It was not easy to get into Canterlot, not after our failed attempt to take it over. Even after 3 years they still feared our return, beefing up security at the entrance, asking for I.D or scanning you over with a Changeling detecting spell. Oh how I hated that spell, it made my life hell the first year after the invasion. Still it was a little flattering that we left such a mark but there was nothing to be proud about. After we got thrown out of their city by a magic blast, we did not find a nice open field to land in or a forest even, hell the hot sand of the desert would have been nice, but no- it was a barren field, out in the badlands. It was full of rocks. Hard, sharp, painful rocks. The only thing I remember as I flew through the air was the screams of my hive mates before I felt searing pain then everything went to black. Then the horror that I saw when I woke up...
I shook my head to clear my thoughts. There is no point in dwelling on the past, for soon I will be joining them all and finally put an end to this pain I have had for all these years. I was in line to meet Her, the leader of all the pony's. It took one week to get here, one week with little sleep and food, and I was running on empty. I could of just let a guard pony see me in my real form and ended it then, but no if I was going to go out I was going to show them that even with all there effort I could still make my way into there castle. I would show them all that even as weak as I am that I was the master of stealth, that WE were the masters of stealth.
There where 5 pony's in front of me before it was my turn. "Not much longer, just got to hold out a little longer," I thought to my self as I obliviously swayed on my hoofs. It was not easy to maintain my disguise even as simple as it was. I changed my self into a simple brown earth pony stallion with a brown mane and tail. I was so weak it was not even a complete disguise, patches of my changeling body could be seen on my barrel. I did not even have the energy for a cutie mark, so I had on a old worn out and dirty cloak to hide my body as to not give me away, just yet.
I was brought out of my thoughts with a shuve from behind. "If you want to just stand there can you do it somewhere else, some of use would like to see the Princess today!"
I looked back at the pony, it was a stallion dressed up in some fancy clothes, no doubt a noble. I looked back to my front to find the line had moved up a bit, there where 3 pony's left now. I stumbled my way forward, to catch up to the line. When I caught up with the other pony's, the mare in front of me turns her head to look at me.
"Are you ok? you don't look well." she asked with a soft voice.
I stare at her with a blank expression "I'm fine" I reply. I can't help but laugh internally a little, pony's for the most part are nice to there own kind, but if she know what I really was she would be screaming and running from me.
She cocked an eyebrow at me "Are you sure? You have been swaying from side to side for the past five minutes."
I looked down at my self and sure enough I was swaying side to side. "Damn! Must be weaker then I thought." I look back up to give a reply in hopes it would get her to leave me alone when the stallion from behind me speaks up.
"Eww, are you sick? you must be, with they way you look and smell. You should just leave before you get me or even worse the Princess sick with what ever you have!"
I could not help but roll my eyes, the mare however did not seem to take kind to that comment. "He has just as much right if not more to meet the Princess, sick or not."
"As if I could expect a simpleton like you to understand." the stallion turns his head and scoffs, "I just had to be next to pony's so beneath me."
That sent her off and before I know it, they were at each other's throats. If I had to bet who would win I would put my bits on the mare. It was not long tell a guard pony in all his gold armor showed up to stop the fight before it got out of hoof.
"What is going on here?" The guard said. That got both of their attention, then they both tried to tell there side of the story at the same time. The guard pony simple said in a louder voice "QUITE!" and they both finally shut up, thank the Queen.
"You both will be civil or I will throw both of you out, got it?" He said in a calm yet commanding voice.
They both nod there heads, though the stallion noble seems to do it a little more reluctantly. I could not help but chuckle a little under my breath, lucky for me none of them noticed. After everything had calmed down the guard asked them to explain what the commotion was about one at a time.
The noble went first, saying how I was sick and how he feared I would spread it to the Princess. then he told how the mare started to verbally assault him for voicing a legitimate concern. After the guard heard what the stallion had to say he turned to the mare. She told him that she was just defending a pony, that looked as if he did not feel well, from the attacks of the stallion. When he started going on about how they were beneath him she admits how she lost her temper. She looks down with her ears flat to her head, and apologize to the guard for losing her temper and snapping at the other pony. After hearing both sides of the story, the guard pony looks at the stallion and says in a calm voice.
"Sir, I can understand your worry for the Princess, but she has made no rule stating that if a pony was sick she would not see them. As well he would be several feet away from her so it is unlikely she would get anything." He then turns to the mare. "It was kind of you to try and stand up for this pony, but in the future try and refrain from starting anymore fights, and that goes for you to," he says as he turns to look at the stallion.
Having dealt with them both he then turns to me. "That being said you do not look well Sir, would you like to go to the infirmary to get looked after? I can usher you, you will get to meat the Princess regardless."
I shook my head " No, I am not sick, just tired. It has been a long road for me to get here, all I would like is to see the Princess and be on my way."
