and ensure he didn't become a foolish warmonger, "Like all of the others" she thought with no emotion. After all, even she could only stand to kill so many of her children. "But for now I need not worry, for he is but a few weeks old" she let that sink in, "A few more weeks before I teach him. However; this one seems to have a different potential over the others". It was true, he was almost as quiet as the rest of the changelings, whereas previous princes would wail on a pitch that drove the other insects to near insanity. "Perhaps, this one will listen to me as I command the Hive". As sleep began to take over her body, she whispered, "Good morning, prince. Good morning, Mandible".
It has been eight weeks since that night, and the young prince consumed the serum two weeks ago. His body has been remarkably quick to change, at this point his horn has grown a few centimeters, and will soon begin to twist and molt, much to the resemblance of his mother's. The chamber is quiet, and Mandible is awake before his mother. Green eyes, bright with curiosity and excitement, have taken in every detail of the room over the last two weeks, and they now rest on the Queen, watching her midsection rise and fall with her breath. He has stayed in his cocoon from his birth until this point, bound tightly by the strength of his cocoon, he didn't even know if his wings were developed, he could feel so little. Chrysalis had instructed him about the most basic of changeling abilities, and so far, he was able to sense the changes of night and day, feel the presence of magic and electricity with his hair, and tap into the Hive connection with his mind, which had allowed him to gather an extensive vocabulary over the past few weeks, which, for the most part, he was unable to use.
At the moment he could only say a few words, and sensing the dusk approaching, he decided it was time for his mother to rise. He began to coo his favorite word softly. "Oi, oi". He went on for a few moments, gently urging her to wake up, and his call gradually gained volume. When he reached a point just barely louder than that of a normal speaking voice, the Queen stirred, lifting her head to look at the small insect, whereupon Mandible smiled at his mother, and Chrysalis felt a grin pulling at the corners of her own mouth.
Even without the serum, he would have grown twice to three times the size of a normal changeling, and the only significant thing that set him apart from the others was his silver hair. There were of course other changelings with hair. In the insect world, it is known as a mutation. However, the changelings knew that if they had a mutation, they could be gifted in many ways, such as being able to speak the pony language, which usually required a transformation, if anything. These changelings were generally used as spies for the Queen to gather information on the world above. As Chrysalis regarded his silver mane, she pondered what personality he would develop. He was the only child she had bore to make her stop and consider something other than the warpath the Changelings had trodden for the past several hundred years.
"I have him for the next few weeks" the queen hummed to herself "But after that, he must live with the swarm to gain the skills of fighting and learn of the hive, as he learns of himself". Her face darkened at the thought. Nonetheless, she rose from the cushion of silk that was her bed and walked to stand in front of Mandible. "Would we like to be free, Little One?" she asked, in the soft and lilting voice that only a mother can use as they talk to their child. An enthusiastic "Oi, oi" was his response, and the hanging cocoon started to sway back and forth as his body twitched with excitement. Chrysalis reared up on her hind legs and judged the cocoon, looking for the spot that would weaken the material. When she determined her target, she she brought her head down and slashed the cocoon with her horn, weakening the material enough for the insect to break the rest of it himself. Mandible had flinched as she reared,and quickly curled himself into as small a target as he could, confused as to why his mother was threatening him. He had closed his eyes, then felt a sudden relief in the pressure wrapped around his body, and as he opened them again, he noticed that he could feel his legs, more so than usual. He began to wiggle his whole body around, testing out his legs, as he was quickly overwhelmed by a need to move around and explore. Only a moment later, however, he managed to twist and turn himself around to the point where his legs became stuck, and he was now facing what had been the back of his cocoon. Chrysalis watched with amusement, a small giggle behind her softly illuminated eyes. "Push little one, if you want to be free then break the cocoon".
