The seeds of the Itinerant Kingdom are flung far and wide, each blooming into its own unique story.
The Itinerant King has collected dozens of ponies and changelings to himself, bound them to himself and each other with the nanotechnology known as the 'kingsblood', and spread them about Equestria while focuses on more dangerous matters.
While the Itinerant Kingdom has something of a tendency to go looking for trouble, Equestria is a mostly peaceful place, and sometimes a scattered seed can just bask in the sun and grow into a beautiful flower. Sometimes.
This is a series of shorter stories following individuals within the Itinerant Kingdom as they go on with their new life, struggling to define their new society while hiding in plain sight within the old one.
Parallel story to King and Kingpin, but much less linear, and a lot less dark.
Peach Seed, the earth mare whose coat resembled the fruit she was named after, and whose main was the same brown as the seeds in question, panted heavily as she snuggled against the masculine form of 'South Wind', the yellow furred pegasus guise of her king, as they enjoyed their afterglow. Having sex in the stables of her mother's barn always held a bit of extra excitement for her at the thought of being caught, ever since she actually had been caught getting frisky at what she now admitted was quite a bit too young of an age. But she was an adult in her own right now, and she knew her mother wouldn't actually scold her for it at this point. Nevertheless, something was off.
[It's just not the same,] she thought-spoke to South Wind. [I don't mean to be ungrateful. I'm really happy that you spent the time to be with me like this, but it was a lot better when you were with me in person.]
[Are you sure that isn't just because that was your first time in six months?] her king answered. [In any case, you know I can't. I can't even stay connected any longer. We're approaching Manehattan now, I'll have to disconnect and focus on my surroundings. Take care of yourselves! I'm counting on you.]
She nodded understandingly. [Be safe! I know you're all tough but none of you are invincible. And don't forget what happened to Mirror in Canterlot. I know what you're doing is important, believe me! But I don't want to lose you, none of us do. And I don't want you to have to lose anyone with you.]
South Wind gave her a nod, a smile, and a kiss goodbye before his consciousness left the changeling. With a wave of green magic the yellow pegasus form was replaced with a dull brown earth pony. [That was quite the experience,] the changeling, 'Little Buck' commented, [are you going to want to do that every time?]
She shook her head, and then treated him to a nice kiss all his own. [No, the king is too busy for that, and besides you deserve some loving of your own. Later. I'm still a little sore, and drained, and we still have a hard day's work before we hit the road again.]
[Looking forward to it, though truth by told my body is a bit drained from all that as well. Our king may have been in control, but it was my muscles doing all the work and my stallionhood getting all the attention,] he commented as he started cleaning up the mess from their coupling.
[What about the love you draw when we do that? Don't try to deny it, I could feel you feeding off me. Or is it off both of us?] she asked, curiously as she pitched in.
[It's just from you. I can feel his love for you when it's happening but it doesn't really flow through me in a way I can get at it. More just an awareness of his heart and mind through the connection. And as for feeding off you.. it's pretty much the same as being disguised as somepony. It's an indirect sort of love, much less personal and less efficient than when you and I are simply ourselves,] he explained.
[Aww,] she said, giving him a light nuzzle. [Next time I'll have to see if I can give you a bit more.. personal appreciation while we're at it.]
[Don't. You're fond of our king, and that's nothing to be ashamed of. Don't make it more complicated than it already is. I'm happy to be a go-between. It's.. weird. It's kind of very familiar; we're used to pretending to be somepony else like that, even in bed. Normally, there's kind of.. a part of my mind that is in charge of 'being' that pony, while the rest of me is still busy being me. But doing the avatar thing, the king basically just took the place of that part of my mind,] he said as they left the stables, heading out into the morning sunlight.
[Well enough about that for now,] she thought. "Let's go take on the day!" she said aloud, as the rest of their group fell into line and headed out among the trees.
In the past, approaching another group of seasonal workers on the road was often a joyous occasion. At worst it was a neutral matter. While they were in a sense competitors, their rivalry never approached what the farming families often felt. There was always plenty of work to go around, and the rates earned were based on what they managed to harvest, plant, or what have you. So when itinerant families would meet, they would either have a friendly exchange of greeting, an impromptu celebration, or at worst pass each other quietly on their way to their respective destinations.
This time, however, there was a new tension to the encounter, increased by the need to bear false smiles while they quickly planned their move. Changelings could sense the presence of other changelings, a side effect of their general empathy. The same sense that let them 'taste' the love of ponies could also sense a very different 'flavor' from their fellow shapeshifters. And so the changelings in each of the groups approaching one another was aware of the presence of changelings in the other. Queen Chrysalis' drones, however, were probably unable to identify the traitors to their hive amongst Peach Seeds' group, and certainly didn't know they had alerted their pony compatriots.
It was difficult for the changelings to positively identify which of the unfamiliar ponies were drones, however, like trying to tell who in a crowded elevator had passed gas. But as they approached to share hugs and other signs of friendliness, the three IK drones coordinated their senses, triangulated the slight shifts in the strength of the 'taste', and managed to isolate the three false ponies.
Three dangerous cracks rang out in unison. Their pony companions screamed out in shock and terror as their 'friends and family' dropped to the ground unconscious, before promptly surrendering to the vicious, brutal, coldly evil highway brigands.. only to scream anew as the magic went out of the unconscious bug ponies, and their true forms reasserted themselves.
"What the hay is going on?!" one of the ponies demanded, a clearly rattled earth pony mare.
"It's okay now, calm down," Peach Seed requested as calmly as she could. "Your friends and family were replaced by changelings. That means that the real ponies are held captive, most likely in a hidden burrow nearby. Where are you headed? We'll send them along as soon as we rescue them."
"Okay, but.. how'd you know they were changelings, and who the hay are you guys?" the mare questioned.
"We're the Itinerant Knights. We've been deputized by the Itinerant King to help keep the roads and farms safe from threats like them," Peach Seed improvised quickly. "And we've had special training in how to do this kind of thing. I'm sorry for exposing you to such violence, but we had to get close enough to them without inspiring suspicion, both to be sure we got the right ponies, err.. non-ponies. And also to make sure they couldn't do too much harm, get away, or take one of you hostage. Now, you really should be going. We're going to interrogate these bugs and find out where your loved ones are so we can rescue them, okay?"
The other ponies were still shaken, but nodded and after a short discussion ultimately settled on staying at Peach Seed's mother's farm for the next couple days before moving on. There wasn't much work to do there right now, but they weren't at full numbers and were in no state emotionally to do their regular jobs at the moment anyways.
When the changelings entered the burrow, the guards greeted them on as friendly of terms as changelings commonly used, suggesting they drop the disguises and get 'comfortable'. When the disguises came off, the lack of holes and exposed ribs exposed the traitors immediately, costing the element of disguise. But three well fed changelings with enhanced strength, fast healing, and mental coordination were more than a match for the half-dozen half-starved guards. Within minutes, the last guard surrendered, happy to join the kingdom rather than join their comrades in death. With no ponies watching, the changelings didn't feel a need to be merciful.
The captured changeling was named Doppel, leading to speculation as to whether he was the 'hero' that had killed Ryan in the time that was undone, but it was impossible to know. No one with the nanospiders had seen Doppel in person in that timeline, and it was a distressingly common name among changelings. He sat in a corner, waiting for the fever to overtake him after taking the blood oath while the Itinerant Knights restored their disguises and began opening the feeding pods. The missing workers were quickly found, along with a half dozen others, indicating more abductions, and pointing the way toward more enemy changelings.
"How can I help?" one of the rescuees asked, a unicorn mare with a pair of crossed swords as a cutie mark.
"Who are you, and what skills do you have to offer?" Peach Seed countered, looking her over.
"The name is Swift Justice," she said. "I'm the sheriff of Hoofville, and if I can be of any help against these changelings, I want to help."
"I'm Peach Seed, leader of this squad of Itinerant Knights. We'll talk on the way to Hoofville, but if the sheriff was here in the pod, that means there's a changeling pretending to be you right now. Falling Rocks, drop off our prisoner for 'interrogation', then catch up with us," Peach said to her stallion companion. The sheriff didn't need to know he was a new recruit. In the meantime, it was kind of fun pretending to be a battle hardened badass. No need to point out that the real 'muscle' of the group were all changelings themselves.
They shook hooves before heading out into the open air. "Glad to have some help out here. It can be real hard to get any guards out here. You'll have to tell me more about your little group."
"We're eager to help ourselves, Swift. I'm just glad we were able to find you."
