> Blue Fang > by MlpHero > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Chapter 1: The Bluest Fangs (Edited (3/13/2020) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang By Mlphero123 *** The egg hatchery. The coldest, darkest, and sometimes even most depressing part of the Hive. The small eggs were protected from the bad conditions by special silk webbing. The small green eggs began shaking. Two Changelings walked into the small chamber. The one of which was the Queen herself. Chrysalis. The other, much younger Changeling was named Brokenwing. He was accompanying the Queen to help with the new hatchlings. The two Changelings walked through the hatchery. “Mother,” Brokenwing said, “why are we here?” “You said you were going to help with the hatchlings.” He nodded, “yes ma’am, but you seem a bit more excited than usual.” She almost smiled. Brokenwing couldn’t believe it! The Queen of Changelings! Smiling?! The one who had survived long enough to see the Changeling-Pony War. The one who had to watch her sons die, only to sit in the same room with their killers just to sign the Equestria Rules and Laws of Warfare treaty? That wasn’t the Queen Brokenwing knew. “You see Brokenwing, I’ve made a failsafe in case I perish or am captured.” She showed his a special part of the hatchery. She opened a door that seem almost invisible, as if it were made to hide something. She motioned her hoof to it, “well? Take it a look.” Brokenwing peeked into the room. There, on a small pedestal laid a small egg. Brokenwing was confused. Why would this one egg out of them all be given this form of treatment. “What is this, Mother?” “My daughter.” She walked towards the egg and picked it up. “Inside this egg is the heir to the throne.” She stroked the top of the egg. “Come on Wing, let’s go get the others.” The two Changelings walked out off the room. “Just in time,” Brokenwing said. The eggs started rattling. The two moved towards the eggs. One-by-one the eggs started hatching. It wasn’t hard to get the Changelings out of the eggs, and counting them wasn’t a problem. The only problem was naming them. Some were easier than others. Then all the eggs hatched. All except one. Brokenwing walked over to the small egg. “Come on little guy. You can do it.” Chrysalis let down the last Changeling. “Alright Kydra. That’s the last one,” she said stroking the baby Changeling on her shoulder. “Mother! We got one more!” She looked over her shoulder. Brokenwing was holding a small blue fanged Changeling. “Hmm...” Chrysalis said, “what do you want to name him?” Brokenwing looked down, “Blue Fang.” > Chapter 2: Thorax and Pharynx (Edited 3/17/2020) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Few Years Later The messhall. A small cafeteria shared by the nymphs, grubs and soldiers. Food was bad, but it was better then nothing. The only thing they could eat was berries, edible moss, meats, and apples and other fruits and vegetables they’d stole from farms, notably, a small farm named Sweet Apple Acres. Blue Fang, now 13, was walking towards the mess with his three friends, Mantis, Stinger, and Dagger. They were finally ready to get some rest. “Buck! I think I failed that test!” Dagger said. The others looked at him. “You should’ve studied Dag,” Mantis said. “Yeah, I got done studying in like thirty minutes,” Stinger added. “Easy for y’all to say!” Dagger snapped, “you’re both the nerds!” “Hey!” Stinger said, “I’m tryna to be a medic. You know, so I can save your sorry carapace!” “Heh,” Blue Fang said. “Buck off!” Dagger said. He looked at Mantis, “what about you Mant?” “Engineer and maybe a pilot.” “Ha! Nerd!” “Buck you! What are you doin’?” “Me and Blue are gonna be Devil Horns!” “Wouldn’t they be Devil Horns too?” Blue Fang asked. “I guess so,” Dagger said. “Well,” Blue Fang said, “all I can say is... Last one to the mess is on cleaning duty!” Blue Fang took off like a lightning bolt. “Blue! You motherbucker!” Dagger yelled. “What are we waiting for? Let’s move!” Mantis said. The Changelings ran after Blue Fang. They watched as Blue Fang literally left them in the dust. And by that, Blue Fang kicked up a cloud of dust. “Dang it I can’t see!” Dagger yelled. “No crap dude!” Stinger yelled back. “Flap your wings!” Mantis said. The Changelings started flapping their wings. The dust started moving out of their way. The path finally lit up. “Dang it Blue!” Dagger said. “Sorry! I can’t hear you!” Blue Fang yelled back. He continued to run to the messhall. Blue Fang stood in line, waiting for his food. I wonder where they are. “BLUE FANG! ” “There it is,” Blue Fang said. Dagger came storming over to Blue Fang, “hey man! What’s going on?” “You know what’s going on!” Dagger said. “Yeah Blue!” Mantis said, “you literally left us in the dirt!” Stinger had to catch up. “Dang it Blue!” “Sorry I had to leave you guys,” Blue Fang said sarcastically. “Sorry my flank!” Dagger said. Dagger threw a punch, which Blue Fang caught. “Dang it!” “Come on dude, you know Broken teaches me this stuff.” Blue Fang laughed as he moved up in line. “Hey Grubber.” “Hey Blue,” Grubber said. “What’s on the menu?” Stinger asked. Dagger stepped up. “I swear if it’s moss again I’m gonna hurl.” Grubbed smiled, “don’t worry, it’s fish.” “Fish?” Blue Fang asked. “Better than moss,” Stinger said. “That’s fair. Fish away!” Blue Fang said. The three friends sat at the table. Fish was better than moss. Blue Fang took a bite out of the fish. “Least it’s cooked,” Blue Fang said. “Yep.” They continued eating the fish when. Crash! They looked over to sound of the loud noise. “The heck was that?” Dagger said. “Watch it short stack!” someone yelled. That Changeling was Hivehunter. A Changeling with a chipped horn and red eyes, and the he’s the Queens lapdog. The other Changeling was Thorax. A very shy and quiet Changeling. This situation was kind of funny. The big hotshot versus the quiet and shy guy. “It was an accident Hivehunter! Honest! I- I just— “You just what? Feel like messing with me?” “I swear! It was an accident!” “What they’ll have to clean up will be an accident.” Thorax cowered back into a corner. Hivehunter raised his horn up. “Hey!” They looked over their shoulders. There stood Pharynx. One of the most feared Changeling in the entire Hive. “Leave him alone Hive!” Pharynx yelled. “What you gonna do about it?” “This!” Pharynx threw a punch, which Hivehunter caught. Hivehunter threw a punch at Pharynx. The he threw Pharynx over a table. “Ohh!” Everyone yelled. “Dang!” Dagger said. Pharynx looked over to his brother. “You alright?” “Yeah,” Thorax said. “Alright, that’s good.” Hivehunter laughed. “That was too easy!” Blue Fang got out of his seat. “Blue! What are you- Blue!” Mantis called. The other three got up and chased after him. Dagger grabbed him, “Blue! What the heck are you doing?!” “I’m gonna help them.” “Why?!” Stinger asked. “Cause it’s the right thing to do.” Blue Fang walked over to Hivehunter. “Hey! Hive!” Hivehunter turned to Blue Fang, “Blue Fang! What are doing here man?” He tried wrapping his hoof around Blue Fang. “Um, Hive?” “Yeah?” “Can you stop... this?” “Stop what?” Blue Fang pointed towards Thorax and Pharynx. Hivehunters smile dropped, “what?” “Can you leave them alone?” Hivehunter laughed, “what? You want some?” “Sure. If you leave them alone.” “You’re gonna regret it.” “Bet.” Blue Fang threw a quick punch, which caught Hivehunter off guard. Hivehunter launched back. “Oh it’s on!” Hivehunter charged Blue Fang with a powerful tackle. Blue Fang flew back into a table. Blue Fang got up and dusted himself up. He looked at Hivehunter, who charged him. He slid over the table and grabbed a tray. With the metal tray he smashed it across Hivehunter across the face, knocking him to the ground. “Ohh!” Blue Fang walked over to his opponent. He raised his tray above his head, ready to finish his foe. “What’s going on here?” Everyone turned around to the speaker. There stood Queen Chrysalis in all her glory. “Well?” “Well, your majesty, Hive here thought he was a hotshot, so I decided to see how much of a hotshot he was.” Chrysalis rolled her eyes, “well if you two want to fight, I’ll set something up in the arena.” “Yes ma’am” “Of course.” “Okay. Now I’ll be in my chambers. AND I DO NOT WANT TO BE DISTURBED!” That silenced everyone in the room. “Glad we could come to an understanding.” With that, Chrysalis turned and left. Hivehunter looked at Blue Fang, “be ready Blue Tooth. When I’m done with you, you’re going to be begging for death.” Hivehunter turned to exit and also left. Blue Fang shook his head. Crazy mothebucker. He looked at Thorax and Pharynx. “You two alright?” “Yeah,” Pharynx said, “thanks for the assist. I mean I could’ve handle it. “You were doing a great job with that.” Blue Fang turned to Thorax. “How about you, Thorax?” “I’m good, thanks,” Thorax said, “but I have a question.” “Yeah?” “Why’d you do that?” “Do what?” “Help us? You didn’t have to do anything. Now he wants to fight you.” Blue Fang chuckled, “well, wish me luck.” Blue Fang looked at a nearby clock. Just a few more hours. > Chapter 3: Proving Strength (Edited 3/25/2020) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang looked around the Hive for the arena. It wasn’t hard to find, but the butterflies in his stomach made it hard to be excited. The entire Hive was going to be watching the fight. He started contemplating his choice. He needed a miracle. He finally found the entrance to the arena. He gulped. “I’ve come this far...” Blue Fang walked into the entrance. He found the sign pointing to the cage he’d come out of. He took a breath. He stepped into the cage, where Brokenwing, Thorx, and Pharynx were waiting. “Hey guys.” “Hey Fang,” Pharynx said. “Hi,” Thorax followed up. “I hope you’re ready Blue,” Brokenwing said. Blue nodded, a bit, “to be honest, I’m kinda nervous, Broken.” Brokenwing hugged his brother, “don’t worry, we’ll be right here.” “Yeah,” Thorax said. “Alright. I’ll get it done.” Blue turned to the gate. “Let’s get this done.” He looked out of the gate bars. On the other side of the arena stood Hivehunter, staring at Blue with a cold stare. Blue Fang looked from the Changelings cold stare and instead looked at Chrysalis. She stood up. “My subjects!” She said. “I know you’re all excited to see this fight, so I won’t waste your time! In this corner, we have Hivehunter!” The gate holding Hivehunter in place started to lift, letting the Changeling out off his cage. Blue watched as his opponent walked out of his cage, gloating to everyone. Blue took a breath. He looked at Brokenwing, who nodded. He took another breath, then, “now, for the challenger! Blue Fang!” The gate opened. “Good luck,” Thorax said. “Thanks.” Blue stepped out of the cage, nervous, but ready. He wanted to yell something, but bit down his tongue to stop it from coming out. He approached Hivehunter, ready to fight him. “Let’s get this over with, Fang.” Hivehunter threw up his fighting stance; Blue Fang did the same. The two were ready to fight for their honor. Their pride. Hivehunter threw the first punch, which Blue Fang dodged and tried to counter with a kick. Hivehunter caught the kick, surprising his opponent. Then he pulled Blue really fast towards him, and punched Blue in the face. The Changeling fell over and landed on his back. “Awg!” The Changeling crowd let out a “ohh!” as Blue hit the ground. The challenger got up and dusted himself off. Blue looked to his cage, where his brothers were watching the fight go down. Brokenwing nodded at Blue, and he returned the gesture. Blue turned back to Hivehunter, “alright Lapdog, let’s get it over with.” “Right, Blue Tooth.” The two engaged in melee combat, ping-ponging punches back and forth with each other. Blue threw a hook punch, and Hivehunter threw one right back. Buck! He’s good. Blue needed a new strategy. He looked at Hivehunter. He had his stance facing forward, so his only option was flanking him from the left or right. Blue decided to hit the left. He charged at Hivehunter in a zigzag pattern in an effort to confuse his opponent. He bounced off from the right, and kicked Hivehunter from the left. Hivehunter flew back and flew across the ground, leaving a trail of dust in his wake. Hivehunter got up and dusted himself off. “Alright, enough playing around.” Hivehunter charged him with an unbridled rage. Blue struggled to find his target. Hivehunter appeared seemingly out of thin air. He fired two blasts into Blue Fangs chest. Then he landed and bucked Blue, sending him across the arena. Hivehunter didn’t even give Blue enough time to even lift himself an inch off the ground. He kicked his opponent, sending him rolling against the rocks of the arena floor. Blue Fang looked up. His vision was blurry and he felt a ringing in his ear. He looked up to see Hivehunter charging him. He raised his hoof up. “Hive... wait- I-“ Kick! Blue flew back again. Blue looked up again. Hivehunter started laughing. “You see this?! This is what happens when you mess with me!” Blue felt a flame burning in his body. It felt like a sort of rage growing in him. He got up, staggering. His legs felt weak, but he pulled through. Hivehunter smiled, “still inchin’ for more huh?” Blue Fang gave no reply, he only continued to stare at the ground. “All quiet now? Too late.” Hivehunter charged him. Then he threw a punch at him. Blue caught the punch, without looking. “What the— Blue rose his head up at lightning speed. Hivehunter and the crowd were shocked at the scene. Blue’s eyes were glowing a sharp blue. Without a word, he punched Hivehunter across the entire arena. Hivehunter got up. Almost like a ghost, Blue Fang appeared right in front of him. “How the— Blue grabbed him, then he threw his opponent in the air. Blue jumped up and threw a kick into Hivehunter. Hivehunter flew at a high speed. Right into the arena wall. In his collision, he made a giant hole in the wall. Hivehunter fell from the wall. Blues eyes stopped glowing. He looked around the arena. Then he saw Hivehunter on the ground, with a hole above his head. Did I do that? Blue Fang asked himself in thought. One Changeling flew down with measuring tape. He measured the hole. “Half a foot...” Blue Fang gasped. “I buried him half a foot deep into the wall?” he called out. The Changeling nodded. Blue looked at the Queen. “Take Hivehunter to the Infirmary.” She looked at Blue Fang. “I guess we have our victor. Give it up for Blue Fang!” The audience started cheering Blue Fangs name. He smiled as everyone cheered his name. He gave a slight bow before walking back to his cage. In the cage, Dagger, Brokenwing, Mantis, Stinger, Thorax, and Pharynx were waiting for Blue Fang. The cage door opened and Blue walked in. “Blue! That was awesome!” Dagger said, grabbing Blue. “Yeah!” Stinger said, “how the buck did you do that?!” Blue Fang smiled, “I dunno! I just kicked him as hard as I could!” “But how’d you move that fast?!” Dagger exclaimed. Blue Fang shook his head, “I don’t know myself!” “However you did it, it was amazing!” Mantis said. “You gotta teach us that someday!” Pharynx said. “If I can do it again, I might!” Brokenwing walked over to him, “I knew you could do it Blue.” Blue Fang smiled, “I swore I would never let you down.” “And you never do.” They gang continued congratulating Blue Fang for his victory when, “ahem.” The changelings turned around. “Oh. Hi Mother,” Brokenwing said. Chrysalis nodded at her son before turning to Blue Fang. “Young Blue Fang. I am here to congratulate you on your victory.” She slowly started to clap her hooves. “Thanks... your majesty,” Blue Fang said sheepishly. She bent down, “here you are, Blue Fang.” She pulled out a small, bronze medal. Blue practically jumped out of skin. She put medal around Blue’s neck. “I... I don’t know what to say... thank you...” “It was my pleasure.” With that, the regal Changeling turned and walked to her throne room. Blue Fang looked down to the medal. His smile was reflected by the bronze. He closed his eyes. First this. Next, the Devil Horns. > Chapter 4: Raiding Sweet Apple Acres > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5 Years Later Pvt. Blue Fang It’s been five years since my fight with Hivehunter and I hear he’s still mad. I’ve haven’t been deployed just yet, but I hope The Queen will deploy me soon. “Come on Blue Fang,” Pharynx said. “Get into disguise.” Blue Fang looked up. “Oh, sorry,” He said. Blue Fang turned into a Royal Guard. “Alright, when the delivery pony comes to load the apples on, Webbiter will grab’em, the we unload and attack,” the sergeant said. “Um, Sergeant Mitchell?” One Changeling asked, “why are we doing this differently?” Mitchell looked at the Changeling. “Queens orders,” he replied. “But what if the ponies declare war, you know the risk—“ Mitchell cut him off. “Mothray, we follow queens orders, no more, no less!” Mitchell said. Mothray cowered back. The wagon stopped, one of the drivers, Mantis, said: “sir loader, two o’clock.” Webbiter got ready. The loader loaded boxes of apples into wagons. “Okay, 300 apples loa—,” Webbiter grabbed him and knocked him out. “Alright, y’all ready?” Mitchell asked. Everyone nodded. “All right, CHARGE!” Every Changeling jumped out of the wagon, changing into their normal forms and running up to the farm house. “Changeling attack!” Someone yelled. “Royal Guards, take cover!” Mitchell yelled. Blue Fang had never been fighting with magic, well except for the fight with Hivehunter. “Webbiter, Cobshot, use rapid fire!” Mitchell commanded. The two lined up and went ham with their magic. Many Guards were knocked out. A swift bolt flew by and struck Cobshot in the abdomen. “Medic!” Blue Fang called. Pharynx guarded the medic as he help Cobshot. “Push forward!” Pharynx yelled. “Kydra, we need you!” Blue Fang called. Specialist Kydra, a female Changeling and one of the many who don’t work in the columns, came running. “What do you need Blue?” She asked. “We need you to shoot an explosion spell onto that wall!” Blue Fang said pointing to the wall. “Alright,” she said. She got up to shoot the spell when a strong purple bolt of magic struck her in the stomach. Blue Fang was about to call for a medic when he saw the medic running. The medic almost got hit by the same bolt of magic. “Twilight Sparkle!” Dagger yelled. “No wonder that blast hurt so much,” Kydra said. Blue Fang had heard of Twilight Sparkle. He heard that she was on of the Elements Of Harmony, and she was a student of Celestia. “You won’t be firing that blast Kydra,” The medic said. “Hey, I never got your name,” Blue Fang said. The medic said: “Thorax.” > Chapter 5: Twilight Sparkle. > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- “Thorax, I didn’t know you were a medic,” Blue Fang said. “What you do mean?” Thorax said. Blue Fang opened his mouth and showed Thorax his fangs. Thorax’s eyes opened. “Blue Fang?” “Yeah,” Blue Fang replied. “Hey, Blue Fang,” Kydra said, “you gotta shoot the beam.” Blue Fang looked at her. Him, shoot the spell? He’d never shot a spell that strong. He’d had learned to use dynamite, not that it would be laying around, but that’s it for explosives. “Here,” Kydra said giving Blue Fang a sheet of paper, “this is how you use the spell.” Blue Fang faced the wall and concentrated really hard. His horn shot off a couple of sparks before the beam shot off and blew up the wall. “Charge!” Mitchell yelled. Everyone ran towards the farm house. Multiple magic blast flew past them. Pegasus carrying Unicorns were dive bombing, while shooting off magic. Everyone took cover. “Blue Fang, Pharynx, Thorax, take out those air troops!” Mitchell said. The three lined up and shot beam after beam. Some Unicorns fell off their Pegasus, and some Pegasus were knocked out of the sky, some still had their Unicorns on them. “Mantis, Dagger, hit those windows!” Pharynx said. They shot the at windows, trying to hit the Guards. They grunts of pain coming from the farm house. “Protect the barn!” someone yelled with an accent. Blue Fang took a peak and saw an orange pony talking to the purple Unicorn. He aimed his horn at the two and shot a beam at them. The two flinched and looked at Blue Fang. The Unicorn shot a bolt at him. “Woah!” Blue Fang yelled. Mitchell took cover next to Blue Fang. “Don’t get too cocky kid,” He said, “also, I didn’t get your name.” “Private Blue Fang.” “Blue Fang, I look forward to working with you.” Blue Fang nodded. He looked over and saw another wall. “Sir, we got another wall.” Mitchell took a look. Blue Fang was trying to shoot another explosion spell, but the Unicorn shot another beam at him. “I can’t get a clear shot!” Blue Fang Said. “Can’t you use dynamite?” Thorax said. “I can’t run out there by myself.” “I have an idea,” Mitchell said. He got on top of a wagon. “Is he crazy?!” Blue Fang said. “Alright, everyone spread out and run to that wall!” He yelled. Everyone started running, dodging as many magic attacks as they could. Some Changelings got hit, some got hit by explosive beams off magic. Most had to be dragged to safety. Blue Fang ran to the wall and got low onto the ground in order to stay in cover. “I need some Dynamite sir!” Blue Fang said. “I got some, don’t worry!” Mitchell said, giving Blue Fang a few sticks of dynamite. Blue Fang used a fire spell to light the dynamite. “Fire in the hole!” He yelled. “Fire in the hole!” Mitchell repeated. Blue Fang lit the dynamite and threw it onto the wall. “Kaboom!” The explosion sent Blue Fang into shellshock. Although he couldn’t here much due to the ringing in his ears, he could hear battle cries coming from his comrades. He got up and followed suit. The two forces charged into battle, with Mantis and Mothray offering support from a distance. “Sir, we need a team to attack the inside of the farmhouse,” Dagger said. “Alright, Blue, Pharynx, Dagger, Thorax, you four go in disguised as Royal Guards, take as much food as possible,” Mitchell said, I’ll let the squad know you’ve gone Shadow.” “Alright, lets go,” Blue Fang said. The four turned into Guards and ran threw the crowd. “Blue Fang, we need a plan,” Thorax said. “Alright, Pharynx you pretend to be injured, me and Dagger will pretend to cover the medic, Thorax, while he drags you to safety.” The group agreed, so they put the plan into motion. Pharynx “got hit” and Thorax dragged to the farmhouse. “Medic coming through!” Blue Fang said. When they got into the farm, Thorax pretended to treat Pharynx while Blue Fang and Dagger looked around. “There,” Dagger said. Blue Fang looked up and saw a bunch of apples. Dagger went to go get Thorax and Pharynx. When they got there, Blue Fang told Dagger to teleport the food and his other teammates back and he would catch up later. Dagger nodded and teleported himself, Thorax, Pharynx, and the food back to Mitchell. Blue Fang walked around until he found the room he was looking for. He checked to see if he was alone, and he was. He opened the door and closed it as quietly as he could. He saw his target, the purple Unicorn who hit Kydra, and almost hit him. He charged his magic and hit her in the back. “Ahh!” She screamed. The Unicorn turned and saw Blue Fang. “Why are you attacking me?!” She asked, “I’m not one of those things!” “No, but I am.” Her eyes widened. She teleported and attacked Blue Fang. “Applejack!” She yelled, “help!” Blue Fang looked real smug. Unexpectedly, the orange pony she was talking to earlier bursted through the door. “Hold on!” She yelled. Blue Fang changed out of guard form and turned into Applejack and jumped into her. The two tussled so much Twilight couldn’t tell who was who. The two separated and saw Twilight already to shoot it off. “You don’t gotta do this darlin’,” Blue Fang said. “Don’t listen to it!” Applejack yelled. “There’s only one way to figure this out, what’s your brothers name?” Twilight asked. “Big Macintosh!” Applejack said immediately. I’m dead Blue Fang thought as Twilight aimed her horn at him. Suddenly someone teleported behind him. “Come on Blue Fang!” Dagger said before grabbing Blue Fang. “Hold on,” Blue Fang said. He changed back into his normal form, opened his mouth, and flashed his blue fangs, “look for those next time you see one of us.” Dagger grabbed him and teleported away. “Thanks Dagger.” Blue Fang said. “No problem.” “Hey come on!” Mitchell said. The two got onto the wagon and the driver drove away. “That was a great mission,” Blue Fang said. “I know,” Pharynx replied. “I can’t wait for more,” Blue Fang said. He looked down at the briefing: Operation Shield Breaker Blues Log Mission Status: Success Current Rank: Private Sgt. Mitchell: Alive Pfc. Pharynx: Alive Pvt. Thorax:Alive Pvt. Dagger: Alive I can’t believe I made it through that, if this is what deployment will be like, I gotta be prepared for it. In other news, I think that purple Pony, Twilight Sparkle, has taken a bit of a “liking” to me, but what can I do. — Pvt. Blue Fang > Chapter 6: Operation Shield Breaker. > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A few minutes before the Canterlot Invasion Pvt. Blue Fang Blue Fang looked at the briefing, which read Operation Shield Breaker. He didn’t know what it meant by Operation Shield Breaker, but it didn’t matter, until he turned the page. Is that, Canterlot? he asked himself in thought. “It is.” Mitchell said as if reading his mind, “and as for the operation name, it seems as if the Ponies have developed a shield around it.” “Hmm,” Blue Fang said, “who’s the spy that’s in Canterlot?” “Queen Chrysalis.” Mitchell replied. “Really?” Mitchell nodded. Just as Blue Fang finished the briefing, Brokenwing walked in. “We leave in five minutes,” he said. Mitchell and Blue Fang nodded at their CO. It’s time, today we’re gonna take Canterlot, the place has so much love, it will last us a life time During the flight to Canterlot, Blue Fang wondered why Mitchell’s name, was Mitchell. He turned to Brokenwing, who had changed into a small spider so he could ride Blue Fang without problem, and asked: “What’s with Mitchell’s name?” “Well, his real name was Nightbite, but for some reason he changed it to Mitchell, and has gone by it ever since,” Brokenwing replied, “even the Queen calls him Mitchell.” Blue Fang understood changing your name because you don’t want others to know your true identity, but to him, it was the choice of the name. For example, he also had a fake identity, which he named Arrowshot. He thought of it because it seemed like a name a Pony would have if they got the respective mark. But as for Mitchell, the name didn’t make much sense, but he didn’t question it. A few minutes later, the army arrived at Canterlot and started breaking the shield that surrounded it. Eventually, after what felt like hours, the shield broke, allowing the Changelings to dive bomb into Canterlot. After gaining enough strength to get up, Blue Fang looked around to see what was going on. He saw Guards tied down, Changelings moving back and fourth, and a lot more stuff. He got up and ran to where he saw a bunch of Changelings in a circle. “What’s going on?” He asked. “We’re going to attack these Ponies,” The Changeling to his right said. Blue Fang looked up and saw that purple Unicorn, Twilight, that orange Earth Pony, Applejack, and four more Ponies. The group changed into the six Ponies and jumped them. Due to all the fighting and everyone looking the same, Blue Fang couldn’t tell if he was hitting his team or not. Eventually, Twilight and some pink Pony pulled a quick rapid fire move that hit Blue Fang in his hind leg, causing him to change back to his normal form. “Well, look what the cat dragged in,” Twilight said. All Blue Fang could do was smile sarcastically. “You know, I got better things to do than listen to you ramble all day,” Blue Fang said before shooting at Twilight and running away. He wasn’t moving very fast due to the leg injury, but he was still making ground. He found Thorax flying in the air with his eyes where the battle took place. “You saw, didn’t you?” Blue Fang asked. “Yeah,” Thorax said, “I’ve never seen friendship like that.” “Me neither,” Blue Fang replied watching the six Ponies run somewhere. After a few more minutes of the invasion, someone yelled: “Everyone Down!” Blue Fang looked confused, until he saw the big magic explosion coming from the castle. He tried to get behind cover, but the explosion got to him, sending him flying. He blacked out. Blue Fang woke up a few hours later near a forest. It wasn’t one he recognized, but still seemed really familiar. Then it clicked, that forest, was the Everfree forest. He couldn’t see any friendlies nearby, however he did have his Changeling Instinct, or CI for short, which turned his vision grey and made certain things glow a different color. Pink was Pony Love, which is what Changelings considered the best tasting love. Purple was Love from other creatures. Yellow is a point of interest. Brown is dragon scent. White is a threat or a possible threat. Green is a Changeling. Red is a capture target. And there are many more colors. He used it, trying to find anyone. After looking around him, he saw a big flash of Pony Love. He assumed it was a settlement or a small town, not that he wanted to find out. After looking a little more something else caught his eye, another Changeling. He ran as best he could towards the Changeling. “Hey, Hey!” Blue Fang yelled. The Changeling looked at him. He turned off his Instinct to see the Changeling. The Changeling charged an attack and was ready to fire. “Green, green, check your fire!” Blue Fang yelled. The magic died down. “Blue Fang,” the Changeling said. “Thorax,” he replied, “what happened?” “Some form of magic explosion happened in Canterlot, our soldiers are all over the place.” Blue Fang nodded. He looked at his hind leg which still had the burn Twilight gave him. “Let me take a look,” Thorax said. Blue Fang showed him the leg injury he got. “Hmm, I’ll be right back.” Blue Fang watched Thorax run into the forest, than coming back to with some leaves, cobwebs, and And vine. Thorax put the webs on the injured part of the leg, then wrapped the leaves around the leg, and finally tied it up with the vine. “There better?” Thorax asked. Blue Fang moved it around, then started walking, running, and jumping. “Yeah, it’s good.” “It should hold until you get back.” Blue Fang looked confused. “You mean we, right?” Thorax looked sad. “Remember when I said, I had never seen friendship like that, back in Canterlot?” Blue Fang nodded. “Well I’ve decided to run away from the hive.” Blue Fangs eyes widened. “Why?” He asked. “It’s just, I want to see what that life is like, you know having friends, not having to do what someone says,” Thorax replied. “But where will you go?” Blue Fang asked, “the Ponies won’t let you just waltz right in.” “I know, but I have to try.” Blue Fang looked down, “So this is goodbye?” Blue Fang asked. “I guess so.” Blue Fang walked over to Thorax. “Good bye brother—,” Blue Fang paused, “no, friend.” “Goodbye,” Thorax said before leaving. Blue Fang walked around using CI to try and find anyone else. He eventually gave up and flew home. When he got back, Mitchell was doing a roll call of all the Changeling who were in the invasion. Any who weren’t present were given one week to return, and if they didn’t, they would be assumed M.I.A, lost, or injured, and Mitchell would send a Changeling out to find them. Blue Fang knew Thorax wouldn’t return, and he also knew Pharynx would probably rat him out if he found him, knowing Thorax wasn’t good at lying. So Blue Fang decided to “find” Thorax and “if he didn’t” he would assume Thorax was gone. Blues Log Mission Status: Failed Current Rank: Private Cpt. Brokenwing: Alive Sgt. Mitchell a.k.a Nightbite: Alive Pfc. Pharynx: Alive Pvt. Thorax: M.I.A Spc. Kydra: M.I.A Pvt. Dagger: Alive Well, our hopes of taking Canterlot failed, we got blown sky high. Heck I was lucky enough to have made it home. I also had to lie about Thorax, um, “biting the dust.” But I did it for him as he would’ve done the same for me —Pvt. Blue Fang > Chapter 7: “Finding” Thorax > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The week had past, and 99% of the Changelings that went on the invasion had returned. 