The guard nods his head "ok, but don't push yourself. Meet the Princess and then get some rest you look awful."
"I will thanks." I give a little nod back. He turns to the other two, gives them a nod as well then walks off. I was happy he was finally gone, truth be told a part of me wanted to just turn around and leave, but the constant aching oh my body and hunger reminds me that there is nothing waiting for me but more pain if I do. So I pressed on, turning forward and waiting my turn. Luckily the two pony's did not bother talking anymore, I liked the quiet.
After a bit more waiting I was finally in front of those big doors that lead to the thrown room. I stood there waiting for my turn. As if hearing me the doors to the thrown room open, with the mare that was in front of me coming out with a big smile on her face. Not wanting to waste anymore time I make my way in, as I enter the doors behind me shut closed. The room was big with pillars going from the floor to the ceiling. There where huge windows on one side of the wall giving a view of the city of Canterlot. Straight ahead of me was a few steps leading up to the thrown where she sat. Siting on the thrown was a mare with a coat as white as snow with a mane and tail of blue, green, purple, and pink that flows with a none existent breeze and the sun cutie mark dawning her flank, the ruler of all the pony's, Princess Celestia her self. What I did not expect to see was to the left of Celestia was a pink mare with her yellow, dark pink, and purple mane and tail with a crystal heart cutie mark, the new ruler of the crystal empire and one of the two responsible for all my pain and heart ache, Princess Cadence. Next to her was a stallion with a white coat and a mane/tail of multiple shades of blue with is cutie mark of a blue shield with a purple star in the middle with three little blue stars above it, Cadences husband and the other of my suffering, Prince Shining Armor.
As I stand in the middle of the room Celestia looks down at me with a smile. "Hello my little pony, My niece Princess Cadence and her husband Shining Armor are going to be siting in on today's court, I hope this is ok?"
I nod "I have no problem with it Princess," I really didn't have a problem with it. With those two hear I was guaranteed to get what I wanted no matter what. It looks like I finally got a little of luck.
Celestia nods but her smile wavers a little as she looks at me, "are you ok my pony, you don't look so well, is there anything I can do to help?"
I chuckled at that, finally it was time, "ya you can finish what you stared all those years ago." All of them looked at me with a confused look on their faces.
"I am afraid I don't understand what you are saying," Celestia comments.
I end up laughing which turns into coughing. As I come down from my coughing fit, I look up at them as my legs begin to wobble under me. "Its simple, I am giving you what you want, what all you pony's want. I want you to end my pain, I want you to kill me!"
With that the last of my strength faded and I collapsed on the floor. Not a second later my disguise, which I had been holding onto by threads, gives way and my body is engulfed in green flames revealing my Changeling body. My chitin which was normally black as the night, was now a sickly gray with cracks all over it from beatings I would get when I was caught out of my disguise. Unlike most other Changeling's I had a mane, all be it short, and a long tail, though both where in massive disarray. From head to tail I was covered in dirt and grime, 3 years of almost no baths can do that.
The last thing I heard before I fell unconscious, from over exerting my body, was the sound of screaming and shouting fallowed by the sound of hoofs rushing around. None of it mattered I did what I set out to do, now I can join my hive, and my Queen, in the after life and leave all this pain behind. As tears ran down my face only one thought filled my mind, "I am Aaron Blaze and I was the last Changeling."
Finally peace, no more pain with every step, no more heart ache at being all alone. I felt as if I was floating in a calm sea. I had my eyes closed, finally enjoying the the peace I have long craved. I could feel my self slowly slipping below the water as I felt my conscienceness slipping away. I did not panic, or thrash about, I welcomed it like you would welcome an old friend.
A sudden jolt went throw me as I felt my body re-surface from the watery depths. I didn't have time to think as a second jolt went throw me. All of my pain returned with a new pain forming in my chest. For some reason I have been denied my peace, but why I did not know. The water that I was in seemed to disappear as I felt only pain through my body, the only thing I was aware of was as if I was being pulled elsewhere. To a place unknown.
It was after the thread jolt that I started to register my surroundings. The first thing I felt was that I was laying on my back on something flat and hard. The next was the sound of a machine beeping somewhere. That's when I heard voices and I knew I was not alone. The first one came from my left and sounded female.
"We've got a pulse doctor."
Then I heard a male voice from my right, who I presumed was this doctor. "Good, now lets hurry and get these things out of him."
I then felt a hoof touch me and then not a second later searing and blinding pain shoot throw throw me, starting from the upper part of my barrel to all the rest of me. My eyes shot open, than closed as they were meet with a blinding light. I then screamed at the top of my lungs a blood curdling scream.
I started to thrash about to try and stop the pain. That's when I heard what I believe to be the doctor yell, "oh buck me, he is awake? Quick restrain him!"