Midnight Oil had a spring in her step as she approached the Academy of the Elements, despite being physically weighed down by the copper added to her skeletal structure. Mirror's unfortunate experiences had shown us that we needed to have shielding from EMP around ponies throwing lightning around, and outside of the pegasus guards and weather teams, this was were ponies were most sure to be throwing lightning around. Fossil had to be constantly on watch for stray copper breaking free into her blood stream, or the oxygen radicals it could cause, but it still had enough processing power to help her memory and give her that comforting feeling of being connected to the rest of the kingdom.
Except Mirror. She had to consciously focus on not worrying about him right now. The changelings sometimes liked to think of themselves as interchangeable, but that really wasn't the case, and the half dozen drones trying to cheer her up were helping, but she would easily trade the lot of them for a simple 'hello' from Mirror right now. But he had his own problems to focus on, and she couldn't bring herself to distract him from them. He would be in real danger soon, and she had insisted on not getting the play-by-play as it unfolded. She wanted to relive all the tense exciting memories of it with him, after it was said and done and she could have the assurance that it all would lead up to a happy ending. If it didn't have a happy ending.. she wasn't sure she could handle knowing every detail.
But the turmoil in her heart never reached her face. She was almost as practiced at that as the changelings; perhaps more so as they had rarely been plagued with such worries and doubts. As bad as Queen Chrysalis had ever been, she had never... [Thought thread deleted,] Fossil helpfully informed her, as it followed her standing order not to let her think about Oak Breaker anymore. The dead pony didn't deserve any more thought. He had been a horrible pony, but she had gotten her revenge when she... [Thought thread deleted.]
And so her thoughts snapped back to the present and the future. Both of which involved the squat, stone structure ahead, in the midst of an immense yard. The yard was divided into quadrants, each bigger than an average city block, by stone walkways like the one she approached on. Each quadrant sported a copse of trees in its center, surrounded by a variety of plants, and a large region of grass. Notably, each quadrant appeared to be experiencing a different season, with snow fluttering down on one, a light drizzle on another, bright sun on a third, and the fourth with browned leaves threatening to fall. It was, perhaps, one of the best advertisements the school could manage for their practices. A class was out in the snow of the 'winter' quadrant right now, though Midnight didn't know if they were merely observing or actively managing the weather there.
Midnight strolled into the building, looking like a lost little filly as she took in the sights, focusing on signs. A few hurried looking unicorns brushed past her as she walked, but she ignored them as she finally located the registration office, and headed in.
"Hi! You must be Midnight Oil," the earth pony mare behind the desk said.
"Is it that obvious?" Midnight asked in return, lifting an eyebrow.
"Process of elimination," she said before flipping a sign-in sheet toward her, showing three students due for registration, two already signed in. Midnight added her own signature to the form before receiving a more comprehensive set of paperwork to work on.
"I see," she said as her horn worked efficiently on the forms, wielding a quill with casual ease. "So.. how do I get access to the libraries, by the way? Both here and at the other academies?"
"Oh, you'll be issued a library card with your current rank, which as an excepted student is '1'. Keep in mind that when visiting another academy you are generally considered one rank lower, so you'll be restricted to the rank '0' shelves until you pass the advancement test at the end of the term. That works in both directions: their students aren't expected to have the same proficiency in weather magic as ours. The main archives at the palace don't have the same consideration, but be careful not to bite off more than you can chew. Spells are inherently dangerous if you don't give them the respect they deserve," the mare rattled off from rote memory.
"Okay, thanks. How soon can I get the card?" Midnight asked as she set the finished paperwork on the desk.
"Im-immediately," the earth pony stammered, surprised to see the forms already fully filled out, but a quick check showed it to be fully completed. She dragged out a camera and told Midnight where to stand, before slipping one of the forms into the device and triggering the flash. A minute later a nicely printed ID card automagically issued forth, while a box on the form was burned with a picture of the filly's awkwardly forced smile.
"Great, thanks!" she said, about to run off, pausing only a moment when the mare waved her initial class schedule at her, almost forgotten in the rush.
The first month was devoted entirely to an introductory course entitled 'A tour of the Seasons'. The class rotated between the four yard quadrants from one day to the next, spending four hours outside listening to lectures about the various weather elements needed to make the season complete, followed by meal time, followed by two hours of horns-on experience. By the end of it, everypony was expected to have a basic grasp of every kind of weather manipulation a pegasus could do, done with horn instead of wing, though far from the level of expertise of a weatherpony.
Today, Midnight was already late for the lecture on Winter, where she had seen the ponies gathered before. Midnight slipped into the pack of ponies as unobtrusively as she could, only for the professor to immediately take notice. With only a dozen students in the class including her, it wasn't that easy to go unnoticed. "Midnight Oil! How good of you to join us! In the future, please remember that class starts at eight am, sharp. In the meantime, what can you tell us about snow flakes?"
"That they're all special?" she said sheepishly, then grinned. Just as the prof was about to make a retort she cut him off by continuing. "Each one is a distinctly shaped, yet symmetrical, tiny ice crystal that forms inside clouds at low temperatures, expanding until the crystal is heavy enough that the air is no longer sufficient to hold it up, at which point it descends to the ground. They are still not only light weight, but have a broad surface that offers a lot of wind resistance and causes it to drift down slowly unlike the more aerodynamic liquid droplets of rain. In part this is because it's frozen crystalline form is resistant to deforming so it retains the shape that can catch air like a sail, and even occasionally float upward briefly on a breeze. Whereas liquid water deforms in response to the air pressure to achieve a shape that cuts through the air more easily, and thus drops faster."
Far from being offended, the professor lit up, nodding furiously. "That, my dear ponies, is a mare who is sure to get a weather cutie mark, perhaps even a wintery one!" Midnight sincerely hoped not, but smiled in response anyways. "Now, who can tell me about the difference between snow and hail?"
Midnight abused the advantage of her kingsblood almost immediately, slipping her consciousness away to the new virtual world, Elysium, that Cherry Blossom maintained for them, while her subnet, Fossil, took mental notes for her and held up the façade of a studious, attentive little filly, even answering questions for her.
Midnight was excused from the practical applications part of the day's lectures, as were the other foals that had just started within the past four days. They were instead passed their new textbooks, and encouraged to follow along while the other unicorns began coaxing snowflakes out of clouds of their own. One colt was softly reprimanded for making hail on accident, and then sharply reprimanded for doing it again a few minutes later. And a filly got some extra attention as she seemed incapable of making anything come out of her cloud.
Midnight idly flipped through her textbook as she watched, leaving each page open for several seconds, even though it only took a split second glance to commit the text to memory. She had been a fast reader before, but the kingsblood made memorizing text a truly trivial matter. Processing the information would take longer, but once it was memorized she could do that at her leisure.
"You don't seem to be reading very carefully," the colt next to her noted. He had a snowflake cutie mark, notable for being subtly different from the left flank to the right, something practically unheard of in cutie marks but very fitting for snowflakes.
"I'm just skimming it for now," she lied. "I don't want to miss seeing it in action while I can. I'll have time later to study the text."
The colt seemed to think that made sense. "I'm Winter Dream," the colt offered. "It was Midnight Oil, right? What got you so interested in weather?"
"Right. My mother is a pegasus, a weatherpony. So it's kind of the family business, so to speak. Having more ways to relate to mom is always nice. Despite what the prof says, I'm not sure it's where my cutie mark lies. I'm just really studious. I want to learn all kinds of magic, not just one. What about you?" she asked.
Winter shrugged. "My mom's a pegasus too, but she's not a weather pony. My dad is; he graduated from here. They say they met when he accidently made a rain cloud appear right in her flight path. She got all wet, but destroyed the cloud in the process. They got in a bit of a tussle over it, but obviously they didn't stay mad."
Midnight giggled. "That's one way to get a mare's attention, I suppose."
After dinner, Midnight headed out across the city to one of the other academies, the Academy of Transcendent Flesh. She went in shortly before sundown, finding the library quickly and getting access to their 'rank 0' section immediately. The area wasn't that big, and everything in there was relatively rudimentary, but it was more than she knew about using a horn to alter the body, and she had to start somewhere.
Fortunately, she was left alone, so she didn't have to go slowly. One by one, she pulled books off the shelf, flipping through the pages just slowly enough to get each one flattened open before flipping to the next. Before long she was doing this with two books at a time, one before each big, unblinking eye.
At sundown, she heart movement and quickly assumed a more normal looking mode of reading before the librarian came into view. "Burning the midnight oil?" the elder mare asked.
"That's what I'm named for," Midnight said. "I hope it's alright if I keep reading?"