99%, I wonder who the 1% could be Blue Fang joked in thought. “Alright, Thorax hasn’t returned, who wants to go find him?” Mitchell asked. Blue Fang raised his hoof, knowing hardly anyone would want to find him. Even if they did, they would rat him out for deserting. Mitchell nodded, then he gestured for Blue Fang to go search for Thorax. Blue Fang walked outside and took off. He looked around the Everfree Forest, as that was the last place he saw Thorax. He than decided to check the spike of Pony Love he saw. That’s a lot of PL Blue Fang thought. He changed into his alter ego, Arrowshot, and walked over to the settlement. When he got to the village, he got a lot of looks, from “ooh a new friend,” to “who is that new Unicorn?” He walked around and looked for Thorax using CI. “Can I help you?” Someone called. Blue Fang looked up to see the white Unicorn with a curly purple mane he fought in the invasion. “Oh, no, I was looking for somepony,” Blue Fang replied. “Can you tell me their name?” She asked. “Well you see, he was carrying me on his back while flying and something struck us and I fell into the Everfree.” “So you don’t remember their name?” She asked. “No, and we only met today,” Blue Fang said, but he couldn’t keep the up lie, so he changed the subject by asking about the wedding. “I heard the royal wedding happened recently, did you go?” Blue Fang asked. She immediately started talking her heart out, then she got to the invasion part. She started spitting racial slurs about the Changelings. Blue Fang tried his best to ignore her racism. Then he asked about a place he could get something to eat. She pointed to a place that appeared to be a diner. He walked away trying to forget the racism he had to endure. When he reached the door a pink Pony opened the door. “Welcome to Sugarcube Corner!” The Pony said. It took him a while, but he remembered she was the pony who helped Twilight pull that rapid fire move. He tried not to get mad. She grabbed him and dragged him into the building. She immediately started asking him what he wanted to try. She pulled out a wagon load of apple products. “Would you like to try the apple cupcakes, or the apple cider, or the—,” she was cut off. “Hold on darlin’, we’re gonna run outta apples if you keep sellin’em like that,” someone said. An orange pony popped out from the kitchen, he immediately recognized her, Applejack. “I’ve think I’ve heard of you,” Blue Fang said. She looked at him with surprised eyes. Blue Fang quickly thought of a lie. “I think I’ve tried some of the apples from your farm, I bought some from a Stallion named Big Macintosh.” “Oh, then it’s no worry.” It took a little time for Blue Fang to decipher what she meant. Did she think I was stalking her? he asked himself. He bought a small apple cupcake than left. He continued to look for Thorax using CI. He came across a scent he didn’t think he’d find anywhere else, Dragon scent. The scent wasn’t strong but it was close. He pieced together that it was one small dragon. He looked up at what appeared to be a giant purple tree with a house in it. He knocked on the door and Twilight popped out, which surprised Blue Fang. “Can I help you?” She asked. “Well I’m new here and I wanted to meet everypony,” Blue Fang lied. She introduced herself and her small dragon, Spike. Blue Fang realized he would be searching for days, and he left his journal back home, so realizing that Twilight used to own a library, he asked: “Do you have a blank journal or diary for sale?” She went to the bookshelf and picked up a book. “That’ll be five bits please.” Blue Fang pulled out a sack and took out the bits. He paid her and then asked her if she knew a place he could stay. She pointed to a hotel. Blue Fang waved goodbye and walked to the hotel. He paid the money and went to his room. He used his magic to contact the hive and tell them he’d be gone for a couple days or months. Mitchell nodded and cut the transmission. He used more Changeling magic to copy the bits he had remaining. He wrote in his journal: Day 1 I’ve searched for Thorax and haven’t found him. I believe he couldn’t have got far, but I still have a feeling he’s here in this town named Ponyville. He looked at the journal. “I’ll copy it down when I get home.” He closed the journal and went to sleep. Day 2 Blue Fang got up outta bed and walked around. He looked in the bag he brought with him to see if he had a map of Equestria. To his surprise, no. He left the hotel to look for a store. He couldn’t find one other than the library. He went to Twilight and asked her for a map. He paid up and looked at the map. One place caught his eye, The Crystal Empire. He asked her about it. “What’s this place?” Blue Fang asked. “The Crystal Empire,” she replied, “it’s we’re Princess Cadence and my brother, Shining Armor, live.” The names Cadence and Shining Armor, made Blue Fang want to gag remembering it was those two who sent the Changelings sky high. He nodded, ignoring the names. He went to the Everfree forest and changed into Changeling form to use his magic and also get organized. He teleported near the city, than he changed back. He used CI to try and find Thorax from a distance. When that failed, he turned off his Instinct and walked into the city. He scanned endless crowds trying to find Thorax. He looked up at the castle, still nothing. He walked around and around and still nothing. A couple of Guards approached him and asked him if he needed help. He told them no and that he was just looking around. He used CI and continued to look around. He eventually found Changeling scent and followed it. He looked around the frozen glacier trying to find his friend. He wanted to save energy, so he called Thorax’s name and hoped for the best. “Thorax, are you out here?” Blue Fang yelled, “it’s me, Blue Fang!” “Blue Fang, is it really you?” Someone replied. “Yes, where are you Thorax?” Blue Fang yelled. Thorax walked out of hiding and greeted Blue Fang. “Hey Blue,” Thorax said. “Hey Thorax,” he replied. Thorax looked at him questionably, before asking, “why are you here?” “They sent me out to find you,” Blue Fang said, which got Thorax worried. “Don’t worry, I’ll make up some lie about how a Manticore ate you or something.” Thorax’s mood somewhat changed. “Although I really wanted to see how you were doing,” Blue Fang said, “you’ve been gone for a week now.” “Don’t worry, I’m fine,” Thorax said. Blue Fang nodded before hugging Thorax. “I should probably get back home,” Blue Fang said. “Alright, see you later,” Thorax said before walking off. “Hey, I’ll come visit you when I get the chance,” Blue Fang said. Thorax smiled and nodded. Blue Fang teleported back to his hotel room. He packed his things up and went down stairs to pay the for the two days he stayed at the hotel. He went back to the Everfree and flew back home. When Blue Fang got back, he made up the lie about how he found Thorax injured in the Everfree, he cured his injury just enough for Thorax to walk and run, however on the way back, they were attacked by a Manticore. He explained how Thorax told him to run and he would handle the Manticore. He left Thorax to an unknown fate. Pharynx looked down, knowing if his brother died, he went down in a good way. After a few days had passed, they confirmed he was K.I.A. They held a funeral for Thorax where Pharynx, Mitchell, Brokenwing and Blue Fang said a few words for Thorax. Blue Fang knew this lie wouldn’t last long, but for now, it was all he had. He was doing it for his friend, Thorax. Blues Log Current Rank: Private Cpt. Brokewing: Alive Sgt. Mitchell: Alive Pfc. Pharynx: Alive Pvt. Thorax: K.I.A (Assumed, but more than likely) Spc. Kydra: Alive Pvt. Dagger: Alive I know the log says K.I.A, but my journal says otherwise, but in all honesty, I’m not sure how I feel about Thorax hiding in the cold. I hope, if he can form relations with the Ponies, they’ll give him enough food. —Pvt. Blue Fang > Chapter 8: Operation Trident > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- a few months later. Operation Trident 0600 hours Pvt. Blue Fang It’s been like five or so months since the whole “Thorax Incident.” I was also lucky enough to be deployed, finally. However, after reading briefing, I have my doubts. Blue Fang stared at the wall of the boat, knowing this was going to be a suicide mission. They were going to try and take a beach that had some good supplies. Blue Fang reflected on what had happened over the past few months, Twilight became an Alicorn, Flurry Heart was born, and Thorax made friends. The only problem being the friends he made were Twilight, Spike, pretty much the entire Crystal Empire, including the Royal Family and another Pony named Starlight Glimmer. He turned attention to the front of the boat and stood in formation. He focused on what he was probably going to do at the beach, run and gun, or stay behind cover the entire time. “Get ready, we’re landing in 30 seconds!” Mantis yelled. “I’ll see you on the beach, may Chrysalis be with you,” Pharynx added. Blue Fang looked over the side of the boat, just to see more boats and water. “Hey Blue, got a bite?” One of the drivers asked. “Sure thing,” Blue Fang said grabbing an apple he’d saved. He gave it to the drivers. The driver was about to eat the apple when a bolt of magic struck him in the abdomen. “Everyone down!” Mitchell yelled. Eventually explosive spells rained down and exploded near the boats. “Get down!” Brokenwing yell as one of the spells just glanced the side of the boat. Blue Fang looked over the side of the boat. “Incoming!” Someone yelled from the boat on their right before it was hit by an explosive spell. “Hold tight!” Brokenwing said. Another ES exploded right in front of their boat. “Ahh darn it!” Blue Fang yelled. As the boat got to the shoreline, the boat that got hit slammed into them, knocking them to the ground. A wave of magic bolts flew into the boat, striking and knocking out anyone who was hit in the right place. Blue Fang got up just as an ES hit the boat, sending him into the water. He looked around and saw Dagger was drowning. He was caught on a typewriter that Changelings brought with them so they could make notes on new areas, file reports, or for personal logs and or diaries. Blue Fang swam towards Dagger and cut the typewriter lose. He grabbed Dagger and swam to shore. “Thanks Blue,” Dagger said. “No problem Dagger,” Blue Fang replied. The two got up and ran for cover as what seemed like an endless load of magic bolts flew past them. Blue Fang ran and took cover with Mitchell. “Sir, what’s our rallying point?!” Blue Fang asked. “Anywhere but here!” He replied. Blue Fang got up and ran towards Brokenwing and a group of other Changelings. “Sir, where are we going?” Blue Fang asked. “Seawall, move up to the Seawall!” Brokenwing replied. “Sir, I’m staying,” Cobshot said. “Clear this beach, make way for the others!” Brokenwing replied. “This is all we have between us and the Capture Point!” Mantis said referring to the beachhead, which surprised Blue Fang, not that Mantis said that, but because he thought Mantis was unconscious on the boat after the ES hit it, but he didn’t question it. “Look, every inch of this beach has been pre sighted, you stay here, you’re a dead bug!” Brokenwing yelled. Blue Fang got up to move when he heard a familiar scream. He looked around until he saw the Changeling. “Kydra!” He yelled running towards her. He picked her up as soon as he got to her. “I’m hit low, gosh!” She yelled Blue Fang called for a medic when cut off by another Changeling. “Navy Beach Battalion kid, I gotta clear these obstacles, make holes for the CT’s” Blue Fang looked at him, before saying: “all of the Changeling Tanks are foundering in the channel!” “Orders kid, you go somewhere else, I’m clearing this one!” “Come on Ky!” Blue Fang yelled dragging her to safety. He got closer to the sea wall and laid her where the RFM fire wouldn’t hit her. A medic, Stinger, quickly came running. “I’ve got this, go!” He said. Blue Fang ran to the wall and dived into cover announcing his presence. “Blue Fang here sir!” “See any of our comrades out there?” Mitchell asked. “Dagger, Kydra, and Stinger,” Blue Fang replied. “Corporal Pharynx here!” Pharynx yelled jumping behind Blue Fang. “Who’s in command here?” Mitchell asked. “Until Brokenwing gets here, You are Sergeant,” Pharynx replied. “Alright, Shore Party, Shore Party,” Mitchell grabbed him only to see he had taken a Magic Bolt to the back of his head. Mitchell linked with the Shore Parties signal, “Homeland, Homeland, Homela—,” Mitchell cut the signal. “Brokenwing here!” Brokenwing yelled. “See anyone else out there Captain?” Blue Fang asked. “Mantis, but that’s about it!” Brokenwing replied. “We got Stinger back there with Cobshot, he’s hurt so bad he’s got a hundred burns, Stinger says he’s all used up,” Pharynx said. Kydra came running into cover with Mantis and Dagger behind her. “Great to see you made it through, Ky,” Pharynx said. “Just about to say the same to you Pharynx.” Blue Fang looked up to see Stinger, who was tending to Cobshots burns. “Get his attention,” Mitchell said. “Stinger!” “Yo, Doc!” Everyone started calling Stinger by either real name or nickname. Eventually, Mitchell told Blue Fang to get him off the beach. He ran towards him. “I stopped the burning, I stopped the burning,” Stinger said. A stray magic bolt hit his patient. “Buck!” Blue Fang ran up to grab him. “Just give me a bucking chance you son of a mare!” Blue Fang had never heard Stinger say things like that. He was on Thorax’s level of calm most of the time. “Come on, it’s Blue Fang!” Blue Fang started dragging him back, although Stinger made it hard with all his tussling. Eventually, they got back to the Seawall. “This is all, this is all that made it?” Brokenwing asked. “We’re scattered pretty bad, so there’s bound to be more of us,” Mitchell replied. A random Changeling jumped up a yelled: “they’re hittin’ us, and we don’t have a buckin’ chance and that ain’t fair!” “Gather potions and medkits!” Pharynx yelled. The group did they’re best gathering potions and medkits from downed Changelings. “Dagger, hey Dagger, Dagger, where’s the typewriter?” Pharynx asked. “Bottom of the channel sir, the thing tried to drown me,” He replied. “Find a replacement.” Dagger ran out to find another typewriter. When more soldiers got back they still had another problem, the Seawall. “Bring out the dynamite!” Mitchell yelled. “What, no explosion spell?” Kydra asked. “What, you want to risk it?” Pharynx asked. Kydra just shrugged. Mitchell gave the dynamite to Blue Fang and a couple more Changelings just as Dagger made it back. One of them was about to light theirs when a bolt of magic hit the dynamite, stopping the bolt from hitting him. “Chrysalis!” Mitchell said. “Lucky bugger,” Pharynx said. The Changeling moved the dynamite to see the hole, and then got blasted right in the same spot. “Fire in the hole!” Blue Fang yelled. Mitchell, Pharynx, and Brokenwing repeated the words. Blue Fang through the dynamite onto the wall and blew it up. “We’re in business!” Pharynx yelled. The Changelings charged into battle, they split into separate teams to take out the bunkers. Blue Fangs group consisted of Mitchell, Brokenwing, Pharynx, Mantis, Kydra, Dagger, Stinger, and two more Changelings named Flint and Bugbite. The group got behind a small wall to get to one of the bunkers. The bunker was being guarded by Royal Guards using rapid fire spells. Pharynx used a mirror he brought to see the Royal Guards position. “We got three RG’s up there, two using rapid fire, one guarding them,” Pharynx said. “Ironic,” Mantis commented. “Alright Kydra, Dagger, Bugbite, Stinger, Flint, we’ll give you some cover, you all make a run for it,” Mitchell said. The group nodded. “Alright, covering fire!” Brokenwing said. All the Changelings shot magic after magic to distract the Guards, while Kydra and the group moved up. This continued until it was just Mantis, Pharynx, and Blue Fang. “Hey Mantis, do you see that impact crater by Mitchell?” Pharynx asked. “Yeah, I see it,” He replied. “Get over there and try hitting them from their flanks,” Pharynx said. Mantis got ready to run. “Covering fire!” Pharynx yelled. All the Changelings started firing, although the Guards almost hit Mantis. “Pharynx, if your brother saw you doing that he’d be real upset,” Blue Fang joked. “I thought you were my brother,” Pharynx replied with a small laugh. Eventually Mantis took the Guards out so Pharynx and Blue Fang could cross “Alright, We’ll spilt up,” Brokenwing said, “Kydra, Dagger, Bugbite, Stinger, and Flint, you’ll be one group, the rest of us will be another group.” Kydra nodded. The two groups went in different directions. Blue Fang and his squad went into one of the bunkers. The two opposing sides were so compacted being in a small space that some shots were harder to make then others. Eventually all of the Guards were knocked unconscious. “Alright, Pharynx, Blue Fang, capture the last bunker,” Mitchell said, “rally at the checkpoint we’ll be setting up, And for bucks sake don’t get yourselves killed!” Blue Fang opened the door. “Alright Pharynx, one more.” “We got this Blue Fang!” Pharynx replied. The two fought the five Royal Guards outside of the bunker. “Blue Fang, you go inside, I’ll cover you,” Pharynx said. “Alright, here I go!” Blue Fang walked into the bunker when all of a sudden a Royal Guard came from behind the wall of the bunker door. Blue Fang and the Guard wrestled until Pharynx came running in yelling. Pharynx knocked the Guard to the ground and proceeded to punch him. The Guard then shot a beam into Pharynx’s side. “Gah!” “Pharynx!” Blue Fang yelled, “oh, shoot, oh shoot, oh shoot, oh shoot!” The Guard then turns to Blue Fang and the two yet again engage in physical combat. The Guard got on top of Blue Fang, then Blue Fang got on top of the Guard. He reached for the Guards helmet that fell off of the Guard when Pharynx tackled him. He grabbed it and than smashed it on the Guards head, not strong enough to kill him, but strong enough to give him a bad bruise and to swiftly knock him out. “12’oclock!” Pharynx yelled. Blue Fang shot the Guard three times, once in an unprotected foreleg, twice in his armor. “Come Here Pharynx!” Blue Fang yelled running towards Pharynx. “I can’t move,” Pharynx said. “Oh shoot,” Blue Fang replied. “Get me the buck outta here!” More bolts of magic, some enemy some friendly, flew into the bunker door. “I’m gonna get you outta here, stay with me!” Blue Fang said dragging Pharynx. He dragged him out of the bunker. “We gotta get over to the checkpoint!” Blue Fang yelled pointing at the place that had medical symbols on it. “On your left!” Pharynx said. Blue Fang and Pharynx took cover. Blue Fang shot at the three Guards rushing him. After they were taken care of, Blue Fang began dragging Pharynx again. Blue Fang came up to a small mound and climbed over it saying: “We gotta take cover!” While dragging Pharynx. “How many?” Pharynx asked. “Too many!” Blue Fang said holding the Guards off, “we’re clear, come on!” “You call that bucking clear?” Pharynx replied. “I’m trying the best that I can!” Blue Fang continued to drag Pharynx when he saw a couple of Changelings and Royal Guards fighting over a bunker. He dragged Pharynx behind some sandbags. A smoke spell had been activated. “Keep your head down!” Blue Fang said shooting at the Royal Guards. “Did you get’em?” Pharynx asked. “They keep coming!” Blue Fang replied. After he finished, a Royal Guard tried rushing them. “Watch out!” Pharynx said blasting the Guard. “He’s down, lets move!” Blue Fang said. He started dragging Pharynx again. “We gotta move!” Pharynx said. “I gotcha,” Blue Fang replied, just as a stray stick of dynamite landed near them. “Buck!” Blue Fang yelled grabbing the dynamite and throwing it away. He noticed a small trench, “we can get down here!” He jumped into the trench and grabbed Pharynx. “I gotcha!” He said shooting more Guards. He looked over and saw more Guards rushing them. “Stay down!” Blue Fang yelled. When the last wave was finished he continued to drag his brother to safety. “Oh Chrysalis, my visions fading,” Pharynx said weakly. “Just hang in there!” Blue Fang said coming to the checkpoint, “almost there!” “Come on up here, move move!” Mantis yelled. Blue Fang dragged Pharynx up the stairs just as Mantis shot two more Guards. “Stay with me Pharynx,” Blue Fang said, “medic!” “I need morphine!” Pharynx said. Blue Fang reached over to a nearby medkit. He rummaged through it until he got the morphine. He stuck it into Pharynx’s leg, which calmed Pharynx down. “You gotta hold on, you know your brother would be waiting for you!” Blue Fang said. “Really?” “Of course he’d be!” “I... I thought... I thought you were my brother, ha ha,” Pharynx said. “You kiddin’ Me?” Blue Fang replied. “It’s okay, I can’t... I can’t see crap, I’m just gonna rest right, right here...” Pharynx looked like he was gonna faint. “No no no, you gotta stay awake!” Blue Fang said, Pharynx closed his eyes all the way, “Hey!” “Blue Fang,” Pharynx said in a raspy voice. “I’m here!” “... Help me...” “I need a medic gosh darn it!” A medic came running. “I’ve got this, go!” The medic said. Blue Fang felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see who it was. It was Mitchell. “Hey, I gotta show you something,” He said. Blue Fang nodded getting up to follow him. The two walked over to a small farmhouse where a bunch of Changelings were planting seeds for edible berries, some teleporting Guards back to their leader, knowing that the Guards served no purpose to them, some moving back and forth with supplies or other orders, and some remodeling the farmhouse. “Welcome to Fort Firestorm,” Mitchell said. The two walked inside the fort to see how construction was going. Blue Fang looked around to see what staying here would feel like. They walked over to Brokenwing, who was talking to another Changeling. “Hey Blue Fang, let me introduce you to someone,” Brokenwing said, “this is Clover.” “Pleased to make your acquaintance,” Clover said. “Nice to meet you too,” Blue Fang replied shaking Clovers hoof. “He’ll be working engineering and communications,” Brokenwing said. “If you don’t mind sir, I can show Blue Fang where he’ll be staying,” Mitchell said. “Alright.” Blue Fang followed Mitchell to a lower level of the base, it was probably a basement until the Changelings turned it into a barracks. “This is where we’ll sleep, upstairs you have a cafeteria, over there is a small living area,” Mitchell said. Blue nodded looking around the place. He went to his room to look around and see what he had to work with. Typewriter, bed, table, light source, strong signal, so far so good Blue Fang told himself in thought. Brokenwing walked in. “Hey Blue,” Brokenwing said. “Captain,” Blue Fang said. “You don’t have to be so formal, little brother,” Brokenwing replied, “anyway I wanted to tell you something.” “What?” Blue Fang replied. Brokenwing walked over to Blue Fang got in front of him and said, “Blue Fang, for your heroic actions, you are hereby promoted to the Rank of Private First Class.” “Really?” Blue Fang asked. Brokenwing nodded. “Thank you, brother.” “No problem, Blue Fang.” Blue Fang still couldn’t believe it, he had been promoted. Thorax, would’ve been proud. Blues Log Mission Status: Successful Current Rank: Private First Class Cpt. Brokenwing: Alive Sgt. Mitchell: Alive Pvt. Dagger: Alive Cpl. Pharynx: Alive (W.I.A) Spc. Kydra: Alive Pvt. Mantis: Alive Pfc. Stinger: Alive I’m not sure why Chrysalis decided this would be the best way to get a hoof-hold into Equestria, but I guarantee one thing, she wasn’t on those boats with us this morning. —Pfc. Blue Fang > Chapter 9: Operation Longstrike > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue! Blue take the shot! Blue Fangs eyes flew open. It was... just a dream Blue Fang told himself in thought. “Same dream, huh?” Pharynx asked. “Pretty much yeah,” Blue Fang replied, “I can’t seem to shake it.” Blue Fang got out of his chair and walked around. “I’m okay, you get some rest,” Blue Fang said looking at the small town they’d been stationed in, mainly focusing on the bell tower. “No way, I gotta show Mitchell I’m ready,” Pharynx replied. Blue Fang remembered that after Trident, for some reason, Mitchell started having a grudge against Pharynx, as a matter of fact, it seemed as if Mitchell’s entire personality changed. He was ready to follow orders to the letter. “I don’t care what Mitchell says, you got nothing to prove,” Blue Fang said. “Yeah well I’m tired of taking his mess,” Pharynx replied, he walked over to a window staring out at the night sky, “remember, back home you want to settle something, you do it head on. It’s the only way we earn respect.” “I understand that, believe me, a Changelings got to fight his own battles,” Blue Fang replied, “but respect doesn’t mean a lot if you get yourself killed.” “Just glad you’ve got my back,” Pharynx replied as he got back into his chair, “Hey, you gonna tell me about that dream, or what?” “Before my fight with Hivehunter, Brokenwing took me to the Everfree forest for training,” Blue Fang replied, “then we got cornered by a Timberwolf.” “Blue, Blue take the shot!” Brokenwing told me while being pinned down by a Timberwolf. “I’m trying, I’m trying!” I replied. “Hurry!” I struggled to charge my attack, but also struggled to aim. Eventually, he smashed it with a rock, which caused it to disintegrate. “You okay?” He asked me. “I’m... sorry Brokenwing... I—“ I struggled to even speak. “Listen good Blue, it’s only natural to be scared,” he told me, “we need to get home little brother.” From that moment on I swore never to let Broken down again, but now it’s not just him I have to live up to, it’s Mitchell. Operation Longstrike 0900 Hours PFC. Blue Fang I had that dream again, the dream about Broken getting mauled by a Timberwolf. That usually means bad luck for me, I hope that’s not true “Get to cover!” Mitchell said, “Alright Broken will lead the maneuver into the square, our job is to lay down suppressive fire from that bell tower. Any questions? Good.” “I have a question,” Mantis said. “Save’em up Mantis, you’ll win a gold star,” Mitchell replied. Mantis looked at Blue Fang before saying, “I think I’m his favorite!” A bunch of magic bolts flew around, Pegasi and Changelings fought it out in the sky. “Oh crap!” Dagger yelled. “Secure that house!” Mitchell yelled Blue Fang ran to right side of the house. “Flanking right!” Blue Fang yelled. “Blue, shoot a green smoke spell out there!” Dagger said, “our airborne troops will barrage them with magic!” “Got it!” He replied shooting it into the house. Changelings flew down and shot magic at the house, clearing out the Guards. “Move up!” Mitchell said. Blue Fang ran as fast as he possibly could, ducking behind cover. He shot three Guards on the first floor, then he moved up to the second floor. He positioned himself to shoot any Guards from a distance. It was an ability called Changeling Focus, or CF. Blue Fang used Instinct to see his targets and Focus to zoom in on his enemies. He shot one Guard, hitting his head and causing his helmet to fly off. “Bullseye!” Dagger yelled. “Blue Fang come on, we gotta capture the tower!” Pharynx yelled. “Alright, coming down!” Blue Fang replied. He ran down the stairs and caught up with Mitchell. “There’s wounded out there,” Mitchell said, “drag them to safety.” “Yes sir!” Blue Fang replied. He ran out to see if he could get anyone. “Blue, 10 o’clock!” Kydra yelled. “I see’em!” Blue Fang replied. He ran to the downed Changeling and grabbed him with one hoof, using the other one to balance. “Get me outta here!” The Changeling said. “Don’t worry, I gotcha!” Blue Fang said. He dragged the injured Changeling behind a wall. “Thanks Blue, I owe you my life!” The Changeling said. Blue Fang ran behind a wagon for cover. He shot two Guards in front of the bell towers door. “Come on, move!” Mitchell yelled, “Blue Fang, get the door!” “Yes sir,” he replied. He positioned his hind legs and kicked the door down. Mitchell went in first, followed by Blue Fang, than everyone else. “Where’d they go?” Pharynx asked. “They must of run when they heard us coming,” Blue Fang replied. “RG’s left some supplies, stock up before we reach the top of the tower,” Mitchell said. “Hey Pharynx, besides bell towers and clocks, how do Ponies tell time?” Dagger asked. “They also use sundials” Mantis replied “Sun what?” Dagger asked again “Tell you what, Forgetaboutit,” Mantis replied sounding annoyed Blue Fang reached for a medkit. When he grabbed it, a Guard appeared on the balcony. “Shoot!” Blue Fang yelled. The Guard shot rapid fire magic at them, one hit another Changeling. Just as two more Guards appeared on the other balconies. “They’re using RFM, knock’em out!” Everyone aimed at the Guard on the top balcony. Blue Fang used CF to snipe the Guard. With a powerful blast, he knocked the Guards helmet off. “Got one!” Blue Fang yelled. “Push forward!” Mitchell yelled. The Changelings pushed the Guards back, until eventually all the Guards were knocked out. “Get eyes on the square,” Mitchell said. Blue Fang looked outside. “Guards are downing our Hornets,” Blue Fang said. “Hmm,” Mitchell said, “Pharynx, Dagger, take out those Guards, the rest of us will provide covering fire,” “Just glad it’s going to be you up there Blue,” Pharynx said, “no pressure.” “Don’t worry, I got you covered,” Blue Fang said. “You better!” Pharynx replied. “Come on, to the top of the tower,” Mitchell said. Blue Fang went up the stairs. They walked past the Royal Guard who used RFM. “Dumb RG,” Kydra said. “Come on,” Mitchell said. He went over to the ladder, “Hope no one’s scared’a heights.” “Would it matter?” Stinger asked. “Nope!” Mitchell said with a small chuckle. Blue Fang climbed up the ladder. When he got to the top, he went to edge and looked down at Pharynx and Dagger. “Alright, sniping positions,” Mitchell said. Blue Fang used CF to keep Pharynx and Dagger in sight. “Alright, they’re moving,” Mitchell said, “keep them covered.” Blue Fang looked around the area. “By the wagon,” Mitchell said. Blue Fang shot one in the chest. He shot another one in the head, causing Mantis to say, “Pop’d Him!” Blue Fang shot the last two and Pharynx moved up. “Watch the windows!” Cobshot yelled. Mothray shot one in the chest. Blue Fang shot another one. Pharynx got himself some personal glory by shooting the last two Guards. Pharynx moved behind the house. A magic flare was shot up. “One down, two more to go!” Kydra said. Pharynx came from behind the house and moved up. Blue Fang looked around Pharynx. He moved up. “Watch their front!” Mitchell said. Blue Fang shot one Guard, who was using RFM, in the chest. Kydra, Mothray, And Cobshot took some out as well. “They’re be flanked from behind!” Blue Fang said. Mitchell, Cobshot, Kydra, and Blue Fang shot as many as they could. An Explosion Spell hit the Guards from the Guards right flank. “The heck was that?” Cobshot asked. “Must be Brokenwing,” Mitchell said, “keep them covered so they can support Pharynx and Dagger.” Blue Fang shot an ES at the Guards. Pharynx moved up to the next point. Another flare flew up. “Pharynx took out the second one!” Stinger said. “Yeah, woohoo!” Cobshot cheered. “If we can hit that last Guard, we control the air!” Mitchell said. Cobshots eyes grew wide, “sir, the Guard’s targeting us!” “Everyone out, come on!” Mitchell yelled. Blue Fang got up to move, but an ES exploded near him, causing him to fall over. He looked up and saw Cobshot running towards him. “It’s time to go,” Cobshot said, “let’s get movi—.” He was cut off by a magic bolt striking him in the back. “Oh Chrysalis,” Blue Fang said watching Cobshots unconscious body fall down. Kydra also came running, but another bolt blew up near her, causing her to fly off the edge of balcony where the bell was. She just barely grabbed onto the ledge. “Blue Fang!” She yelled. “I gotcha!” “I’m slipping!” Blue Fang tried to grab her, but she lost her grip and fell. “No!” Her screams echoed up to Blue Fang. He looked down the bell tower, his thoughts lost. How could he let her fall? “Watch out!” Mitchell yelled. Blue Fang looked up to see the giant bell was coming down. He just barely got out of the way of the bell. “Get out of there!” Mitchell yelled now carrying Cobshot. Blue Fang got up and ran to the ladder. He climbed down. An explosion shook the tower, causing the ladder to shake. Mitchell and Cobshot fell, but Blue Fang was able to keep his grip. The bell broke through the floor and swung around until it hit the ladder, causing Blue Fang to become disoriented, but also causing the ladder to swing around. It landed on another wooden beam, and Blue Fang was still hanging from it. Then the handle broke, causing Blue Fang to fall down. He was about to get up when a wooden beam fell on top of him. “Ahh!” He yelled. “They’re coming down!” Mothray yelled. Blue Fang pushed the beam off of him just as the bell fell down. He looked away, then looked back. Thankfully, the bell just missed. “Move your flank!” Mitchell yelled, now carrying Kydras’ body as well. Blue Fang got up and ran to the stairs. When he reached the stairs, he saw that they had been destroyed. “Oh crap!” “Come on, jump!” Mitchell yelled. Blue Fang jumped and landed on the hard, asphalt floor. It really hurt, but he ignored the pain. “Almost there!” Mitchell said. Blue Fang ran over to Mitchell. Then the bell came crashing through the roof. “Watch out!” Mitchell yelled grabbing Blue Fang and jumping out the door. Blue Fang looked up and saw the whole tower collapsing. “Incoming!” Stinger yelled. The tower crashed into the ground, causing wood chunks to fly into the Changelings direction. One beam hit Blue Fang in his face. Mitchell got up coughing. He gained his balance, then he turned to Blue Fang. “You see a crown on me, Private?” Mitchell asked. “No sir,” Blue Fang replied. “That’s because I’m not Princess bucking Celestia!” He yelled. He grabbed Blue Fangs hoof and help him up, “ah darn it, Kydra and Cobshot were severely injured in there, know we gotta pull it together, and capture the square.” “I don’t see them,” Blue Fang said. “They were together before the tower collapsed, best we can we do now is hold our position,” Mitchell replied. Blue Fang and the group held out for five minutes. Eventually the last flare was shot. “Yeah!” Stinger yelled. “Attaboy!” Blue Fang cheered. “Blue Fang, shoot a red smoke spell out there!” Mitchell said. “Don’t have to ask me twice!” Blue Fang replied, he shot the smoke out. “The barrage is coming in short, they’re going to get flattened!” Mothray yelled. The explosions through Blue Fang into shell shock. He got up and looked around. He saw Pharynx walking up the stairs. “Pharynx!” Blue Fang said. “I got it,” Pharynx replied. Brokenwing and Mitchell walked up towards the two. “Good work, you gave it everything you could, got the RG’s on the run,” Brokenwing said, “I’d say they came through pretty well, wouldn’t you Sergeant?” Mitchell just nodded. “Maybe you were wrong about them,” Brokenwing said. Mitchell turned to Blue Fang and Pharynx. “You’ve been holding out on me boys, I’ve been way too easy on you. Well now we’re going to see what you’re really made of,” Mitchell said before walking away. “If we brought him Celestia’s horn on a silver platter, he’d complain about the shine,” Blue Fang said. “If we keep fighting like we did today, this fight will be over in no time. That’s why we gotta make the big plays now,” Pharynx said. “Alright, I’m in,” Blue Fang replied. “Also what happened to your eye?” Pharynx asked. Blue Fang looked at his reflection in a nearby mirror shard. He saw a huge scar on his eye, right where that wood hit him. “It’s a long story.” Blue’s Log Mission status: Success Current Rank: Private First Class Cpt. Brokenwing: Alive Sgt. Mitchell: Alive Pvt. Dagger: Alice Cpl. Pharnyx: Alive Spc. Kydra: Alive (W.I.A) Pvt. Mantis: Alive Pfc. Stinger: Alive Turns out I was right, that dream is bad luck, considering a bell tower almost crushed me and my squad, also Kydra was severally injured, which they said would take about a week to heal, from what I heard, she just barely put a shield around herself before she hit the ground, lucky. —Pfc. Blue Fang > Chapter 10: Operation Ice Cold > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 week later Pfc. Blue Fang Blue Fang walked around Firestorm. He had been called by Brokenwing. He walked towards his room. “Captain, you wanted to see me?” Blue Fang asked. “Blue Fang come in,” Brokenwing replied. Blue Fang walked into Brokenwings room. He looked around the room, wondering why Brokenwing needed him. “Blue Fang, you’ve been through a lot,” Brokenwing said. “I know,” Blue Fang replied. He reflected over what happened over the last week. He almost got crushed by a bell, he got a scar on his eye, and Kydra almost died. “I wanted to talk to you,” Brokenwing said “About what sir?” Blue Fang asked. “Do you remember Hivehunter?” Brokenwing asked. Blue Fang frowned, “I haven’t seen that Son of a Mare in five years,” Blue Fang said, “why?” “Unfortunately, he’s being deployed here,” Brokenwing. “Oh great, just great,” Blue Fang said, “anything else?” “And he’s the Rank of Lieutenant,” Brokenwing said. “What about Mitchell?” Blue Fang asked. “He’s been promoted to Sergeant First Class,” Brokenwing said, “also, Pharynx has been promoted to the Rank of Sergeant, Kydra’s now a Corporal, and Stinger’s now a Specialist.” “Lucky Buggers,” Blue Fang said. “Don’t worry little brother,” Brokenwing said, “after this Operation, if you do good, you’ll be promoted to a Corporal.” “Yes sir,” Blue Fang said. They stood there for a while. Then Clover came in. “Captain, the new Lieutenant’s here,” Clover said. “Okay, we’re coming,” Brokenwing said, “come on Blue.” The two walked down to the entrance. Blue Fang was hesitate, but Brokenwing reassured him. They got to the entrance, and saw many Changelings standing around the entrance. And there he was, red eyes, chipped horn, and a bandage around his body. Wow, I thought his injury would’ve healed years ago Blue Fang thought. Hivehunter walked in like he owned the place, walking with his head tall, and smug smirk on his face. “Good to see you Lieutenant,” Brokenwing greeted. “It’s a pleasure to be here, Captain,” Hivehunter replied. He walked past Brokenwing and Blue Fang, but also greeted Blue Fang by saying, “First Class.” Blue Fang looked down. As far as he knew, his next days in deployment were going to be nightmares. Operation Ice Cold Pfc. Blue Fang Location: North of the Crystal Empire Hivehunter’s here, meaning he’ll be targeting me, making my deployment a living nightmare. As for this Op, we’re being deployed into the Frozen North, which is a tundra north of the Crystal Empire, go figure. Blue Fang sat in a small foxhole with Mantis, Dagger, Stinger, and Pharynx. The frozen north sent chills, both figuratively and literally, down Blue Fangs spine. Figuratively because Thorax was probably nearby, and if they found out he deserted, it would mean big trouble for Thorax, and probably Blue Fang. “Nice... ja... jacket Doc, looks new,” Mantis said. “Yeah, he poached it some Replacement,” Dagger said, “poor Pony froze to death.” “If... Lieutenant wasn’t so stingy with... requisitions, I wouldn’t have to steal,” Stinger replied. “It’s okay, it wasn’t doing it’s “Replacement” any good,” Blue Fang added. There was a brief moment of silence, then Mantis said, “Heckuva a deployment, eh fellas?” “Oh yeah,” Dagger said, “Why would I EVER want to be sitting be a nice warm fire, when I could be freezing my flanks off with you Buggers?” Hivehunter came walking down, Mantis was the first to spot him as he said, “ah crap, incoming.” Hivehunter wasn't very nice with his introduction, as soon as he crossed their path, he said, “Dagger, get back to a defensive position.” “Yes Lieutenant,” Dagger replied getting up and looking out of the foxhole. “Sir, any extra coats or blankets?” Blue Fang asked. “You looked just fine to me,” Hivehunter replied. And you look like a Motherbucker Blue Fang thought. “Sir, may I ask why we’re here?” Pharynx said. “Queens orders, she wants to see what the Crystal Empire will do,” Hivehunter replied. He walked away. Blue Fang looked out of the foxhole, trying to see if any Guard Patrol was coming, but no, the frozen plain was empty. No birds, no animals, nothing. He use CI to look for Thorax. He didn’t see him, thankfully. “See anything?” Pharynx asked. “Besides snow, ice, and rocks, no,” Blue Fang replied. He continued to scout the area. He spotted a white flash on his CI. “RG’s!” Blue Fang said. He looked up again. “Not RG’s,” Mitchell said, “Those are Crystal Guards.” “What’s the difference?” Pharynx asked, “let’s blast those Guards into nothingness!” “Hold your fire!” Mitchell said, “let’s see what they do.” The Guards walked around. They looked around the glacier, as if they were looking for something. One of the Guards spotted the small foxhole Blue Fang was in. “I think they see us,” Blue Fang said, “Mitchell?” “If they engage, open fire,” Mitchell said. The Guards started walking towards the Changelings. “Mitchell!” Mantis said. “Hold your fire!” Mitchell said. The Guards moved in. Everyone tensed, waiting for the siege that would happen. The Guards closed in like a Timberwolf closing in on its prey. Then Mitchell yelled, “Fire!” Everyone opened fire, lighting up the Guards. All the Guards dropped to the ground, knocked out cold, except for one, who ran away. “I’ll get’em sir,” Blue Fang said. “Alright go!” Mitchell said. Blue Fang galloped after the Guard, who surprisingly, ran really fast despite wearing armor. Blue Fang caught to him as best he could. “Hey! Stop!” Blue Fang yelled. He came up and hit the Guard as hard as he could in the back of the head. The Guard hit him in the face, causing Blue Fang to get even more mad. He slammed his fore hoof into the Guards stomach. “Don’t Shoot! Don’t Shoot!” The Guard begged. Kydra came from behind. “He’s not worth it,” Kydra said, “Blue Fang!” Blue Fang spat blood from his mouth. He looked back at the Guard. “Dumb Guard, why’d you run?” He asked, “Must be hiding something.” Blue Fang rummaged through the Guards armor. Blue Fang found a small piece of paper. “Son of a Mare was holding out on us!” Blue Fang said ripping the paper from the Guards armor. Mitchell came over and kicked the Guard in the side. Kydra grabbed the paper. “What does it say?” Mitchell asked. “These are coordinates to the hive,” Kydra said, “this Son of a Mare got the coordinates to the hive!” Mitchell looked down at the Guard. “You’re making a big mistake,” the Guard mumbled, but only Blue Fang could hear him. “Well ain’t that something, Guard,” Mitchell said, then he kicked the Guard in the head, causing blood to come out of the Guards mouth. “Sir, he said something about we’re making a big mistake,” Blue Fang said. “Probably just some dumb Pony lie to try and make us scared,” Mitchell replied. Blue Fang used CI to look around, just to be on the safe side. “Or maybe he’s telling the truth, sir.” Mitchell looked where Blue Fang was looking, “Son of a Mare.” Dagger and Pharynx walked in the direction of the tracks left by Blue Fang and the others. “Are you sure we should be heading this way?” Pharynx asked. “The tracks lead this way,” Dagger replied. “Shouldn’t we just wait?” Pharynx asked. “Why?” Dagger replied “They’ll come back sooner or later,” Pharynx said. True enough, Blue Fang, Mitchell, and Kydra came running towards them. “See, told you.” The two looked were about to walk towards them, but something felt off. Blue Fang looked like he was trying to say something, but Dagger and Pharynx couldn’t hear him. “What’s he saying?” Dagger asked. “If I knew, I would tell you,” Pharynx replied. The group got closer and the two could somewhat hear Blue Fang. They waited till he got closer. They were still a few miles away from each other. “Run!” Blue Fang yelled. Dagger and Pharynx looked at each other, than back at Blue Fang. “Run!” Blue Fang yelled again, this time with panic in his voice, and now they saw why. “Motherbucker,” Dagger said. What appeared to be the entire Crystal Army was hightailing Blue Fang and the others. “Go! Get back to the trenches!” Blue Fang yelled. “Go,” Pharynx said, “Go!” The five Changelings ran back towards the trenches. Blue Fang looked behind him, and he wished he hadn’t. He shot a few bolts at the Guards, but wasn’t sure if they hit or not, mainly due to the fact he was trying to stay with the group. “Trenches up ahead!” Mitchell yelled. The Changelings jumped into the trenches. “CG’s!” Mantis yelled “we have an evac train coming, everyone, get to the train station!” Hivehunter yelled. The Changelings fled, some looking back and firing at the Guards. They got closer to the Train Station. “Almost there, keep pushing!” Mitchell yelled. The Changeling came up to the Station, where Clover was waiting with the Train. Come on Blue Blue Fang said in thought, You’re almost there, show Broken you’re rea— an explosion sent Blue Fang flying, the explosion also hurt his leg. “Blue Fang!” Pharynx yelled. He tried to get off the train, but Hivehunter stopped him. “Hivehunter, get off me!” “Stop Pharynx, that’s an order!” Hivehunter said. “To Tartarus with our orders!” Pharynx replied. Mitchell stepped in. “What happened to no Changeling left behind?!” He asked. “Stand down, both of you!” Blue Fang crawled over to the train. He pulled as hard as he could, trying to get to the door. “Clover, get us outta here!” Hivehunter yelled. “But Blue Fa—“ “Now!” “Yes sir,” Clover turned the engine on and the train started moving. “Blue Fang!” Dagger yelled. “We can’t just leave him!” Kydra yelled. “We can’t save him either!” Hivehunter yelled back. He looked at Blue Fang and smirked. As the train started moving faster, Hivehunter slammed the door. Even from Blue Fangs position, he could still here the metal door slamming. The cold started impairing his vision. He felt a hoof grab him. He looked up and saw the Crystal Guards standing over him, with the Guard who Mitchell kicked in the face in front. Before he could say anything, the Guard said, “dumb Bug, why’d you run?” The Guards laughed. He looked down at Blue Fang, “Must be hiding something.” The Guard felt around Blue Fangs body. He pulled out an imaginary piece of paper. “Son of a Mare was holding out on us.” The other Guards laughed harder. The Guard got a smirk look on his face. He looked down at Blue Fang than back at then at the train. “Well ain’t that something, Bug.” Then he kicked Blue Fang in face, knocking him out. Approximately 2 Hours Later Blue Fang woke up in a small cell. He rubbed the left side of his face, which hurt a lot. Where am I? He couldn’t even think without pain shooting though his head. A hard bang on the door made him jump. He looked through the small peak hole in the door, but he saw nothing. He assumed it was his nerves messing with him. He looked around the room. Wow, they just HAD to give me a bucket He thought staring at the small pale bucket. He looked around, hoping the Ponies at least gave him his diary. He couldn’t find it. He punched the wall out of anger, the rage burning away the pain. Another loud knock came from the door. Okay, definitely not my nerves. He took a deep breathe in, then let it out. “Hello?” The knock came even harder, as if the door had been kicked. “Quiet Bug!” Someone yelled. “Leave the ‘Thing’ alone,” someone else said. Thing, a Thing?! Who do they think I am, an object? We don’t call them ‘Things’. Blue Fang was enraged by the name. He looked through the hole again. He saw two Crystal Guards looking back at him. “What are you looking at?” The first Guard asked. “Just leave him alone,” the other one said. “Why should I?” He asked, “he’s the one who kicked Diamondshard in the face.” Blue Fang was confused, but then he remembered Mitchell kicked a Guard in the face. “Look,” Blue Fang said, “I don’t know who told you, but I did not kick the CG in the face.” “Then who did, Bugger?” The Guard asked “That would be my Sergeant,” Blue Fang replied. The two Guards looked at each other, then back at Blue Fang. “Whatever you say, Bug.” He looked at them with a angry feeling inside of him, but then he realized that he, along with all the other Changelings, always called the Guards, RG’s or CG’s, depending on which Guard they fought. So they did technically have a reason to have a prejudice against the Changelings. Another Guard came over and handed the nicer Guard a small book. “Here, you should read this,” He said handing the book to the Guard. Blue Fang immediately recognized the cover. “My journal!” He said. The three Guards looked at him. The Guard opened the journal and read one of the entries. He looked at Blue Fang. “Here,” He said giving Blue Fang the journal. The other Guard didn’t look too happy. Before he could say anything thing, someone else came walking towards the group. Blue Fang used CI to see who it was. Shining, Cadence, and Thorax Blue Fang thought looking at the three figures. He only knew it was Cadence because of her wings and horn. The two Ponies and Thorax walked towards the cell door. “Hey Thorax,” Blue Fang said. “Hey BF,” Thorax said. “You don’t need to use initials, brother,” Blue Fang said, “they read my journal.” “Sorry about the invasiveness,” Cadence said. Blue Fang looked at her. He felt a bit mad, but at the same time, he didn’t. But he ignored it. “Oh, it’s fine, it’s not like I just had my entire life pretty much invaded by an enemy government,” He said. Thorax shook his head. Blue Fang looked at the journal, then back at Cadence. “Look, I’m sorry,” Blue Fang said, which surprised everyone in the room, all except Thorax. The Guards looked at each other, Cadence and Shining exchanged looks somewhat in between confused and surprised. Blue Fang continued, “it’s just, I don’t like have anyone, not even my brothers, going through my personal things.” There was a moment of silence. Everyone just stood around. Then Shining said, “We’ll give you a choice, give us the secrets of your hive and you’re free to live here, or you can stay here in this cell as a prisoner.” What will Blue Fang do? *Give Secrets* Continue reading *Remain Loyal* Move to the ===***=== symbol “Ok, you win,” Blue Fang said. He gave every secret he knew about the hive. Rest as we know is history A Few Months After Chrysalis’s Defeat Blue Fang got out of his bed. He’d been staying with Thorax in the Crystal Empire ever since he’d been captured. Thorax walked in. “Hey, it’s time you head home,” Thorax said. “But won’t they—“ “Don’t worry, they’ve changed, literally.” Blue Fang got out of bed and flew with Thorax towards the hive. He just got used to Thorax’s new look. When they got to the hive, it looked different. Blue Fang hardly recognized it. He stood behind Thorax. The two went onto a large rock. “Stay behind here until I tell you to come out,” Thorax said. “Okay.” Thorax flew onto the rock. “Everyone, I have an announcement!” He said. All the Changeling came towards the rock. “Alright, I want to bring someone back, someone most of you probably miss.” “Who would that be?” Someone asked, but Blue Fang recognized the voice, Pharynx.” “An old friend,” Thorax replied, he looked at Blue Fang and did a head wave. Blue Fang took a deep breath and walked up onto the rock. When he got to the top, Thorax introduced him. “Everyone, this is Blue Fang.” The Changelings stared in disbelief. He was alive, and back at that. “Blue Fang? Your alive?!” Someone yelled. He recognized the voice. “Yes I am, Dagger!” A green Changeling came flying towards him. He hugged Blue Fang. “Wow, I can’t believe you’re back!” “Me neither Dagger, me neither.” Blue Fang walked around, looking for everyone he knew as Changeling soldier. He walked back to Thorax, who was talking to Pharynx. “I can’t believe it, this all happened while I was gone?” Blue Fang asked. “Yeah, I’m surprised myself,” Pharynx replied, “who knew the weakest could be a great leader?” “Hey, that’s me you’re talking about!” Thorax commented. “Yeah I know,” Pharynx said laughing. He looked at Blue Fang. “Hey you good Blue?” “No,” Blue Fang said, “When I was captured, I gave up the secrets to the hive, and even though, for some reason they didn’t use them to their advantage, I still feel wrong about it.” “Hey, you did what you had to do,” Pharynx said, “look, let’s keep this between us, alright?” The three agreed and dispersed, but deep down inside, Blue Fang still felt bad, and worst of all, he abandoned the hive. He swore to never let Brokenwing down again, but now, he felt like he did. Ending 1/4: the Dishonored Ending. Blue Fang feels bad he failed the hive. He also doesn’t know where Hivehunter is and worries he will be a threat. The End Blue Fang looked at them. “I’m sorry, but I’ll have to decline that offer.” Thorax looked down, while Cadence and Shining just shrugged. Then they walked away. “You could’ve been free,” Thorax said, “why didn’t you accept their offer?” “You can have anything in the world, you can change anything about my personality, but you can’t change the fact that I’m loyal to the hive,” Blue Fang said. “Guess you’re right, but what are you going to do now?” Thorax asked. “I don’t know, but whatever happens, I know you got my back.” “You bet.” The two nodded and Thorax walked away. Blue Fang looked at the journal. He opened it and grabbed the quill. He wrote in the journal. He looked up, knowing he would probably be here a long time. Blues Log Mission Status: Failed Current Rank: Private First Class Cpt. Brokenwing: Alive Lt. Hivehunter: Unknown Sfc. Mitchell: Unknown Sgt. Pharynx: Unknown Cpl. Kydra: Unknown Spc. Stinger: Unknown Pvt. Dagger: Unknown Pvt. Mantis: Unknown Abandoned, that’s the first thing I feel. I’ve been left behind by Hivehunter. I hope the others got home. I only know Brokenwings okay because he didn’t come on the mission. All I know is that for now, I’m on my own. —Pfc. Blue Fang > Chapter 11: Escaping > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang walked around his cell. He wondered what he could do. He looked at the bucket. He wondered if they really wanted him to do his “business” in there. He stared at his journal. He grabbed the quill they gave him. He opened it up and started writing. Nothing much has happened, I’m still here and I don’t have a way out. But Thorax did say he had a plan. I just hope it’s not a bad one. He closed the journal and sat on the bench. He waited for Thorax to show up. He read through most of his entries, then he got to the entries of Operation Longstrike. He remembered that he swore to never let Brokenwing down again, but now, he may have just did. Pfc. Blue Fang He looked around the cell, he waited for Thorax to come over with the plan. It took about five minutes for Thorax to get there. “Hey Thorax.” “Hey Blue.” “You got the plan?” Blue Fang asked. “More than that,” Thorax replied. He pulled out two pieces of paper. He gave them two Blue Fang. “We have two plans. Loud and Proud, or Sneaky. Which do you want?” “Well, walk me through them,” Blue Fang said. “Alright, for LaP you’ll need dynamite, luckily there’s loads of that in the armory, you’ll need Guards armor for protection, but like dynamite, we can get that from the armory. For Sneaky, like LaP, you’ll need Guards armor, but instead of dynamite, you’ll need a Guards I.D, you’ll also need to stay in Guards form. So which do you want?” (Both outcomes are the same) *Loud and Proud* Continue Reading *Sneaky* Move to the ==***== symbol “Let’s go Loud and Proud.” “Alright, I’ll go get the dynamite and armor, also here’s the schematics of the castle, After all, you were the smart one,” Thorax gave Blue Fang the schematics and left for the armory. 10 Minutes Later “Here,” Thorax said giving Blue Fang the armor and the dynamite. He then opened the door and let Blue Fang out. Blue Fang slipped on the armor. “What if they trace this back to you?” Blue Fang asked. “Don’t worry, I’ll make a lie up about how a Manticore broke you out,” Thorax replied winking. “Pharynx did that same thing.” “What?” “I’ll tell you later,” Blue Fang hugged Thorax, “bye, again.” “Bye Blue,” Thorax walked away. Blue Fang walked towards a weak wall he saw while reading the schematics. He looked around the castle, trying to find anything to bring back. He found the wall. He lit the dynamite and put it on the wall. He covered his ears and the dynamite went off. A large bell started ringing, no doubt it was an alarm. He looked around a corner. A couple of Guards came running down the hall, being lead by Shining Armor. Time to show theses Ponies what kinda son of a mare I am. Blue Fang waited for Shining to get closer to him. When he got closer, Blue Fang came from around the corner and smashed the helmet on the side of his face. One of the Guards swung his hoof at him, but Blue Fang used magic to grab the hoof. The other Guard tried to attack him, but Blue Fang used his one of his hind legs to kick him. “How’d you get out?” Shining asked. Blue Fang didn’t want to rat out Thorax, so he said, “you should check your P.O.Ws for lock picks.” Shining looked like he had a small stroke, which amused Blue Fang a little bit. “Don’t worry, I ain’t going to kill you, just give me a map, a train ticket, and I’ll let you go.” Shining reached over to a nearby bookshelf and pulled out a map, and train ticket. He gave the map and ticket to Blue Fang. “Shining!” Blue Fangs attention turned from Shining to the door, which had been blasted opened. There stood Cadence and another orange Pony holding Flurry Heart. He dropped Shining and pulled out another stick of dynamite. Cadence and the other Pony went from aggressive to worried, knowing that one fatal mistake could cost both Shining and Blue Fangs life. Blue Fang watched as he walked away, still holding the dynamite. He wasn’t going to actually light it, but he thought it would get him out. He walked away, still watching the two Ponies. He turned and ran. He went into Cadence and Shining Armors room. He pick up some of the Valuable gems. Diamonds, Rubies, Topaz, jeez these Ponies are loaded. He left the room and to an exit. He opened one of the entrances and looked around. A loud bell started ringing. Blue Fang ran into the town. A few Guards came out onto the street. Blue Fang lit his horn and shot at the Guards. The Guards shot back, one of the beams almost hit another Crystal Pony. Blue Fang shot another beam and hit the other beam, saving the civilian. The Guards stared in shock. Blue Fang just shot back a death stare. “To you, I may be a monster, but in reality I got standards!” Blue Fang usually never showed remorse for anyone who attacked him, whether it be Pony, Griffon, Yak, or other, if they attacked, he’d retaliate. But he hated seeing civilians caught up in the crossfire. He felt the same feeling when he protected Thorax and Pharynx from Hivehunter. It was something about protecting those who can’t protect themselves. He shot the Guards in their legs. He ran out of the town and towards the train station. He changed into his Pony form and threw off the armor. He got onto the train station and waited for the train to reach Ponyville. He’d stay there for a few days and then head home. Blues Log Mission Status: Successful Current Rank: Private First Class I escaped the Crystal Empire with the help of Thorax. He got me the materials and the morale to do it. I just with I could’ve stayed longer to get intel, oh well. —Pfc. Blue Fang “I’ll go with Sneaky.” “Seems you’ve learned much,” Thorax said, “I’ll go get the stuff, here take this. It’s the schematics.” Blue Fang read the schematics, he saw a door that wasn’t guarded, and was unlocked. Thorax came back with the supplies, “Here.” “Thanks Thorax.” “No problem, here I’ll let you out,” Thorax opened the door and Blue Fang walked out. “Hey Thorax, what if they trace this back to you?” “Don’t worry, I’ll just tell them a Manticore broke you out,” Thorax said winking. “Pharynx did the same thing.” “What?” “I’ll tell you later, bye Thorax.” “Bye Blue.” The two hugged and went their separate ways. Blue Fang looked for the Crystal Heart, knowing it would provide the hive with love for years, but saw that it had a security alarm around it. He left the room and went to Cadence and Shinings room. He looked around the room and picked up a few valuable jewels. Diamonds, Rubies, Topaz, jeez these Ponies are loaded. He left the room and went to a room that apparently had valuable intel. He looked found the room, but as he assumed, it was guarded. He took out a Bit and threw it past the Guard. “Who’s there?” the Guard said. He walked towards the Bit, not noticing Blue Fang coming up from behind him. Blue Fang grabbed him by the neck, pulling him back behind the door, his grunts becoming silenced by the door closing. Blue Fang walked out with the intel and headed towards the exit door. He went outside and ran towards the gate. “Stop!” Someone said. Blue Fang turned around to see another Guard standing behind him. “Where do you think you’re going?” “I just heard a noise and was going to go investigate,” Blue Fang replied, hoping the disguise would work. “I’ll check it out, you stay here,” the Guard said. He walked towards the end of the gate, and looked around. “Nothing here Recru—“ Blue Fang slammed his helmet across the Guards face, knocking him out cold. “Sorry, tonight is my night,” Blue Fang said walking away. He took off the armor and dumped it into a bush, then he changed into Arrowshot and went to the train station. He got a ticket to Ponyville, where he’d stay for a few days, then he’d head back. Blues Log Mission Status: Successful Current Rank: Private First Class I escaped with help from Thorax. I also was able to gather some intel about the Crystal Empire, hopefully we can use it to our advantage —Pfc. Blue Fang > Chapter 12: Homecoming > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang walked around Ponyville, looking around the place. It had changed since he was last there. He walked around the small town with nothing to do. He’d left the intel behind by mistake, so as of now all he could do was head home. He walked towards Twilights tree castle thing. He knocked on the door, causing it to open, he peaked in and saw more Changelings, all replacing Twilight and her friends. He then saw Starlight and another Blue Pony. He left, not wanting to be seen, and went back to the hive. The flight was exhausting, considering it was basically miles away from Ponyville. He looked around the hive, strangely no Changeling Guards around, no one on patrol, nothing. He went into one of the holes and flew around the hive. He found where everyone was gathered. He was confused, so he listened to what they where saying. “Blue Fangs unfortunate capture has lead us to believe... he is gone,” Brokenwing said. “How?” Pharynx asked. “Well, considering he’s loyal to the hive, they probably asked for info, and he refused, then they... killed him.” Everyone who went on the mission turned their heads towards Hivehunter, all with death stares. “Blue Fang was a good soldier, it’s a shame he left so early,” Grubber said. “You’re telling me,” Kydra replied. Blue Fang looked down, they all thought he was dead. He decided to show everyone he wasn’t dead. Pharynx looked down, processing the words he just heard. “Ended him.” Blue Fang was really gone, and there was nothing he could do about it. He wanted to cry, there was a new emotion in him. It felt like, sadness. He looked at Hivehunter, who looked “sad.” He knew it was all a ruse. He looked at Kydra. Blue Fang told him that he had a crush on her. Considering that Changelings can only call each other brother and or sister if the Changelings want to brother or sister, so it technically isn’t really incest. He wanted to tell her, but couldn’t. For the first time, he actually felt something inside him, sadness. Blue Fang looked at Pharynx, he didn’t know what to say or do, go back into hiding, or announce his presence. He thought about his options. He oversimplified them. A: desert the hive and leave his family behind, or B: staying with the family who raised him. It was all just a cluster buck. He watched Brokenwing clutch a small medal, the medal given to fallen Changelings who died heroically. He couldn’t bear watching his family suffer. He was mad, not at Hivehunter, but at himself. He was weaker than he thought he was. He always thought he was a strong Changeling. He couldn’t take it anymore. “Hivehunter!” He yelled. Everyone froze and looked in his direction. He looked back until his eyes locked with Hivehunters. “You left me to die!” Everyone fell quiet, not a single sound echoed through the tunnel. It was so quiet, Blue Fang could hear his thoughts and think they were someone behind him. He walked down, glaring straight daggers into Hivehunter. He grabbed Hivehunter and threw him to the ground. “What’s wrong with you?!” Hivehunter asked. Blue Fang punched again and again, beating Hivehunter and probably giving him a new wound. He probably would’ve severely injured Hivehunter if Grubber and Dagger hadn’t grabbed him. He looked at Brokenwing, who just nodded. He looked around the hive. It felt off... as if he was being watched. He continued to look until he saw Chrysalis staring at him, then at Hivehunter. She moved her hoof to the infirmary at walked away. He looked at Hivehunter and The Changelings helping him. He looked at his comrades. The ones who tried to save him, but couldn’t, because of someone who didn’t care for his own. 5 Hours Later Blue Fang stared at the hive through his binoculars. The top half of it had been blown off, exploding with Chrysalis’s throne. He looked around the bottom part of it. He watched the Reformed Changelings move around, picking up small stones and other debris from the ground. He went back to the small camp set up near Appleoosa. He looked around the camp, trying to get used to the conditions he’d be living in for the rest of his life. > Chapter 13: Outlaws 🎵 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang walked around camp. He’d just gotten used to the look of the hive, now he was back outside. He knew who he was staying with at least, last thing he needed was to be camping with a stranger. Me, Kydra, Stinger, Dagger, Mantis, Hivehunter, Mitchell, and Brokenwing, oh and little Zenex Blue Fang thought, This should be great fun. He walked to Brokenwings tent. Apparently, his old Captain had a job for him. He opened Brokenwings tent. The two greeted each other and Brokenwing told Blue Fang what he needed to do: rob a store. Should be easy enough. He left for Appleoosa, changing into another alter ego, Deal Breaker. He used this form to commit more “dishonorable” acts, and he used Arrowshot for “Honorable” acts. He knew what he was doing was wrong, but nothing meant more to him than the Old Hive as they are now calling it. With the hive ruled by Thorax, and... probably Pharynx, Blue Fang expected change. He looked up to the town. He went into a back alley and slipped on a bandanna. He walked into the general store and went to the pony working the old fashioned register. He asked Blue Fang to take off the mask, but Blue Fang replied by lighting up his horn. “Bits, now!” Blue Fang said. “Okay, okay!” The Pony said, opening the register. Blue Fang moved around and got the Bits out of the register. He then moved to the shelves and started scooping food into the bag. “Thank you for your generous patronage,” Blue Fang said. He left the store and went to the back alley. He opened up the bag to see what he got. 27 Bits, couple of canned goods, candy, chocolate, and some fishing bait. He didn’t really need fishing supplies, but took it anyways. After all, they were omnivores, so a little fish wouldn’t hurt. He turned around and saw a couple of Ponies chasing him. He used magic as best he could. He shot one down, and used a smoke spell to throw them off. He headed back to camp, making sure he wasn’t followed by anyone. He donated the money to the Camps Savings Account, or CSA. He took some of the chocolate and canned foods for himself. He walked over to his tent and laid down. He tried going to sleep, but couldn’t. He thought about Zenex. The little grub didn’t know what was going on. All he knew was the propaganda that Hivehunter pushed onto him. He was able to ensure the young grub did not follow in Hivehunters steps. He got up and walked towards Zenexes tent. He peeked inside and saw Hivehunter and Brokenwing sitting with him. He listened to the conversation between the three. “Hivehunter, Brokenwing?” Zenex asked. “Yeah?” Hivehunter replied “Can you two sing?” Blue Fang almost laughed at the idea of Hivehunter singing. Brokenwing was different. He, like Stinger and Kydra, usually acted a little like Thorax in the since they felt the emotions like regret and forgiveness. He listened as Hivehunter used his magic to start a bit of music. It sounded like, Power Metal? He and Brokenwing got ready to sing. Blue Fang knew what song this was, Hive Mind. He remembered a Changeling band called Solleret played the song as a morale booster. (Blue= Brokenwings lyrics Purple= Hivehunters lyrics Red= Brokenwing and Hivehunter combined lyrics Grey= Instrumental) OohRah Ooh Rah Ooh Rah Ooh Rah Ooh Rah Ooh Rah (Instrumental) Many, many years ago, when the hive rose above. Heeding Chrysalis’s call, the Changelings went to war. (Instrumental) Joined by my siblings, us few against the Pony hordes. Changeling hearts were set ablaze, the hot gate calls our names Our final stand. Stop the Ponies, stealing hooves. Form a wall, live to fall, and live forever. Changelings! Hive mind! Then and again, sing us few hundred bugs Capture! Ponies! Glory and death, Changelings will never surrender. Ooh Rah Ooh Rah Ooh Rah (Instrumental) Morning has broken. Today we were fighting for the Queen. Then Starlight blew the throne away, tonight we dine in shame. A traitors hoof. Secret passage to our land. Know his name, know his shame, will last forever. Changelings! Hive mind! Then and again, sing us few hundred bugs Capture! Ponies! Glory and death, Changelings will never surrender! (Instrumental) Changelings! Hive mind! Then and again, sing us few hundred bugs! Capture! Ponies! Glory and death, Changelings will never surrender! Ooh Rah Ooh Rah Ooh Rah The two end the song in unison, amazing Blue Fang. He’d never seen the two work together like that. Now he sounded like Thorax. Although he could tell Brokenwing didn’t like some of