She heard Mandible grunt softly a few times as he pushed his back against the weakest spot of the cocoon. He was still figuring out how to use his legs, but after a few moments, and with a satisfying tear, the cocoon ripped open, Chrysalis smiling and Mandible giving a brief squeak as he fell straight to the floor, landing on his flank and then rolling onto his back with the extra momentum. The sudden introduction to pain was unexpected, and he lay still, waiting for it to fade. His mother stepped over him and looked down at him, the smile still on her lips. Mandible stared back at her with his large eyes, and the pain faded quickly, replaced with the desire to be close his mother, and to start exploring with his newfound mobility. He did just that, after several minutes of attempting to roll off of his back, much like a turtle. After he had steadied himself on his legs and stumbled over to Chrysalis' nearest leg, he leaned on it as soon as he could. He had yet to gain the useful coordination that comes with experience, and with another squeak, fell forward. Chrysalis moved her foreleg quickly to catch him and leaned her head close. Mandible looked up and nuzzled his mother's face.
"Steady now" she said softly, her double voice blending into a soothing melody as she raised her head to get a better look at him. As she examined him, she noted that his mane was actually a light grey, as opposed to silver, but it still had the shimmering quality that made it look just like the silver ore the changelings found when digging new tunnels. His eyes were indeed green, just like the acid spit the species was known to use if backed into a corner. She also thought he looked slightly smaller in overall girth and weight as compared to the other changelings she had birthed. However; in the same comparison, he was taller, with thin legs that would become lithe and powerful, if he was given the right proteins. When her eyes wandered to his tail, which was nothing special, she also saw that his back was silver in color, making it seem that he had a sheet of material draped over him, head to tail, and then blending into the black shade of his belly. Also on his back, were a set of small wings, which were a glossy black in the thin ribs natural to insects, and in the area between those ribs, it was colored a strange clear black, transparent, yet still clearly colored a dark black.
"Save your strength, Little One" She whispered. "Mother will carry you for now". As both her horn and his body were wrapped in a green aura, Mandible was lifted into the air, spun around, and gently deposited on her back. The Queen slowly turned around and walked toward the thick curtains of silk that separated her Chamber from the tunnels where the strongest, and most unique, brood of changelings slept.
As the Queen emerged from her chamber, two large pods set into the walls began to shift and, with the air of somepony slipping out of water without disturbing the surface, two bulky forms slipped quietly into the tunnel, falling in step behind the Queen. Mandible sensed two new beings with his connection, the only thing that had alerted him to the guard's presence, and turned his head to observe the newcomers with curious eyes. The two were half the size of his mother, covered in a flexible armored shell, and were staring straight ahead, keeping in perfect step with their Queen, making it sound as if there was only one entity in the tunnel. The only distinction between them was that one guard was a deep shade of purple, and the other a similar shade of green. They possessed dull white eyes that suggested that they were partially, if not completely blind, and their bodies were so dark that they melted into every shadow they crossed along the way.
“Oh?” Chrysalis had noticed the curiosity in her Hatchling’s thoughts “They are our personal guards, they shall protect you if any problems arise.” ”Are they changelings?” a timid voice asked. It was his first question, his first coherent thought asked to the Queen.
“Indeed, they are. They are called Barding, and just as there are different types of ponies in the world, they are a special breed of ours; they are heavy but light-footed, they have the strength to take and throw powerful blows, they can shift instantly, and as you can see, they are invisible in the shadows. They guard the hive from intruders, and they are a force to be reckoned with. The only thing keeping them from joining the swarm is their unfortunate habit of drying to a crisp in daylight, and moonlight driving them to test their strength.”
A tendril of thought came from the purple guard, and when the prince acknowledged it, a memory flooded his thoughts without warning. The moon was in the sky above him, as he stood in the cave protruding from the center of a vast field. He was in the center of a group of forty changelings, along with three others his size. At the signal, they moved forth, exposing themselves to the moon’s gaze. His thoughts became quick and erratic, and then faded, replaced by pure instinct that fueled his movements. He was instantly overcome by a desire to kill, a thirst for blood, it didn't matter where it came from, he needed it. His consciousness had retreated to a corner of his mind, and he could do nothing but watch as he tackled the changeling to his left, knocking it over and then slowly biting into its side, blood welling up around his sharpened teeth. The changeling screeched at an unbearable pitch, trying to subdue the fierce creature with sound, but the instinct-driven Barding was oblivious to the noise as he continued to eat it. With his mind exposed, the other changeling’s thoughts invaded his head, and he could feel the pain of the others as they were torn apart, and it only served to fuel his thirst. Several of the smaller changelings were trying to knock him off of their comrade, but to no avail. As the light finally faded from his eyes, the destroyed body of the other changeling ceased all signs of life, and the Barding simply grabbed another changeling out of the air as it dove at him, eager to satisfy the insanity the moon had wrought.