The librarian nodded. "Be sure to return your books where found them. There isn't anyone to check you out so you can't borrow any, unless you want to sign for them now? The door will lock behind you when you leave, so don't leave any of your belongings. Alright?"
Midnight nodded in return, waiting for the librarian to leave before resuming her rapid reading.
When the sun came up, the librarian returned to find Midnight Oil finishing the last book with a freshly formed cutie mark on her flank. It depicted a candle held sideways with both ends burning cheerily. "Looks like you've found your passion," the librarian said with a sad smile.
Midnight nodded. "I just hope my professor isn't too disappointed," she said as she took her leave.
"Specialist Moonbeam, reporting in, sir!" Moonbeam announced with a solute as she reached her former commanding officer at last.
"Moonbeam?!" Sergeant Cloud Cover said with uncontained surprise. He launched forward to give her a brief, unprofessional hug, before bouncing back a bit, straightening himself, then turning to one of his other subordinates. "Corporal Crosswind, detain this individual please."
"Sir!" the corporal, a lunar pegasus mare complied immediately, pouncing on Moonbeam and holding her down, though more gently than she might have. "Good to see you back, Moonbeam," she whispered cheerfully.
"What? Why?" she said to Cloud, not bothering to struggle.
"You've been out for quite some time, and then you just happen to suddenly show up exactly as we're on the lookout for an evil shapeshifter that was skulking around our fair city? Awfully coincidental. Private Thunderhead! Go get the professor, the one who unmasked the changeling previously... Big muscular unicorn over at the Academy of Transcendent Flesh. Tell him we need his services immediately," Cloud Cover ordered, and another guard immediately took to the skies. The Sergeant returned his focus to Moonbeam. "So, assuming you are who you say you are: you're out of uniform, specialist! To say nothing of being AWOL for over a year. So what do you have to say for yourself. Report!"
Moonbeam squirmed just a little so she could breath more easily as she spoke, Crosswind shifting her weight to make it easier. "Sir! On my last mission I was sent to investigate a missing pony case in the vicinity of Citrus Hills. Specifically regarding the fate of an earth pony seasonal worker by the name of Peach Seed. I set out as ordered, flying double-time and spending the day in the inn in town. At sundown the following night, I began my investigation, searching near the outlying farms where the missing individual had last been seen. After approximately two hours of searching, I was beset upon with a weighted net, and shortly afterwards knocked unconscious. I did not see my attackers at that time, however, when I awoke I was stripped and chained to other captives, including the missing pony."
Moonbeam paused a moment to catch her breath before continuing, diverging from the truth at this point. "We were forced by a group of diamond dogs to mine gemstones for them. It was tough work, and we were barely kept fed and hydrated. Anypony who fell behind was whipped severely. However, eventually a solar pegasus named South Wind was able to drive off the diamond dogs and set us all free. I took a little time to recover and receive medical magic before returning to Canterlot to report in. However, we were not able to recover any of our belongings from the diamond dogs, including my uniform, sir."
"Is there anypony who can corroborate your story, 'Moonbeam'?" the Sergeant asked her after considering for a moment.
"Peach Seed should be able to corroborate. She was returning to her mother's farm when we parted ways. I have the address if you need it, and her mother should be able to tell you her usual work routes if she has moved on," Moonbeam offered.
The Sergeant nodded, then settled down, waiting for the unicorn to arrive. "I believe you, Moonbeam, but we need to be sure you're not a fake. Then we'll get you a new uniform and get you back into the ranks. I'm afraid you'll likely be answering to Crosswind from now on though."
"That's fine sir," Moonbeam said without hesitation.
"What? She must be a fake," Crosswind said with a smirk.
"You spend a year as a slave in a mine and see how much your old rivalries matter to you. Congratulations on the promotion, by the way. I would expect nothing less from my worthy rival," Moonbeam said playfully.
Crosswind and Moonbeam cheerfully caught up on old times, with Crosswind eventually announcing her engagement to a stallion Moonbeam hadn't met, and Moonbeam blushingly admitting to having a date of her own lined up already. The fact that it was her best friend's brother was playfully made into a delightful scandal amongst her old friends and comrades.
When Bulging Biceps, the unicorn professor who had unveiled the changeling the day before, finally arrived, he studied Moonbeam for a bit before shaking his head and declaring her transmutation-free. The rest of the night was taken up with acquiring replacement gear, a new locker, a new duty schedule for the nights ahead, and so forth. It was a long night, and a little boring, but it was great to see all of her old friends again. She only wished she didn't have the painful thread of guilt in her heart from hiding massive new developments from her friends. But she had sworn her loyalty to the Itinerant King, and for now that meant not revealing that loyalty to anypony that hadn't.
She hadn't intended to rejoin right away, merely report in and let everypony know what had happened. But seeing everypony again reminded her that this was where she belonged. This is where she had lifelong friends, a friendly rival she needed to catch up with, and plenty of opportunities to put her talents to good use.
Besides... it was really hard to stay afraid with her blood speaking to her so encouragingly, assuring her that she could handle any danger life could throw at her. Just like her new king, she had been mistaken for dead and written off, only to rise again.
As their shift came to an end, and Moonbeam and Crosswind were undressing in the locker room, the newly returned guardpony looked shyly toward her former rival. "Hey, Crosswind, I was wondering..."
"Yes?" Crosswind asked, not even looking at her yet.
"Can I borrow a couple hundred bits? I know it's a lot to ask, but I kind of don't have anything right now, and I've got a date tonight..." Moonbeam asked.
"Alright, say no more. Just until payday, though, okay? And I'll see about getting you a little something extra to help you get back on your feet. No promises though. Well, okay, I can promise to return a few of your things I bought at your estate sale..." Crosswind offered, as she separated out some cash from her coin purse.
"Oh? I'm touched that you bought something to remember me by. But.. you can keep what you bought, it's yours fair and square. It kind of feels like it's time for a fresh start, anyways," Moonbeam offered.
Armed with the small loan, Moonbeam set out into town to quickly acquire that most necessary of necessities: a new dress. While she personally thought the lunar guard armor looked great on her, and ponies generally had no objection to nudity, a very important date demanded a nice dress, or at least the best she could come up with on such short notice. She knew better to expect as much from Midnight Hunter, but hoped he would at least think enough to put on a nice shirt.
Few dress makers were open this hour, but fortunately the ones that were specialized in lunar pegasus clientele and new how to work with their wings and other features rather than just around them. Her measurements worried her a bit, the numbers clearly speaking to her weight loss during her time as a prisoner, and she made sure to buy the dress a bit larger than she could currently fill out, hemmed in temporarily to fit her form in the meantime. Guard work, training, and a healthy diet would soon fill her back out properly, but in the meantime she was left a bit more self conscious by the time she took flight again. At least her ribs weren't poking out anymore.
The rest of her budget quickly disappeared to a mix of necessities and accessories, including a set of saddlebags that went well with the dress but were practical enough for everyday use. Perfume and makeup were tastefully applied; enough to be perceptible without being noticeable, highlighting her natural scent and features. She kept a calm outward demeanor the whole time, but inwardly she was practically giddy from the simple joy of being able to make herself really presentable for the first time in far too many months.
When she alighted in front of the restaurant, Midnight Hunter was there waiting for her, with a pressed shirt on. He was standing in an awkward 3-legged stand, his other leg crossed beneath him to hold something out of her view, between him and the wall. He smiled as he saw her, blushing a bit through his dark fur. "My, aren't you quite the vision of beauty? Here, I got these for you," he said as he offered her a small bouquet of roses. "And I'm treating tonight. I insist."
Moonlight beamed happily as she accepted the bouquet, nibbling daintily on them as they headed inside and waited for their table. "Neighponese, huh? Good choice."
"Well I have it on good authority that you've wanted seaweed for nearly two years now," he said with a grin. "And I'm quite fond of sushi myself."
Unlike some other ponies in the Kingdom, Moonlight didn't think to communicate mentally through their Kingsblood. They had a lot of catching up to do that didn't need to be hidden from outsiders anyways, and so they spoke openly about their shared past, and things that had transpired in Canterlot amongst those they both knew. Hunter didn't press the matter, enjoying the fact that her subnet happily fed him tips on how to make her happy without telling her, like the warning about the shirt.
"... so I've decided I am going to re-enlist immediately after all," Moonbeam said, concluding her tale. "It just felt.. right to be back with them, you know?"
Hunter nodded. "Well, I've never left my passion so I don't know what it'd be like to, you know, doubt myself like that. But I do know how great it is to be doing what you were born to do. And I'm hoping I'll be even better at it now."
"I..." Moonlight looked embarrassed, "I just realized I don't even know what it is you do."