parts that they remade. Like the racism, and the the hate of Thorax. Blue Fang walked back to his tent. He looked at the night sky, wondering what would happen next. The Next Day Ponyville Blue Fang sat at the table with Zenex and Kydra, with Dagger coming over theirs magic frequencies. “Lean forward Kydra,” he said, “you’re supposed to be enjoying this time with your family. Oh you two make the perfect couple.” “Dagger,” she said, “focus on the mission, not shipping us.” “Alright, alright, sheesh. Okay, you three will stay there and see if there are any “opportunities” for us.” “Alright,” she said, cutting the transmission. She looked at Blue Fang, then at Zenex. “We should make a name for him.” “What’s your Pony name?” “Sweet Dreams, gosh Pony names are weird.” “Okay, so Arrowshot and Sweet Dreams... Okay, how about Quiver Dreams?” “I got nothing better.” “That sound good, Zen? “Yes sir.” Blue Fang looked at the little grub. He wanted to pass his wisdom down to Zen. Maybe he could start a new hive. “Alright, Quiver you go to playground and play with the other Ponies.” “Okay daddy!” He said getting up. Kydra looked at him and snickered, “daddy?” Blue Fang blushed, “Yeah... I drilled him on this...” Kydra just kept laughing like there was no tomorrow. “Whatever you say honey.” The word honey somewhat made Blue Fang melt on the inside. This wasn’t like the Romantic-dinner-every-character-has-with-his-or-her-crush Blue Fang read about in books, nor was it the way he thought he’d ever date Kydra. Not like she’d say yes. He looked over towards Zenex. He felt love for the bug like he was his son or something. He looked at his family, this was going to be a long stay. He pulled out his journal. Day 1: I’m not sure way Brokenwing chose me, Kydra, and Zenex to do this. Maybe because we standout? I don’t know. Hopefully nothing happens. > Chapter 14: A Day in Ponyville > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang walked around Ponyville, looking for “opportunities.” Anything would do, bank, train, station wagon. He changed into Deal Breaker so when he used Arrowshot, he wouldn’t seem suspicious. He went to the post office to see if any trains or wagons would be coming in. He studied a small board at the entrance. Notice! Bank Train arriving: Saturday 9:30am! Perfect. He walked around Ponyville and looked for any form of bank. He walked past Rarity’ shop. He peeked inside. He saw a bin filled with gems. He decided to come back later and get gems. He looked at the Town Hall. He went inside to ask the Mayor if there was a bank. “Hello there,” the Mayor said. Considering that she appeared to be an elder, she probably had to know the town like the back of her hoof. “Hi,” Blue Fang said, “I’m looking for the bank, if there is one.” “Oh sure, go past the bakery, then go right and keep walking, you should see it.” “Thank you,” Blue Fang said walking towards the door. He followed the route and headed to the bakery. A familiar voice caught his ear. “Hello sir!” He knew it was Pinkie right from get-go. He nervously turned around and looked at the Mare. Just the voice of the Pony made him want to grab his ears. “Hello,” He said trying to sound happy. “Is there anything I could help you with?” He facehoofed in thought. What was he doing?! “Oh no, I don’t need help, but maybe you do.” She grabbed him and took him into the bakery. She sat him down at a table and got him a cupcake. “Listen, um...” “Pinkie Pie.” “Listen Pinkie Pie, I’m not hungry.” He got up and headed for the door. “But there must be something you want.” “Nope!” And with that he walked out. He walked away from the bakery and headed towards the bank. Deal Breaker, you’ve done it again, he said in thought. He scanned the bank and looked for weak points. He found a wall that could be broken down with a few good magic blasts. He left and went back to the hotel he rented under Arrowshots name. He walked into an alley, changed into Arrowshot, then left. While walking, he noticed Twilight reading a poster on a nearby wall. He walked over towards her. “Oh, am I in your way?” She asked not knowing it was Arrowshot behind her. “Yes ma’am,” Blue Fang cringed while he said it. Twilight moved out of the way so he could see it. WANTED Brokenwing: 25 Bits Hivehunter: 50 Bits Mitchell: 25 Bits Kydra: 25 Bits Dagger: 50 Bits Stinger: 25 Bits Blue Fang: 75 Bits REWARD: 275 BITS FOR CAPTURE OF ALL CHANGELINGS If Blue Fang had known he’d be worth 75 Bits, he’d turned himself in. By this point, Twilight had noticed that Arrowshot was next to her. “Oh, it’s you,” she said. He looked at her awkwardly. “Um yeah, it’s me.” “I don’t think we made proper introductions, I’m Twilight Sparkle,” she reached a hoof out. “I’m Arrowshot,” He said returning the gesture. He wondered how it came to capturing these Ponies to shaking hoofs with these Ponies. “Well Arrowshot, may I ask why you were looking at the poster?” She said. “I was just interested.” “Oh.” There was a bit of awkward silence between the two before Twilight said, “Well I’d better get back.” “Yeah... you do that,” He said watching her walk away. He headed to the school to get Zenex. He looked around the school. Zenex came out of the school surrounded by three Fillies. He waved for Zenex to come to him. Zenex, followed by the Fillies, walked over to him. “Hey Arrow,” Zenex said. “Hey Quiver,” Blue Fang replied. He looked at the three Fillies, “who are they?” “Their my new friends, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom.” “Hi you three,” he greeted the three. He wondered who was picking them up. He got his answer in the form of Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack. Just great. Applejack looked up, “hi mister...” “Arrowshot,” he replied. “This is the one you told us about?” Rarity asked. “Yeah,” she looked back at him. “I didn’t know you had a son.” “Oh no, we’re brothers,” Blue Fang quickly said. He and Kydra went from “star crossed lovers” to “brothers and sisters.” The reason being is because they couldn’t deal with Dagger constantly shipping them. Well that and the fact it was awkward to “date” your crush. “Oh sorry, it’s just, I saw you with that Pony and I guess I just assumed.” “Yeah we get that a lot,” Blue Fang looked at Zenex, “I think we should get back.” “Yeah we should be getting home too,” Rainbow said. The group dispersed. Blue Fang and Zenex walked back to the hotel. Blue Fang looked down. “What’s wrong Blue— I— I mean Arrow?” “You may wanna work on that,” Blue Fang replied, “but I’m kinda, what’s the word, ashamed.” “Why?” “You saw what happened over there.” Zenex looked at him. He appeared to be ashamed of something too. While walking, Zenex appeared to limping. Blue Fang looked at him. “What’s wrong?” “Nothing!” “I can sense when you’re lying.” Zenex looked at his left hind leg. Blue Fang took a look. It looked like someone had hit it with a stick of some sort. “Who did this?” Blue Fang asked. Zenex didn’t reply, “Who. Did. This.” “A Colt named Skyhigh.” Blue Fang looked down. “What does he look like?” “He’s blue with a black mane, and purple eyes.” “Go home, I’ll deal with this.” Zenex just nodded. Blue Fang walked around town, looking for this Skyhigh. He looked all around Ponyville. He saw a Pony matching the description in an alley. He slipped on his bandanna and walked over to the Pony. “Excuse me,” Blue Fang said, “are you Skyhigh?” “What’s it to you?” “Are. You. Skyhigh.” “Yes, now why does it matter to you?” “Do you know somepony named Quiver?” “Yeah, I beat him up today.” “Oh, ok.” Blue Fang walked over to the Pony. He grabbed the Pony by the shoulder. “What are you doing—“ With one quick punch to the jaw, the Pony was out. “Never mess with my family again,” He dropped the Pony into a trash bin and left. He took the bandanna off and walked to the hotel. The three sat at the table and discussed what happened today. “So what did we find out?” Blue Fang asked. “Two of my classmates are rich,” Zenex said, “their names are Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.” “Alright, we can work with that. Kydra?” “I heard a wagon was coming around tomorrow.” “Alright, and I found a bank and it’s trains arriving on Saturday.” “Alright, let’s head back to camp.” The three headed back to camp. They explained what they had found out. They start planning first thing tomorrow. > Chapter 15: Robbing > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The gang gathered around the table. They laid the plans down and studied them. “Alright,” Mitchell said, “we have two plans the train or the bank.” “We could hit both,” Blue Fang said, “but we’ll have to split up.” “Alright,” Brokenwing said. “What about that wagon, the gems in Rarity’s shop, and those rich Ponies?” Kydra asked. “You and Zenex can handle them, we’ll handle the other jobs,” Mitchell replied, “alright, as for the rest of you, raise your left hoof if you want to do the bank job, right for train.” Bank Job Continue reading Train Job Move to ==***== Blue Fang raised his left hoof. “Alright, so Me and Blue got the bank,” Brokenwing said, “Mitchell, Hivehunter, Dagger, and Stinger, you got the train. We make our escape on the train.” The group headed towards their respective jobs. Blue Fang and Brokenwing headed to the bank. The two had never done anything like this. Sure, the battlefield had connected them, but they’d never robbed anything, let alone a possibly guarded bank. The two got into position. “Change into your normal form,” Brokenwing said, “we don’t need bounties on our alter egos.” “Alright.” The two changed and broke down the door. “This is a robbery, all of you on the ground!” Blue Fang looked around seeing if anyone wanted to be a hero. “Cover me, I’ll get the safes.” He went over to the clerk and moved to the vault room. “Open the room or your dead!” The clerk moved over to the door and entered the combination. He took a while to unlock the door, but he eventually got it open. Brokenwing threw Blue Fang a couple of sticks of dynamite. He placed them on the safes and lit them up. The explosion was loud enough to be heard from the Dragon Lands. He quickly moved in and grabbed the Bits. He got each safe as fast as he could, scooping Bits into the bag. He moved to the wall he’d found and placed a stick of dynamite on it. Another explosion and they were out. They moved out and headed for the road. As Blue Fang expected, Twilight and her friends were already right on their trail. “Come up here!” Someone yelled. They looked up and saw Kydra. Blue Fang grabbed Broken and they flew up. “Come on, follow me,” she said leading them away. They hopped into an alley, with Twilight and her friends right behind them. They jumped into the alley and looked around. “Where in the hay did they go?” Applejack asked. “They can’t have gone far,” Twilight replied, “Come on!” The six ran out of the alley. Blue Fang and Kydra opened a trash bin and jumped out, with Broken and Zenex following suit. “Remind me to never let Kydra pick hiding spots again,” Brokenwing said. “Hey it worked, didn’t it?” Kydra replied. “Yeah, but we gotta clean up,” Broken replied. “No time,” Blue Fang said, “the trains gonna be here, come on!” The group ran out of the alley and into the direction of the train. They found the part of the track that left Ponyville. They waited for about two minutes before the train moved to there position. Mitchell hung out the side of the train. “Come on, jump!” The four looked at each other. They nodded and jumped on. Zenex lost his balance and almost fell off the train. Hivehunter grabbed him and pulled him up. “Are you alright?” He asked. Zenex nodded. The train was moving up to a nearby forest. The gang looked at each other. “We got away...” Stinger started, “we got away!” The gang cheered as they realized that the train had got away. Dagger looked at a nearby poster. “Um Blue, who’s train is this?” “I don’t know, bank train?” Stinger picked up the poster. “It says, Celestia’s Donation to Ponyville.” The gang fell silent. They didn’t need to say a word. They knew the Royal Guard was going to be all over this. A magic bolt flew past them. Hivehunter turned around and shot the Guard who shot at them. The gang got into position like they were digging in for a siege. Blue Fang looked over the side and shot at the Guards using RFM. The knock back was almost to much to handle, but he pushed through and caused the Guards to retreat. The gang cheered as they knew they’d won. “Hey Blue,” Dagger said. “Yeah?” “I found these tickets in a lockbox.” He gave the six golden tickets to Blue Fang. Blue Fang read the tickets. You are hereby invited to the Grand Galloping Gala! All Princesses will attend! It will be a night to remember! Sunday, Tomorrow Night, Canterlot. End of Chapter 15 For Those Who Chose Option 1 Blue Fang raised his right hoof. “Alright,” Brokenwing said. “So me and Stinger have the Bank, Blue, Dagger, Mitchell, and Hivehunter have the train. The gang agreed and headed to their respective jobs. Blue Fang and the group snuck around in the alleyways. They knew the position of the train. The group moved around and tried finding openings. Dagger looked at the train for a bit. “Look,” he whispered, “there’s one Guard, we could take him out silently.” Blue Fang moved behind the boxes. He threw a Bit on the ground to lure the Guard out. “Huh?” The Guard said. He moved close to Blue Fangs position. Blue Fang waited for Hivehunters signal. Hivehunter move his hoof to his head in a knock out fashion, so Blue Fang jumped up and grabbed the Guard. He used a silenced spell to knock the Guard out. The group moved up with Blue Fang. “What do we do now?” Mitchell asked. “You guys cover me, I’ll get the train moving,” Blue Fang replied. The group nodded. Blue Fang sneaked towards the front of the train, taking out Guards as he went along. He found the front of the train and moved up to the conductor, then he grabbed him. He used the silenced spell to knock him out, then he moved towards the lever to start the train. He grabbed a nearby string and pulled on it, causing a loud sound to come of the trains whistle. The train started moving towards the exit. He hung out the side and watched as the others jumped on. He moved towards them, taking out Guards that stood in his way. He told the gang to look around for anything valuable. He found a room with a small lockbox. He moved towards it and opened it. He picked up six golden tickets, and a few Bits. He looked at the tickets which read: You are hereby invited to the Grand Galloping Gala! All Princesses will attend! It will be a night to remember! Sunday, Tomorrow Night, Canterlot. He slipped them into the sack and walked back to the others. As he walked, he heard Mitchell yell, “Come on! Jump!” He ran towards where he’d heard Mitchell yell. There he saw Brokenwing, Kydra, Zenex, and Stinger jumping onto the train. Zenex lost his balance and almost fell off, but Hivehunter grabbed him and pulled him back. “You Alright?” He asked. Zenex nodded. They moved up to a nearby forest. The gang looked at each other. “We got away...” Stinger started, “we got away!” The gang cheered. Dagger looked over to a nearby poster, “um Blue, who’s train is this?” “I don’t know, bank train?” Dagger picked up the poster, “it says, Celestia’s donation to Ponyville.” The gang fell silent, they knew the Royal Guard was going to be all over this. A magic bolt flew past them. Hivehunter turned around and shot the Guard. Blue Fang hung out the side a used RFM to hold the Guards off. Eventually the Guards gave up and left. The gang cheered as they got away. I never thought being an Outlaw, as the Ponies call them, would be this fun. I can’t wait for more robbery’s. > Chapter 16: The Gala 🎵 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang studied the tickets he got from the train. He wondered what the Grand Galloping Gala was. All he knew was that it was tonight. He went to the center of camp where everyone was celebrating their first successful robbery. “Hey Blue!” Dagger said, “come on, sit down, I saved you a seat next to your girl.” “Dagger, it ain’t like that,” Blue Fang said taking his seat. He looked at the tickets. “Come on, kick back a little,” Dagger said, “sing a song or something.” “Yeah Blue, why don’t you and Ky sing a little song?” Brokenwing said. The two looked at each other. “sigh Fine.” (Blue= Blue Fangs lyrics Purple= Kydras lyrics Red= Brokenwings speech) Instrumental Well, after all we done. Might’ve found that gold. Sound like a fair bounty? It never was about the money. Let me ask one question, where the Bits at? I’m rolling with the bad cats in the black hats. I’m basically a beast of burden, baggin’ fat stacks. Empty out ya bank account and then we’ll wrap fast. I Never had any problem resolved with words rather whip out my magic first. Tell every mare to drop her purse. You’re not gonna need it for knockin’ spurs. Gosh for what it’s worth, I never gone to school. I never got to learn right or wrong, I’m a lot a work For the RG’s, why would I run and hide? I’m the best lookin’ bug on any Wanted sign. Not gonna haul us off, and lock us up alive cause we, roll deep and we’re ride or die (Yep) Ride or die, you can ride on by, or the railroads where your gonna lie hogtied, and I got the quickest horn to keep you all in line. No rush for gold cause I got my pockets alined. Never settling down cause I’m a traveling bug, that’s why I know these roads like the back of my hoof. We keep chuggin’ gotta stay on track. We’ve hoarded enough scores, we could break our backs. Better tell the Undertaker to get the shop open, I run into town with my wings and horn smokin’. My horn is so hot that the sand would feel colder, I got cobwebs on my wings silk holster! If they try to stop ya, rise up and fight. When you’re cuffed and locked up, it’s time to ignite. Got you going off like, dynamite. Just like Broken taught us, Ride or Die. We don’t it for the ladies. You’re my ride or die. Nah, it ain’t about the money. Be my ride or die. Guess we’re all a little crazy. We’re ride or die. We only do it cuz we love it. Step into the Equestrian Frontier, where the tracks have been laid with plenty of sweat, blood, tears. Anyone looking for bugs who behave, ain’t gonna get none here. Take a ticket to the pain train, cuz I’m the engineer. Gonna go off the rails so then I can just steer. Forget redemption, I think revenge is our next career. Nobody better betray the gang, you’ll get hung, clear? Why am I making cocoons? you’ll take the next one dear. Put you to sleep six feet deep under me, then any memory left of you will become tumbleweeds. Call my gang, kick it off, ready up, got no time for horn-to-horn. Take ya hoofs, stick’em up, then your Bits, give it up. I’m a bug, who’s just as hung as a Stallion. Make the Mares swoon as soon as I’m through the saloon door. Chest like a washboard, who wants a few chores? (Me!) Leave your wife home, unless you want me to do yours? (Bridge) I left behind a quiet life. Why? My wild side doesn’t like to hide. Ky tried to find a goldmine, woulda been dynamite, but when she couldn’t, she held a ransom at the highest price. We said buck nine-to-fives, we’re the kinda bugs for heist. With a wine drinking problem, we don’t mind advice. Check the sky, when it’s high noon, time to strike. We’re both Changelings, get out of our line of sight. We all know that the law has bounds, that they’ve drawn around, that won’t stop us now. Your emotions what draws us out. Now your once calm town, has a Changeling count. (End of Bridge) We’re all Outlaws, aren’t you proud ma? Wanna go hoof-to-hoof in duel? Now draw! You can bet when my ES soon sounds off, even Luna’s Personal Guard would up and bounce y’all. Covered in magic burns, is how you’ll be found. The heat of the burns is startin’ fires all around. You’ll become another chump, in one of the stories that I can tell, by the fireside at night, Changelings please gather around. I’m the legend they’ll soon call Blue Fang. Sparkle’s taking notes I came long before her. I’m a rolling stone, a long rangin’ rockstar. But I’m not on my own, otherwise I wouldn’t have got far. Doesn’t mean I don’t keep my cards close to my own chest, trust is tough to be earned while you’re on the run. Whoever’s by your side whether you’re in fight or flight, in the end you’re only friend is to ride or die If they try to stop ya, rise up and fight. When you’re cuffed and locked up, it’s time to ignite. Got you going off like, dynamite. Just like Broken taught us, Ride or Die. We don’t it for the ladies. You’re my ride or die. Nah, it ain’t about the money. Be my ride or die. Guess we’re all a little crazy. We’re ride or die. We only do it cuz we love it. The two stared at each other. They’d never sing together, and it was kinda fun. Meanwhile, the gang was cheering like they were watching a buckball game and they’re team won 10-0. The cheering was put on pause when a nearby twig snapped. “What was that?” Dagger asked looking in the direction of the sound. A Changeling hoof stepped out of the shrubbery. Then, the rest figure emerged from the bushes. It was Pharynx. “Pharynx?” Stinger asked, “where’ve you been?” “Trying to convince my brother that we need to revert to our old ways,” he replied. “How’d you know we were here?” Mitchell asked. “When a couple of rich Ponies, a wagon, a bank, and a train get robbed by a group of Changelings, it’s pretty obvious where they’d be; in the middle of the woods,” he replied pulling out a piece of paper, which read: WANTED Brokenwing: 50 Bits Hivehunter: 100 Bits Mitchell: 50 Bits Kydra: 50 Bits Dagger: 100 Bits Stinger: 50 Bits Zenex: 25 Bits Blue Fang: 150 Bits REWARD: 575 BITS FOR CAPTURE OF ALL CHANGELINGS Everyone just stared at the wanted poster. They weren’t bothered with how high “THEIR” bounties were, but that they put a bounty on Zenex. How could the Ponies be so evil? Pharynx slipped the posted away, then he saw the tickets that Blue Fang held in his hoof. “Where’d you get those?” “I got them from the train.” Pharynx took the tickets and studied them. “Can’t be.” He said, “these are the tickets to that party.” “Party?” Stinger asked. “Yeah.” Pharynx replied, “each year, they have some party that all the rich Ponies go to. Plus, they have a gem room on display this year, and the Princesses will be there.” “Sounds like an opportunity to me,” Brokenwing said. “Oh it is,” Pharynx replied. “I think I have a plan,” Brokenwing announced. He took the tickets, “Me, Blue, Ky, Dagger, Hive, and Pharynx. If you’re up for it.” “Oh please,” Pharynx replied, “of course I’m in.” The gang used fancy dress attire that Kydra “borrowed” from the rich Ponies she robbed. They waited until night and headed to the Gala. Mantis drove the wagon. The gang sat in the wagon, making jokes and having fun. “We’re here,” Stinger said, “have fun.” “Oh we will,” Dagger replied, “oh we will.” The gang walked to the gate, where the Guards were asking for the tickets. “Halt, let me see your tickets.” Blue Fang gave the tickets to the Guard. He studied them, then let them in. They walked to the main room, where the real party was taking place. The gang admired the decor, from the decorative lights, to the fancy ribbon and streamers that had been hung. “Alright,” Brokenwing said, “me and Copper Coin will head to the gem room,” he said referring to him and Hivehunter. The gang nodded and left. Dagger and Blue Fang went to the bar. “Excuse me,” Dagger said, “can you pass me and my friend a drink?” The bartender gave Blue Fang and Dagger some water. Dagger looked around the party. “Hey Arrow,” He started, “maybe you should find someone to duel.” Blue Fang looked at Dagger. “Are you crazy? I can’t duel here, not in the middle of this party.” A Stallion looked at the two. He walked over to them. Blue Fang already knew this was bad. “Excuse me,” the Stallion said, “did you say you want to duel?” Blue Fang looked at Dagger then back at the Pony. “No, sorry my friend here wasn’t really thinking.” “Oh come on, don’t chicken out.” Blue Fang was taken back by the insult. “Look, I don’t want to duel.” “Come on Arrow, you’ve won lots of duels back home,” Dagger said and he wasn’t lying. Back at the hive, when Brokenwing was still training him in the academy, he taught him how to duel. The rules were very simple, two Unicorns would stand back-to-back, then they would walk five steps away from each other, then someone would count down, “5, 4, 3, 2, 1,” then they would yell, “draw!” After they did that, the two opponents would turn around as fast as they could and blast each other with a strong beam of magic, the one who is still standing wins. He remembered the first duel he won. Blue Fang stood in front of his opponent. The two stared each other down like a foal staring at its reflection in the mirror. The two got into their duel positions. They walked the five paces. Brokenwing counted down. Blue Fang breathed heavily as Broken went from 3 to 2. “Draw!” Blue Fang, without hesitation turned around as fast as he could, the adrenaline rushing through his body like a waterfall running down a mountain. He aimed at his opponent and shot, knocking his opponent out with a swift shot to the head. Brokenwing nodded in approval. Blue Fang looked at his opponent, then back at Broken, before nodding and sitting back down. He watch as the other trainees took their shots. Today would be the first of many duels Blue Fang would win. Blue Fang smiled at his memories, before the Stallion started talking again. “So, are we doing this?” By this point, Twilight and Starlight had noticed the two and came over. “What’s the problem?” Twilight asked. “You tell me,” Blue Fang replied, “my friend here mentioned magic dueling and this Stallion comes over asking if I want to duel.” “Come on Arrow, do it, show this Stallion what you can do!” Dagger said. “Alright,” Blue Fang said, “where are we doing this?” “Right here, right now.” Blue Fang was obviously shocked. Why would he duel in the middle of this party? He looked around, scanning his surroundings, and from all the civilians around, he was more scared of one them getting hurt then blowing his cover. “Look sir, there are just too many Ponies, we can’t duel here.” “You already agreed, so we’re doing it here.” “Alright,” Blue Fang said, “but if any of these Ponies get hurt, it’s on you.” The two stood back to back, the other Ponies stood back. It had become such a deal that even the Princesses looked at the two. “You know you can back down right now.” The Stallion refused. They walked the five paces, and got ready. Dagger counted down. Blue Fang could feel the Stallions determination. Then Dagger yelled “Draw!” and they both turned around to shoot each other. Zap! Zap! Zap! Blue Fang looked at the Stallion, whose eyes were as wide as the sun. He blew the smoke away from his horn as the Stallion collapsed onto his side. A Mare came running towards the Stallion. She picked him up and walked away. Blue Fang turned away and walked back to the bar table. He picked up his water just as Dagger came and sat down. “See, I told you.” Blue Fang just looked down. He turned back to Dagger. “Look...” “Iron Sword.” “Look Iron Sword, you keep pressuring me with this kinda stuff.” Kydra and Pharynx came walking over. “Hey Blue, we just saw your duel.” Kydra said. “Yeah, thank Dag for that.” Dagger let out a chuckle. They stood for awhile, then two Guards walked out with Brokenwing and HiveHunter out of disguise. “That can’t be good,” Pharynx said. “Captain!” One of the Guards said, “look who we found walking around.” Shining, who the gang didn’t even realize was there, stepped out from beside Cadence. The situation was looking bad. Brokenwing came on they’re channels. Kydra, Dagger, I need you to take Blue Fang and Pharynx hostage. That should be enough to persuade them Yes sir Dagger said. Now! Kydra and Dagger jumped up and grabbed Pharynx and Blue Fang. They changed out of their disguise. The shocked crowd backed back realizing that four of the most wanted Changelings were here. “Where’s my sister?!” Blue Fang said in his best I’m-in-trouble voice. “Back home sleep,” Kydra said, “her and that little Colt don’t even know you’re out tonight.” Dagger looked up at the Guards, “gives us our brothers, and we’ll let the Ponies go!” The Guards looked at Shining. “Captain?” “Let them go.” The two Guards hesitated, but eventually let the Changelings go. As part of the deal, Dagger and Kydra let Blue Fang and Pharynx go. Brokenwing came onto the channel. You two gonna be alright? Yeah, we’ll find our way out Blue Fang replied, Kydra, head back to the hotel with Zenex, chances are the new isn’t there yet. Alright. The Changelings jumped out of a nearby window and left. The Guards came running towards Blue Fang and Pharynx. “You two alright?” “Yeah, we’re good.” Twilight came down, “you should go check on your family, Arrowshot.” “Okay, come on Crossbolt,” he said. The two brothers left for Ponyville. The two ran to the train. They didn’t plan on paying, so they waited for the train to start moving, then they jumped on. The ride was boring, but at least it worked. Kydra and Zenex stood outside. They talked for awhile before Twilight and her friends came over. “Are you gonna be alright?” Starlight asked. “Yeah we will,” Blue Fang said looking into the sunset, “yes we will.” > Chapter 17: Reunion and Retaliation > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The four Changelings walked back to camp, very satisfied with how things turned out. When they got to camp, they asked about the gems. “Um...” Brokenwing said. “Please tell me you have them,” Kydra said worried. “Well... Of course I have’em!” The gang cheered as they heard the news. Mitchell came out of the shrubbery. “Look who I found,” He said. Three Changelings, non of them reformed, walked out of the bushes. “Who are they?” Hivehunter asked. The smallest one, a female wearing a pendant, stepped up. “My name is Ocellus.” The gang looked at each other, “bull crap,” Dagger said. “No, she’s not lying,” Zenex said pointing at the pendant she had around her neck, “I remember that pendant.” She looked at him, looking confused like she’d just seen a ghost. “Ocellus, it’s me, Zenex.” “Zen?” She asked. “Yeah, it’s me.” The two went over to each other and hugged. Somehow, this didn’t surprise Blue Fang. As a matter of fact, he was pretty happy. He looked at the other two Changelings. “Oh sorry,” Blue Fang said, “and you two are?” The bigger one stepped up, “my name is Arthrax, and my little brothers name is Hex.” The gang stared at each other like how a deer would stare at an oncoming train. It was like a war had ended with a deafening silence. Arthrax, no way. Not that Son of a Mare. It couldn’t be, right? Blue Fang couldn’t believe it. It was like telling him Celestia couldn’t use magic. “Look you two,” Hivehunter said, “we don’t need any trouble.” “What’s wrong Hive?” Hex asked, “you too embarrassed about your lose to Blue Tooth over there.” Blue Tooth. Of all the names Blue Fang has been called, Blue Tooth, to him, was like calling Luna, Lulu, or Celestia, Sunny. He wanted to hit Hex, but stopped knowing the others, especially Arthrax, would probably intervene in the conflict. He walked over to the CSA box and opened it. The Bits they’d stolen were starting to stack up. Brokenwing came over to the box. He picked it up and went to one of the high rocks. “Everyone,” he said, “each weekend, I will give a certain number of Bits to you depending on how well you did over the week. Also, during the week, if you rob a bank or store or wagon, make sure the gang gets its slice.” Everyone nodded. Eventually, everyone gathered around the campfire and ate the canned food Blue Fang “borrowed” from the store. “Grubber could do better,” Blue Fang commented. “You’re right,” Stinger said, “and Flint and Bugbite were waaay better jokers than I’ll ever be. I miss those two.” “Don’t forget about Clover, Cobshot, Mothray, and Webbiter,” Mitchell said. The memories of their time during the war made them want to cry. The war, albeit terrifying, it gave them family, siblinghood. From the drones that worked in the columns, to the Elite Guards of the Queen, to them on the front making sure the hive was safe, all of them, a family, and nothing could change that. Blue Fang just stared at the empty can. Sure, it was better than the MREs they ate, but it didn’t feel right, like they’d prefer the MREs. That was one of many things Changelings needed to now, how to adapt and improvise. Another was will power. If you were able to stay calms around large bodies of love or you were in a bad situation, you’d be good. The sound of a bush rustle made them turn their heads. Out of the bushes stepped Webbiter, Cobshot, Mothray, Flint, Bugbite, Clover and Grubber, not reformed and okay. “G-Guys? What are you doing here?” Blue Fang asked. “What do you think?” Grubber asked, “you need food, and I can cook it.” “And I think you’ll need an extra set of hooves in you gang,” Cobshot added. The gang exchanged looks, than turned back to face them. Brokenwing stepped up, “welcome home, brothers.” The gang celebrated the return of their family members. Grubber’s cooking, combined with campfire tales made the night great. Blue Fang pulled out his journal. He’d had this journal every since... Every since he couldn’t help Brokenwing in the Everfree. He went to his tent and laid in bed. He closed his eyes. Blue! Blue! Take the shot! “Broken! No!” “Blue Fang! Calm down, you’re dreaming!” Kydra shook Blue Fang out of his sleep. He was breathing so heavily you would think he was about to suffocate. He looked at Kydra. He remembered how she fell down the tower, how he could’ve used magic, but didn’t. He broke down into tears. For the first time, he cried, all his emotions gone. Kydra hugged him, “it’s okay Blue,” she said, “it’s okay.” “No... sniff no it’s not. I couldn’t save you, or Broken or anyone! I had a chance to save you all, but I didn’t take it... I... didn’t... take it,” he pulled away from Kydra’s embrace and laid in bed face away from her. “Blue Fang, I know I can’t help you, but just know, you have saved Changelings before. You saved me during Trident, you also saved Pharynx during Trident, and that Changeling you dragged to safety,” she stopped to stroke his wings, “but