At that command hoofs from all around grabbed me, pining my limbs and body down. I struggled against them trying to brake free but they would not budge. Then I felt a heavy weight on my barrel as the pain flared up again.
"How is he awake? He should be out from the sedative." I hear a new male voice come from my left.
"We must have not hit a vain. We know nothing of Changeling anatomy." The mare from my left said.
I started to crack open one of my eyes, trying to survey my environment but I could not help but ponder my situation. "Why are they doing this to me? Have I not suffered enough? Do they hate my kind so much that they would torture me? What did I do to deserve this? Am I not permitted to be happy? Can I have no peace?" As I thought of all those questions, I started to cry. It was both from the pain and the thought that I would never know happiness, never get to be with out pain. It was all getting to be to much, the pain of my body and my heart. I did not know how much more I could take.
As my eye opened I saw a mares face above me, looking to my right, she was holding my head. She had a bright green coat with a dark brown mane. She had a gentle voice when she spoke but her tone sounded like it was filled with concern. It must have been my imagination.
"Doctor! His heart rate is sky- rocketing and his blood presser is dropping!"
Just then the pain died down a little as I felt something moving inside me come to a stop. "Shit! I don't know how much more he can take. If we don't find a vein soon we are going to lose him!" There was a pause, then I heard the doctor say in a lower voice. "Don't you die on me."
That's when the mare holding my head looked right at me. Her sapphire blue eyes meet my half opened eye, she gave a little yelp as she looked me into the eye, there was fear in her eyes. I was forced to close my eye as whatever was inside me started moving again, and the pain came back in full force. My body tensed up on a reflex as I forced my eye open, and I saw the mare again. This time though her eyes didn't carry fear but what looked to be, sympathy? Was she pitying me?
The pain shot throw me for what felt like the hundredth time, making me tense up and thrash about, (or try to, what with everything being pined down). As the mare by my head looked at me, she would pet my head in a attempt to calm me. When her eyes wondered down to my neck she froze. Her eyes go wide, and I could swear I saw a flicker of hope in them, as she looks up from me to the others in the room.
"Doctor! His neck, there is a vain at the base of his neck!" she says with a pleading tone.
"What? Really?" There was a brief pause before he spoke again. "Somepony get an I.V. in his neck before his heart gives out!"
I could hear movement in the background,and then a prick in my neck. I made a small groan at the felling, but the hoofs of the mare started to pet my head again.
"Shhhhh, its going to be ok. You are going to be ok." she said in a soft and reassuring tone.
I could feel something start to flow into my neck making me feel warm and relaxed, and almost immediately the pain started to subside. I could feel the pull of slumber on my mind, as I heard a grunt and felt a pulling sensation from my barrel. With one last grunt I could feel something popping out of me, as the stallion that was on top of me goes flying off of me. The last thing I hear before the sweet embrace of sleep takes me is the shocked sound of a stallion saying.
"What in Celestias name is that thing?"
I awoke to the sound of a steady beeping and lots of pain, my old friend. I tried to move but I felt so weak, weaker then I have ever felt before. Seeing as moving was out, I went for the next best thing, opening my eyes. My first attempt was meet with failure, "stupid lazy eyes, I want, no need to know where I am, so you are going to open and do your job!" On the third try they started to open, but not with out some effort.
The first thing I saw was a white ceiling. As my eyes scanned around, I found I was in a small room with all white walls. I quickly became aware I was laying on a bed and off to my right I could hear that beeping. There was some machines with wires that were hooked up to me, one of those things where making that annoying beeping I was hearing. I also saw what looked to be a near empty see throw bag hooked to a mettle poll, with what I could only describe as a tube leading up to my throat.
That got me to look at my body. It was encased in some kind of white wrapping that had what looked like dark splotches on it. both of my right legs were wrapped up as well and I could not move them at all, all in all I could not see much of my body. My left legs where the only part was was not encased in these white wrapping. They had a few parts wrapped up but both of my legs was cuffed to the bed.
I searched my memory to figure out where I was. After some thinking, the last thing I could remember was passing out in the thrown room in front of Celestia. I stared at my body in confusion, why was I still alive? Did they save me? If so, why? I kept pondering as to why I was not dead, then it hit me. Info, they want to learn about my kind. I was sure that was it tell a thought crossed my mind, "if they wanted to learn about my kind why not just dissect my corpse?
I was brought out of my thinking by the sound of a door opening. I looked down past the foot of my bed to see the door opening. A young looking earth pony mare with a pink coat and dark green mane walks in, she is pushing a cart witch looked to be filled with things I cant make out. She had her face buried into a book and did not notice me staring at her. she walked off to my right with cart in toe, she put her book down as she stopped right by the machines to investigate them. After looking at them for a minuet she nods to her self then proceeds to turn to the cart and starts rummaging through it looking for something.