Hunter laughed out loud for a bit. "Other than being the 'goofy brother'? I'm a monster hunter!"
"Monster hunting.. isn't that guards' work?" she asked.
"No, guards only fight monsters defensively, fighting them back when they get too aggressively interested in ponies or their settlements. I go out where they live and bring back scales and nail clipping and other bits that have thaumatological and research applications. There's good money in it sometimes, and lots of days off in between, depending on the demand," he answered.
"Nonlethal?" she asked after a moment's delay.
"When I can. It's easier to collect again if the bits I collect grow back. That's why our guild keeps the prices so high on anything that can only be gotten with the monster's death. But, well, I can't say I've never killed a living thing."
It was a point of pride among Celestia's royal guards that they never killed anypony, even enemies. The night guard were.. less innocent, but they still did what they could to keep blood off their hooves. Especially the blood of their fellow ponies. "So.. that sounds like really unsteady work."
"Well, there's always both supply and demand for hydra meat," he said with a grin.
Moonbeam made a face. Hydra meat was tough and chewy, but it had a certain popularity as a rare form of meat that could be harvested without killing anything. As the only subspecies of ponies that regularly ate meat, social pressures could drive some lunar pegasi to adopt it for their diets. But she had never gotten a taste for it herself. There was, of course, also the question of whether forcing a regenerating species to use that attribute actively was more or less cruel than just killing them for their meat. But ponies tended to be a bit unsympathetic toward big, scary, carnivorous monsters.
"Good thing I'll have a regular paycheck... well, once I get paid. I had to borrow money from Crosswind tonight," Moonbeam commented.
"Aww, you should have asked me first. I would have covered you. I just had a good haul a few nights back," he said.
Moonbeam shook her head. "Borrow money from you to get ready for our date? It's embarrassing enough I had to let you treat."
He chuckled at that. "Hey, it's my treat to be able to treat you." Before she could reply he shut her up by popping a sushi roll into her open mouth. She let out a contented sigh and they finished their meal in silence, simply enjoying each other's company.
After dinner, they returned to Hunter's home. Moonbeam was rendered homeless by her assumed death, and they had already been caught sleeping together once, even if it had technically been Mirror in bed with the stallion, so there wasn't much reason for her not to spend the day there.
So they discarded their clothing, cleaned up in the shower, brushed their fangs, climbed into bed together and Midnight Hunter kissed Moonbeam sweetly before snuggling up to her and closing his eyes.
As he swiftly drifted off to sleep, Moonbeam was left alone with her thoughts, which very quickly began to derail. She had lost her virginity just a few nights before, to a changeling no less, whom she was now cut off from because she had hurried to Canterlot to take Mirror's place in what the Kingdom now considered a no-changeling zone for the safety of its insectoid subjects. And then she had experienced a rather impressive bout of love-making from Midnight Hunter through a sensory connection to another changeling, Mirror, while he bore her form. But now that Hunter had the real Moonbeam, the mare he'd had a crush on as he passed out of adolescence, the mare who's form he had just ravished the night before, and he just goes to sleep?! The fact that he had the kingsblood in him, and thus no longer even had to sleep ever again made it all the more infuriating.
She had spent the last twenty four hours debating with herself about whether she was really okay with sleeping with him, as though there was ever any doubt what the outcome of their date would be, and here he was... being an insufferably perfect gentlecolt!
He finally roused as she got up out of bed. "What's wrong with you?!" she asked accusingly.
"Wha?" he countered groggily.
"Even after all that, I'm not good enough for you to seduce? You didn't seem to have a problem with my looks when Mirror was wearing them, so what is it?" she continued angrily.
"Didn't know you were that eager... I just wanted to take it slow, do it right..." Hunter began.
"I told you what you had to do to get with me again... and you did it. Didn't it occur to you that now was the time to collect your prize?"
"You're more than a 'prize' to me," Hunter objected confusedly. He still was really unsure why what he did was wrong.
"But not enough to seek after? Hmmf!" and with that she made for the exit, quickly taking flight out into the morning sunlight.
[What did I do wrong?] he tried to ask Mirror.
[Message could not be delivered. Subnet Rorrim is unreachable at this time,] his blood responded.
Hunter frowned. It wasn't too surprising, since Mirror was headed into a dangerous situation, but it was definitely reason to worry for the little bug. But he still needed advice. So he turned to Midnight Oil instead.
[So.. what did I do wrong?] Midnight Hunter thought to Midnight Oil.
[Why don't you start with what you did, and we'll narrow it down from there? If you tell your subnet to give me permission, I can just peruse your memory... less likely you'll skip something important that way,] Midnight replied. She failed to hide her excitement at going over every juicy detail.
[Alright, hold on... how do I?... okay, got it. Still getting used to this interface. I mean, don't get me wrong, it's super easy. I am just constantly expecting it to be harder than it is,] Hunter replied. If Moonbeam hadn't run out on him, he might consider being more close-lipped with the details, but right now he needed help or there would be no relationship to keep private.
[Okay, give me a minute,] she replied. After almost exactly a minute, which felt like a week, she continued. [Okay, so first thing. She's jealous. Simple as that. I think it's because she thinks your more attracted to Mirror than her, and she's just your consolation prize.]
[What? That's exactly backwards! Mirror was just a meaningless little bit of sex. I love Moonbeam! I just wanted to make everything go just right with us, and not rush things. I wanted things to last,] he objected.
[Don't lie to yourself, or to me. I know you had feelings for Mirror, I saw them in your memories. And Mirror's a changeling; he would have felt them too, and so would she through him. Through senses she doesn't have experience interpreting. She wouldn't have noticed nuances. I know... I know you only even had feelings for him at all because of the sex, but she doesn't know that. She just knows he was good enough to rut after you had just met, but she wasn't good enough to make a move on even after a lovely morning together and all of your shared history,] Midnight countered.
There was silence for several seconds before Hunter sheepishly came back with [so what do I do now?]
[I'll talk to her, try to get you one more chance, but that's the most you'll get. You'd better start making plans. Let's make it tomorrow morning, okay? Gives her a little time to cool off, but not enough time to get cold. You've got to woo her like your entire future depends on it, then seduce her until the sun goes down. Okay? You've got the kingsblood now, so no excuses like 'I can't get it up again!' Talk to Stud Muffin if you need pointers. In fact, you need pointers. Mirror gave you a good start, but you need to be better for her than you ever were for my little changeling. Got it?]
[Care to talk about it?] Midnight asked Moonbeam without preface. As predicted, the lunar pegasus had no trouble guessing what the context was.
[I'm guessing you've been talking to Midnight Hunter?] she replied.
[Yeah. You've got a pretty foalish colt on your hooves, but he seems sweet enough,] Midnight began.
[He's not on my hooves anymore. If you want him you can have him,] Moonbeam huffed.
[You don't mean that... do you? With Mirror in exile...] Midnight subtly slipped some teasing threads of thought into the message, ensuring Moonbeam's mind would in fact go there.
[Ugh. MIRROR! What's so great about her anyways?!] Moonbeam screamed in exasperation. Midnight thought she heard the mare cry out loud indistinctly in the distance, but couldn't be sure.
['He'. I know he's a changeling and all, but he prefers to self-identify as male, and it's kind of rude to contradict that, especially privately amongst ourselves. I know that might change someday, especially if he meets the right stallion, but that will be then and this is now,] she corrected.
['He'. It's kind of hard to think of the mare that stole my stallion's heart as a 'he',] Moonbeam countered.
[He didn't steal Hunter's heart, just borrowed his shaft for a bit. Believe me, it's a very male thing to do. I know our society doesn't really accept these kinds of things, but stallions really like to have sex, and aren't always so keen on the romance. They especially would rather bed more than one mare if they could, but few would volunteer to put themselves through the wringer of trying to court more than one at once. Especially not if they're going to get all jealous, like you,] she said pointedly.
[So I'm supposed to feel better because my stallion is a slut who still wouldn't put out when his time with me came?] Moonbeam asked just as pointedly.
[You mean, because he liked you enough to want to have a real relationship with you first before plowing your fields, rather than scrabbling to put it together afterwards? Look, I know this is my fault. I like sex as much as any stallion, and I thought you'd like to enjoy that little romp since Mirror was using your likeness. I didn't really think through what it would mean for you and Hunter. I owe you all an apology for making everything weird for you. And I really want to thank you both for helping Mirror get out of there alive and well,] Midnight said.
Moonbeam was silent for a while before letting a sigh cross their connection. [You think I'm overreacting, don't you?]