Mandible had felt everything. Every smell, taste, touch, sound, and sight. Worst of all, he had experienced the sensation of death, a dozen times over. Exactly as the Barding behind him had felt it, he had felt it. And it was horrifying to the Hatchling, this small one with almost no knowledge of the world, and he had been exposed to worst of it right after he had been released to explore it. It was instantaneous, the experience had flashed through his mind in just a few seconds. Without a moment to recover, his mind was overwhelmed by another tendril of thought, this time from the green guard.
He was sitting in the shadows of a cave that popped out of the ground, almost like a hood. He was in a line of other Barding, each their own unique color, with the addition of Queen Chrysalis herself. The line was sitting in the shadows, not six inches from the murderous grip of the sun. They were up at the surface to conduct an exercise, unbeknownst to them, they were to observe an act of discipline concerning the Barding subspecies. The Queen sat right behind the line of Barding, and addressed them.
“The reason why you have been summoned is that you, in particular, are not aware of what happens to a Barding when he is exposed to sunlight. There is a reason you are assigned posts underground, and not on the surface. Would anyone care to take a guess?”
He was tempted to shiver, to curl into a ball and disappear from this place. Her voice drove fear into him, and it was worse than any of the beings that dwelled beneath the surface. The Queen’s voice was like a needle piercing the back of his neck, and he could sense that the other Barding felt the same sensation of fear he had. He shifted his feet with discomfort; Chrysalis was so skilled with the hive connection that it was impossible to read her emotions, let alone her intentions. “It would seem we need a demonstration” Her horn lit up with that sentence, and another Barding was levitated out of the damp shadows in the tunnel. This Barding; however, was hogtied with strip of silk tied around his mouth, and he was looking around frantically, scared for whatever the queen was about to do.
Mandible noticed that without the instincts of the guard guiding him, the fear tasted awful, absolutely terrible. He felt everything the guard did, and as they inadvertently sampled the fear of the other Barding, it started to spread through them as well.
Chrysalis had started talking again “Search his memories and tell me what he failed to do.” He reached out with his thoughts, and exposed himself to the erratic and blurred thoughts of the currently bound Barding. “He failed to exterminate the diamond dogs in one of the new tunnels” came a reply from further down the line, albeit in the low-toned clicks and screeches that constituted the Barding dialect of the Changeling tongue. “Yes, he did. Now, tell me, what is the punishment for failure?” She crooned.
Delving once more into the thoughts of the other barding, he sought knowledge of the various specialized punishments and torture methods that had been developed for any who opposed the Queen. He stumbled upon the thought he was looking for, seeing another gathering such as their own, and in the same moment he did, Chrysalis levitated her past victim slowly into the light of the sun, both Barding struggling and screeching as best they could against the restraints.
As they were inched slowly into the sunlight, their natural armor was drained of color, turning into a fleshy gray, and peeling off as they were exposed to the sun even longer. The armor was destroyed in the span of a few seconds, and as the sun touched the never seen skin of the Barding, it instantly turned black, began to steam, and then crawl and boil, only to explode a second afterward. This process continued all the way down to the skeletal structure inside, which proceeded to melt into a disgusting pile of molten cartilage. "This is the price of failure in the hive" the Queen said, emotionless, but for a tiny glint of sadism in her eye.