Through all this I just kept quiet, as I watched her. After a little bit of looking she pulled out what she was looking for, a clear see throw bag like the one on the metal poll that is hooked to my throat, only it is full. I watch her as she unhooks the old bag and hooks up the new one, I don't know what's in it but really I don't care. After finishing with the bag, she turns to the cart again and pulls out a roll of something white, the same kind I have all other me. As I look at it I realize what it is and feel silly for not noticing it was gauze.
My attention is brought back to the mare as I hear her talk with a aggravated tone.
"Just my luck to get the job no other pony wants. Why do I got to deal with this bug? We should of just let him die..."
Her words died in her throat as she looked at me, or more specifically as she looked into my eyes. Her eyes got huge and her pupils shrank as she started to shack. I just laid there giving her a plan look, I really didn't have the strength to do much else. That's all it took as she dropped what she was holding and ran out the door screaming.
So there I was waiting for what ever was to come next, most likely my death. I could not help but think of something that put a little smile on my face.
"I wonder if I ask real nicely if they will get me a juice box before they kill me? I have always wanted one.
~~~~~> Princess Celestia - Royal Chambers <~~~~~
I sat at my desk staring at the paper in my magical grip with a concerned look on my face. It has been two days since the changeling revealed him self. The thrown room was enveloped in chaos in seconds, Cadence was screaming, Shining Armor shouted for the guards which flooded into the room, surrounding the changeling. I managed to pull my self out of my shocked state in time before everything got out of hoof. I needed answers as to what was going on as well as to that request he asked for, so I began to approach him despite the protest of my guards. When I finally got to him I started to ask my questions only to get silence in return. I lend in to investigate, but what I saw made me sick to my stomach. I did not know much about changelings but I know they should not look like that, so I had him rushed to the medical ward.
I stared at the paper that I had been waiting for, the medical report on the changeling. It was even worse then I thought as I read it. The report detailed that the changeling was a he and was vary malnourished, that I know from looking at him, what I did not expect was everything else. He had five broken ribs, both of his right legs were severely damaged ranging from broken bones to torn mussels. He had sins of suffering from severe frost bite, and was covered in ticks and mites, but what I read next only made my heart sink. His left wing was dead, apparently a tip of a spear, one of our spears, was found at the base of the wing, destroying everything. The wing could not be saved so it had to be removed. What was even worse was apparently it had been like that for some time, and had got infected. The infection spread to his other wing, destroying all the muscles in that wing. To save his life that wing had to be removed as well. Three teeth, which were found to be manticore teeth, were found in his barrel as well. Cuts and bruises where found all over him, at lest the ones that could be found. He was covered from head to tail in dirt and grime, and not all of it could be removed easily. He would need several long baths to get it all off, but despite the dirt the doctors didn't wish to chance anymore damage tell they find out more about him, and what is safe to use or do. What was most concerning right now was, he had a vary low blood pressure. He lost a lot of blood during the surgery, but we did not know if our blood worked with his. All in all, it was a miracle he was still alive.
The sound of soft knocking got my attention. I turned my head to the door.
"Come in." I said in my calm tone.
The door opened to reveal one of my guards standing there saluting.
"Privte Bottom Barrel reporting!" I motioned with my hoof for him to continue. "Princess, you wished to be informed of any change in the changelings condition." I raised an eye brow, "As of a few minuets ago the changeling was found awake."
I pulled out a peace of paper and wrote down a little note. Getting up I made my way to the door, I stopped by Privte Bottom Barrel as I levitated the paper to him. "Bottom Barrel, if you would be so kind could you find and deliver this to my secretary Ink Spot?"
With another salute he took the paper and rushed off, I looked forward as I make my way to the changeling. with one thing on my mind.
"Time to get some answears."
~~~~~> Aaron Blaze <~~~~~
I did not have to wait long, before I heard the sound of the doorknob turning. I looked to find a brown stallion unicorn with a light blue mane and tail, he was dressed in a doctors coat, he moved next to me on my left.
The stallion looked at me with a smile as he Spock. "Hello, my name is Steady Stitch and I am your doctor, but you can call me Stitch." Stitch used his magic to grab a clip board at the end of my bed. "Now I have some questions I was hoping you could answer,to help use take beater care of you." His smile left as he looked at me, "but I must inform you that during your surgery, it was found that your left wing was destroyed by a spear. It was infected too and the infection had spread to your right wing. In order to save you and stop the spread of it any further both your wings had to be removed."
I gave him a weak nod, I kind of know they were gone. After the stupid guard stabbed his spear in my back I could no longer move my left wing. After some time my right went out as well, so it was not that shocking.