[I think your emotions got out ahead of your thoughts, and you were gone before they could catch up. I also know you still have feeling for Hunter or you wouldn't have referred to him as 'my stallion' repeatedly in the last few minutes. Now, I want you to take the day to yourself, and focus on your work during your shift tonight, but tomorrow morning Hunter is going to take you on another date, and you're going to make the most of it, and forgive him to his face, and give him one last chance to seduce you, okay?]
[I don't know,] Moonbeam said, hesitantly, but she couldn't help but let slip that she was wavering.
[Yes you do,] Midnight Oil insisted. [I just wish you were less jealous so we could share him. But I'll be good,] she promised.
As predicted, Moonbeam's jealousy flared a bit again. [Keep your hooves off of my stallion. Surely you can get your own.]
[I don't really want to sleep with anyone who doesn't have the kingsblood, my mother and I love each other but not that way, and that really just leaves you and Hunter... well, I guess maybe I can get Top Flight to start delivering 'packages' to me. Hmmm...]
Moonbeam laughed a bit. [Anyone getting jealous over Top Flight is really being a foal. I'm sure he'll not only deliver your 'package' but also deliver a fine speech about how this is the most logical thing for the kingdom.]
Top Flight then cut in with, [I can deliver other things, too, like helpful hints about how to keep your private conversations private. Did you know, if you don't want to broadcast your intimate thoughts to everypony in the Kingdom, you can just ask your kingsblood to encrypt your conversation? Like this.] The next bit was unintelligible to everypony but Midnight Oil, who responded in kind. [I know you are all new to this, and I admit I'm having a great time witnessing the drama from afar, but you really should take a moment to find out about your own new capabilities, especially since all you have to do is think about it. And Midnight, you have no excuse, seeing as you've been doing the encryption thing since before either of us were inducted.]
Moonbeam screamed across their connection in embarrassment. And then screamed again when she realized that Hunter could hear the whole exchange as well.
"So, if Moonbeam doesn't take you back, I bet Midnight Oil would be happy to accept 'packages' from both of us, if you know what I mean," Top Flight suggested to Midnight Hunter, as he handed over a package that wasn't a euphemism for anything.
"While that's probably true, I don't even want to think about anything like that right now. Is it that weird that I want a serious relationship, and not just a..." Hunter blushed a bit, not as comfortable spewing euphemisms as Top was.
"A plot to plow? Yeah, I get you. It's not that weird at all, and quite commendable. I for one think you and Moonbeam make a cute couple, drama and all. Just don't hold back with her anymore. She needs all of you, from start to creamy finish. And beyond. She's going to need a dependable partner for life, especially once those foals start coming in. But even before then... she's been through some very hard years, and she needs someone to help her realize that's behind her. She's stronger now, in more ways than one. Nopony can hurt her anymore, not in the ways she's been hurt, but she hasn't had time to internalize that. And now you've demonstrated that there is still one way she can be hurt. I know it's not fair of her to treat it as you betraying her, but that's what it was to her. Mares like her don't know how to treat something as 'just a little sex'. Most mares don't. So be hers, and hers alone, and leave the changelings, and slutty unicorns, and such to me. I think it suits you, it really does."
"And does this suit me?" Hunter asked in return, holding up the contents of the package in front of himself.
Top Flight smirked in return. "Nice pun, and yes it does. You have everything else in place?"
"As much as I could. I'll admit I'm a bit nervous about such a bold plan. I mean.. what if she says no?" Hunter asked.
Top Flight shrugged. "Wait a little bit for your heart to calm down, and then date Fog Dancer," he suggested matter-of-factly.
Hunter rolled his eyes, though it did help him calm down a little. While in one sense his future depended on the outcome of his date, it was good to remember that if he was rejected he wasn't doomed to be alone forever.
When Stone Breaker awoke from his fever, he was quick to request that Apple Core, the pegasus mare whose apartment they were staying in, be given the kingsblood as well. While he had needed it to recover from nearly fatal injuries, he wanted her to have it to help her free herself from the mobsters who demanded every bit she could spare, and had forced her into prostitution. He wasn't good at explaining why, but the mare trusted the massive earth pony stallion who had risked his life so many times to protect her.
With Apple Core beginning to slip into her own feverish slumber, that left Mirror as the only able-bodied pony in the tiny apartment, relatively speaking at least. He showered, he cooked, he cleaned, doing everything he could to occupy the time as he waited for the chance to leave this place, hopefully forever.
Stone Breaker was silent for hours, and Mirror was just taking to assuming he was the strong silent type, or something, until the stallion suddenly spoke up. "Would you mind doing your avatar thing for us?"
"Huh?" Mirror responded at first, simply surprised, before following up with a more coherent, "what did you have in mind?"
Stone Breaker just blushed a moment, looking over Apple Core's sleeping form. She was starting to stir, but it could easily be another hour before she was fully conscious. There had been no real rush with her, so her body was taking the normal full day to integrate the nanotechnology into her system. "I love her. And I think she feels the same, but she's afraid. I'm just too big, you know?" Stone Breaker fell silent again, figuring he had said enough and Mirror could work out the rest.
The changeling thought for a bit, looking them both over. The pegasus was a bit on the petite side, fully grown to be sure, despite her lack of cutie mark, but below average in size. The earth pony, by contrast, was one of the larger stallions. He was quite as big as Oak Breaker, but he was up there. While some ponies would certainly enjoy that difference in size, it was daunting and it could be quite painful, especially the first time.
Mirror wasn't afraid. He knew his body could handle it, that any discomfort would be passing, and any injury that might result easily healed. But he had born the Kingsblood for some time, and made use of its healing properties before. He was also quite familiar with Fog Dancer's affection for larger stallions, and that pegasus wasn't much bigger than the one before him. He nodded, to himself at first before noticing Stone Breaker's intense observation. "Alright, I'm willing to give it a try, if she wants to. But first.. "
The changeling dropped his disguise, and slipped up to the mostly-healed earth pony, snuggling up against him. Stone Breaker looked at him curiously before hugging him close. It was the first time he had seen an undisguised changeling. He rolled with it easily, having been forewarned by his own subnet hours ago, but the vague impression of the creature's appearance imparted to his consciousness was nothing compared to actually seeing the real thing up close and personal. He noted the feel and shine of the chitin under his hooves, the idle flitting of gossamer wings, and most of all the gaping holes in the changeling's flesh. He pitting the smaller bug-pony for a moment before realizing he could actually do something about it.
It wasn't hard for him to find something to like about Mirror. The insect had saved him from certain death the previous day, had taken care of both ponies all day despite his own injuries, and now offered to give him a chance to be with Apple Core in a new way. He also knew a fair bit more about Mirror from what others had conveyed to him, especially the little unicorn mare who was so quick to praise him. Bringing these thoughts to focus in his mind, he hugged Mirror tighter, trying his best to feed his love to the changeling.
It was working, but not very well. Stone Breaker squirmed a bit uncomfortably, giving an apologetic smile to Mirror, not sure why he felt such resistance within his own heart. But Mirror knew, almost immediately. He could feel it easily, knowing that resistance all too well. With a flash of green magic, his form shifted subtly, becoming more effeminate, right down to the crotch, which she rubbed against Stone Breaker just enough to make sure he noticed that change as well. Almost instantly the flow of love loosened up, flowing freely.
Breaker looked like he wanted to apologize as he realized what had happened, but Mirror shook her head, leaning up to kiss him lightly on the lips. "It's okay. It's instinct, I know. I understand. I'm a changeling, I don't mind changing." She buried her own annoyance, not so much at Breaker himself but at the course of her life persistently chipping away at her sense of self as a male. It seemed like in a world with so many more mares than stallions, she ought to be able to find love more easily as a stallion. Yet, time and again she found herself playing the role of a mare, as an avatar or otherwise.
Stone Breaker cast his shame aside and simply hugged the changeling tighter to himself, making out with her as he let the love flow into her and the blood flow into his member. But Mirror kept things relatively tame between them, until Apple Core awoke. When she did, she looked over at the two, taking some time to process what she was seeing as her own newly formed subnet caught her up on their plans.
Apple Core blushed deeply, stammering a bit incoherently as she tried to make sense of it before simply nodding. With Mirror's guidance, soon she was connected to the changeling's mind, sharing her senses. A flash of green magic washed over Mirror's body, giving her Apple Core's appearance and making the whole thing feel more natural to the pony, if still more than a little surreal.
Trying something new, with her permission, Mirror opened her mind to Apple Core's senses, watching the whole scene from an outside point of view for once. It was a bit challenging to make sense of both sets of senses at the same time, but with her subnet's help it wasn't beyond her. Just... weird. In a fun, sexy kind of way.