The memory faded, and Mandible was sick after what he had just witnessed, hanging his head to the side and coughing up bile from atop his mother. Chrysalis halted in her stride to see what was troubling the changeling, the obvious reason was that he was not ready for such things to be thrust upon him. But, more than that, she felt a strange feeling coming from him, one that she could only identify as a mix of pity and guilt, emotions that were rarely felt by any changeling. She calmly turned to address her guards "From this point forward you will share your memories with me before Mandible, we do not need to render him incapable of commanding the Hive."
The guards bowed to Chrysalis and confirmed their understanding of her orders, knowing full well that if they disobeyed they would become one of the changelings killed in their recently shared memories. Keeping their observations of previous Princes as far away from their Queen did not do much, as she commented "he is clearly different than the others, so we must take a different course to raise him." Both Barding had frozen when her words came, and upon hearing her turn around, each released his breath, knowing how close they had just come to execution.
With her command issued to the Barding, she turned back to comfort the Changeling on her back, bending her neck to nuzzle his mane lightly. "let us clear your mind, and show you the rest of the hive, my child" she whispered softly. Mandible's eyes held her gaze for a moment, before he curled up on her back, giving a weak thought as an affirmative to his mother. The Queen tried to comfort her child with a soft smile, gaining a decrease in the shivers that were now going through him at different intervals. She took that as a good sign, and started back through the tunnels, eager to stretch her legs and allow the young prince to explore the hive a little bit.
The group continued through the tunnel, the Barding disappearing into the darkest shadows they passed, until they reached the mouth of the tunnel which connected in a cavern so large, only Chrysalis could see the ceiling. And what she saw there was the start of a new day, technically a new night, as the Changelings were nocturnal.
“My subjects, Arise!” the Queen called with a magically amplified voice, startling Mandible, and causing a ripple to spread amongst the cocoons that covered the cavern ceiling. The Swarm woke to the sound of the Queens voice, deathly silent, aside from the occasional grumbles of a changeling who was crashed into by another who was too drowsy to fly straight.
As the multitude of changelings gently hovered and flew about the cavern, several approached the pods in the walls, injecting them with a bioluminescent fluid to reignite them. With the soft glow permeating the air once more, Mandible could vaguely see the cocoons hanging from the ceiling, and dozens of tunnels, ramps and alcoves set into the walls of the cavern. As the Changelings gradually came to full awareness, a low hum gave the cavern a sense of being filled, and in addition to the changelings hovering in the air, Mandible noticed several large, smooth, and oblong shapes moving across the cavern floor from tunnels and dugouts situated on the ground level.
A muddled cloud of thoughts entered Mandible’s mind as he watched the large forms, easily twice and three times the size of the Barding who flanked the Queen. Sensing this, Chrysalis spoke “Just as the Barding are specialized for their duties, so are several others. Those in front of you are Tunnelers, and as the name suggests, they are organic machines that dig tunnels for the hive; however, they also process minerals into gems, which provides wealth for the swarm. We use that wealth to feed the hive, though it’s not as nutritious as Love.”
The last word rolled off of her tongue like morning dew on a blade of grass.Love. The word vibrated within Mandible’s mind, he didn’t know what it was, but he knew that it was something important, something powerful, and hearing how his mother had spoken that name, that word, it was something delicious. Before he could gather his thoughts to ask his mother, she had started across the caver towards a ramp set into the wall. She would have flown, but Mandible was just large enough to pin her wings against her body. “I shall teach him to walk later tonight, but for now, he must get accustomed with the hive.” Chrysalis thought, and to Mandible she said, “I shall show you what it is”. Chrysalis neared the base of a ramp and began to climb, sending a thought to dismiss the two Barding still following her. They stopped abruptly and bowed until their Queen had moved several meters above them.
Mandible continued to observe the Hive while his mother ascended, taking note of what he saw throughout the caves and tunnels they passed. Towards the floor, many changelings were gathered into groups, rings, around a smaller group of three or four. They were igniting into green flame at sporadic intervals, and when the flames faded, they had been replaced by a mix of creatures which proceeded to charge at each other. In multiple pockets in the walls, wooden contraptions held multiple objects which seemed to intrigue smaller groups of changelings, while a single, or sometimes two changelings would demand something for the objects.