most importantly, you saved yourself from the Crystal Empire.” He turned back around and faced her. Maybe she was right, maybe he did more than he thought. “Thank you, Kydra.” “Anytime Blue. Anytime.” Blue Fang sat up in bed and picked up his journal. The brown, ragged cover of the journal reminded him of the past, his family. The war was lost, but the battle still continued. He flipped through the journal to a familiar entry. Blues Log Current Rank: Private Cpt. Brokewing: Alive Sgt. Mitchell: Alive Pfc. Pharynx: Alive Pvt. Thorax: K.I.A (Assumed but more than likely) Spc. Kydra: Alive Pvt. Dagger: Alive I know the log says K.I.A, but my journal says otherwise, but in all honesty, I’m not sure how I feel about Thorax hiding in the cold. I hope, if he can form relations with the Ponies, they’ll give him enough food. —Pvt. Blue Fang Kydra looked at the entry, then rubbed her eyes and read it again. “You... you knew?” “Yeah,” he replied with guilt in his voice. “Why’d you say anything?” “Cause I did, they’d kill’im!” He snapped. Kydra looked at Blue Fang, taken a back by his tone. Blue Fang felt a surge of regret, “look Ky, I’m... I’m sorry, it’s just that, I betrayed the hive, I had a chance to save it,” he turned to her, “you don’t have to forgive me, you really don’t, just know I doing what had to be done.” She put her hoof around Blue Fangs neck, “Blue, I ain’t mad, but you should’a told me, I could’a helped you.” She got up, “I’ll head back to my tent, I’ll check with you tomorrow.” He waved goodbye as she left the tent. He flipped back through the journal, all the way to the one of the first entries he’d ever wrote. Today, didn’t go so well with training, and it’s all my fault. Brokenwing is in the Infirmary with Timberwolf bit marks on his left fore hoof. I’m still waiting on a report from the nurse. He closed the journal and laid it down. He reflected on the past, the war, his death, how he was given an honorable funeral. Brokenwing still has the medal. He reached for the lamp when he heard a loud thump, he got up to see what it was. Then Hivehunter flew back first into his tent. He got up and looked at Blue Fang, “come on Blue!” “What’s goin’ on?!” “They’re attacking!” The two ran out of the tent, only to see Royal Guards, being lead by Twilight and her friends, raiding the campsite. The two ran and took cover behind a table. “Where’s everyone at?!” Blue Fang asked. “I told’em to run! I’ll hold them off!” An ES landed beside them. Blue Fang grabbed Hivehunter, “come on Hive, we gotta move!” The two ran into the thickets, avoiding magic blast. While running, Blue Fangs leg hit a tree stump, causing him to fall. “Blue!” Hivehunter ran back, “crap.” “Hive, go, I’ll hold’em off.” “I ain’t leaving you!” “Just go!” Hivehunter pulled out the medal, “Brokenwing wanted you to have it.” Blue Fang took the medal, “thank you, now go!” Hivehunter nodded and ran, “oh! And Hive,” Hivehunter turned around, “if I don’t make it back, please watch over’em,” Hivehunter nodded and ran. Blue Fang got up and flew to one of the trees as the Guards and the Seven friends walked through the forest. He watched Twilight and two Guards move off from the rest of the group. He followed them, jumping from tree to tree until they stopped walking at a nearby cliff. He climbed down the tree and took aim. He used CF to get two good shots to the Guards heads. Twilight did something between a shriek and gasp as Blue Fang tackled her onto the ground. He looked at her, anger burning straight through her. He looked at the two Guards, them back to her. “Is that the best you got? Them your best won’t do. You’re amongst wolves now, and these are our woods.” He charged his horn and prepared for the thing he’s been waiting for, until someone yelled from the bushed. “Release her now!” About twenty to thirty Guards, including Twilights friends, stepped out of the bushes. He smirked as he looked around. “Well well well,” he started clapping his hooves, “you finally caught me.” Shining Armor, who Blue Fang didn’t even realize was there, stepped between some of the Guards. “It’s over, let her go!” “Whatever you say Captain, whatever you say,” he stepped off of Twilight and backed up. He looked behind hisself, only to see the cliff. The sound of water caught his attention, lake. He backed up even more. “Give up!” Shining said, “there’s no where to run!” “You know Captain, there’s one thing we can’t fight,” he continued to back up, “and that thing, is gravity.” He turned and bolted for the edge of the cliff, avoiding the magic blast Shining had ordered, then he jumped off. The fall was over in seconds as he crashed into the water. He swam to the lakes shoreline and crawled onto the beach. He turned over and laid in the sand like he was trying to get a tan. The sound of magic caught his attention. He turned to see Starlight and Twilight standing behind him. “The Princess and her Protégé returns.” “It’s over, Blue Fang,” Twilight said, “it’s over.” Starlight teleported away, then teleported back with their friends and two Guards. Blue Fang just laid there, and waited. He saw Hivehunter in a tree, using code language, he said, “don’t worry, we’re safe, and we’re coming for you.” Blue Fang smiled, he wasn’t going to be here for long. > Chapter 18: Back at Square One🎵 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The wagon ride to Canterlot was as boring as watching paint dry. Blue Fang sat quietly, just humming a little song to himself. A couple of the Guards looked at him, probably wondering why he was in good spirits. Blue Fang pulled out the medal Hivehunter gave him. He felt the hard, bronze metal it was made from. Bronze was one of the few materials they had, although as far as Blue Fang knew, it didn’t have much use except for medals. Then he pulled out his journal. He pulled out the quill and wrote in the journal. I’ve been captured again, yay. Everyone else was able to get away from the raid as I sacrificed myself for the greater good. All I can do now is wait. He slipped the medal into the journal and closed it. Twilight looked at him. “How does it feel to be captured?” she asked sarcastically. “For the second time? Well, annoying,” he replied with the same level of sarcasm. He looked out the back of the wagon, which was being followed by more wagons. “Y’all assembled the biggest darned convoy ever, and for a few bugs?” he laughed at what he just said. “We Changelings would only need five and all these Guards would be knocked out.” Twilight just stared at him with a blank expression. He chuckled. “Nothin’ to say now, huh?” Shining turned to him, “coming from the one whose entire species turned on him.” “At least mine is loyal to our ruler,” Blue Fang replied staring at Starlight. She looked back, “I’ve changed, you have not.” Blue Fang just gave an annoyed look.“Change? Really?” “No pun intended...” Blue Fang just closed his eyes and waited. He slowly and very peacefully drifted off to sleep, knowing his family was safe. Blue Fang felt someone grab him. He used magic to grab the hoof, “I don’t need a wake-up-call.” He got up and stretched, then grabbed his journal and walked with the Guards through the Canterlot streets. He received a lot of looks from the civilians. He didn’t care that they hated him, he didn’t care they probably wanted him dead as unlikely that may have been, he only cared about getting to meet the Princesses head on. The inside of the palace was no different, just more nicer. He studied the rooms and found a vault that he’d like to get into. Then the Throne Room doors opened with a somewhat blinding light. Maybe he’d just been outside for too long. The inside was almost the same as Chrysalis’s Throne Room. Before he walked in, he wiped his hooves on the mat, to show he at least had some manners. Then he walked down the carpet and stood in front of the Princesses like he would if the Queen was in front of him. Celestia was the first to speak, “Blue Fang, is it?” “Yes ma’am.” She stared at him, she probably didn’t expect him to be so polite, “I think you now why you are here.” “Besides robbery, no.” She unfolded a scroll and read, “assault, resisting arrest, attacking Royal Guards, assaulting a Princess.” He interrupted, but did it in a polite manner, “If you don’t mind me saying, I understand the assault, assault of a Princess, and resisting arrest. But attacking Royal Guards? We’ve been at war with them for a long time.” “I know, but the war is over.” “Then why are we still fighting?” Celestia opened her mouth, but Luna spoke first, “because you are evil!” she yelled. Blue Fang somehow kept his nerves in check, maybe he’d just heard Chrysalis yell multiple times, “we’re not evil, we’re just fighting for what we believe in,” he looked at Luna, “I understand the confusion from your point of view.” Celestia looked at her sister, who only looked more mad, “calm down sister,” she said, “I’m sure he meant nothing by it. Did you?” “No ma’am, not at all,” he replied truthfully. That was the thing about Blue Fang, no matter who they were, if they were the ruler of a monarchy, he’d show respect. He wasn’t sure if he’d gotten it from Brokenwings courtesy, or being raised under the same roof with a Queen made him like that. By this time, the three Princesses turned and talked with each other. Sensing he’d be alone for the time being, he pulled out his journal, then read through the entries. He found the entire from when Arthrax, Hex, Ocellus, Grubber, and Mantis joined the gang. With Grubber and Mantis back, we feel like family again. Also, three new Changelings joined in, Arthrax, Hex, and Ocellus. I’m not sure how they found us, but I’m glad they did. Blue Fang smiled at the entry. Then flipped through to the Shield Breaker entry. Blues Log Mission Status: Failed Current Rank: Private Cpt. Brokenwing: Alive Sgt. Mitchell a.k.a Nightbite: Alive Pfc. Pharynx: Alive Pvt. Thorax: M.I.A Spc. Kydra: M.I.A Pvt. Dagger: Alive Well, our hopes of taking Canterlot failed, we got blown sky high. Heck I was lucky enough to have made it home. I also had to lie about Thorax, um, “biting the dust.” But I did it for him as he would’ve done the same for me —Pvt. Blue Fang He flipped through more of the pages, then got the front page, which had the both the medal he got from Brokenwing, and the medal he got from his fight with Hivehunter. He took it out to look at. He reflected to the faithful day, the day he left that small crack in the arena wall. “So you still got it, huh?” a familiar voice said from behind him. “Thorax,” he turned to see his brother, who looked way different then what Blue Fang remembered. His body turned a light green color, his eyes and wings went purple, and he grew orange horns. Even though Thorax looked different, he couldn’t help but smirk and say, “you know I would, buddy, you know I would.” Thorax walked towards Twilight, “you wanted to see me?” She turned to Thorax, “yes, we wanted to know if you could help us with Blue Fang.” He turned to his brother, “sure,” he walked over to Blue Fang, then pulled out a deck of poker cards. “Here, I know how much you like poker, so I got you these.” Blue Fang looked at the cards, “thank you.” He opened them and started shuffling them around. “Wanna play a quick round?” “Sure,” he looked at the Princesses, who nodded, “come on.” The two walked into the next room over. Thorax used his magic to levitate a table over to them. They sat down and started playing. As Blue Fang gave Thorax his two cards, Thorax asked him, “where’s everybody else?” Blue Fang looked up, “I don’t know, they set up a camp somewhere else,” he got his two cards, which were, 6 black spades, and 5 black spades, then he gave Thorax 1 black chip, three blue chips, five red chips, and ten white chips. “Remember, black is one hundred, blue is ten, red is five, and white is one,” Blue Fang said giving himself the same number of chips. “Okay.” He flipped over the first card, which had black king. Thorax threw two red chips in. Blue Fang threw the same amount. Next was a black ace of hearts. Blue Fang threw in four whites, while Thorax threw in a blue. Next card was a ten black clubs. Blue Fang threw in a red, Thorax followed suit. The current bet was; Blue Fang: 19, Thorax: 25. “How’s everyone doing?” Thorax asked as Blue Fang flipped over the next card. “We’re doing fine, I mean, we ain’t dead. Nine spades.” “Okay.” Thorax went All-in, Blue Fang followed suit. The next card was eight black spades. Blue Fang threw down his cards, then Thorax. “Straight!” Thorax said dragging all the chips his way. “Good game brother,” Blue Fang said shaking Thorax’s hoof. Celestia called them. “I’ll help you clean this stuff up.” After they were done, Thorax asked, “how’re you getting outta this one?” “Maybe I’ll sing a song or something,” Blue Fang said before laughing, “don’t worry, I believe the others have a plan.” “They always do.” The two walked back into the chamber. Cadence looked at the two. “Did you two have fun?” she asked. “Yes ma’am,” Blue Fang answered, “Thor here won by a Straight.” She looked confused, “cards in numeric order with different shapes and or color.” She nodded. Then Luna looked at him. “Is something bothering you?” “No ma’am,” he looked at her. “Is it about your brother all those years ago?” “How... how’d you know?” He asked worriedly. “Your dreams.” He looked at her, “please stay out of my head.” She lit up her horn. The world seemed to fall apart around Blue Fang. The floor fell out from beneath his hooves. Then the tile he was on fell out. He yelled as he fell into a dark void. Then he crashed into a dark forest. He looked around the forest. He saw a Changeling run past him. He reached out to the Changeling, but he just phased through it. Then he heard a familiar voice, “Blue! Blue! Take the shot!” No way, this can’t be real. He followed the Changeling. Then he found the scene. “I’m trying! I’m trying!” Just like he remembered it, Brokenwing smashed the Timberwolf with a rock. The rest played out as he remembered, then, “We need to head home baby brother.” Brokenwing walked a few feet while limping, then he collapsed. “Broken!” Blue Fang ran over. Brokenwing passed out. Blue Fang quickly dragged him away. Then he snapped back to reality. He looked at Luna, “why?” He asked. “Because I knew it was what broke your tough shield.” “Well, I fortunately have a morale booster.” “What is it?” Rainbow asked sarcastically. “A song,” Blue Fang said. “Well I wanna hear it,” Rainbow said. “You sure? It’s not really... Ponified.” She nodded. “Okay.” Thorax looked at him. “Blue, this isn’t really a good time.” “She wanted to hear it, she’ll hear it,” he turned to everyone else, “what about y’all?” “I want to hear it,” Starlight said. “Me too!” Pinkie exclaimed. “Alright.” Applejack followed up. “Alright, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” (Blue= Blue Fangs lyrics) Haha, now I know why you call yourselves the master race. Cuz dang you Ponies can run like heck! Ponies must be masochist. (Why?) Because they asked for this. (Oh!) My name is Blue Fang, I’m the opposite of pacifist. I came to clean my land of oppressive savages. The status of Chrysalis, has the only hoof I kiss. (Dang!) I came to shake the game, I’ll make the water choppy. First I need some wheels, gee I’m feeling really wobbly. But I’m rollin’ with the punches, just like my brother taught me. I am a new resistance, got up and started walkin’! Somebody tell Celestia to call off her paparazzi. We’re not big friends of propaganda because we are not sheep! Watch me drop each RG, like an awfully hot pot of coffee. That’s a lot love for one body, if you’re like Fluttershy then call mommy! Help! It’s the Changeling Army! That’s right, we’ll scare you silly! A nation tainted with your regime makes it very filthy. Aw shoot! Did I trigger you bigot? When I blast your horn off and let it spray like a spigot. I’ll plant my hoof in your face! Beat down your Guards! Back kick you down! Snap all the horns! Crackshot— your helms, pop and explode! Soaked in Pony, love hoof to horn! I was raised to believe in a world, where Ponies are not on top and the Changelings are heard, call off our poverty! Do you know what it’s like to go to bed while starving? That was the sign it was time to start a fire. (Instrumental) I don’t know why you Ponies rally behind these two sisters. Sit down and listen to this strictly clinical diagnosis. Mrs. Starlight, a mixed bottle of emotions. A psychopathic-wimpy failure of a dictator. Disposition of a new Foal, with belligerent behavior. But she’ll cry herself to sleep before she gets me into danger. I got this mane brush with Celestia on it, so if you gotta brush your mane out not a problem I brought it. I can prescribe you cyanide, gotta swallow all of it, and if knew their father, I would’a told him he ain’t ready. Oh thank Chrysalis I’m not a chip off the block, cuz I’m not as as weak as these Ponies are. My mom is gone, and now all is lost, I’m in it all alone and it’s gotta stop. I don’t wanna, but if I gotta drop a bomb, I’ll do it, not a qualm. Listen to my gritty-inner monologue, the new resistance has gotten up! Horns all ignite! Burn down their strength! Shatter their will! Rip up friendship! Swallow their pride, might make’em choke! You should get that, cupcake to go! I want freedom! Give us liberty or give us death! Let’s get even! I’m in deep, but I keep my horn up and lead’em! Run on empty till my engines dead! I want (what?) I said I want (what?) I said I want (what?) I said I want freedom, now! (Instrumental) Broken told me grow up to be anything you want kid! Won’t become a confused motherbucker like Twilight did! I left for the frontlines and I went to war unshyly! If you got a problem, make Ms. Dash and drop her! Had a date with Pinkie but that has made me all the wiser! Turnin’ Applejack into some apple fertilizer! Any final words, for Rarity it’s ‘please don’t!’ I don’t call it crime if you’re a Starlight sympathizer! Try to put me down like Spike just got the rabies! Soon you’ll see my blue fangs if you go near my family! Call myself a gentlecolt, I’d never hit a lady! Non of you would ever count! You mares are buckin’ crazy! (Instrumental) I was raised to believe in a world, where Ponies are not on top and the Changelings are heard, call off our poverty! Do you know what it’s like to go to bed while starving? That was the sign it was time to start a fire! Blue Fang looked around to see the faces of the Ponies. Most had jaw-dropped, some just stood there. “I warned you,” Blue Fang said. Thorax looked at him. “Well I’ll sing some sense into you!” Blue Fang looked at his brother, “try me!” Blue Fang stared more music. (Blue= Blue Fang Lyrics) (Green= Thorax Lyrics) (Red= Combined Lyrics) These are the moments, that will go down in history! Evils among us! And it will live on in infamy! That the best you got? Then your best won’t do. You’re amongst wolves now, and these are our woods. One thing that Broken taught me: weak is something I should not be! Givin’ up is not an option, sorry! Listen up all of you Ponies! If you get my back on the ropes, I’ll fight on! I’m the reason you keep a nightlight on. But I’m a lot worse than a bad dream. Been a moment since you Ponies had sleep. (Oh crap!) If you ask me after this, the Royal Guard will’ve had their flanks kicked. Fact: that my name isn’t Chrysalis, and that bug is my momma, mare! Cadence was scared of her, better double that fear for her younger bugs. Nothin’s gonna come between us, if you try, trust me, you’re gonna see stars. No I’m not monster, but yeah I’m scary. I’ve ready said it’s hereditary! Came prepared to light this place up, raise all of the banners so I can tear’em up! Do run with us bugs? Or do you march with the Guards? I’ve seen the evil you’ve sewn, and now it’s us you shall reap. I sure hate all this hay, bad. Anybody want some? Nah I doubt that. Throw it in the trash and take it out fast. You can bet I’m gonna have a proud brother. You’ve got the Heart of Cadence! The Strength of Celestia! Wits of Luna! Yet you’re lighting a fire, but! These are the moments, that must go down for history! I once was a lone bug! But then you fought for me! (Instrumental) Even at a young age, I wasn’t on a playground, I was in an academy. Kydra never wanted me to be unsafe, so when I got older she taught me my ES. (Kaboom!) So what if I’m a Youngblood, I’m runnin’ on much more than dumb luck. Both of us were always underdogs! Gotta be a bug if you want run with us! Cocooned is how like my Ponies! Gonna make Twilight cry for mommy. Speaking of mothers, ours is legend: Fighting a war while she was pregnant! (Dang!) Talk about a roll model. I was the kind of child you don’t coddle. Cuz a Changelings always at full throttle. The new resistance has already doubled! If you don’t run with us bugs, you must be one of the Guards. If there’s no saving your soul, then I’ll just send you to sleep! Could we possibly, live in a work of peace and harmony, like that’ll ever happen, honestly. But fighting Ponies is fun we both agree! You’ve got the Heart of Cadence! The Strength of Celestia! Wits of Luna! Yet you’re lighting a fire, but! These are the moments, that must go down for history! I once was a lone bug! But then you lied for me! The two looked at each other while breathing heavily, with the Ponies looking at Thorax. “What?!” Starlight asked, “he lied for you?!” “Yeah,” Thorax looked at Blue Fang, then his eyes moved to Shining and Cadence, Blue Fang nodded. He took a breath, then turned around, “Shining, Princess Cadence, I’m the one who help Blue Fang escape.” The two looked real shocked. “Why?!” Shining asked. “Because we’re brothers!” Blue Fang snapped, “I wouldn’t leave him, he wouldn’t leave me!” “Calm down Blue,” Thorax said, he turned back to face the Ponies, “if it’s anyone who should be in trouble, it should be me.” “No Thorax, you didn’t rob that bank or train, I did.” Two Guards came to walk Blue Fang to his cell. He turned to his brother. He nodded at Thorax, who returned the gesture. He walked to his cell while Thorax talked with the others. Whatever they wanted, they weren’t going to get, not if Blue Fang had anything to say about it. > Chapter 19: Blue Fang vs The Apple Family > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang sat in the cell he’d been provided with. He closed his eyes and concentrated, then the world went black and he fell into the Void. The fall ended in a forest. He got up and walked around the forest. He looked down at the mud. Hoof prints covered the ground. He followed them to a camp. He saw the top of a tent and walked to it. He peeked through the bushes... only to find a Changeling laying on the ground. He slowly walked over to the Changeling, who he then flipped over. He immediately recognized him. “Dagger!” he cried. He saw bite marks on Daggers fore hoof and torso. He saw two green eyes staring at him from the bushes. The Timberwolf stepped out of the bush carrying another Changeling in its mouth. “Nightbite!” He yelled as the wolf dropped Mitchells body and gave howl. Two more wolves stepped out, one carrying Brokenwings body, the other Kydra. Before he could yell, the wolves charged him. He quickly lit his horn and the Void came back. Then he woke up, the magic pushing him back against a wall. He breathed heavily as he returned to reality. He looked at the Guards who’d been watching him. “What?” The two Guards just looked at each other and shrugged. He heard the sound of hoof steps and he looked over to the sound. The two Guards bowed their head and then looked at each other with confused faces, but then they left. Princess Luna came into his view. She came into his cell and closed it. “Your majesty,” Blue Fang said. “You don’t have to be so formal,” she eyed him down, “why are you in the corner?” He looked at the spot he originally was, “magic, don’t ask.” “You were trying to get into the Dreamscape,” she said ignoring Blue Fangs comment. “The Dream what?” “The Dreamscape,” she replied. Blue Fang looked confused. She rolled her eyes, “the Void.” “Oh.” Blue Fang stared at her, “and I’m sure you’re here to either antagonize me or comment on my song from yesterday, either way, you’re going to antagonize me.” She shook her head, “no I’m not, I just want to talk with you.” Blue Fang looked at her, pretty confused, then she spoke, “you miss them, don’t you?” Blue Fang nodded. “You love them, do you not?” Blue Fang looked at her. Love was pretty ironic for a Changeling. Heck, one of the things they were taught in the Academy was how to not feel emotions. Although, he did have a crush on Kydra. Luna seemed to laugh at the thought. He completely forgot she could read his thoughts, or at least, something like that. He looked at the poker box Thorax gave him. Luna looked at him, “you know, I could set up a poker match for you,” she said. “Against?” “The Apple Family.” He seemed to consider the offer, “what’s in it for me? Or as a matter’a fact, the Apple Family?” She looked at him, then said, “six hundred bits.” Blue Fang thought about the deal, and almost said no, but then a Royal Guard walked in, “letter for Blue Fang he said.” Blue Fang got up and took the letter from the Guard, then went back to his seat and read the letter. Dear Blue Fang, We lost all the bits we’d stolen. We’re pretty sure that Twilight took them back. We’re currently looking for anyway to make money, but it’s not easy. Hope you can find a way. From, Brokenwing. Blue Fang studied the letter, then looked at Luna. As much as he would hate himself, he said, “what time what place?” She smiled, “I’ll take you there tomorrow.” And with that, she walked out of the room. He just stared at the door, then he closed his eyes and the Void came back. Blue Fang awoke from his sleep. Without much effort, he lazily rolled off the bed and laid on the ground. He looked at the ceiling for awhile before actually getting up. He walked over to the table that was set up in the room. He played a few Poker games by himself before Luna walked in. “You are one sad Changeling,” she said. “I guess,” he replied using magic to stack the cards in a triangle shape. He learned how to play poker back in the academy. It wasn’t a class, but more or less him and Brokenwing having what little fun they could seeing as how there was never really any fun in the Hive. The Hive was always so cold, damp, and wet, it was amazing the Changelings survived so long. Luna smiled, “are you ready?” “Yeah, I guess.” “Alright,” she than lit up her horn and teleported them to Ponyville. “Ponyville?” Blue Fang said confused, “are you sure that I should be here?” “But of course!” She replied walking him to a small building. When they opened it, they saw a big poker table set up with seats all around it. “Sheesh, all this for a poker game?” Blue Fang asked. “Yes, it seems I went a little overboard.” Blue Fang walked to the table and took a seat. He played with the cards that were on the table, then the door opened. He looked up to see who it was. It was Applejack. He groaned as she walked to the table. They didn’t say anything thing to each other as she sat down. Blue Fang as already had enough problems. He didn’t need another. Finally, Applejack broke the silence, “Y’know, I still remember the time you tried to get Twilight to shoot me.” He let out one of those scoff-laughs, “yeah, I remember too.” He looked at her for a minute, then the door opened again. Two Ponies stepped in, one red, and the other yellow. Applejack looked up. “Hey Big Mac and Applebloom,” she Greeted as they sat down. “Hiah big sis,” she replied, then she looked at Blue Fang, “is this who we goin’ against?” “Yep.” Big Mac looked at his sister, “are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, he’s the most wanted Changeling of the gang.” “Trust me, I’ll make sure he don’t run off.” Oh yeah, that’ll be a day to remember, he thought. He tried signaling the others. Kydra came on. Blue Fang? You’re alive! ‘Course I’m alive. Kydra laughed, then Brokenwing came on. Blue, we’re working on a plan to get you out. Don’t worry about me, I think I have a solution to the problem you have. Lay it on us. Okay, I got into this poker game, the prize? Six hundred bits. We’ll need to meet at the big building by Rarity’s shop at around five’o, and bring Zen Alright, see you in a bit. He cut the chatter and closed his eyes. “You alright there Blue?” Applejack asked. He looked up, “you’re awfully quiet.” He sighed, “it’s nothin’.” He stared at the clock. Just a little longer. Read for reference White= 1 bits (ten at start for each player) Red= 5 bits (two at start for each player) Blue= 10 bits (three at start for each player) Green= 25 bits (two at start for each player Black= 50 bits (one at start for each player) Each character will have 150 bits to start Game ends when one has the 600 bits Blue Fang sat at the table. He looked at the three opponents he was playing. He looked down at his cards. Ace of Spades and Ten Diamonds. He looked at the Community Cards. The first card, Five Spades, was flipped. Applejack threw in one red chip, Blue Fang didn’t throw any chips, Mac threw in one white chip, and Applebloom threw in three white chips. The next card was Three Hearts. Blue Fang, again didn’t toss, Applejack threw in another red chip, Mac, like Blue Fang, didn’t toss, and Applebloom threw in a blue chip. The next card was Four Spades. This time, Blue Fang threw in a red chip, Mac threw in a white, and Applebloom threw in a white. The next card was an Ace of Hearts. Applejack didn’t throw in any chips, Blue Fang threw in a blue, Mac folded and threw down his cards, which revealed a Five Spades and a Two Spades, then Applebloom’s face lit up, and she riskingly went all in, sliding all her chips in. The final card was a Diamond King, and Applebloom’s face went grey. Applejack threw down her cards, a Black King and Ace of Hearts, Blue Fang threw his Ace of Spades and Ten Diamonds, and Applebloom threw the Ace of Diamond and Ace of Clubs. Applejack laughed as she slid all the chips to her side. “Bad judgement,” Applebloom muttered as she walked away. Blue Fang looked at Twilight, who was keeping score. Current score Applejack: 331 bits Blue Fang: 135 bits Big Macintosh: 144 bits Applebloom: Out Applejack looked at him, grinning, “I ain’t never lost a poker game in my life!” He looked back at her. He decided to share a bit of knowledge with her, “my brother once told me, ‘the most dangerous thing besides the enemy is pride’.” It was his turn to shuffle. He used his magic to shuffle the cards. Then he gave each Pony their respective cards. He looked at his cards. They were a Club King and Eight Clubs. The first card was Four Diamonds. No one threw in any chips. Next was a Nine Diamonds. This time, Blue Fang threw in one red chip and Big Mac threw in a blue chip. Next card was a Six Hearts. Again, nobody betted. Next card was Eight Spades. Blue Fang threw in a blue chip and no one else betted. The last card was Seven Hearts. Everyone threw down their cards. Blue Fang laughed as he slid the chips over. He checked the board again Current Score Applejack: 331 Blue Fang: 135 Big Mac: 134 Applebloom: Out He nodded and gave the deck to Big Mac. He watch Big Mac shuffled the cards and then he passed them out. He looked at his cards. He had Seven Diamonds and Ace of Hearts. The first card was a Six Diamonds. Blue Fang threw in one red chip, Big Mac didn’t throw in anything, and Applejack didn’t throw any chips in either. The next card was Ace of Clubs. This time, Big Mac threw in a blue chip, Blue Fang threw in a red chip, and Applejack didn’t throw in anything. The third was a Five Diamonds. Blue Fang threw in another red chip, Big Mac threw in five white chips, and Applejack didn’t throw in anything. The fourth card was an Eight Diamonds. Blue Fang threw in a red chip, Applejack threw in nothing, and Big Mac went all in. Blue Fang looked at him with confusion. Was he trying the same strategy Applebloom was trying? The final card was a Six Hearts. They all threw their cards down. Blue Fang slid all the chips his way. He looked at the board now. Current Score Applejack: 331 Blue Fang: 269 Big Mac: Out Applebloom: Out Blue Fang sighed. It was all or nothing, and he knew it. He slid the cards over to Applejack so she could shuffle them. While she did, he closed his eyes and meditated. He cleared his mind and the world fell dark and silent. This was a feeling he liked, alone, with no one to bother him. He thought of strategies for the final round. He thought back to all the lessons Brokenwing taught him. Then one lesson came back to him. Luna stared at Blue Fang. She wondered what was on his mind. Her sister looked at her. “I’m sure he’s fine,” she said. Luna nodded, “should I tell him when he gets the cards?” “If you want.” But she need not bother, because as soon as Applejack gave Blue Fang his cards, his eyes flew open. He didn’t even touch them, he just said, “I’m ready.” Applejack was really confused, but she started playing the game. The first card was Diamond King. He threw in a green chip. Applejack was stunned, and she threw in a blue chip. Next card was a Diamond Jack. Blue Fang threw in another green chip. Again this stunned his opponent, so she followed suit and threw in a green. The third card was Ten Diamonds. He threw in his one and only black chip. Applejack threw in a blue chip whilst looking real lost. The fourth card was Ace of Hearts. Blue Fang didn’t bet, but Applejack threw in a blue chip. Before the next card was flipped, Blue Fang said, “all or nothing?” he slid all the chips in. Applejack smirked and slid all her chips in. Everypony gasped. The next card was Ace of Clubs. Applejack threw down her cards. Applejack threw down her cards, which were Heart King and Spade King. “Ha! Four of A Kind!” Applejack said as she slid the chips towards herself. “Hold up,” Blue Fang said. He flipped over his cards. Ace of Diamond and Diamond King. Applejacks jaw dropped so low, it could’ve fallen all the way to Tartarus. “Royal Flush,” he said with a blank expression. He slid all the chips over to him. He got up and gave a slight bow and he walked away. Blue Fang stood outside of the building. He waited for Luna or Celestia or Cadence to present him with the reward. Applejack came storming out of the building. “Okay, explain!” she said. “Explain what?” he asked staring into space, if ‘staring into space’ he expression Ponies used. “How’d you know them cards would win?!” “Lucky guess,” he replied. He felt somepony, or someponies. “I know your all right there.” They all stepped out from their position. He used CI to see if Kydra and Zenex were around. He saw two green silhouettes hiding in the trees. He contacted them, you guys are here. Kydra came on, alright, who should we send down. Send Zenex, they’d be seen as brutes if they attacked him. Alright, Z, you ready? Yeah. Alright go. He looked over to the bushes. He gave three blinks and Zenex jumped out of the bushes. “Blue Fang, are you sure you want to give the Bits to them?” Luna asked. He nodded. She looked sad, “I’d hate to see you go back to prison after all you’ve done,” she lifted the bag, “six hundred in bits, sound like a fair bounty?” Blue Fang walked over to Zenex. Zenex reached his hoof out and gave Blue Fangs hoof a shake. “Make sure you aren’t followed back.” Zenex nodded. He walked back to the Ponies. He walked past them, he looked back at Luna, “give them him,” he said, then he walked in the direction of Canterlot, “it never was about the money.” > Chapter 20: True Reunion🎵 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang walked down the dirt road, on the way to Canterlot. Somehow, the long walk didn’t tire him out. A wagon rolled by. Luna peeked out of the back of the wooden vehicle. “Do you want a ride?” “No,” he replied still walking. He looked up to see how long the walk was. He could see the lights of Canterlot. He walked through the gates, ignoring the Royal Guards. He walked up to the castle and again, walked past the Guards like they didn’t exist. He walked through the throne room and down to the cell blocks. He opened his cell door and walked in. He used his magic to close the door and he laid on his bed. The Guards looked confused, but they didn’t question him. Blue Fang got up and stared outside the window. The twilight sky was almost breathtaking. He’d never seen anything so beautiful. He sat back down on his bed. He closed his eyes. The Guards were confused. “Should we be concerned?” one of them asked the other. “Nah,” the other one replied, “if he walked into his cell willingly, I’m pretty sure we can trust’im.” The other shrugged. Blue Fang opened his eyes, then he spoke, “hey,” the Guards looked at. “Yeah?” “How much you wanna bet that Twilight and Company is gonna walk through the door?” The two Guards stared at each other, then one of them said, “I bet ten bits.” “Alright,” Blue Fang said, then he started counting down, “five, four, three, two, one.” As if right on cue, Twilight and Company walked in. “Dangit,” the Guard said, “here take’em.” Blue Fang smirked as he took the bits. The Guards were ordered to leave by Shining. Blue Fang sighed, what did they want now? Applejack was the first to speak, although Blue Fang expected it. “Okay, talk,” she said. “About?” She had a look that said ‘you know what I’m talking about.’ She spoke again, “how’d you know them cards was good?” He rolled eyes, “got lucky, I guess,” he replied as he shrugged. He got looks the said ‘there’s more to it than that.’ He sighed. “Okay, I’ll tell you the story, but not how to use the ability.” Twilight started to speak, “well I think I can find it one of my books—” “Don’t bother, you won’t find anything like this in a book,” he said. “Alright, here’s the story: Long ago, when the Changeling society was still young, there was Changeling named Foresight. He was known as that because of his ability to see slowly into the future. He used it to prevent accidents in the Hive, and to give him and his fellow soldiers on the battlefield an advantage. It took him years to create the spell and even longer to master it. For his actions, he was awarded a Queens Mane medal for his heroic actions whilst on and off the battlefield.” Luna looked at him, “I think I’ve heard that name before,” she said. “Well he did fight during the first Changeling-Pony War,” he said looking out of the window. Everypony looked at him, as if saying, ‘that’s it?’ He looked back, “what do you want me to say? I haven’t had any chance to study ‘cause I was fighting in a motherbucking war!” he snapped. They seemed taken aback by his language. Well, all except Rainbow. He just realized he had put so much emphasis on bucking. He sighed, “look, I’m,” he stopped to kick himself, “I’m sorry for my language,” or whatever. Again, like at the Crystal Empire, they all looked surprised. He rolled his, “oh please, have you guys never seen anyone apologize?” he walked back to his bed and sat down. He opened up his journal, which Rainbow seemed to take a clear interest in. Without warning she said, “can I see?” “Rainbow!” Twilight whispered. “No,” he said a very monotone voice Rainbow looked over to him. “What?” “No.” “Aw please?” “No.” “For a second?” “No.” “Twenty Bits?” “No.” At this point, Rainbow may well have muttered screw it and flew into the cell and reached for the journal and pulled it. Blue Fang held onto it. “Lemme see it!” “No!” “Rainbow! Stop! You’re going to get hurt!” “No I won’t! I just need to see this—” Crunch! Rainbow stopped dead as both her and everypony else stared in shock. It felt like a needle had just been stuck into her hoof. She looked down to her right hoof… …only to see Blue Fangs blue fangs stuck into her hoof. She yelled in pain as she ripped her hoof from his fangs. She stumbled out of the cell and stood outside. Blue Fang tried to keep the journal in his grasp, but it was slipping with each tug Rainbow gave. He had to do something, and fast, then, it came to him. It was an extreme measure, but he had to do something. He raised his fangs and slammed them down into Rainbows hoof. Crunch!  Everything went dead silent. Nopony said a thing. Rainbow seemed to move her head. She then yelled out in pain as she yanked her hoof away. He let his fangs slide from out of her hoof as she stumbled out of the cell. Sounds of concern came from the others as they looked at Rainbow. Fluttershy asked anypony for a some bandages. Twilight quickly used magic to teleport  some bandages from somewhere. Blue Fang got up and walked to the nearby water fountain and washed his mouth out. Sure, he’d eaten meat before (only as a last resort and in the Academy) but he could never stand the taste of blood in his mouth. He licked his fangs to make sure there was no blood left. He sat back down on the bed and started reading his journal. He heard the yells of the Ponies as they moved Rainbow from wherever she was to wherever she was going. While they moved her, she was yelling things like “that motherbucker bit me!” and “buck it hurts!” Blue Fang sat in silence. He didn’t need this today. He closed his eyes and entered the Void, which was a lot easier now. He floated around until he landed in… ...well… ...he didn’t know what it was. All he knew was that it felt familiar. Then a cheer came from someone, “yeah, woohoo!” He looked around to see who had yelled that… then he saw Cobshot. He knew exactly where and when he was, Operation Longstrike and he was on the bell tower. “We hit that last Guard we control the air!” He looked to his right. It was Mitchell who yelled that. Then Cobshot yelled, “sir, the Guard’s targeting us!” “Everyone out, now!” Blue Fang quickly ran towards the ladder, but just like in real life, an ES exploded next to him. He had to watch again as Cobshot was again hit by an ES. Kydra ran towards him, but then the ES hit right next to her, causing her to fall down off the bell tower. “Blue Fang!” she yelled dangling from the side. “Hold on! I’ll get you!” he yelled as he dived after her, but just as it happened in real life, she fell before he could get to her. “No!” But then something strange happened. Another ES hit behind him, causing him to fall down too. He yelled as he fell, but then the scene changed, and he was suddenly underwater. He looked around until he saw Dagger caught on his typewriter. He quickly swam to help him. He dragged Dagger to the surface. “Thanks Blue!” “No problem,” he replied. The two ran onto the beaches, but then another ES hit Blue Fang and he flew back into a… ...bunker? He looked confused. Then, someone yelled out in pain. He turned and saw an RG rolling over. “Pharynx!” he yelled. The RG rushed him, but he got up and fought back, then like in real life, he slammed the helmet over the Guards head. He got up, and ran towards Pharynx. “Pharynx! Are you all right?!” “I… I…” “Come on Pharynx! Stay with me!” “I’m… I’m— s-s-sorry,” he passed out. He closed his eyes, at least he wasn’t dead. He snapped out of the Void, only to be met with Luna sitting quietly beside him on his bed. “I’m guessin’ you’re either here to read mind or here to criticize me for biting Rainbow.” “The ladder.” He sighed, “let me guess, you’re going to send me to death for biting one of Equestrias heroes.” She sighed at his sarcasm. “I understand why you would bite her, but was it really necessary?” she said in a somewhat calm voice, but Blue Fang knew that she was somewhat mad or disappointed, or at least, that’s how Chrysalis acted. “That’s how we grew up in the Hive,” he said vaguely, “it was almost kill or be killed in the Hive,” he looked at Luna, “we didn’t grow up with your luxuries, we grew up to survive.” Luna looked away, “it sounds horrible,” she said. “It was,” he looked down, “the only reason I survived was because I had my family.” “Family?” she asked curiously. “You know? The most wanted Changelings in all of Equestria?” Before Luna could reply, a Guard ran in, “your majesty, we need you.” She looked at Blue Fang, “go,” he said, “I’m not stopping you.” She nodded and got and left the cell. Blue Fang sat down on his bed. He looked at the walls, then the door. He sighed. Then the door opened. He looked up. His eyes widened as Brokenwing, Mitchell, Hivehunter, Kydra, Dagger, Mantis, and Stinger walked through the door. “What are y’all doin’ here?” “We couldn’t leave ya,” Dagger said winking. “Yeah,” Kydra said, “we’d do it for you cause you’d do the same for us.” Blue Fang couldn’t help but smile, “thanks guys.” “No problem, little brother,” Brokenwing said. The gang sat and talked for a few minutes, then one question hit Blue Fang harder than a rock to the head. He turned to Brokenwing, “where the others?” He smiled, “they’re at another camp.” “They’re fine,” Hivehunter said, “don’t worry.” “Thanks you guys.” Dagger looked around the cell, “dang,” he said, “what do you do in here?” “Sat around, occasionally chat with Luna. Basically… ...it’s boring.” “Wanna duel?” “Dagger, you never change,” Mitchell said. “Yeah, and besides, when we were in the Academy, I blasted you,” Blue Fang commented. He started to laugh at the memory. Blue Fang watched another opponent fall. He blew the smoke off his horn. He walked off the field. “Alright, the last two stand!” Brokenwing said, “Blue Fang and Dagger!” Blue Fang walked on with Dagger, “good luck,” Dagger said, “you’re going to need it.” Blue Fang rolled his eyes. The two stood back-to-back. They walked five steps. “Draw!” The two whipped around, but Blue Fang was quickest. He blasted the magic bolts into Dagger. “Looks like I did have luck on my side.” “But that was then, what about now?” “Dag, remember Appaloosa,” he quickly walked over and whispered “aka, the Gala.” “Oh, yeah.” “I have an idea,” Brokenwing said. “What is it?” Blue Fang asked. “Well…” He used his horn to start some music, “might as well do something.” (Blue= Blue Fangs Lyrics Red= Brokenwings Lyrics Orange=combined lyrics) War is coming swiftly, the border closing in. We’re a company of Changelings, mere forty horns strong. All alone! Stand alone! And with the ground shaking, and Shining in command. The attack is pushing harder, the war all around. All around! Hold your ground! Fight all eighteen days of battles, no odds are on our side! We would fight all until our magic runs dry! We! We will Resist and Fight! Fight hard! Cause we are all in sight! We! We raise our fangs and bite! Bite hard! Resist and do what’s right! No matter our fighting, the numbers mostly count. We’re out-horned and few in numbers, we’re doomed to flag of fail. We fought hard! Held our guard! But when I was captured by the Ponies, and asked to tell the truth, should’a told’em with a smile, should’a surprised them with a laugh! We are all! We were all! We were told hold Firestorm, and that what we did! Honored were our orders, in despite of our foe! We! We will Resist and Fight! Fight hard! ‘Cause we are all in sight! We! We spread our wings and fly! Fly hard! Resist and do what’s right! Glory in death and service! The Ponies closing in. We fight for Queen and the Hive! The Queen against the Princess! Glory in death and service! The Ponies closing in. We fight for Queen and the Hive! The Queen against the Princess! Instrumental We! We will Resist and Fight! Fight hard! ‘Cause we are all in sight! We! We take our horns and stab! Stab hard! Resist and do what’s right! The brothers stared at each other, almost smiling. “Bravo! Bravo!” Dagger said clapping his hooves. “Thanks Dagg,” Blue Fang said. “I thoroughly enjoyed it too,” an unseen Luna said. The gang turned to see where she was. Blue Fang sighed and rolled his eyes, “what do you want?” “I wanted to meet the members of your ‘gang’.” Blue Fang looked at his family, “well, there’s Captain Brokenwing, you can tell because of his right wing. This here is Sergeant Mitchell. That’s Lieutenant Hivehunter, he’s got red eyes and a chipped horn. That there is Specialist turned Corporal Kydra, she’s the only girl in our gang. That’s Medic Stinger, he’s got a slightly longer horn then us. This is Dagger, he’s got longer fangs than us. Finally there’s Mantis, he’s taller than us.” “Nice to meet you all,” Luna said. “Nice to meet you too,” Brokenwing said. Then he got a weird look on his face. Then out of nowhere, he said, “you’re General Luna!” Everyone looked at him. “General who?” Dagger asked. “General Luna,” Blue Fang answered, “jeez, didn’t you learn anything in the Academy?” “Nooooo,” Dagger replied, “but even so, why’s it important to know this.” “Wooow,” Blue Fang said, “you sure didn’t pay attention in class.” Dagger shrugged. “Battle of Fort Hyaline ring a bell?” “Oh yeah, the Attack of the—” Blue Fang out his hoof over Daggers mouth, “Dagg, let Brokenwing speak.” “We’ll talk about it tomorrow. Right now, I just want to fall asleep.” Luna nodded and left. “Alright, let’s settled in,” Blue Fang said, “who wants the bed?” “I’ll take it,” Mantis said. “Be my guest,” Blue Fang said. Mantis jumped onto the bed. When he landed on the bed, a hard crash came from him, “Ahh! Buck! Blue Fang you motherbucker! Ouch!” The rest of the gang were laughing their flanks off as Mantis rolled around on the floor screaming. Blue Fang felt a little bit better now that his family was there for him, and he was there for them. Blue Fang opened up his eyes and let his vision recalibrate. He looked around to see everyone still sleeping. The sun had just risen, so it was probably around six or seven. He looked out of the cell door to see Luna standing in front of the door. “Hello your majesty.” “Hello soldier.” “Hello Private, Princess,” said an unseen Brokenwing as he walked over. “Hello Brokenwing.” “Hello,” he turned to Blue Fang, “are you ready for today?” “Yeah, I guess.” “Okay, I’ll finish setting up everything, you all get prepared in the meantime,” Luna said. Then she walked away. “Hey Broken?” “Yeah?” “Will Thorax and Pharynx be there?” “Probably.” “What you think of Thorax?” “What do mean, Blue?” “Well you know, he abandoned us.” Brokenwing looked at his younger brother “Blue, let me tell you something. When I was your age, I wanted to run away.” Blue Fang had an udder look of shock on his face, “really?” “Yeah. And I would’ve done it, but then you hatched, and I saw potential in you,” he looked to the floor. A small tear left his eye, “the reason I chose you was because of these,” he used his Changeling magic, then pointed to his fangs, which were a bright red. He closed his eyes, “my original name was Red Fang, but mother changed it to Brokenwing because of my right wing. I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you sooner.” “Broken… I-I don’t know what to say, why’d you tell me sooner?” “I don’t know. I guess I didn’t want you to go through what I went through.” “I would have been fine.” “I guess.”Blue Fang looked down. “Something wrong Blue?” “You remember when we got blasted sky high and when I went out to find Thorax after Shield Breaker?” “Yeah?” “Well, when I found him both times, I-I let him go,” he said looking down in shame. “Blue Fang…” Brokenwing said. “I know, I know, you can hate me.” “...I’m proud of you.” “I know you hate me— wait what?” “I’m proud of you, Blue.” “My too,” someone said. The two brothers stared in the direction of the speaker. There stood Kydra smiling, “I knew you could do it Blue.” “Thanks Ky. Now come on we got a meeting to get to.” The gang stood in front of the princesses, Mane Six or Seven counting Starlight, Thorax, and Pharynx. Blue Fang looked at Brokenwing, who stood in front of the gang. “Well, let’s get to business.” “Sure,” Luna said, “as you know you’re all under arrest for many crimes.” “Crimes you’re too lazy to name,” Dagger whispered. Mitchell threw a sharp blow to his head, “Ow!” “Can it!” Blue Fang whispered. He looked at his brother, who winked. “So, how long going to be here, General Luna?” “Please don’t call me that. I’m trying to put that behind me.” “But you can’t, can you?” “Please stop.” Blue Fang watched the exchange between the two. It was no secret that Brokenwing was good at physiological warfare. He somehow knew almost every physiological weakness his enemy had. He continued to talk Luna down. Then he got a grin on his face.  “Uh oh,” Blue Fang said, “I know that look like the back of my hoof.” Brokenwing started some music via magic. Red= Brokenwings Lyrics. Blue= Blue Fangs Lyrics Instrumental Turmoil at the front. Luna’s forces on the hunt. There’s a thunder in the east, it’s an attack of the deceased. They’ve been facing pesticides. Seven thousand charge en masse. Turn the tide of this attack, and force the RG’s to turn back. And that’s when the dead bugs are marching again. Fort Hyaline, then and again! Attack of the dead! Hundred bugs! Facing the Guards! Once again! Hundred bugs! Charge again! Die again! Fort Hyaline, then and again! Attack of the dead! Hundred bugs! Facing the Guards! Once again! Hundred bugs! Charge again! Die again! Two combatants spare,  Silverfang against Foresight. Move in two battalions large Into a Changeling counter-charge! They’ll be fighting for their lives! As their enemy revives! Changelings won’t surrender no! Burning fear into the Guards! And that’s when the dead bugs are marching again. Fort Hyaline, then and again! Attack of the dead! Hundred bugs! Facing the Guards! Once again! Hundred bugs! Charge again! Die again! Fort Hyaline, then and again! Attack of the dead! Hundred bugs! Facing the Guards! Once again! Hundred bugs! Charge again! Die again! Instrumental And that’s when the dead bugs are marching again. Fort Hyaline, then and again! Attack of the dead! Hundred bugs! Facing the Guards! Once again! Hundred bugs! Charge again! Die again! Fort Hyaline, then and again! Attack of the dead! Hundred bugs! Facing the Guards! Once again! Hundred bugs! Charge again! Die again! And that's when(Fort Hyaline, then and again!) The dead bugs (Attack of the dead! Hundred bugs!) Are facing the Guards(Facing the Guards! Once again!) Again and again(Hundred bugs! Charge again! Die again!) Fort Hyaline, then and again! Attack of the dead, hundred bugs! Facing the Guards, once again!(That’s When) Hundred bugs! Charge again! Die again!(The dead bugs marched again!) Brokenwing gave a slight bow while Blue Fang stood awkwardly. “Was that necessary?” Blue Fang asked. “Of course.” “I mean don’t you think that went a bit too far, I mean, I thought we were trying to form a neutral relationship with these guys, not break their princess.” “Should’ve thought about in foresight.” Before Blue Fang could reply, Rainbow yelled out, “how about y’all sing something else?” “Shut up before I snap your other hoof!” “How about we start!” Rainbow yelled ignoring Blue Fangs threat. “Be my guest!” “Alright!” she looked at Twilight. Twilight rolled her eyes and started music. “How about I sing?” Shining asked. “Sure,” Rainbow replied. Blue= Blue Fangs Lyrics Red= Mitchells Lyrics Grey= Shinings Lyrics Green= Thorax Lyrics Light blue= Pharynx Lyrics Brown= Changelings hura Instrumental Whenever duty calls, guess who’s steppin’ in? Tell Queen Chrysalis to saddle up and send’em in! You start a tenderfoot, harden, to a veteran. Pressing on it how we honored all our captured brethren. Soldiers-we were born to be! Captain, this ain't your normal breach! Hit the ground, we’re storming castle street! We were lookin’ forward to your retreat. It’s way too late to sort the beef! Twilight, you’re nothing short of beaten! The price of freedom comes with war! And the princesses can’t afford one more defeat! Your castle ain’t so safe when I got a Hornets Nest on it’s way! I’m raining on your bulls on parade! I got a fully charged horn and I wanna rage! Throw your body in a ditch! What we gonna do now Mitch? Make these Ponies salty so they know what to lose a fight! Saw something moving around. Got Rainbow snooping around? ES spell shooting her down. Nothing but rubble, what was the Hive grounds. Horn on a swivel, hooves on the ground. Back to where our roots can be found. We’ll all rebuild tomorrow, but we’re starting over now. You are alone. You already fell. We know how it goes, When you want it all. Horns in the sky, hooves on the ground. We held our ground. We struck you down. He ain’t alone! He will not fall! We know how it goes! When you want it all! Horns in the sky! Hooves on the ground! We’ll hold our ground! You strike’em down! (Hura!) So you Ponies want a war? (Hura!) Then we’ll take to your home! (Hura!) Only banner you should fly! (Hura!) Is one that’s solid white! (Hura!) We don’t do for the glory, no! (Hura!) We don’t do for a girl! (Hura!) Not for honor of memorial! (Hura!) We all do it for the Hive! RG helmet, better get one on your head! I recommend you hit the deck or you’ll be dead where you stand! (Ha!) The kind of helmet fit for a king! Knock off the guard helmet, just for the ting! (Whoo!) Tunnel vision, with no distraction! Trust me, my gang seeks action! Like a CT, I roll with traction! Throwing magic with no compassion! Got that stopping power so my ES hits hard! I’ll leave with the darkness just to drop you from a-far!” Tag you with my Instinct, from an impossible distance! Snipe you with my Changeling Focus! Now we’re talkin’ the business! Look out! Don’t let me tag you with my RFM! That’s not an infection, but a way that you can remember me! Cuz see, I like an attack with a little kick! Low recoil, still tears you to bits Rapid Fire Magic, full charged power! Add that upgrade into the mix! So which attack do you pick? You think you sticking with it? Viva la Chrysalis, send in bombs, let that artillery hit! Boom! If victory is out of reach, flip the script! Given our history and the ES we’ve been stricken with! Impossible’s an obstacle over which we’ll get! Unite this infantry, and in the face of the princesses, spit! (Hura!) So you Ponies want a war? (Hura!) Then we’ll take to your home! (Hura!) Only banner you should fly! (Hura!) Is one that’s solid white! (Hura!) We don’t do for the glory, no! (Hura!) We don’t do for a girl! (Hura!) Not for honor of memorial! (Hura!) We all do it for the Hive! Wo-o-a Wo-o-a Dark symbols hang from banners. Wo-o-a Wo-o-a The horn strikes and the fang bites. Wo-o-a Wo-o-a Tear down the heart of friendship. Wo-o-a Wo-o-a When the Hive calls - we answer. (Hura!) Wo-o-a Wo-o-a (Hura!) Wo-o-a Wo-o-a (Hura!) Wo-o-a Wo-o-a (Hura!) Wo-o-a Wo-o-a (Hura!) (Hura!) So you Ponies want a war? (Hura!) Then we’ll take to your home! (Hura!) Only banner you should fly! (Hura!) Is one that’s solid white! (Hura!) We don’t do for the glory, no! (Hura!) We don’t do for a girl! (Hura!) Not for honor of memorial! (Hura!) We all do it for the Hive! The Ponies and Changelings stared at each other. “Next!” Rainbow yelled. “Alright,” Blue Fang said. Gray= Shinings Lyrics Blue= Blue Fangs Lyrics Red= Brokenwings Lyrics LightBlue= Mitchell’s Lyrics Brown= Hivehunters Lyrics Green= Mantises Lyrics Orange= Daggers Lyrics Yellow= Stingers Lyrics Pink= Kydra’s Lyrics Violet= Twilights Lyrics DarkGrey= All Changelings Instrumental Soon the Hive, won’t have to ask. How much impact, one wedding has. It happened fast, like a match to gas. We watched the Hive take a tragic path. I packed my bags, grabbed my cap and mask. Mama say goodbye your baby grubs. I’ll be coming back with post traumatic stress. And the aftermath has had me flashing back, To when we felt the blast, and our morale cracked! Our defenses shattered, we were collapsing fast! And my lungs were filled with ash and pesticides! Pockets full of stars from every Guard I’ve jabbed! Yes I got regrets, but I had to act! Would I rather be dead than adapt to that? Let me rest in peace, where’s my casket at? I’m not a complex case, this is my habitat! We knack for big explosions, that’s a fact! Won’t be long before we’re catching smoke for that! Every trench we dug was an effective grave! Getting attacked in waves, crashing back to back! It’s time I take my chance and run! I’m riding tanks, and sniping Guards! I’ll ride a train if it means stealing one! You can deal with war, can you deal with puns? I’ll be making sure the Queen Chrysalis ain’t bugged! (Ha!) The war’s the world, the world’s the war. Your Hive has turned, we won’t ignore. Six flames will burn, guide the Reforms. You are monsters with no remorse! Skies are dark above us. Fought a war and lived. Fight for Princess and Country! And keep your pride if it means death! Instrumental Now listen to me Blue Fang, When you feel the Hive on shoulders, You just need to blow off some steam! Do you know what to do with dynamite Dagg? Wait a second? Is it explosive? If you don’t know that, then just forget it. Attention Stinger, we’re gonna need a medic. I can help them out, I just need a minute! To destruction, I’m devoted! That’s why my ideas are explosive! Charge my ES before I shoot it! Locomotive coming! Duly noted! Got an Explosion Spell at the ready! Plant some dynamite and wait a moment. Hopefully I’ll be the one to blow it. And if I’m lucky, PROMOTED! The war’s the world, the world’s the war. The Hive has turned, we won’t ignore. Six flames will burn, guides the Reform. We have feelings. We feel remorse! Skies are still dark above us. Fought this war and won. Fought for Princess and Country. And keep your pride if it means death! Instrumental I don’t need a crown to be a king Changeling. But I ain’t a hero, cause if they were real. My disastrous habits would have appeal. When I see destruction, I get battlefeels. Back on the saddle on a battlefield. When I blast you, you’ll know RG’s feel. Who knows how many K.O’s that I yield. What if we surrender, can we have deal? That’s off the table! Save your breath! I’ve been called the ace, where you place your bets! I’m a Scarred Form, I ain’t no Reform yet! Your royal duty is to pay your debts! I’m declaring war, your just making threats! I’m riding the train, and it ain’t derailing yet! Stay away from places that the drones can get! I’ll break your walls down and paint the way with hooves You’ll make a great display on my horns nest! Our whole generation felt lost. Returned home broke and shellshocked. From the trenches we fell into wars maw! Showed a dark side you all never saw! Mud and dust is on my horn. It ain’t the time snacking on some corn. Even if want, you can’t hop a trench. So just put your hoof down on some Royal Guards If they’re on our land, we’ll defend it! And then we’ll implement demented methods! Meant for impairing our enemies’ senses! While preparing our magic and wrenches! For repairing the mess in our columns! Blastin’ RG’s and wreckin’ their census! Then I’ll carry my friends to protection! And bury the Guards in the trenches! The war’s the world, the world’s the war. The Hive has turned, we won’t ignore. Six flames have burned, guide the Reforms. We are creatures! We feel remorse! Skies are white above me! Been through a war and back! Fight for Queen and the Hive! And keep the pride if it means death! The two sides stared at each other. “What now?” Dagger asked. “If these sons of mares wanna sing, we’ll sing for them.” Blue Fang turned to the Ponies, “this time we’re singing!” Before any could reply, Brokenwing started it up. “I mean it.” Blue= Blue Fangs Lyrics Purple= Kydra’s Lyrics Red= Blue Fang and Kydra’s combined Lyrics Yellow= Daggers Lyrics Instrumental Wings in the sky, hooves on the ground. Flag flying high and we never let our sights down! Live’s on the line, as we turn the tide of war. No bug left behind, fight onward through the celestial storm! You can beat me in battle but you won’t win the war! Fold up you flag, I’ll take over your fort! I’m a bug of morale, I know from the score! Just how much attrition the Guards can afford! Backup is low, show me support! Plenty up hope, we don’t need no more. Stinger, can I get some scope? Oh my lord! After we win, I’ll be owed an award! Conscientious, but I’m no objector. Brought my ES, I’ll burn you for sure! Don’t hold onto hope, when you know it’s all over! I’ll show my coldest side flank - ignored! Your sweating and scented with fear. I wonder soaked are your gowns. Gonna bulldoze your forces, Not before I’m done burnin’ the Crowns! That’s why we’re training the Corps! No, this ain’t this ain’t your fort anymore! Now it’s our home, buck open your door! Rip off your roof, leave you totally floored. Splinter the ceiling, shatter and smash! I’ll leave you reeling, rattled and thrashed! Raise you to rubble, and after you ash, I’ll bite Rainbow Dash and discard her like trash! Wings in the sky, hooves on the ground. Flag flying high and we never let our sights down! Live’s on the line, as we turn the tide of war. No bug left behind, fight onward through the lunar storm! Guilty as charged, with Princess Assault! Leading the charge, you’re brought to a halt! I’ll smash and grind you, tenderize you! Dice you up, and toss you with salt! I got a band of sibling! (Oorah!) But I gotta to thank my mother, For raising me to treat all as equals, ‘Cept for Ponies, their not allies! Nah, not a misogynistic, Equality’s on my list. I’ll fight with the women, I’ll die with the women, I’ll shoot one too if I gotta, mare! Cuz I discriminate fighting my enemies. You’re good as dead if you mess with or threaten me! Pocket Pegasus feathers, you’re nothing but memories. I’ll make your horn my centerpiece! Back hoof to wing, horn head to spank, I’ll rough-handle you like a drake! You won’t see me coming - I plan to flank, Now show some respect, you stand outranked! Just like when Twilight and I have a duel, She shoots me some beams, I’m shootin’em back. So put up your hooves and don’t get dragged, We got battlefield in the bag! Wings in the sky, hooves on ground. Flag flying high and we never let our sights down! Live’s on the line, as we turn the tide of war. No bug left behind, fight onward through the crystal storm! We are Soldiers, We are Hunters, Scouts, and Workers. As morale is, set on fire, We unite, divide, and conquer. For our mother, and our honor! From the rubble, we will rise! On land, or by water, With our wings up in the sky! Wings in the sky, hooves on the ground. Flag flying high and we never let our sights down! Live’s on the line, as we turn the tide of war. No bug left behind, fight onward through the twilight storm! The two forces stared at each other. At this point they’d sung a whole darn concert. “What the buck do we do now?” Dagger asked Blue Fang. “Guess we make our grand exit, or something.” He turned and walked down to the cell room. He looked at the floor, wondering what the hay just happened. Then a sharp blow hit him in the back of the head. He fell down, then turned to see Applejack standing over him. She turned back to the group. “Is this y’all “hero”?!” she asked. All the Changelings stared in shock as they watched Blue Fang rubbed the back of his head. Hivehunter tried charging her, but was held back by Starlight. Blue Fang laid on the ground. He rubbed his head a few good times, but then he felt something. He had felt it before, but know it was just screaming at him, screaming to be let out. Rage. That’s all he could feel before a blanket of red engulfed his vision. Hivehunter kept swinging hooves in Applejacks direction whilst yelling at her. “Blue Fang!” Kydra cried looking at Blue Fangs body. “Blue Fang! Get up!” Brokenwing yelled. “I’m gonna kill you! Do you hear me?! I’m gonna kill you, you motherbucker!” Hivehunter yelled with all out rage. Applejack scoffed. Blue Fangs body moved a bit. Brokenwing let out a sigh of relief, barely. Applejack seemed to notice too. Blue Fang stood up. His legs seemed to almost collapse from beneath him. His eyes were shut closed. Applejack seemed to laugh or chuckle. She walked to him. “Is that supposed to scare me?” He didn’t reply. “Speak up. Cat got ya tongue?” Still no reply. She rolled her eyes. “Alright, you ain’t speaking, so I’ll make you speak.” She threw another punch. Every Changeling flinched as the punch flew at him. Then something strange happened. They may have blinked or something but what they saw next shocked them. As the punch flew at him, he seemed to react only on instinct and caught the hoof. Everypony and Changeling stared in shock as Blue Fang held the hoof. What shocked them is the fact that his eyes were still closed. Then when his eyes opened, they were glowing a sharp blue. Before Applejack could do or say anything Blue Fang threw a quick and hard punch… ...to the side of her face. She flew back about three feet. Before she could get up Blue Fang threw a nasty sidekick to her chest. She looked up to see Blue Fang standing over her. He