When they seemed settled, Stone Breaker tugged lightly on Mirror's neck with one hoof, just enough to draw their attention to him and get them to lean in and give him a kiss, shyly at first, but quickly steaming up. Apple Core had done a lot of kissing in her life, even more than Mirror, but this was different for her. This was somepony she actually had feelings for, even if she still wasn't certain about actually pursuing him. She felt Mirror's thoughts mingled with her own, encouraging her in a wordless press of emotions. Beyond that, she could tangibly feel Stone Breaker's love through Mirror's changeling senses, and knew it for what it was.
That was all the encouragement she needed.
When they had had their fun, and Mirror and Apple Core disentangled their minds, starting to clean up and prepare to leave, Mirror was a bit surprised to be contacted by Midnight Hunter.
[Done having fun?] the lunar pegasus stallion asked the changeling, a bit of poorly suppressed bitterness creeping into the message.
[Yeah. How'd you know?] the changeling replied.
[Top Flight taught me a few tricks. That pegasus has taken to the whole 'cyborg' thing with shocking ease. If he didn't already have one, I'd have expected him to get a cutie mark for it. Anyways, you and... Apple Core? Even though it was encrypted, you were sending out so much data I figured it had to be the avatar thing, and from the duration I guessed at the rest. So... how was she?]
Mirror ignored the question, instead responding with one of her own. [Why are you bitter?]
Hunter was silent a moment, uncomfortable about being called out on it, but with a mental sigh he decided it was for the best. He really did want to clear the air with the changeling. [I guess... I kind of hoped you and I could have had something more, something special. It was silly to even hope something like that, I know. I should just... focus on Moonbeam. She's a great mare, and I'm really glad you brought her back into my life.]
[I do what I can,] Mirror replied. [And I'm really glad things worked out for you two. But as for me... yeah. Midnight Oil is the one who is really special to me, and even with her, I can't... our paths have split. We'll still be friends, and I hope you and I can be friends as well, despite the distance. The signal doesn't degrade too badly from here. But I don't want you pining over me. You've got a great marefriend now, so go enjoy your time with her.]
[Yeah... about that...] Hunter began with embarrassment, before catching Mirror up on what he had missed.
"You can still call me Cherry Blossom, if you want," the filly said, "but I think a new name is more fitting. 'Nightmare Core'. It's a bit ironic, I know." She looked around meaningfully at the beautiful waves of grass under the picturesque sky that was the shared dream she wove for us. Most of us didn't dream anymore, concerned Luna would stumble in and make everything hopelessly complicated. I certainly avoided it like the plague, afraid my own old roleplaying character would somehow come to life and take control of me. It was a valid fear: it had happened in another timeline, and I had the awkward position of remembering it. So we shared this fiction amongst ourselves instead of dreaming. 'Elysium', a sort of heaven. And a haven, for the mind at least.
I chuckled. "Nightmare Core. I like it... in your own way, you're the core of the kingdom, enough bandwidth and computational power to keep us all in touch and coordinated, and enough to spare to grant us pleasant dreams, but you certainly look like something out of a nightmare. Hmm... I guess you can't dream anymore, can you?"
"I can... and I do," she replied, surprising me. "You know, my brain never rotted that much, I was able to restore it completely, bring it back to life. I... I'm pretty sure the soul has long since fled. I don't know how we would measure such a thing, or if I even want the confirmation, but I'm able to dream again. I do, every night."
"Why?" I asked, intrigued.
"Why? Why wouldn't I? I know your reasons, your fears, but I don't share them. And the digital part of me can still function when my pony brain is asleep." It was a bit amazing to me how thoroughly the two parts seemed to share a sense of self. I always thought of Deus as an alien thing within me, the closest ally imaginable, but still not myself. null was, of course, the opposite, with no living brain to have a sense of self, merely dead flesh wrapped over a robotic interior, a sort of false undead. I had thought Cherry to be much the same aside from using the dead filly's memories and personality to guide her thoughts and actions, but it seemed she'd taken it one step further. "Besides, dreaming was a big part of my destiny, and cutie mark."
"Weren't you a blank flank when you died?" I asked.
"Was," she confirmed, turning to show off her new logo, a pair of crescent moons, somewhat overlapped. "It's connected to dreams, I'm sure of that much. I've been having... kind of awkward dreams lately."
"Awkward how?" I questioned. "I can't imagine that ponies get the 'show up to class naked' one."
She shook her head. "No, not that one. I see my self, like my naive, innocent pony self, walking near Citrus Hills, heading unwittingly toward where I was ambushed and foalnapped. I reach out to her, to try to talk to her, warn her, anything, and she runs in terror. No surprise... you know what I really look like now, that's what I look like in the dream. It's... it's the same every night, but different. Like dream me remembers. She's ever more wary, but I have to reach out to her. It's my destiny, I know it."
"That's... kind of weird. Prophetic, maybe? I know that's a thing here. Celestia has them, right?"
"I don't think it's... it's not prophecy, exactly. I don't know. I'll find out, though," she said, before changing the subject. "It's nice here, but wouldn't you like something a bit more fun? Adventurous? I can generate any kind of dreamscape you like."
"I'm living enough adventure for now... how about another kind of fun... hmm... I have an idea."
It felt weird being a blocky shape falling through space, but even weirder being an 's' block than it had being a square or a line or even a 't'. Appropriate, since I was such an awkward piece to work with. I couldn't see the spot I needed to be in from here, because of the overhang, but I nudged myself sidewise a few meters, to pass under it, before sidling back and rotating myself.
Even if it didn't hurt, it was still really bizarre feeling when half of my body glowed and vanished, letting the rest of me, along with that damned overhang, drop down a meter. A small success, but it was nonetheless.
Oh, yeah! The sudden shift of perspective came with the slick, lean feeling of being a line. And perfect timing, with that blockage cleared, I could get down to the side there and... TETRIS!
"You have a frankly inexplicable sense of fun," Cherry Blossom's teasing voice came from everywhere and nowhere.
After being out of contact for a few hours, the king had a rather unusual request for his subjects, one that was in direct contradiction to one of the principles they had tried to live by. But he was the king, and it was his place to make such demands. Prince Alexander Gabriella Stormbringer the First took command of the mission, codenamed Operation Harmony. He gathered a suitable team for the operation, while a second team took flight to Manehattan, preparing to receive the results of their success.
Alexander strolled into Ponyville with the confidence of one who knew he belonged there, but the curiosity of one who had not been their before. A deep green cloak covered the back of the white unicorn colt, his lute cutie mark matching the instrument strapped to his back. He made his way casually through town, observing all the sights and making mental notes about it all, especially the flow of traffic. He'd certainly want to find a good place to play for the public, eventually, but he had another priority right now. One which had to act on its own initiative.
"Hiyaa!" his target greeted loudly. "Welcome to Ponyville! Oh, hold on, I need to go get things ready!"
"Wait a moment," he countered. "Are you Pinkie Pie?" he asked the mare that could not possibly not be Pinkie Pie.
"Oh, you've heard of me? But that's not fair, I haven't heard of you!" the pink mare pronked back the few steps she had retreated.
"Alexander Stormbringer," he said, offering a hoof which was promptly clopped. "I've heard of your legendary welcome parties, but I have a slight problem. You see, my twin sister, Gabriella, is somewhere in this town as well, and we simply can't have a welcome party for one of us but not the other!" He made a show of shading his eyes with one hoof and looking around. "But I can't seem to see her anywhere."
Pinkie gasps out in alarm, and began darting from place to place in a fashion that dared physics to try and stop her. "I don't see her anywhere. Does she look like you?"
Alexander shook his head, his pink mane getting in his eyes a bit before he brushed it back. "In some ways my opposite. Aside from gender, she's pink furred with a white mane, and while I have a horn, she has wings. Not quite the same shade as you... more like Princess Mi Amore Cadenza."
"You mean Cadance? Come to think of it, your mane color does seem to match the pink parts of her mane," Pinkie pointed out.
"I believe that is why I am so fond of love songs," Alexander offered.
"That makes sense," Pinkie accepted.
"So, shall we go find my sister?" the colt asked.
"Okie dokie loki!" Pinkie replied, pronking off as the colt followed in a more mundane gait. He smiled at a job well done as he subtly watched the Element of Laughter's every move.
Their conversation as they traversed the whole of Ponyville repeatedly ranged wildly across a vast range of topics, with the young bard easily following Pinkie's sudden shifts as if they'd been discussing the new topic all along, and occasionally derailing their conversation with similar abruptness. But despite all their searching, the pink pegasus was nowhere to be found.