Deciding it would be best to use the connection to find answers to his questions, he focused in on one of changelings in the group at the floor. His mind was immediately overwhelmed by a buzz of excitement. The changelings in front of him were participating in a shift match, a challenge for four changelings.
In a standard shift match, each changeling had only a second to think of a creature to shift into, and then use that form to dominate his opponents. There were certain restrictions, such as no Dragons or creatures greater than a set size. Most changelings could manage a large bear or teen Dragon with little effort, but this was to discourage the few that could hold larger forms.
Watching with interest, Mandible watched as a giant dragonfly ducked around a bear’s swipes, latched onto its leg, and moved it with ease, lifting it up and dropping it onto its back, stunning the changeling and forcing it to shift back into its normal body. Two changelings jumped forward and dragged their companion out of the clearing, just before a second dragonfly tackled the first in mid-air, which sent it careening out of bounds before it could recover. Looking around for its last opponent, the dragonfly turned to face a ten foot long centipede, which reared up while it waved its many legs. Quickly darting around the centipede, it tried to latch onto its head. This was foiled by the centipede’s slick shell, which allowed no grip, and set the dragonfly off balance for a brief moment. With a sudden movement, faster than what any of the gathered changelings expected, the centipede whipped its head backward and slammed into the dragonfly, dropping the entirety of its weight to pin it to the floor. The dragonfly struggled for several moments, but a lack of breath caused it to faint.
Some of the gathered changelings began to cheer for the winner as he shifted back to his own body, others talking and exchanging small tokens with one another. Mandible gathered thoughts which informed him that this was currency in the hive, specifically crafted silver coins with various markings.
Mandible ended the connection to the other changeling. Opening his eyes, he saw that they were near the top of the ramp, and by extension, the cavern ceiling. There was a solitary tunnel leading from the main cavern that led into darkness. There was a constant stream of changelings moving in the same direction as Chrysalis proceeded down the tunnel. Mandible watched the changelings around him, looking for the variety amongst the black and blue bodies moving about. Here and there, he spotted red and brown eyes, the occasional mane instead of the crest that ran down the back, and a different shade or color on the back.
The tunnel opened into another massive cavern, this one with only two entrances, one at the bottom, and the other near the top. They were currently at the bottom of the cavern, and as Mandible looked up, his little jaw went slack. Standing in the middle of the cavern was a dark black monolith, stretching from the floor to just below the ceiling.
Chrysalis looked back at her child, a small grin on her face. “It’s time to feed” She said, now with a twinkle in her eye. The walls of the chamber were filled with small holes, big enough for a single changeling to crawl into, and they were filling up fast, changelings shoving each other out of the way in a race to find a seat. Chrysalis began her stride towards the monolith, to a small entrance that Mandible had failed to notice before. Inside the alcove was a bed, and Chrysalis levitated Mandible to the ground just before lying down, and prompted him to totter over to where she lay. Wrapping him in an embrace with one leg, her horn lit up with magic. The monolith began to glow in a blue light, dull at first but quickly growing brighter. Just as the light became too bright to bear, it was suddenly cut off, leaving everything pitch black.
Mandible looked all around in the darkness, unaware of the ethereal substance that began to fill every bit of available space in the cavern. Chrysalis whispered to her child “Breath in. Breath deeply and taste Love”.
He did as he was told. He inhaled deeply, taking in…Something. it was Pink, no, it was Magenta, no, Violet. He couldn’t say which color it was. It was… a color? No, it was an emotion, no, a physical thing. He felt Happy and Sad, Passionate and Distraught. He felt every Emotion and none at the same time, he could taste, hear, smell and feel colors and thoughts. He didn’t have a body; he wasn’t him, not himself. He was one with the world, an omnipotent presence, but he was also just one being in the caves beneath Equestria.
The experience was too much for him, and he began to drift into the dream world. His last coherent thought was that he would hunt for this substance for the rest of his life.