He gave me a nod back and a weak smile, obviously trying to easy my lose. He then preceded to pull out a pencil from his pocket as he looks at the clipboard. "OK, lets start with an easy first question. What is your name?"
I grin a little as an idea comes to me, "depends on which one you want to know, my birth name, my hive name, or my code name?" That was the first time I talked and my voice sounded ruff and weak, it even hurt a little to talk.
He stares at me in thought for a second before responding. "For the sake of it, would you be willing to tell me all of them?"
I had a shocked look on my face from both the sound of my voice and his response. It took me a second to regather my thoughts before I answered. "My birth name is Aaron Blaze, a weird name even for a changeling but its the only one I got. My hive name is not a name per say but more of a number, soilder 282 was what I was called. My code name was elemental terror, for my special talent I have. Out of all of them I prefer my birth name over the rest."
He starts to write but stops to look at me. "I am curious, how you are awake right now? You should be asleep from the sedative."
I looked over to the bag, "you may not be using enough, I have a bit of a resistance to sedatives, its one of the few things we have a tolerance for from birth."
He gives me a nod as he goes back to writing, "thank you, I will see to it we fix that. Now for the next question, are there any drugs you are allergenic to?"
"None I know of." I reply.
"OK," he writes a little more before he stops and looks me dead in the eyes with a serious look. "Now this next question I need as much info as you can give. We know you feed off of love to survive, but is there anything that can work as a substitute or is it only love from a pony that works?"
I give a weak growl at him, he dose not even flinch. "All you pony's think that we only feed off of love like a parasite, but we don't. We need food and water just like you do, we can live for some time with out love for it is mostly our energy source. With out it we grow weak and eventually lose the ability to use magic, so yes we do need it because if we don't get any love even just a little we will not have the strength to do anything even eat and we would starve to death."
He gives me a bit of a shocked look, but shakes his head to regain his focus. "I did not know that, thank you for telling me. That dose bring a new question to mind, is there any food you are allergic to?"
I reply with a simple 'No' before looking away. I was always bothered by the fact that they thought we only feed off of love. I lost count how many times I was called a monster, a leech, parasite, even an abomination. Ether way, I spent a few seconds to calm my self down with a few slow deep breathes. There was no point in getting angry anymore, so after calming down I looked back to the doctor to see him writing some more. He dose not even look up at me as he asks his next question.
"Is there any diseases or disabilities in your family that you know of?"
"I would not know," my eyes drift down to avoid looking at him, "I was abandon from birth. The queen decided to not throw me out, so the hive raised me. I don't know anything about them."
There was nothing but dead silents, so I looked up to find Stich had stopped writing and was looking at me with wide eyes.
"They abandoned you? Why?"
I looked away again to avoid is stare. "Because I am a defect."
I saw in the corner of my eye that he had a confused look on his face, so with a deep breath I readied my self for the walk down painful memory lain. "I was thought of being a still born for I did not hatch until three months after I was supposed to."
"Hatch?" I heard him ask.
"Yes hatch,... from an egg.... After I was born it was found out that I had different eyes. These eyes made me an outcast" I looked at him so he could see them. I hated my eyes, for they made me a freak even among my own kind. They were not like the rest, a solid green or blue, no they looked a lot like a pony's eyes. There color was red which I did not mind, but because they looked like they did it was believed that my mother had got pregnant from a pony. So to hid from her shame she abandoned me, if not for Queen Chrysalis I would of been killed. So I find it a bit of a cruel joke that me the freak was the only one to survive. I did not want to say any more because it hurt to remember so I stayed quiet.
He stayed quiet for a few seconds in thought before he spoke. "So wait if you were thought of being a still born how are you alive? three months is a long time to be keeping an egg that is thought to be dead."
"It's not that weird for eggs to be stillborn, what with were we used to live, but the dead eggs were not just thrown away, they still had a use. They can be used as a form of nutrition, so they were stored away tell they were needed. I was just lucky my egg was not picked before I hatched."
He gives me a nod before turning to his clip board. "OK, last question. During your surgery, you lost a lot of blood but we don't know if our blood works with yours. Your blood presser is still low and we need to get it up. Is there anything you could tell use to help?"
That would explain the light headed feeling, I think for a bit before something comes to me. "What was the color of my blood?"
He cocked an eyebrow at me, "it was green. Why did you ask?"
"Damn that's not good, if my blood is green then I am worse off then I thought."
He makes to ask me something but before he could say anything I continued. "Our blood changes color depending on our health. Normally it is red just like all of yours, it means we are healthy, and as for your question yes your blood dose work for use as long as it is the same blood type. Now were it gets tricky is when it changes, the first is the color yellow. When it is yellow that means we are sick, it dose not tell use what we have, only that we are sick. The next is green, that color means or energy is dangerously low from lack of food or love energy, the greener it is the worse it is." At that I see his face go from confused to scared in a second but I ignore it and press on. "The last one is the worst, if our blood go's black that means our body is dying. This can be from a ruptured organ to a mortally deadly wound. The only way to service is a myth, it is said that if a changeling receives a massive dose of love our body can use it to fix up the damaged parts. It's only a myth, so if one's blood were to go black it is basically a death sentence."