threw a bad punch to her face. Then another. And another. And another, each punch growing more and more violent. Applejack screamed for both help and for him to stop. Everypony and the Changelings watch in shock and horror as Blue Fang raised one bloodied hoof… …only to throw another one. Even the strong, cold hearted Pharynx seemed to be scared of his brother. They all called out to him, but he didn’t seem to hear them. Hivehunter stared at him with horror. He’d been in that situation before and Blue Fang hadn’t been that violent. As for the Ponies, they all stared in horror as much as the Changelings. Fluttershy tried holding back tears while everypony else stared with utter horror. Even Luna was scared. “Blue— Punch! Fang— Punch! Stop— Punch! Please— Punch!” Applejack cries were met with more merciless punches and anger filled yells from Blue Fang. Fluttershy looked up. She started crying and then flew down. “Fluttershy, don’t!” Rarity yelled “You’re going to get hurt!” Twilight yelled. She landed and grabbed his hoof, “Stop!” Silence. Nopony said a word. Only thing that could be heard was Blue Fangs breathing and Fluttershys crying. As soon Fluttershy grabbed his hoof, Blue Fang snapped his head over to her. “Please stop!” she pleaded with tears running down her face. Blue Fangs eyes stopped glowing and returned to their normal blue shade. “Stop!” That was what Blue Fang heard when he gained consciousness. He felt something holding his left hoof. He snapped his head over to his hoof. Fluttershy stood there with tears running down her face. “Please stop!” she cried. What? He noticed his hoof felt wet. He looked over to see it covered in blood. What is going on? He looked down to the floor. Applejack laid there in a literal puddle of her own blood. His muscles felt tense. He let his muscles relax and Fluttershy released her grip on his hoof. He looked around to see everypony and Changeling staring at him. He didn’t seem to be fazed by what he had done. This hadn’t been his first burst of rage. He had many. First fight with Hive, a Changeling in the Mess Hall, the bunker during Trident, Hivehunter when he “came back from the dead,” and many more. He simply nodded and walked towards his cell. Zap! Hive! You believe him Brokenwing? It all makes sense now. No, it sure doesn’t You left me! Zap! Zap! Zenex! Run! Blue Fang tossed and turned on his bed. Then he woke up in a panic. He looked around. Everyone was still asleep. He was breathing heavily. Then he felt someone’s hoof stroking his wings and back. He turned to see Kydra. She gave a smile. “It’s okay Blue, we’re here,” she said. He smiled back, “thanks princess.” She chuckled, “just cause I was hatched into royalty doesn’t mean I can’t be a soldier,” she said still stroking his wings. “Why are you always stroking my wings?” “Mother taught me it calms Changelings down.” “Well she taught you right,” he said chuckling. He looked at his brothers in arms. She was still stroking his wings. He looked back at her, “thanks Ky.” “No problem Blue.” She leaned in for a hug. He smiled and leaned into the hug. > Chapter 21: Training > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang stared at the arena. It had been about two weeks since the incident. He wanted to know how to control his rage. Brokenwing and the Ponies watched him from the sideline. All the other Changelings were still asleep. He stood in the middle of the arena with ten Guards standing in a circle, surrounding him. Shining whistled and the Guards charged him. Cadence and Fluttershy looked worried about both the Guards and Blue Fangs well-being. Rainbow and Applejack didn’t feel the same way towards Blue Fang. As the RG’s charged him, he got real psyched up. It had been a long time since he felt his adrenaline rush like this. He chuckled as he randomly thought of what the others would think of this. One of the Guards swung his hoof at him. He jumped back and focused on his assailant. The he felt that rush of energy. He didn’t feel rage, he felt power. He knew his eyes were glowing he looked up to his audience, who all looked at him. Then it really kicked in. Time seemed to slow down, or did it? His hoof moved in regular time while his assailants moved a bit slower. He then charged them. He grabbed one RG and swung him around with the help of magic. He threw his opponent into another Guard. He back-kicked another one. Three down. Two Unicorns, one Pegasi “Buck this!” one of the Unicorn said. He started firing magic beams at Blue Fang. Blue Fang got everyone confused as he seemed to just blindly charge in a firestorm of magic beams. But to him, the beams seemed slower than usual. As he dodged beam after beam, the now very terrified Guard started backing up as he kept shooting beams. He readied another shot, but then his horn was grabbed. Blue Fang brought the Unicorns head down to his knee. He landed back on down on his fore hooves. Four down. Two Unicorns two Pegasi, man standing on your back hooves is hard. He felt somepony grab of his back hoof. Another one grabbed his left fore hoof. He bit down one the second Guards hoof. Which venom? Paralysis, Knock Out? Poison?! He finally decided on Paralysis. It basically sent an electric sensation down the targets body and would make numb every bone in their body for about five or so minutes. Depending on how much venom was injected. He let RG fall back. He then jumped in a spiral and kicked the Guard holding his back hoof with his free hoof. The paralyzed Guard would be there about four or five minutes. He let the Guard go. Five down Two Unicorns, three Pegasi not counting the other paralyzed Pegasus. Man, I bet Pharynx would be jealous if he was here right now. Two Unicorns and three Pegasi remained. Blue Fang watched the two remaining Unicorns charge him. He jumped over one and grabbed his helmet right off his head. He swung the helmet at the second Guard them brought brought it to the face of the other Guard. Seven down. Five Unicorns, two Pegasi. Last three. He looked at the other RG’s. The two non-paralyzed Guards took to the sky. So did Blue Fang. He looked at the first Pegasus. He charged him at full speed. What am I doing? I’m not a Raging Hornet. He shook the thought and continued flying. He didn’t want to use magic as he wanted them to at least have a chance. He closed in on the RG, then air tackled him. He brought close to the wall and then kicked the RG into the wall. The other Guard looked at him. “Come on RG!” he yelled. The Pegasus probably got cocky and just charged. Great. He waited until his foe got closer. The Pegasus threw a hoof and Blue Fang grabbed it. He twirled the Guard around and flew towards the ground, then he slammed him into the sandy arena ground. Brokenwing jumped up, “score one for the home team!” Blue Fang bowed as his brother cheered.  He looked over now, non-paralyzed Guard, who was still on the ground. He went to talk with his opponent. “You alright?” The Guard looked at him, “yeah, I guess.” “Do you yield?” he asked. Before the RG could answer, Blue Fang said, “think wisely about your decision.” The Guard raised his hoof up, “I yield.” Blue Fang helped his opponent up. The Pegasus walked away from the arena, then a few medics moved in to retrieve the other Guards. Blue Fang took a few breaths. Luna looked at the exhausted Changeling. He looked back at her. “Give me a challenge,” he said. She cocked her head in confusion. “Are you sure?” “Positive.” She sighed and lit up her horn. He looked around as the shattered around. “Bucking Pony,” he said as his closed. The Ponies watched as Blue Fang collapsed. Brokenwing sprung up fast, “what did you do to my brother?!” “Do not fret, for as he is merely sleeping.” Brokenwing seemed to calm down. Then a magic screen appeared in front of them. Oh brother. What have you gotten into? Blue Fang woke up in a small field. He rubbed his eyes. Then… Zap! Zap! Zap! Blue Fang was at full attention. He looked around. A Changeling ran towards him. He grabbed him, “we’re surrounded!” A Changeling Tank moved past them. “Come on, we need to break through!” Blue Fang followed the Changeling. The two Changelings jumped into a trench. “Bucking hay!” Blue Fang yelled. He looked over the trench. A LOT of RG’s charged them. He crouched down. “That’s a lot of RG’s!” “You’re telling me!” Blue Fang looked at a couple of other Changelings. “You need to use RFM!” “Yes sir!” They all lined up and fired their RFM. They cut down a good majority of the Guards. “Incoming!” Blue Fang looked up. A hay wagon load of ES raining down. He quickly ran through the trenches. Buck! Buck! Buck! Buck! Buck! BUCK! He dived out of the way of another ES. He got up and continued running. An ES landed next to him and sent into the wall of the trench. He looked up and saw Guards jumping into the trenches. One charged him. Blue Fang grabbed him and threw him into the wall. Then he kicked him in the head. Blue Fang used RFM to mow down more RG’s. He continued running down the trench. His adrenaline was rushing through his body like a river. He jumped over a couple of sandbags. He looked up at another RG. He tackled his opponent and shot him with his magic. He looked for anything that he could use as a weapon. He found a small club. Well buck it to Tartarus. He picked the club up. He moved through the trenches. He swung the club at one Guard, knocking him out cold. Another Guard grabbed him from the back. “I got him!” Another Guard threw a punch. Blue Fang jumped up and the Guards punch flew into his friend. The other Guard released his grip on Blue Fang. Blue Fang swung the club around and hit the first Guard. Then swung it around to hit the other Guard. Brokenwing watched as his brother made his way through the trench. Then the other Changelings walked in. “What’s going on?” Dagger asked rubbing his eyes. “This,” Brokenwing said pointing at the screen. The Changelings watched Blue Fang take down two RG’s with a club. “Dang,” Stinger said. “I know, right?” Kydra commented. A few more seconds went by, then Shining whispered something to Luna and she whispered something back. Brokenwing watched the interaction between the two. Oh boy. Blue Fang continued to fire at his opponents. He felt so much adrenaline rushing through his body. He hadn’t felt this way since Ice Cold. He let the club drop. Then he heard a boom in the sky. He looked up to see six silhouettes floating towards the ground. “Sigh, Bucking Luna.” The Mane Six didn’t waste anytime. They used, what Blue Fang called it, the “The Always Win Spell.” He quickly dived out of the way, but another Changeling was hit. “Help me! Please!” Blue Fang came running to his comrades aid. He grabbed the Changelings hoof, “I’ll get you outta here!” “Thank you!—” Blue Fang looked down to see the Changeling got hit again. “Buck! No!” He looked at the Mane Six. His rage was burning in him again. It was almost the same rage he felt yesterday. This time however, this time, it went beyond his limits. This time, there was no remorse. The crowd watch as Luna sent a clone of the Mane Six into the dreamscape. Real Twilight seemed confident in the clones. Her mind soon turned to the Changelings. Then back to the screen. A Changeling, although not Blue Fang, was hit by a spell. Blue Fang ran over to the injured Changeling. Then he started to drag the Changeling to safety. Then another spell hit the injured Changeling. Blue Fang yelled something, then looked at the Dream Mane Six. His eyes made their noble calling. Except, something seemed off, like Blue Fangs rage just seemed different, and more… ...violent. Then their suspicions were confirmed when he ripped a wood shiv from the trench wall. He looked at the Dream Mane Six. He then charged them with the shiv poised for a kill. They didn’t expect what was to happen next. Blue Fang stared at the Mane Six. He then looked at the trench wall. A piece of sharp and lethal looking wood stuck out. He grabbed the wood ripped it from the trench wall. He then looked at the Ponies and bull rushed them. He dodged the attacks and set his sight on Twilight first. With one jump and one tackle, the spell wore off and the Mane Six fell down. “What happened, Twilight?” Rarity asked. No response. “Twilight?” They all turned to see Blue Fang raising a bloodied shiv from a purple Alicorns body. They all screamed in horror as Blue Fang turned to them, still holding the shiv. Then they all charged him, with the exception of Fluttershy. Blue Fang already anticipated this. He raised the shiv, ready to kill. The crowd as Blue Fang leapt and tackled Dream Twilight. They kind of expected that to happen. What they didn’t expect was for Blue Fang to raise a bloodied shiv from the now dead Dream Twilights body. Everyone, except the Changelings, was horrified at the sight of Blue Fang killing Twilight. The Dream Ponies then charged Blue Fang. The Ponies charged at Blue Fang, who held a strong guard. Rarity attacked first. She swung her hoof at him. Blue Fang grabbed, then with no problem, snapped it like a twig. He brought her around and stabbed her in the side. She wasn’t walking away from that. Then Pinkie came around. He made even quicker work of her by snapping her neck. Then Rainbow tackles him. He grabbed the stick and rammed it into her side, then he stabbed through the bottom of her head. Then he tackled Applejack. He tried driving the shiv into her chest but she caught it. She held the shiv back and looked at Fluttershy. “Fluttershy! Help!” Fluttershy looked at her with uncertainty, “what do you want me to do?!” “Hit’im with that club!” Fluttershy looked at the blunt weapon, not sure what she should do. “Fluttershy, please!” She still didn’t move. Applejack looked back at Blue Fang. “You wouldn’t do it, would you?!” “Try me.” And with that Blue Fang slowly stabbed her. “No no! Sto— plea—!” Blue Fang continued slipping the shiv into her chest. “Stop! Stop! Stop!” After a long struggle, Applejack just gave up and let her hooves fall to her side. Blue Fang finished her. His attention turned to Fluttershy. She wasn’t and didn’t try attacking him. Was he to kill her or let her go. He walked over to the now crying Pegasus. He looked at her. “I would kill you, but I won’t. I’ll just leave you with the haunting fact that you just watched your friends die.” He tossed the shiv to her. He gave her a disappointed look, then walked off. The crowd watched as Blue Fang tore through the Dream Mane Six like paper. Brokenwing looked at his brother with a look of both respect and disgust. He didn’t know his brother was capable of this much damage. Then Blue Fang had Applejack pinned. Real Applejack looked at the Changelings with a smirk, as if her dream self was gonna get out it. But that smirk was wiped off her face when Blue Fang killed her dream self. Then they watched as Blue Fang advanced to Fluttershy. He said a few words to her then walked off. Luna stared at Blue Fang. She lit her horn up. Blue Fang walked for a while. He wasn’t phased by what he’d done. The Ponies would feel way different. Then he heard a crack. He knew what was going on. It would be impossible to not see the world collapsing around him. The Changelings and Ponies watched as the world collapsed around Blue Fang. He continued to run away from the ever growing death around him. It’s only what Blue Fang did next that surprised them. Blue Fang kept running away from the circle of death that surrounded him. Blue Fang noticed that the ground was only thing breaking. He took to the sky. It was the only logical thing to do. But it seemed Luna had a backup plan. As he was flying, the sky started cracking. “Buck!” He quickly flew down to the ground. The entire death circle surrounded him. He looked around only to see death surrounding him. But he wasn’t going down without a fight. He stopped running and spun in a circle. “Alright Death, come at me! I ain’t scared of you!” ‘Death’ started closing in. In one final ditch attempt, Blue Fang punched the black void. His hoof dissolved the further it went. Then his upper body. And finally his lower hooves. Blue Fang woke up in the dusty sand of the arena. He rubbed his eyes and looked up to his audience. The Changelings were there, waving. He waved back. The Ponies on the other hand, were less inclined. Blue Fang gave a smirk and a bow and walked away to his cell. Blue Fang laid in his bed. Then Brokenwing walked in. “Hey Blue.” “Hey Broken.” Brokenwing walked over to his brother. Then he said, “hey Blue, would you, you know?” “Of course not.” “Then why were you so remorseless?” “Even if I had more rage than Cerberus, I still wouldn’t kill them unless it was a last resort. I just wanted to put on a show.” Brokenwing smiled, “course you were.” Blue Fang looked at him. “What’s next?” Brokenwing gave a smirk “Next? Next, we break outta here.” > Chapter 22: True Retaliation🎵 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang stared at the sky from one of the castles balconies. He needed a bit of time to himself. The cold nighttime air was one of the things that calmed him down. During the war, the slight breeze cooled his body down from all the heat of the battles. Even with horrifying battles like the Battle of White Tail Woods, nothing could compare to the relieving feeling of cool air. As he daydreamed (or nightdreamed, if that’s even a word), the sound of glass horseshoes caught his attention. “Hello Blue Fang.” “Hello Ms. Luna.” The Princess of the Night looked at him, then to somepony else. Then Cadence appeared. “Mrs. Cadence.” “Blue Fang.” Blue Fang gave Luna a look, “anything in particular you need or are you just here?” Cadence stepped up, “Auntie here says you have the hots for someone.” Blue Fang shot a look at Luna, then to Cadence, “and that someone would be?” The pink princess rolled her eyes, “you can’t play dumb anymore.”  Blue Fang looked at her. “Kydra.” “Pfft!” The two Princesses looked at him with a confused look. “I spat out my coffee… ...might’ve been better if I actually had coffee.” He looked at the Princesses, “anyway. What’s this about Kydra?” “Again, auntie says you’re into Kydra.” “For the love of— sigh.” “What?” The Princess of Love asked. “Well Mrs. Cadence, the only real way you could ever see dating Kydra is if we were doing it for a mission.” Luna looked at Cadence, then to Blue Fang, “maybe we should ask Kydra during roll call tomorrow.” “Do so.” Luna looked at her niece, “he’s all yours.” She walked off. Cadence looked at him. “Blue Fang,” she said walking towards him. He already knew she was gonna talk about expressing his emotions and whatever. “If you mention anything about my emotions I’m going to throw myself off this darn balcony.” If Cadence were a regular Pony he would’ve just thrown HER off the balcony. She opened her mouth to speak but Blue Fang said, “Nope!” and threw himself off the balcony. He fell about three feet before Cadence grabbed him with magic. Bucking Pony. Cadence lifted the Changeling to the balcony. “Where do you think you’re going?” “Um, to the ground so I don’t have to sit through a lecture on why my emotions are important?” “I was just going to tell you to say ‘Kydra, I want to tell you my feelings,’ and— “See, you’re trying to make me express fake emotions.” “So you’re saying Kydra means nothing to you?” “What?! No I didn’t mean it like that! I just— “You just expressed your emotions.” “How so?” “You just proved you cared about her.” Buck it to Tartarus she’s good. He looked at her. How could he keep this lie up? “You need to come clean Blue Fang.” “And what if I did? Huh? What would she say?” “She’d probably respond with a pleasant smile and tell you about her feelings.” Blue Fang gave Cadence a look, “I doubt it.” “Why?” “She’s the daughter of the Queen, and I’m just a soldier like the next Changeling, why would she fall for someone like me when she has someone like Hivehunter who’s part of the Queen's elite Wasp Division?” She looked at him, “well if you really want to win her heart, you need to tell her how you feel.” With that, the Princess of Love walked away. He looked down to the ground below the balcony. “Yeah. Right.” Hello old friend! Did ya miss me? Yeah me neither. I know it’s been a while since I’ve written in you, but I want this memory to be preserved forever. Today is the day we break out of here. The plan is simple, we go to roll call, then we do a little performance, then we go rogue and break out. I hope this goes well. Blue Fang along with the rest of the gang stood in formation like they were in BT, or trying to impress the Queen. The roll call ran like the others, calling names and such. Blue Fang silently waited for Luna or Cadence to ask something about him and Kydra. After some questions about military life and what not, Cadence said, “I have a question.” “What is it?” Brokenwing asked. “How did Blue Fang and Kydra meet?” The other Changelings got a look on their faces. “That’s actually a good question,” Dagger said. “Yeah, how did you two meet?” Mitchell asked. All the Changelings seemed to agree. They looked over to the two Changelings. Blue Fang looked at Kydra, who returned the same look. “Can’t really explain it,” Blue Fang said. “Maybe I can,” Kydra said. “How?” Blue Fang asked. She whispered something to him, “okay.” She lit her horn up. Blue Fang smiled as the music started. Purple= Kydra’s Lyrics Instrumental I was a Changeling scout on search patrol huntin’ RG’s down. It was the earlier days of the war. I lost my squad and and I got stuck Way out all alone, and I hear the RG’s moving close outside. Just then I heard a twig snap And I grabbed a nearby rock Then I dug in scared and counted down my fate. And then a young Changeling With a pair of dark blue fangs Appeared there at my shoulder and said, “hey.” “If the RG’s wanna tango, now they’ll have two to dodge.” I said, “well thanks a lot!” I told him my name and asked him his. A he said, “the Queen just named me, Blue Fang.” Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang, Things are never quite the way they seem. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang, I was really glad to see this strange Changeling. Well, we fought all night side by side Took our battle stance, And I wonder how the RG’s missed this bug. Cause magic seemed to go right past him Almost if he was lightin’ fast. And in the mornin’ we both took a chance and ran. And it was near the riverbank, when the ambush came, And I thought it was the end and we were had. Then some magic with my name on it came buzzin’ through a bush, Then the strange Changeling, he just shot it out the air. Like it was a Pegasi! Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang, Things are never quite the way they seem. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang, I was really glad to see this strange Changeling. When he led me out of danger, I saw the Hive and waved goodbye He just winked at me from the jungle and then he was gone. And when I got back to my quarters, I told them about my night, And the battle I spent with a young Changeling named Blue Fang. When I said his name a soldier scoffed and my mother took my hoof, And led me to some barracks down hall. She said, “you may be telling the truth Ky, but here is Blue Fang. And he’s been since the patrols left last night.” “But before you’ll left he said he’d watch your backs And said his only goal Was to save a young Changeling caught in a barrage.” “So here, take his dog tags Ky. He said he wanted you to have them now.” Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang Things are never quite the way they seem Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang I was really glad to see this strange Changeling. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang Things are never quite the way they seem Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang This was a really strange Changeling. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang Things are never quite the way they seem Woah-oh-oh-oh, Blue Fang This was a really strange Changeling! Kydra looked at her audience. The Changelings clapped and cheered. “Thank you! Thank you!” she bowed. The Ponies just stared at her. She turned and bowed to them. This was all they had to do, put on a show and then break out. Mitchell looked over to them. “Alright, my turn.” His horn lit up with music “Mind if I sit this one out?” Kydra asked. “Of course.” Red= Mitchell’s Lyrics. Grey= Male Changelings Lyrics. Purple= Lunas Lyrics. Yellow= Royal Guards Lyrics Instrumental Pulled into war to serve a vision that’s supposed to last a thousand years. Part of a machine Unstoppable as merciless as tidal waves. Were we the victims of the time Or proud parts of larger goals? Propaganda of the Princess masterful machine. Time and again, the battle rages on beyond the gates of misery. As the violence would rise And millions fight around them Did they see it all? Crazy mad mares on a leash Or yount colts who lost their way? Grand illusions of the crowns may seem real at times. Changelings on a line! Form Queen Chrysalis spine! Lethal grand design! What about the Princess executing orders? Changelings on a line! Form Queen Chrysalis spine! Lethal grand design! What about the Princess executing orders? Instrumental Fight for the Queen. Die for the Hive. No Changeling falls, Under their hooves. Fight for the Queen. Die for the Hive. No Changeling falls, Under their hooves. Instrumental Pulled into war to serve a vision that just didn’t last a thousand years. Part of a machine, Though stoppable as merciless as tidal waves. Crazy mad bugs on a leash, or young nymphs who lost their way? Grand illusions of the Queen may seem real at times. All Guards on a line! Form the Princesses spine! Lethal grand design! What about the Queen executing orders? All Guards on a line! Form the Princesses Spine! Lethal grand design! What about the Queen? Now it was the Changelings turn to look dumbfounded. Of all the Ponies that could’ve sung, it had to be Luna. The Changelings formed a huddle. “What else we got?” Dagger asked. “Not much to work with,” Mantis answered Brokenwing looked towards Blue Fang, “Blue?” “Well, let me think. Maybe the Battle of Fort Glacier?” “Perfect!” Brokenwing said, “I’ll sing, you guys take a break.” “Alright, but we need two more songs to seal the deal,” Dagger said. “I’ll do one,” Blue Fang said. “Me too,” Hivehunter said to shocked faces. “Alright, I’ll go first,” Brokenwing said. Red= Brokenwings Lyrics. Crack of the ES splitting the ground They were surrounded And Luna was howling. Wrath of the RGs cast on Glacier Facing the sisters alone. Alone. Alone. Sent from the skies jumped into the unknown The march through the north has begun. Spearhead the charge surrounded by foes Hornets are leading the way. The north is still under enemy rule Push, RG’s retreat Thrown towards Glacier, a bitter defeat They're stretched out just one line too far Turn of the tide, it's breaking away, Losing momentum, retreat. Go to Glacier, the crossroads must hold Stand, alone in the cold. Crack of the ES splitting the ground They were surrounded And Luna was howling. Wrath of the RGs cast on Glacier Facing the sisters alone. Alone. Alone. Dig your own foxholes or dig your own grave The storm is about to begin The siege has begun, there's nowhere to run Now the two sisters emerge. Guards and the sisters are shaking the ground Prey of Guard and monarch. Crack of the ES splitting the ground They were surrounded,and Luna was howling. Wrath of the RGs cast on Glacier Facing the sisters alone. Chill of the north will bite to the bone and Hearth Warming is drawing near Soldiers are freezing, the death toll increasing They're dying in their holes. There's no surrender, there's no retreat, the RGs are drawing near There's no reinforcements, they're fighting all alone. Instrumental Sent from the skies ended up in Glacier As easy, as hard as they get. Luna commands A request, she demands Offered a surrender, declined. Nuts! Let Foresights word echo clear. Nuts! The sisters shall hear! Crack of the ES splitting the ground They were surrounded, And Luna was howling. Wrath of the RGs cast on Glacier Facing the sisters alone. Brokenwing gave a bow. His fellow comrades gave a roaring applause. He moved towards the rest of the gang. “Who’s next?” “I’ll go next,” Blue Fang said. Then he looked at Hivehunter, “or do you want to go?” “No you can go.” “Alright.” Blue= Blue Fangs Lyrics The darkness helps me every day The countdown has begun I am your master, number one Reoccurring pain I was whole on the battlefield And live by the Queens will A creature of unholy pain The vengeance is my name I walk alone the path of evil I’m the Queens number one Taste my fury, take my vengeance Now it’s time to die I’m biting with my blue fangs! (Cackles!) I am a breaker of the guard Blue Fang is my name Bringing pain and misery Into the necks of foes I walk alone the path of evil I’m the Queens number one Taste my fury, take my vengeance Now it’s time to die I’m biting with my blue fangs! (Cackles!) The dark one haunts me every day The countdown has begun I am your master, number one Reoccurring pain I walk alone the path of evil I’m the Queens number one Taste my fury, take my vengeance Now it’s time to die I’m biting with my blue fangs! I’m biting with my blue fangs! Blue Fang gave a bow. Every Changeling clapped and cheered. He walked over to the others. “Well Hive, you’re up.” “Alright.” Hivehunter walked up. Purple= Hivehunters lyrics. Instrumental Fast as the wind, our invasion has begun (Instrumental) Shaking the ground with the force of a thousand horns. (Instrumental) First in the line of fire, first into hostile land We’re leading the way (Instrumental) leading the way! (Instrumental) Charging the lines with the force of a furious storm (Instrumental) Fast as a parasprite swarm (Instrumental) 200 miles at nightfall, taken within a day Thus earning our name, earning our fame. We are the Changeling elite, Born to compete, Never retreat (Wasp Division) Living or dead, Always ahead, Fed by your dread (Instrumental) Always ahead, as the war still rages on (Instrumental) Breaking morale the with the sound of blazing horns (Instrumental) First in the line of fire, first into hostile land We’re leading the way, (Instrumental) Leading the way. (Instrumental) Leaving a trail of destruction to a foreign land (Waging war with conviction) Massive assault made to serve the Queens plan (Changelings pride, Wasp Division) Communication's broken, Wasps are now far away Thus earning our name, earning our fame We are the Changeling elite, Born to compete, Never retreat (Wasp Division) Living or dead, Always ahead, Fed by your dread (Instrumental) (Instrumental) Pushing the frontline forth with a tremendous force (Far ahead, broke resistance) Guiding the way for Changelings corps (Shows no fear, self-subsistent) First in the line of fire, first into hostile land Thus earning our names, claiming our fame We are the Changeling elite, Born to compete, Never retreat (Wasp Division) Living or dead, Always ahead, Fed by your dread (Instrumental) Changeling elite, Born to compete, Never retreat (Wasp Division) Living or dead, Always ahead, Fed by your dread Hivehunter gave a bow and walked back to the gang. They cheered like and congratulated him. Now, step 1 was complete, time for step 2, escaping. Blue Fang looked towards a window. He nodded to Dagger, then he looked at the ponies. “What did y’all think?” Alright Dag, work your magic. Alright, it’s ready. Alright, activate on “Checkmate.” Roger Blue, over and out. The Ponies stared at each other, debating what they should say. They weren’t sure if they should be offended or impressed by their adversaries voices. Blue Fang smiled, “well it seems you guys are at a stalemate.” He looked at Dagger, who winked at him. “All I can say now is, “Checkmate.” Checkmate confirmed. Smoke out. In almost an instant, a large blanket of smoke filled the room. The Ponies quickly flew into a panic. Pegasus guards took to the sky to clear it up.  