"Wow. We've looked everywhere, but I can't find your sister. Are you sure she's here in Ponyville?" Pinkie asked, finally, feeling a little down.
"I'm quite certain. Perhaps if we split up we can find her faster?" Alexander offered.
"Alright. You take the low road, and I'll take the high road!" Pinkie offered, before pulling a bundle of balloons out of her mane and letting them lift her up.
Alexander nodded and took his leave slipping behind a nearby building while Pinkie was looking the other way. A moment later, a pink pegasus filly flew up from behind that building, looping around a tree and then nearly flew right into Pinkie Pie's balloons, barely stopping before she crashed.
"Woah, hey! Didn't expect to meet an earth pony up here," she said in surprise.
"Hiyaa! I'm Pinkie Pie! Are you Gabriella?" Pinkie inquired. At the nod, she continued. "Your brother and I were looking for you, so we can have a welcome to Ponyville party! We've been looking so hard, but now we finally found you!"
"That's good. But we can't have a party without my brother, right? Where'd he get to?" she asked, making a show of looking around.
"Why he's right..." Pinkie Pie began before letting out a gasp. "Oh no!"
Soon Gabriella and Pinkie were scouring the town again, looking for the elusive unicorn. They paused for a quick snack break at Sugarcube Corner. "You know... I've never seen two ponies with the same cutie mark before," the mare noted, pointing at Gabriella's flank. She had a very similar instrument on her flank, as well as a rather similar cloak and rather similar lute strapped to her back.
"It's close, but it's actually subtly different. If you look close, you'll see the highest string is vibrating in my cutie mark, while the lowest is vibrating in his. I prefer singing and playing a higher range than my brother... it's great in duets, especially," Gabriella pointed out.
"Oh wow! I hadn't noticed that. That's so neat. Did you get your cutie mark doing a duet?" the pink mare asked.
Gabriella nodded. "Let's finish our snack and then going looking. I have an idea where to go next," she explained.
[Target Pinkie Pie: captured. Deploy second wave.]
A light knocking interrupted the Apple family as they were in the middle of cleaning their dishes from breakfast. "Wonder who that could be. I'll get it," Applejack offered, before trotting to the door and opening it.
"Hi there, miss Apple! Long time no see. Got any work for an itinerant farm hand?" Peach Seed inquired with a hopeful smile.
"You can call me AJ, miss..." Applejack said, struggling to place the mare before her.
"Peach Seed," she replied. "I know we've missed your farm the last few years. It's okay if you don't remember me, I know how it can be."
"Peach Seed... oh! Now I remember. It really has been a few years, hasn't it? Have you had breakfast yet?" AJ asked, inviting the mare inside.
"Not yet, though I brought my own. Don't want to impose," Peach offered.
"Nonsense. What kind of farmer can't feed a farm hand? Go on now," Applejack insisted.
"Certainly not a proud one like the Apple family," Peach teased, before accepting some apple-filled leftovers.
"So why have you been missing our farm lately? And where's your group? We sure could have used some help around harvest time," Applejack asked.
Peach was a bit nervous but didn't show it. The Element of Honesty would be difficult to lie to without being caught. She would have to be truthful without giving away the most important truths. Of course, some things were publicly shared even if they weren't widely known. "Things have been rough since Princess Cadance's wedding. The changelings got really aggressive in the lead up to the invasion, and afterwards. Kidnapped ponies, left them in pods, and so forth. Some of us have been working on helping with the problem, freeing the ponies and dealing with the changelings. Of course, we still have to actually do all the farm work, too. It's hard to keep up with both."
Applejack put a hand on Peach's hoof to comfort her. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."
Peach shook her head. "Thanks for your concern. But all I really need from you right now is some work to get to, and perhaps a bit of company out with the trees. Think you can manage that?"
"We've got some trees ready for buckin, and a barn that needs fillin'," Granny Smith offered.
"Let's get to work," Applejack agreed.
The two of them went out among the acres of Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack leading the way while Peach pulled a cart for them to fill. AJ got a bit disquieted for a moment, feeling the intensity of Peach's look at her. She let it go for a bit, but when it seemed that much more intense as they got to bucking trees, she finally had to say something.
"Is there something the matter, Peach Seed?" Applejack asked. "You don't seem to be able to take your eyes offa me."
Peach looked away, blushing. "Oh. I'm sorry. It's just, you've grown quite beautiful as you've come into adulthood. Or maybe I'm just seeing things a little different now that I've grown myself," she said. "I'll... if you don't want me to look any more, I'll keep my eyes to myself."
Applejack blushed, going silent for a few awkward seconds before speaking up. "I guess it's okay ta look. But that's, all, okay? I've got... yer not the one fer me, okay?"
"You have a special somepony already?" Peach inquired.
"It's not like that!" Applejack objected, blushing even harder, while she smashed her hind hooves into a tree to distract herself. An apple bounced off her head, far from the first to have done so.
Peach giggled. "Ah, I see. Somepony you're keen to look at," she said with a wink. "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me. I just hope you'll have good news to share next time I come around this way."
They worked in silence for a few minutes, filling their cart before taking it into the barn.
"I thought I saw more ripe apples around that corner," Peach said, pointing the way toward one of the corners. As AJ nodded and lead the way, Peach followed on the other side this time, drinking in a good solid look at her flank before going off with her to a secluded corner of the farm.
[Target Applejack: Captured]
"Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no," a colts voice protested, floating out of the Everfree forest to reach Fluttershy's ears as she paused in the process of feeding her animals. "Shoo. Shoo!" the voice added, before a flight of birds scattered.
"Oh my," Fluttershy stated, raising a hoof to her mouth as she looked toward the source of the sound. It couldn't have been far, but she couldn't see where it came from. She hesitated, drew in a deep breath, and then headed into the woods.
The Everfree was absolutely terrifying to most ponies, and most things were terrifying to Fluttershy. But nature was her element, and besides, somepony might be in trouble. Or causing trouble. It hadn't been very nice of him to shoo those birds. "Hello?" she inquired, very faintly.
There was silence for a moment, then the colt called out. "Is somepony there?"
"I am," Fluttershy squeaked quietly before hiding behind a tree.
A brown earth pony colt stepped out past a tree, looking around a bit before seeing her and heading her way with a cautious smile. "Oh, hello there. I thought I heard somepony approaching. I'm Bark Tender. Do you live around here?"
Fluttershy nodded shyly, slowly slipping out of her hiding spot. "I'm Fluttershy. I help take care of the animals around here."
"Really? Do you think you can keep them away from a couple of trees here for a few weeks?" the colt inquired.
"I suppose so, but why? Aren't animals supposed to play on and around trees? Birds especially," she asked.
"Well, come see for yourself," he said, gesturing for her to go on ahead of him. She looked at him a bit dubiously before cautiously creeping a little deeper into the Everfree.
What she saw made her gasp. A trio of trees suffering from some quite obvious rot. They looked like they would be dead soon, if they weren't already. Open sores on the bark ran with ooze that didn't even look like proper sap. A bird tried to perch on one of the branches, but Bark quickly shooed it away.
"These trees have fallen ill. The birds and other animals can spread the sickness to other trees. I've started treating these ones, but if it gets rampant throughout the forest... well, it'll be too big of a problem for one colt to handle," Bark Tender explained. "Can you help me keep them away? I'll work as fast as I can, but it'll take a few hours at least. It'd be best to keep the animals away for a month, really, to be sure."
Fluttershy nodded with determination. "Alright, I'll help. Oh!" She fluttered up toward an approaching bird. "Please don't land on that tree, okay? Thank you!" she said, smiling and waving as the bird diverted to a healthier tree.
"Wow, they really listen to you, huh?" Bark said, as he got to work, drawing a potion from his saddlebags and starting to rub it into the bark.
Fluttershy blushed at the complement but nodded, before moving to divert an approaching deer. Bark kept an eye on her as he worked, watching her every move. He had her alone now, out in the Everfree of all places, just the two of them. And she was too distracted by her task to notice what he was up to.
[Forgive me, trees,] he thought. [I know that poison was rough for you three, but I'll cure you right away. And I really needed you to play your role so I could do this.]
[Target Fluttershy: captured]
A gust of wind knocked Rainbow Dash out of the cloud she had been resting in, leaving her scrambling to get her wings going before she hit the ground. "Whoa, hay, watch it!" she objected, before spotting the retreating form of an unfamiliar pegasus stallion. The stallion dropped into the town proper, and Rainbow lost sight of him. But not for long!