He went quit in thought but before he could say anything a nurse come rushing in looking very much in a panic, and I did not feel it was because of me. She ran up to doctor Steady Stitch and whispered something in his ear. His face went neutral as he gave her a nod, then turned to me.
"I am afraid that is all the time we have to talk right now. I need to go for a few minutes but I will be back." He turns to leave but stops in the doorway. He turned to look at me, and his face had that worried look on it again but there was what looked like sadness to.
With that he left leaving me alone in the room. I hated to admit it but I liked having him around, he was not afraid of me or if he was he hid it well. He seemed nice and when I was talking about my kind he was interested, not like the rest of them I have had the displeasure of knowing. No they would scream at me throw things and even try to kill me, the fun loving, friendship giving, peace preaching pony's. He was not like them, and I was starting to miss his company. I have been alone for so long, and right now I was alone in this room. I did not want to be alone.
I started to feel my eyes mist up as I felt all the years of pain coming back. I fought to keep it under control, I was letting that pony get to me. He did not care for me or about me, no he was doing his job so that others could come and take me away to there dungeons. There I would be questioned, and I would not put it past them to deny me food and watch me starve, or even torturer me. The very thought brought chills down my spine, making my misty eyes clear right up.
I didn't know how long I was lost in my thoughts or that I tuned out the world as well. I was so lost in my mind I did not hear the doctor return tell he cleared his throat to get my attention. I looked to see him standing by the door looking tense.
"There is a pony that has come to talk with you, and I hope you will extend them the same amount of cutesy you have me."
Just like I thought, he was sent in to get my guard down by being nice so the back stab that was to come would not be expected. I readied my self, expecting to see guards come in and drag me away by my mane. So when the pony that came in was none other then Princess Celestia I was shocked. Having been so wrong and throw so off guard I stared to feel what felt like a panic attack.
Why was she here? What was she going to do to me? Where the rest of the princesses coming? Was I going to be burned alive right here right now? All these questions and more raced in my head as I stared at her with wide eyes, and my breathing started to pic up. I could hear that blasted beeping picking up in pace with my heart. In a flash Steady Stitch was to my right with his hoofs gently touching me.
"Shhhh, its ok. You are safe I promise you, you are safe."
I don't know why but that seemed to calm me down a little. In fact I did not even know why I was panicking in the first place. I went throw a great effort to sneak in to Canterlot, so I could ask her to kill me. So why was I so scared right now?
Just then Celestia put on a soft sad smile as she looked at me. "Doctor Steady Stitch is right, I mean you no harm and only wish to ask you some questions and then I shale leave." She said in the most soft and sweetest voice I have ever heard. It reminded me of how I imaged how my mother would of talked.
Her words calmed me more and the raped beeping slowed down. I gave her a nod just like I did for Steady Stitch, and waited for her first question.
Her smile grew a little until see looked at my body, her smile was quickly relapsed with a frown or a scowl I could not tell. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, when she opened them again her face was neutral and showed no emotion.
"Doctor Steady Stitch has informed me your name is Aaron Blaze as well as a few other things. My first question is one that has bugged me for some time, why did you invade Canterlot?"
"Because we were starving." I said with a hint of irritation. "It's not as easy as you think to grow food in the bad lands, and love is pretty much none existent. we didn't want to invade but we didn't have any other choice." I had to fight back the tears again, I was not going to give them the satisfaction of making me cry.
As for Celestia, she did not even bat an eye at my response. Instead she just asked another question.
"Why didn't you just come ask for help? I would of helped you all."
"You don't think we didn't try. We tried sending out one of use to ask for help from one of your pony's in our real form, and you know what that did. They beat them to death, crushing there skill and left there body to rot. No, you only help your own kind, they were just bugs to squash, I'm just a bug as well, a monster you all want to extinguish."
Celestia looked shocked to hear that, but before she could respond there was a commotion out side the door. We all looked in time to see the door burst open. Several guards came rushing in and several of them started to point there spears in my face.
The room was plunged into chaos as the pony's pointing there spears at me, threatened me to not move or they would put a lot more holes in me. A few of them were by the Princess most likely asking if she was ok, or if I hurt her. Doctor Steady Stitch was trying to get the guard pony's to stop pointing their weapons at me,...but to no avail. I barley had time to registered all that was going on before Princess Celestia shouted 'ENOUGH' and grabbed all of their weapons in her magic, ripping them out of their grips and teleporting them away. That's when I saw a new pony enter the room, but he looked different then the others, instead of the normal white stallion in gold armor, he was a large unicorn with a black coat and a bright yellow mane and tail. Even his armor was slightly different, instead of the normal gold armor the rest wore, he sported a light purple armor with a gold trim around the edges. The way he carried him self just screamed absolute command.
"Captain Thunder Storm, what is the meaning of this?" Celestia said with a hint of irritation in her voice.
The stallion by the door stiffened up and salutes, "your highness, I received word that you were visiting this thing alone, for your own safety you should let us interrogate it."
Even with how weak I was, I swear I could taste the hatred from him. Celestia seamed to pic up on it to because her posture stiffened, and her eyes hardened.
"first, this is not an interrogation," she started, but before the captain could say anything in protest she continued, "second, I am as far from danger as can be right now. Doctor Steady Stitch if you would be so kind, could Aaron Blaze do anything to harm me or anypony even with out his restraints?"
With out missing a beat he responded, "no my princess, even with out the restraints it is highly doubtful he could harm anypony. He is more likely to hurt himself just by walking as he is now."
I hated to admit it but he was right, my body was in constant pain. I could not move or feel my right legs, and though I could feel and move my left ones it hurt so bad to even try. Then there was the sedative they were pumping into me, it may not have been enough to put me to sleep but it was enough to mess with my magic. I couldn't tap into it at all, though that might be because I was so weak or I had none left.
The captian didn't seem to think so as he shook his head. "I am sorry princess, but you cant know that. We know nothing about them, as far as we know he could take over your mind just by laying there."
Before Celestia could say anything I started to laugh. "I wish, mind control magic is one of the highest tear magic for us changelings. If I were to try it I would not only fail but probably end up hurting my self with how weak my magic is right now. As well I would need to touch my horn on her head to cast the spell."
The captain and all the guards glared at me intensely, if looks could kill. One of the pony's by my bed, glaring at me said, "if you even try to touch the princess, you will wish you were never born you stupid bug."
"That is enough, I will not have any of that. I want every pony out but me and the doctor." Celestia said with such a chill in her voice it sent a shiver down my spine.
A few tried to protest but the look she gave them shut them up instantly. So they all left, all but there captain. He stayed standing by the door not moving.
"I am sorry princess, my actions were out of line as were my men but I cant leave you alone." He said.
The princess glared at him for a sec before giving a sigh, "fine, but I will not tolerate any more insults at our guest."
He gives a single nod then stands still by the door not moving. Celestia turns to me and gives me a soft smile. "Sorry about that, I hope you are still willing to answer my questions. If not that is fine, we will leave you to your rest."
"It's fine, you can ask your questions."
Her smile widens a little. "Thank you that is vary kind of you, my next question has to do with something the doctor told me. He told me that you need both food and love to live, the food will be easy but the love might be hard. So my question is, when you take love from a pony dose it hurt the pony in any way?"
"Yes and no," I said. They all gave me a weird look so with a sigh I continued. "I don't so much steal the love as more of feed off of what the body puts out, I can even choose if I want to feed or not. Now feeding off of the love from two pony's is ok but it's not vary potent, that's why we would replace one of the pony's that were in love for a few days. For if the love is being directed at use then it is much stronger, and before you ask no we never hurt any of them only put them to sleep." Celestia and doctor Steady Stitch let out a sigh of relief but the captain stared at me with disgust, ignoring him, I pushed forward. "You are wrong as well, we don't just feed off of love, any emotion we can feed off of, though love is the strongest. Now as for your question, normally feeding off a pony dose not harm them in any way. The only way our feeding could harm a pony would be if five or six changelings were to feed off the same pony none stop for over a week. First they would get weak and tiered, and if the feeding never stopped then they would get sick, if at this point the feeding continued then they would die. In all our time collecting love we never killed anypony, why would we, if our feeding killed you all or hurt you then we would starve to death, eventually."
There was a few minuets of silence as it looked like Celestia processed everything I said, and the doctor was writing everything down. After she was done thinking, she gave me that same smile she gives her pony's all the time. "Thank you for that info, it helps." Her smile leaves and was replaced with the saddest frown I have ever seen. "My next question has to do with the request you asked of me. How did you end up in this state where you came to me asking to die?"
I was starting to get irritated, and I did not know why. It might have been because of the none stop pain, or the fact I was still finding it hard to beleave they really cared about me. What ever the reason that irritation started to slip into my crackly, raspy voice.