A rainbow contrail highlighted her approach as she blurred through town, tackling the other pony, and causing the package in his hand to be knocked loose, awkwardly falling into the hooves of the mare he had been handing it to.
"Oh, hay, if it isn't the second fastest pony in Ponyville," the stallion said with a cocky grin. "I thought I saw you on my way in, but it was hard to tell at that speed."
"Second fastest? I'm the fastest pony around, bar none," Rainbow declared.
"Well, you will be again once I head home," the stallion pointed out. "It'll just be a second."
"Just who do you think you are?" Rainbow demanded.
"Top Flight," the pegasus offered. "Fastest courier in Equestria."
"If you're so fast, why haven't I heard of you, or seen you in any of the Friendship Games?" Rainbow challenged.
"I don't play games," Top countered. "Though I suppose I could make an exception for today. A race with you seems like the kind of gentle, slow paced restful experience I could use to relax before I fly home," he taunted.
"A race? You're on," Rainbow accepted.
"Name your course, then. I can outfly you anywhere, any day," Top bragged.
"Prove it," she demanded, flying up above the town. As he joined her, she began laying out a route, a dizzying course winding all throughout the small town, with a few larger spurs flitting past the outlying buildings.
Top nodded in acceptance. "On your mark, get set. Go!" He shouted, pausing a fraction of second for Rainbow to go first before dashing after her.
He was fast, but she was faster... at least on the straightaways. He cornered better than the hasty mare, and gained on her at every turn. He also had an infuriatingly smug grin on his face as he used the tracks' contours as an excuse to get to different angles to ogle her from. Ugh, stallions!
The flyby of Sweet Apple Acres and Fluttershy's cottage gave her a good bit of lead, but by the time they got back into town for the last several corners, swinging around twilight's library, fatigue was slowing Rainbow down, and the stallion was quickly catching up. The mare pushed herself to her limit, reaching out her hoof in a stretch to reach the flagpole they had agreed as the finish line.
Her wing tangled in his as they flew a bit too close, both touching the flagpole in the same moment with outstretched hooves before tumbling to the ground in a tangled mess.
"A tie?! What! No!" Rainbow Dash objected as she pulled herself free.
"We'll just have to have a rematch then. You ready?" he asked, bracing himself as if to launch into the sky, but waiting for her answer.
"What, no way! I uh, I still have to finish my nap you interrupted!" the mare complained.
"You snooze, you lose,~" the stallion teased.
Rainbow's stomach rumbled just then, the stallion's following suit shortly thereafter, and they looked awkwardly anywhere but each other for a moment.
"How about we go grab a couple of hayburgers and celebrate our shared victory instead," Top Flight offered with a smile.
"Yeah, alright... but this isn't a date!" Rainbow said emphatically.
"Sure, sure. You can buy your own then," he said as he started to lead the way. He might have been a stranger to the town, but they'd flown by the place three times in the last few minutes.
Rainbow was tired, trotting along where he led, not really thinking about where she was going or her surroundings.
[Target Rainbow Dash: Captured]
Stud Muffin slowly pushed the door open to the Carousal Boutique, slipping inside quietly and beginning to look around discreetly.
"Can I help you?" Rarity asked when she noticed him, almost accusitorial in her town.
Stud jumped a couple inches before shaking himself out. "Yes. Please! I'd really appreciate the help."
Rarity trotted down the stairs to join him on the ground floor, calming down a bit. "Oh, and what could I possibly help a gentlecolt like yourself with? You're... not shopping for yourself, are you, darling?" she said, cringing a bit at the thought.
"Oh, no no no. I'm looking for a dress to give my wife, as a gift. The name's Bran Muffin," Stud Muffin said, offering a hoof to clop. "I've heard good things about your work, and it's such a way to get to a bigger city with more fine clothing options. I'm really hoping you'll have something suitable. We don't have many excuses to dress up where we live, but we do have an anniversary approaching..."
"Say no more, darling. Or rather, say a lot more about your wife. What's she look like? Do you know her measurements?" Rarity inquired.
Stud was stumped a moment. He actually had access to Mirage's exact measurements to more detail than would ever be necessary, and she could always change them easily as a changeling. In fact, she generally wore a disguise that would fit things a little differently than her natural form. "She's about... a half hoof longer than you, this tall, and around this wide in the middle," Stud vaguely approximated. "Dark green fur, bright green mane," he added, approximating her changeling form as accurately as he dared.
"Really, darling? Now that's an unusual combination, and you'll need a dress well suited to her colors. Emerald highlights, for sure," she began, quickly heading up to her drawing board, while Stud followed. "You are thinking of something for formal occasions, yes?"
Stud nodded, and began to talk through the details with her, watching her every move as she worked. Rarity was so caught up in her efforts, she didn't notice what Stud was up to.
[Target Rarity: Captured]
"Twilight Sparkle. We have captured your friends. If you wish to see them, please consent to being captured as well," the voice rang out through the library.
Twilight suddenly appeared before the intruder, horn aglow with charged energy. "What?! Captured?! Where are they? Talk!"
The stallion before her raised a camera in his magic and snapped a picture of her. "Please turn ninety degrees to your right."
"Um, what?" Twilight asked, confused, as she followed the directions. Another snap captured her likeness once again.
"Please turn 180 degrees," the stallion requested politely. "I promise no harm will come to you. All rumors that cameras steal souls are in fact untrue and basely superstitions."
"I know that," Twilight said as she complied. "But where are my friends? You said they had been captured?"
"They will be on pages two through six, and again on pages twenty through sixty-nine," the stallion explained cryptically. "Now 90 degrees to your left."
Twilight looked over her shoulder at the mysterious photographer. "Pages... wait, what's going on? Are you making a book about us?"
"I apologize," the stallion said. "Can you lift your tail?"
Twilight blushed. "What? No!"
"Okay. An artist will estimate all unavailable details. Please trot about the room," he said.
"What's that supposed to mean. And why are you apologizing?" the librarian demanded, getting increasingly frazzled, and pictured as such.
"I know you like books. It will be a magazine," the stallion answered.
"What's going on?" Spike inquired as he entered the room.
"That's what I want to know!" Twilight Sparkle yelled.
"Nothing. We are done here. Thank you for your time and cooperation," the stallion said before trotting for the door.
"Oh no! You're not getting away that easily!" Twilight said, smashing his camera in her telekinetic grip, while lifting the stallion easily. She felt something as her magic brushed against him, and realized he was under the effects of some magic himself. She gasped, as she dispelled the magic, revealing a changeling beneath, who looked passively at her. "A changeling! Talk!"
"My name is Dill. I am a chef," the changeling stated.
"Oh, can he cook breakfast?" Spike asked.
"What? No! He's impersonating somepony, trying to steal our love... badly?" Twilight really didn't understand the plot.
"If I cook breakfast, you will love it," Dill pointed out.
"Shouldn't you have lead with that? What was with all the photos? Is the magazine a total lie?" Twilight demanded.
"What magazine?" Spike inquired.
"I was sent to capture you," Dill stated. "Capture complete."
"Um, don't look now, but we're the ones that captured you, Dill," Spike explained.
Dill stared straight ahead. "Very well. I will not look. May I cook breakfast? You both look hungry."
"No! You might try to poison it, or escape or something!" Twilight said.
"Okay. I am done here then," Dill stated before his own horn lit up and he teleported away.
[Agent Dill: captured. Briefly.] [Target Twilight Sparkle: captured.] [All targets captured, operation Harmony part A complete.]
"Girls, I'm so glad to see you all alright," Twilight said, as she spoke to her gathered companions that evening.
"Why wouldn't we be, darling?" Rarity inquired, confused.
"I think Ponyville has been invaded by changelings. Very confusing, possibly mentally damaged, changelings," Twilight said, uncertainly.
"Oh... oh! That makes sense!" Pinkie said, clopping her hooves together. "The brother was the sister! That's why nopony saw them both at the same time!" she explained, confusing everypony further.
"No way a changeling could be that fast," Rainbow Dash asserted.
"Peach Seed mentioned that they'd been having more troubles with changelings out in the more distant farms lately. I wonder why they've come here. We'll have to keep an eye out," Applejack added.
"And are you suggesting my out of town customer today was a changeling, darling?" Rarity inquired. "That would be absurd. A changeling would have come in looking like a mare himself, and made things much simpler. Oh... unless he was trying to make things complicated to keep me busy for some reason... I do hope not, I want to see how that dress looked on his wife, after all my hard work."
"We'll just have to all keep an eye out. I'm sure whatever they're plotting will erupt into dramatic chaos around us in the next few days, maybe even tonight," Twilight said. "But we'll be ready for them."