"I have all your precious pony's to thank for this. You all fear me or hate me, and have been paranoid ever since the failed invasion. You don't know how it is, everywhere I go you all have spells or wards set up to hunt me down. Every time I tried to just get a little of something, anything you all would find me. You all ran me out of ever town, and one of your precious royal guards even tried to kill me." I saw Celestias face became a mix of shock and disgust, but I ignored it as I went on my rant. "Lucky for me he sucked, or maybe not, seeing as that bloody spear of his took out my wings and because of that I can never fly again. Oh but I could live with that if not for the endless insults. Constantly being called a monster, abomination, freak, but the one thing they always ended with was that I should just die, that I shouldn't exists. You can only hear something so much before you start to beleave it. I am tiered of being hungry, of the pain, never getting a good sleep because of fear that if I close my eyes I will never wake up. So if you all want me dead so much I was going to go out, my way."
I could feel those tears again but it was getting harder to fight them off.
"You must be laying, the princess ordered that any and all changelings that were found were to be captured alive and unharmed." I heard the overly proud captain say.
Celestias head wiped to look at him is a scowl on her face. "I have read his medical report captain, and now hearing it from his mouth I am inclined to beleave him."
"Princess you can't be serious, as far as we know his queen could of done all this just to take advantage of you kindness. We should lock him up tell he tells us were his hive and queen Chrysalis is."
I lost it, before Celestia could say anything I blow up, shouting to were my throat hurt. "You want to know were we lived? You want to know were they all are even my queen? Fine I'll tell you! Head south from here, when you get the badlands you will find a field with a lot of stone graves, that's were you will find my hive! As for our home head east from there, don't expect much its kind of a shit hole!"
Celestia gave me a questing look, "what do you mean? Why would we find your hive in a grave yard?"
The moment she finished talking, I started crying. I could not hold them back anymore. I pushed foreword thru my tears in hopes that if I told them they would finally end my pain.
"Because that is were they are all buried!" My statement seemed to catch them all of guard. "What, did you think that when you blasted use all out of the city that we would land safely, HA! No what we were met with was a slow and painful death! We landed in a field with rocks, sharp and deadly rocks! It was only because a few of my friends used there bodies to cushion my impact that I survived by only getting knocked out, they were not so lucky! Even when I woke up I had to watch as the last few that were alive died slowly in front of me, and I was powerless to help them! So there you have it, all the changelings are dead, I am the last one! Happy now?!"
Everypony in the room had a different look on there face. Doctor Steady Stitch had a sad look and looked to be fighting back some tears of his own. The mighty captain Thunder Storm had a shocked look but quickly turned it to a scowl. Princess Celestia though had a look of pure disgust and looked to be on the verge of being sick.
"I'm so sorry, but if that is true why would you want to die then?"
I could feel my right eye start to twitch. "Why? WHY? I'll tell you why, ever since I lost everything I know and loved, even had to bury them all by my self, I realized I had no home to return to! I could not live and run our run down shit hole of a now empty land! So I thought I could try and make a life here, live my days out tell the end, oh but how wrong I was! When I tried to do that in a small town not far off of the borders of the badlands, your guards came! They started searching and teaching all unicorns your new changeling detecting spell, by the way it hurt like tartarus when use that on me, it's like my skin is being ripped off! They then went throw the hole town looking for one of my kind, and they found me! So I was ran out, and it was the same every were I went! When ever I thought I found a nice place I could settle in, some pony got suspicious of me and found a unicorn to cast the spell on me running me out of there as well! I even tried making my own home far from any city, but would your pony's give me peace, no! They found my home some how, burned it to the ground, and chased me out of what was my own place!" Throw my rant that beeping that had been a soft, slow beeping was now picking up speed. doctor Stitch had ran up to me and was trying to calm me down but I was having none of it. I stared daggers at the princess only for it to be interrupted by a cough, my throat was killing me.
When I looked back I could see she was about to say something but I was not done, so forcing my self to sit up a bit, sending a new and refreshed pain throw my body. "I am tired, I am tired of running, of hiding! I am tired of the pain, the never ending pain from never eating, and what I do eat is out of trash cans! I am tiered of never getting sleep for fear of never waking up! I am sick of always being called a monster, a freak, a bug! You ask why I want to die? The answer is I don't!" I could feel the tears come out even harder now. "I don't want to die, I want to live but you and all your pony's don't want me to! I don't want to feel this pain anymore! So please end it, end this pain end my suffering, do what you have wanted to do from the moment you saw me and KILL ME!"
With that, a unbelievable pain shot through my body, I believe I tore something as the bandages on my barrel started darkening rapidly. I started to thrash about wildly from the pain, or as much as I could with how little I could move anything. My vision started to blur from the pain and tears but I could see several more pony's enter the room. The pain must of been messing with my hearing or I pulled something in them as well, for all I could hear was the sound of muffled voices. There was some rushing around, then I saw one of the figures run over to my right and start messing with the bag of liquid. It was instant, as everything started to fade away, I could not keep my thoughts straight as everything started to go to black again.
As the world slipped away I thought I heard a soft voice I have never heard before say one word.
"Live."