Twilight looked around the smoke-filled room. What was happening? She used her wings to try and fan the smoke away. She narrowed her eyes, trying to see through the smoke. A couple of shadows moved through the smoke. Were they guards or not? The smoke started clearing up. It took awhile, but the smoke cleared. But the Changelings were gone. Blue Fang used his Instinct to follow the others. Come on guys! Brokenwing said through to MC Right here Broken. Mitchell replied. The gang moved through the smoke, trying not to bump into the guards. Brokenwing jumped onto a window. It’s stuck! Dagger jumped on with him. Let me help. With that, Dagger bucked the window open. Tough glass. Dagger said amazed at how the glass didn’t shatter. The gang moved out of the window and down to the street. They ran through the alleyways. They hid in some of the back alleys. “What do we do now?” Dagger asked. “Probably best we split up,” Brokenwing asked. “Divide and conquer,” Blue Fang said. “Alright. Dagger, Mitchell, and Mantis, you’re together,” Brokenwing said, “Hivehunter, Stinger, you’re with me. Ky and Blue, you’re together.” “Alright. Don’t go to camp directly. Set up a small camp, then move to the main,” Blue Fang said. “Alright, let’s move.” The gang split up and ran down different alleyways. Kydra and Blue Fang ran out of the alleyway and into the market. The civilians looked at them with fear. “There!” A couple of guards charged them. “Just like old times?” Blue Fang asked. “Just like old times.” The two friends stood back to back, ready to attack the guards. Two guards charged them. Blue Fang grabbed one and twisted his helmet around. “Ahh! I can’t see-” he was cut off by Kydra landing a tough back kick. The other Guard was dropped by Blue Fang and a hook punch. The two friends looked at each other. “Good job Blue.” “You two Ky.” The two moved out of the market, dodging the guards and the civilians. They ran towards the edge of the city. “Wow. Long fall,” Kydra said. “Yep.” “Well, we better get going.” “Right-” Blue Fang was cut off by a figure landing in between them, knocking both of them to the ground. Blue Fang looked up to the figure. A Batpony. He stood up and readied his fighting stance; the Batpony did the same. The two were in a standoff. The Bat threw the first punch, then Blue Fang threw his punch. The two ping-ponged punches back and forth. Then Blue Fang threw another punch. The Batpony caught it and twirled the Private around. Then he swept the Changeling off his hooves, literally. Blue Fang laid there pinned on the ground. “Good job, Changeling, but I-” His dialogue was cut off by beams of magic. It was Kydra! She was limping, but firing. The beams went every which way. The Bat grabbed his helmet off his head and threw at her like he was playing dodgeball. The helmet hit Kydra’s abdomen. She looked breathless and she was stumbling around like a mindless zombie. She leaned towards the edge of the platform. She tripped over the small wall and fell off the side. “Kydra!” Blue Fang yelled. He looked towards the Bat. His eyes started glowing. The Batpony looked at him. “What the-!” The next thing he knew, he was an inch deep in a nearby wall. Blue Fang turned to where Kydra fell. He ran over to the short rail and jumped. He fell for a few until he hit a tree. In an instant, a flash of black overcame him. Blue Fang woke up a few minutes later. He looked down to his stomach. He was surprised to see he was levitating. Oh wait, no. He was just snagged on a vine. He cut the vine with magic and fell to the forest floor. He dusted himself off and looked around. Kydra had to be around here somewhere. He walked away from the giant as all heck wall. He walked around until he heard a faint sound. What was it? He honed his listening, then it was clear; someone was crying. He walked towards the sound, then used Instinct. He then the green outline of a Changeling caught his eyes. He moved towards the Changeling. He turned off his Instinct, “hello?” The next he knew, something wrapped around him. He looked down. Kydra. And she was crying. She hugged Blue Fang like there was no tomorrow. Blue Fang didn’t know what to do. “Ky?” Through the tears, she managed to say, “Bl-Blue! I’m s-sorry! “For what?” “I couldn’t help you! I thought you died! I tried using the MC but you- you- you didn’t answer! I th-thought I’d lost you!” Blue Fang didn’t know what to say. He finally found the words, “it’s okay Ky.” “No- no it’s not!” Kydra held on Blue Fang, and she didn’t want to let go of him. She buried her face into his chest. She didn’t expect two hooves to wrap around her. “It’s okay. It’s okay.” He spoke truthfully. It wasn’t her fault, she just wanted to do what was right. He walked over to a nearby lake. “Let’s just set up camp and rest up.” She nodded. It took awhile, but they did it. The moon was rising and the sun was setting. The two Changelings set up the tent. They crawled into the tent. The night was quiet. Blue Fang laid on his side. He wasn’t asleep. He couldn’t sleep. I wonder how the others are doing. He yawned. He couldn’t hear Kydra, she was probably asleep. He closed his eyes to try and fall asleep. He felt a hoof wrap around him. He turned around to Kydra. “Oh! Blue- I- I didn’t mean-” “It’s okay, keep it there.” “Why?” “If it calms you down.” “Th-thanks.” Blue Fang didn’t know what to say. Kydra continued to hold onto Blue Fang. Then she felt Blue Fangs hooves wrap around her. Her cheeks were burning red. “B-Blue?” “Shh. Just rest up. I’m here, and I always will be.” “Th-thank you.” She hugged him tighter. The two friends fell asleep in each other’s embrace for the rest of the night. > Chapter 23: Blue Fangs Lament🎵 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue! Take the shot! Blue Fang opened his eyes. Again? Geez he looked at Kydra. She was still asleep. He got out of the tent. It was still dark outside, maybe around 1:00am. He looked over to the lake. He walked over to the water and drank from it. He looked at a nearby map. The Everfree Forest was only a short while away. He looked back to the tent. Kydra was still asleep. He decided to fly to the forest. She wouldn’t know. Blue Fang landed in the forest. He looked around. No one was around him. He didn’t need anyone right now. He looked at the moon. He walked into the forest. As soon as birth We will not fear a horn you bring Fight for the Queen, die for the Hive We’re battle trained, But all your magic ricochets You blast us down, but we get up. We are fearless, nothing to lose We will bite, we will bite There’s no retreat, stay and fight We will bite, we will bite You shoot us down but we won't fall, We were the Devil Horns You shoot us down but we won't fall We were the Devil Horns Instrumental Stand your ground, For it's you who has to make the call Twisted thoughts, and a haunted past Raise your horns, Kicks and blasts may break hurt my bones We’re fighting now, to save ourselves We are fearless, nothing to lose We will bite, we will bite There’s no retreat, stay and fight We will bite, we will bite You shoot us down but we won't fall, We were the Devil Horns You shoot us down but we won't fall We were the Devil Horns We were the Devil Horns We were the Devil Horns Green heart, sniper blast Firing at the guards who run Stone-tough, tough as magic stones You shoot me down but I won't fall, we were the Devil Horns You shoot me down but I won't fall, we were the Devil Horns You shoot me down but I won't fall, we were the Devil Horns You shoot me down but I won't fall, we were the Devil Horns Instrumental We were the Devil Horns! Blue Fang looked up to the sky. The sounds of howling caught his attention. He didn’t need instinct to tell him what was going on. He readied his fight stance as many figures stepped out of the bushes. “Come on you animals! I’m right here!” > Chapter 24: Ghosts of the Past > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kydra opened her eyes. She looked around the tent. Blue Fang wasn’t in the tent. Maybe he went to the lake. Kydra stretched. Time to get to work. She crawled out of her tent. Still no Blue Fang. Where is he? Kydra thought. She sighed. She grabbed two cups and walked towards the lake. She filled the two cups with water. She walked back to the camp. She set up a small campfire. She grabbed a cup of coffee mix. She poured the coffee mix into the two cups. She boiled the water and stirred the water until it turned into coffee. Not as good as the real stuff, but better than nothing. She took a sip of coffee, “ahh.” She looked around, “Blue! Blue!” Nothing. Kydra began to get worried. Blue wouldn’t leave her. Right? She used Instinct. Maybe she could see Blue's green outline. But alas, she didn’t see him. Maybe he’s just getting food. She took another sip of her coffee. Then she heard a faint rustling from the bushes. She switched her Instinct back on. A familiar Changeling outline was in her sight. She smiled, but then it dropped. It was Blue Fang, but he was covered in claw and bite marks. He was limping towards Kydra. She quickly threw her coffee to the side. “Blue! Blue Fang! What happened?!” Blue Fang was simply muttering, “I took the shot. I took the shot. I took the shot…” over and over. “What does that mean?!” Kydra asked. He continued muttering the phrase. Kydra shook him around. Then he muttered one thing different, “I made Broken… W-Wing pr-proud.” Then he collapsed. “Blue!” Kydra quickly shook her friend, “Wake up!” She wasn’t sure if he passed out from exhaustion or blood loss. She put her head to his chest. It was faint, but his heart was still pumping. She sighed. One less thing to worry about. She went back to the tent and grabbed a bed and some first aid equipment. She grabbed her friend, “don’t worry. I’ll get you home.” The sounds of birds tweeting caught Blue Fangs attention. Wha- where am I? He looked around. Oh yeah. Camp. He sat up. “Well, look who’s up.” He looked over his shoulder, “hey Ky.” He looked around, “what happened?” “You walked out of those bushes and were mumbling ‘I took the shot’ and then you collapsed.” Blue! Blue take the shot! Blue Fang shook the thought from his head. “You alright?” Kydra asked. “Wha- oh, uh, it’s nothing.” “Are you sure?” Blue Fang nodded. “You wanna talk about it?” He shook her head. She walked over to Blue Fang, “you can tell me.” He shook his head again, “it might make you feel better.” He looked down to the campfire. There was no escaping Kydra’s questions. “Sigh when I was younger, Broken took me out to the Everfree… ~~~ “Where are we going?” Blue Fang asked. Brokenwing looked at his brother, “I’m taking you out here so we can get you ready to fight in the Devil Horns.” “Oh. But are you sure we should be out in the Everfree?” “Of course.” The two brothers walked through the forest. Blue Fang looked around the forest. It felt weird, like someone was watching them. “Stop!” Brokenwing said. “What? What!” “You hear that?” There wasn’t a sound. Blue Fang couldn’t use Instinct, so he couldn’t see what Brokenwing heard or saw. “Focus.” Blue Fang held his breath, then closed his eyes. He listened for any sound. Pat. Pat. Pat. What was that? It sounded like a shovel hitting the dirt. Pat! Pat! Pat! Pat! Pat! Pat! Pat! Pat! Pat! Whatever it was, it was getting fast! What the buck? “Get back Blue!” Blue Fang was tackled by his brother. He looked up. A large shadow lept from the bushes. Brokenwing shot a beam at the creature. The shadow dodged it and charged Brokenwing. The wolf pinned Brokenwing down. “Blue! Shoot it!” Blue Fang got up. His mind was racing. His adrenaline was practically rushing through him like riptide. His body didn’t know what to do. “Blue! Blue take the shot!” “I’m trying! I’m trying!” He couldn’t charge his magic. He silently begged his horn to shoot. Brokenwing grabbed a nearby rock and smashed it over the wolf’s head. The wooded wolf disintegrated in dark smoke. Brokewing got up and dusted himself off. He looked at Blue Fang. “You alright?” “I’m sorry Broken, I- I don’t know what-” “Listen good Blue.” Blue Fang looked at his brother. He bowed his head in shame. He was ready for the berating his brother had in store. “It’s only natural to be scared.” He walked past Blue Fang. “We need to head home baby brother.” He started walking in the direction of the Hive. Blue Fang noticed he was walking funny. Almost as if he was limping. Then Brokenwing fell onto his knees. “Broken!” Blue Fang called. He ran over to his brother. Brokenwing took a breath before collapsing. Blue Fang dropped to the ground, “Broken?” He shook his brother, “Broken? Wake up!” Growl Blue Fang looked over his shoulder. Two Timberwolves stepped out from the bushes. Then another. And another. And another. Blue Fang nuzzled Brokenwings body. “Please Broken. Wake up.” The Timberwolves charged the two. Blue Fang nuzzled Brokenwings body. He closed his eyes. Roar! “Broken!” Zap! Zap! Blue Fang looked up. “Your Majesty!” She stepped in front of the two. She shot two more beams at the creatures. They growled at the regal Changeling before retreating into the forest. Many more Changelings stepped out of the shrubbery. Chrysalis walked over to the two brothers. “You. Little. Coward.” She walked to the two Changelings. She kneeled down to the two brothers. “That’s what the old Queen used to call me. Then I proved her wrong, by taking the throne.” She stroked Blue Fangs wings. “Now you’re my son Blue Fang, and I would never call you anything but your name but you gotta tell me something. Are you gonna lay there and swallow the blood in your mouth. Or are you going to get up, spit it out, and go spill theirs?” ~~~ “I’ve never been the same ever since.” Kydra looked at the Changeling. “Those words stuck with me ever since. I swore I would never let Broken down again.” He put his hooves to his face. “You alright?” He dropped hooves, “yeah. I just… wish I could’ve done something… but I just sat there and watched.” He started to pout a bit. Kydra moved beside him. She noticed a small tear running down his face. She hugged him. “It’s okay to cry, Blue. Just let it out.” Blue Fang didn’t know what to do. He put his head to her chest. He started to let the tears fall. “There you are Blue. Let it all out.” She stroked the crying Changelings wings. “Why’d I just sit there? Why’d I just sit there? Why’d I just sit there…” “Blue, it wasn’t your fault.” “But it was. I had the chance to shoot! I shouldn’t have had a problem shooting the wolf. But I just sat there.” “It was just fear, Blue. You didn’t have the ability to shoot. It was an accident, Blue. And I’m sure Brokens already forgiven you.” “Really?” “Yeah, I’m sure of it.” Kydra felt one of the Changelings' tears fall onto her hoof. She looked at the tear, which was red. “Blue, let me see your eye.” He stared at her. “Ah, Blue your eye scar opened up. Hold up.” She reached over to a couple leaves. She changed into a spider and pulled some silk. “What are you doing, Ky?” “Hold on.” She poked two holes into the edge of the leaf, then she knitted the silk through the holes, “here.” She put the eyepatch over Blue Fangs eye. Blue Fang walked over to the lake to get a look at himself. “I look ridiculous Ky,” he said looking at his eyepatch, “How long do I have to wear this?” “Until that scar heals.” She walked over to him. How he got the scare was a question she’d asked herself for a long time. Now, she could ask him about it. “How’d you get it anyway?” He looked to the lake. “Remember Longstrike?” “How could I forget?” She said, shuddering. “Yeah. After the bell tower collapsed, a bit of shrapnel hit my eye.” “Oh. I’m sorry Blue.” “Wasn’t your fault.” Kydra got up. “We should probably move back to camp tomorrow.” She said, looking at the sky. “Alright, I’ll meet you in the tent in a bit.” “Alright.” ~~~ Kydra laid in the tent. Where is he? She looked at the tent entrance. Don’t tell me he left… Blue Fang thankfully walked into the tent. She sighed with relief. “Hey Ky.” “Hey Blue.” “Hey Ky.” He slid into the sleeping bag. He closed his eyes. “Please don’t dream… please don’t dream… please don’t…” “Blue? You’re, uh?” “Oh. Sorry… I uh.” She hugged him, “it’s okay Blue.” He smiled a bit. “Thanks Ky.” The two friends held each other in an embrace. “Hey Ky?” “Yeah?” “Do… do you think death is scary?” Kydra looked at him, “look at it like binoculars. Look at it through the right side, and it’s close. Look at it through the wrong side, and it’s really far away.” “Did you just quote…” She started laughing, “yeah, I did.” “Wise words I guess.” Kydra smiled. Blue Fang smiled back. “Blue?” “Yeah?” “Do you know about the Changeling who led Wonderbolt to safety?” “Yeah. Why?” She seemed to get a bit nervous. “Well what if I were to tell you that I was the Changeling who led Wonderbolt to safety.” “Of course you were.” “What do you mean?” “Well, you’re a light hearted Changeling. It’s almost law that you would do something like that.” She blushed, “th-thanks Blue.” “No problem.” The two friends held each other in silence. Kydra looked at Blue Fang, “you’re still awake? Aren’t you?” “Yeah…” he looked at her. “I’m scared of that dream…” “Then don’t worry about it.” She hugged him, “just, don’t worry about it.” “Thanks Ky.” ~~~ Luna looked from her balcony. Her night shift was beginning. So far everypony was having great dreams. Then two dreams caught her attention. “Hmm.” “What’s wrong sister?” Celestia said. “Nothing,” Luna replied, looking from her balcony. She smiled, “it seems two creatures are having very good dreams.” “Really? Who?” Luna smiled again, “two very special Changelings.” > Chapter 25: One Last Train > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang rolled over in bed. His ears caught the sound of something. What’s that noise? He looked around the tent. “Darn it!” He looked at the tent entrance. He crawled out of the sleeping bag and left the tent. He looked around the camp. “Come on!” Blue Fang looked over to see Kydra holding a hoof-made bow and arrows. She took aim with it, then let it fly! ...into a tree. Her target, a bird, flew away in a panic. “Mother— ugh!” Blue Fang walked over to his friend. She took aim with the bow. Blue grabbed the bow. “Calm down, Ky. Focus.” He let her match his form. He pointed to a bird. “Breathe. Don’t worry about missing the target. Now, imagine an X on your target. Calm down. Aim, now… fire.” She let the arrow fly. The screech from the bird made it obvious that she’d hit her target. “Good job, Ky.” “Thanks.” She walked over to the bird and picked it up. “We should probably get back to camp.” Blue Fang moved to the tent. He took the tent down. He folded it up and packed it up with the rest of his supplies. Kydra skinned and then cooked the bird while Blue Fang packed everything up. She put the feathers into her saddlebags, then continued to finish cooking the bird. Blue Fang finished packing everything and sat down by Kydra. “Need any help?” Kydra laughed, “I think I can cook a bird, Blue.” She grabbed a knife from her saddlebag. She cut pieces from the bird. She gave the bird meat to Blue Fang, “bon appetit.” He took a bite from the bird, “this is pretty dang good.” “Thanks,” Kydra said. After the friends finished their lunch, they finished packing up their camp. Kydra smiled and grabbed her saddlebags. Blue Fang grabbed his saddlebag. “Alright Ky. You ready?” “Yeah. Let’s move.” The two friends walked through the woods, heading straight back to camp. The map they had made it easier then it needed to be. The sun just started rising. ~~~ The trek was easy enough. They might as well have just done it with blindfolds on. Kydra looked at the camp. “Home.” Blue Fang nodded. “Yeah.” The two friends walked towards the camp. Blue Fang smiled as they spotted the rest of the Fang Gang. “Hey guys! We’re home!” The rest of the Gang turned around. When they did, they all cheered. Brokenwing ran up to the two. “Blue! Kydra! You’re alive!” He hugged the two. “Of course we are Broken,” Blue Fang said. He smiled at his brother. The three moved down to camp. The rest of the gang, with the exception of Hivehunter, Hex, and Arthrax, came up to meet the returning gang members. “Hey Blue,” Dagger said, “did you kiss her yet?” “Buck off Dagger,” Blue Fang replied. “Come on Blue, you need to get with her eventually.” “Well, Dag, according to your logic, at least I ain’t alone.” “Burn!” Stinger said. “We need some burn healers over here!” Mitchell yelled. Dagger rolled his eyes. “Whatever.” Blue Fang looked at Brokenwing, “what do we do now?” Brokenwing smiled. “I got a plan.” “You always do.” ~~~ Blue Fang and Dagger walked through Ponyville. They were there to meet with Mitchell. “Why are we here, Deal?” Dagger asked, using Blue Fangs second pony alias. “Because we need to get the dynamite.” “I know that. But why are we heading to the saloon?” “Because that’s where Hardstone’s gonna meet us.” “You’d think Mitch could’ve come up a better alias…” “Okay. What would be a good name?” “Uh…” “That’s what I thought.” The two friends continued towards the saloon. It didn’t look like one of those stereotypical shady bars Blue Fang had read about in books. It looked a bit more nicer. “Looks nice.” “Looks can be deceiving,” Dagger said. “Heh. So you do listen to some of what I say.” “Only the good stuff. Now let’s get in there and meet up with Hardstone.” The two friends walked into the saloon. The inside looked way different than the outside. It resembled most of the saloons in Appleoosa and Dodge City. There were creatures of all sorts grabbing drinks and food from the bartender. On the left, a couple of the patrons were playing poker. Blue Fang looked around the saloon. “Alright, where is he?” “There,” Dagger said, pointing to a grey earth pony. The two walked towards the veteran Sergeant. Blue Fang looked at the Sergeant, who was flipping through the pages of a book. “You’re a long way from the front Sergeant.” “So are you, Private.”    Blue Fang chuckled. “Yes we are.” Blue looked over to the bartender. “Hey, can you get me and my friends some drinks?” “Sure, what will it be?” Blue Fang looked at his friends. “Wine?” They nodded. “Alright. Coming right up.” He got to work. Dagger looked at the poker table. “Looks like a pretty good place to “borrow” some money.” Blue Fang nodded. He looked at Mitchell, “you got the mite?” “Yep.” The bartender sent them their drinks. “Thank you.” “My pleasure.” The three friends took drinks of the wine, which tasted like grapes. “How long till the train leaves?” Blue Fang asked Mitchell “A few minutes, we got enough time.” “Alright.” Dagger looked at a nearby dart board, then he finished his wine. “I’m gonna go play darts.” He got up and accidentally walked into another patron. “Oh, sorry!” “Watch it short stack!” “Short sta— what?!” Blue Fang chuckled remembering that Dagger was shorter than pretty much all of the other changelings back in the army. He looked at Mitchell, “he gonna punch him or kiss him?” That question was answered when Dagger grabbed a bottle and slammed it into the side of his opponent’s head. Mitchell smirked, “well folks we have our answer!” and with that, Mitchell grabbed a chair and smashed another pony who was backing Daggers opponent. Blue Fang jumped up and joined the fight. He grabbed a bottle and threw it at another pony. Another pony hit him with a chair. If only the pony knew what he’d done. ~~~ Applejack and Rainbow were walking towards the saloon. “I wonder if we’ll get to see a bar fight,” Rainbow said. “Ah, please, there ain’t been one in months. Ah think it’ll be as peaceful as a— Applejack was cut off by a pony flying through the window. “Wow…” Rainbow said. “Ah know. Some bar fight.” Blue Fang and the others walked out. “Hello ladies,” Blue said in a country accent in an effort to disguise his voice from ponies who definitely knew his voice. Applejack and Rainbow silently walked into the saloon. Blue Fang looked at Mitchell, “where’s the bridge?” “Follow me,” Mitchell replied. The three changelings set off for the bridge. ~~~ Blue Fang and Dagger walked across the bridge, planting dynamite on the support beams. Blue Fang watched as Dagger got increasingly bored out of his mind. He chuckled at the short changelings mumbling. He planted the last stick to the support beams. “Alright, done, you?” Dagger nodded. “Alright, now let’s blow this thing!” The two changelings flew away from the bridge. Mantis hooked the dynamite up to a detonator. “Done.” Blue Fang looked at Dagger, “wanna do the honors?” Dagger smiled, “of course.” He grabbed the detonator's handle. He started counting down, “3. 2. 1.” Boom! The changelings watch as the bridge went up in a fireball of an explosion. No fireworks show could compare to this. With that out of the way, came the boring part. Waiting for the train. Then, Mitchell, Blue Fang, and Dagger teleported back to Ponyville, where everyone else was waiting. The three met up with the rest of the gang, who were waiting by the train. They were waiting for the train to leave. “How long until they leave?” Dagger asked. Brokenwing looked at him, “in a few minutes.” The gang nodded. Blue Fang looked over to the new members, Arthrax and Hex. “You two sure you want to come?” “Course we are,” Arthrax said. Blue Fang nodded. He sat against the a nearby box. Then something hit him, “I wonder how the Hive’s doing now that Thorax is in charge.” Mitchell looked over, “I heard from a couple of changelings in the saloon that someone tried assassinating him. Poison I’ve heard.” Blue Fangs heart dropped. “Is he alright?” he asked, worriedly. Mitchell nodded. “Yeah. He’s back on the throne and all.” Blue Fangs heart found it‘s beat again. “Okay.” Hivehunter looked at Blue Fang. He looked on edge. Blue looked over to him, and he turned away and started looking through a nearby box. Kydra walked over to Blue Fang. “Go on.” “What?” Blue Fang replied. “Go talk to him.” Blue Fang sighed, “why? He hated me as it is.” Kydra nuzzled him. “Please. Do it for me?” Blue Fang nuzzled her back. “Alright, I’ll do it.” He walked over to his rival. Hivehunter looked from his box to Blue Fang. “Hey Hive.” “Hey First Class Fang.” Blue Fang chuckled. He sat down beside his rival. “You alright Hive?” He nodded. “Yeah. I just… remember the war.” “We all do. PTSD affects us all.” “Yeah.” Hivehunter looked around. “Can I talk to you? In private.” Blue Fang nodded. The two walked behind a couple of boxes. ~~~ A few minutes later Blue Fang and others flew down the rails, chasing the train. The train itself was moving further and further down the rails. By now, the train was far away from Ponyville. Blue Fang, Dagger, and Mantis caught up to the train. “Y’all ready?” They nodded. “Alright. Let’s move.” The three changelings jumped onto the train car. They got up and took cover. “So much for sneaking onto the train!” Dagger said blasting the RG’s who stood in the way. “Like you’d sneak on either way!” Mantis replied, shooting at the RG’s as well. Blue Fang rolled his eyes. “That don’t matter! Just get to the front of the train!” They continued pushing towards the front. They moved towards the next car. Blue Fang grabbed an RG and beat him down. The other two were taken down by Dagger and Mantis. “Come on! We gotta get to the front of the train!” “What do you think we’re doing, Mant?!” Dagger yelled. “Come on! Enough foolin’ around!” Blue Fang snapped. The three continued to run down the train cars, aiming for the front of the train. They came across a train car that couldn’t be opened. “Gotta climb over it.” Blue Fang grabbed the top of the top of the train car and hoisted himself up. An RG tried shooting him. Blue Fang dodged the attacks and grabbed the guard and threw him off of the train. Mantis and Dagger climbed up. “You good?” Dagger asked. “Yep, now come on let’s move.” The three ran across the top of the train. They jumped down to the next flatbed car. Another guard fired at them; they in turn, lit him up. The guards stumbled around, firing blindly. Those stray beams flew in many directions. One of them hit a lantern, and the next train car caught fire. The guard stumbled around until he fell off the train. “Buck! The train’s on fire!” Blue Fang yelled. Dagger looked over the side of the train. “We gotta get off this thing!” “Jump and fly!” Mantis yelled. The three changelings jumped off of the train and started flying. They flew over the burning train car and landed on another flatbed car, where Hivehunter and Zenex were waiting. Blue Fang looked at the flaming car. “Uncouple that carriage before it blows us all up!” Hivehunter nodded, “I’m on it.” Blue Fang looked up. A guard stood atop a small ledge, watching the train pass by. “The train’s being robbed!” “Guard the rear!” Zenex said to Blue Fang. “Sure.” Hivehunter uncoupled the car. “Well done,” Blue Fang said. After a few seconds, the car exploded in a fireball. The changelings ducked out of reflex. Dagger looked at Brokenwing, Mitchell, Stinger, Kydra, Arthrax, and Hex. “Get on!” The six changelings landed onto the flatbed car. Hivehunter looked around. Then he looked at Blue Fang and Zenex. “Blue! Zenex! Move!” He ran over to the two and pushed them down. Blue Fang was about to attack him. Then… Zap! He looked over to Hivehunter, who had a look of shock on his face. Then, he fell off the train. “Hive!” Blue Fang cried out. He couldn’t believe it! Hivehunter? The one who hated him? HE took a beam for HIM? Another beam flew past him. He turned around and fired at the crap for aim guard. The guard stumbled around until he fell off the train. Blue Fang looked back at the spot where Hivehunter fell off. Arthrax ran over. “We’ll get Hive, you protect that money!” Then him and Hex jumped off the train. Mantis ran over. “Guard the rear Blue Fang, I’ll go stop the train!” Blue Fang looked at him. “Stop the train?! Whatever you do, do not stop the train! You secure up ahead, but keep us moving!” He turned to face the rear. “I’ll deal with that patrol when it comes through.” The patrol started charging them. Blue Fang let his RFM fly in a colorful fireworks display. He watched as the many unicorns and pegasi fell and hit the ground. He hadn’t felt his adrenaline rush like this ever since the war. And he was enjoying every second of it. Another patrol charged, and they were cut down like a forest. Then another patrol, and another… And another. Blue Fangs horn was smoking like an oven. He blew the smoke away and turned around to Kydra, Stinger, Zenex, and Dagger. “Let’s move. The vault should be the second car.” The changelings nodded. The five changelings moved to the armored car. They passed over a train car full of coal. Then they reached the armored car. Blue Fang grabbed the dynamite and placed it on the door. “Get back.” Blue Fang fired a beam at the dynamite and the door exploded. He moved into the room. He took a quick look around the room. “We got something!” He grabbed a couple of bags of bits. “Here!” He threw the bags at the gang. Mantis, Mitchell, and Brokenwing jumped into view. “Driver bailed. This train ain’t stopping, we gotta jump!” “Alright. Everyone grab something!” The gang each grabbed a bag of bits and jumped off the train. They watched as the train flew off of the destroyed bridge. “Sweet Chrysalis…” Dagger said. Mitchell picked up a bag. “Well uh, let’s move.” The gang picked up the bags. Then Arthrax and Hex walked up to them. Blue Fang looked at them. “Where’s Hive?” “That patrol got him,” Hex said, “we had to run.” Arthrax grabbed some of the bags. “Come on, let’s go before another patrol turns up.” Blue Fang looked at the ground. He started following the rest of the gang back to camp. ~~~ Blue Fang laid in bed. He couldn’t sleep, especially since his friend had been captured by the RG’s. “Blue? Can I come in?” Said an unseen Kydra. “Sure.” Kydra walked into the tent. “Mind if I..?” He scooted over, “of course.” She laid down beside him. “Is something wrong?” Blue Fang nodded. “Is it Hive?” “Yeah.” Kydra hugged him, “don’t worry Blue, we’ll find him.” “Promise?” “Promise.” The two embraced. “Thank you Ky.” “No problem Blue.” The two fell asleep, their nightmares and fears becoming dreams and fantasies. Blue felt at ease. Tomorrow, they’d find Hivehunter and save him. > Chapter 26: May Thou Be Forgiven, For Thou Have Sinned > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang took a sip from the nearby lake. He found himself worried about Hivehunter. He still couldn’t believe that Hivehunter would take a magic beam for him and Zenex. He looked over to the lake, where Zenex sat down, throwing rocks into the water. He felt bad for the young ling. Hivehunter was like a big brother to Zenex. Now that big brother was gone. Sure, he had the Fangs, but Hivehunter was someone he always trusted. Blue Fang got up and walked over to the young nymph. “Hey Zen.” Zenex looked over to him. “Hey Blue…” He grabbed another rock and threw it into the water. Blue Fang smiled, “lemme help you.” He grabbed a rock and threw it like a frisbee. The two changelings watched as the stone seemed to skip across the lake. Zenex reached over for another rougher rock, and tried throwing it, only for it to sink. Blue Fang reached for another, much smoother rock. “Try with this one.” Zenex nodded and threw it. He watched as the stone hopped across the water. “Wow. Thanks Blue.” “No problem, Z.” Blue Fang put his hoof around Zenex’s shoulders. He proceeded to giggle. Blue Fang looked at him. “You alright there?” Zenex shyly smiled. “Yeah, I just…” he was blushing like mad. “Yeah?” “...like being tickled,” Zenex said, very softly. “What?” “Uh… nothing.” Blue Fang smirked. “Really?” Zenex nodded. “Yeah, I’m perfectly fine- NAHAHA!” Blue Fang smiled as he watched Zenex shake and laugh as he tickled him around his neck. “You really sure? It sure seems like something is pretty funny, and I don’t know what it is.” Zenex continued to sprawl around on the ground as Blue Fang continued tickling him, going from his neck to his torso. Zenex continued to laugh before he finally found his voice. “Okay- AYAYAY- Blue you win!” He sprawled around like a fox rolling in the grass. “I’m tick- AHAH- lish!” Blue Fang smiled and stopped. “There, was that so hard?” Zenex was still wiggling around like a worm on a fishhook. “Sorry about that,” Blue Fang said. “Just wanted to prove a point.” After a while, the young nymph looked up and Blue Fang and smiled. He sat up and nuzzled the older changeling. “Thanks Blue.” Blue Fang nuzzled Zenex’s neck playfully. “No problem, gigglebug.” Zenex started giggling. “Hey cut it out!” he said playfully. Blue Fang chuckled. “Okay Z.” The two friends sat in silence for a while just, watching the lake. Blue Fang then looked over to the others. Brokenwing was waving to him. He got up and stretched. “I gotta talk to Broken. See ya later?” “You bet.” Blue Fang smiled and walked over to his brother, who was sitting on the stool, reading a book. He looked up from his book. “Hey Blue.” “Hey Broken.” The older changeling smiled. “I see Zenex has a new interest.” Blue Fang looked over to the young nymph, who was skipping stones. “Yeah, I guess.” He looked back to his brother. “He sure loves it.” “Yeah,” Brokenwing said. “I ain’t never seen a changeling so into tickling as him.” “Yep.” Blue Fang looked at his brother. “It’s, sorta adorable.” “Sorta?” Brokenwing asked. “You mean absolutely adorable?” Blue Fang smiled. “I didn’t think you were for ‘adorable’.” Brokenwing smiled back. “‘Course I am. After all, you were pretty adorable as a grub and nymph.” Blue Fang’s face went red. “Really?!” His brother smirked. He reached into his saddlebag. The younger brother watched as Brokenwing went through the bag. After a few minutes, he pulled out a few pieces of paper. “Of course you were. Here, take a look.” He slid the papers over to his brother. Blue Fang picked up the sheets and looked at them. In front of his eyes was a little changeling grub happily curled up in a small web blanket. It didn’t take long for Blue Fang to recognize the grubs fangs. “Was this really me?” Blue Fang asked, going through more pictures. Brokenwing smiled and nodded. “Yeah. Ohh you were the most adorable thing ever!” “Adorable?!” Blue Fang sat down shocked. “Of course!” Blue Fang silently slid the pictures back to his brother. “... Well… thanks…” Brokenwing smiled as he took the pictures and slid them back into his bag. He looked back over to his brother. “Anyway. I have another job for you, Sting, Dag, and Mantis.” “What is it?” “Well, Arthrax and Hex got a lead on Hive.” “Really?” “Yeah. He’s somewhere in Canterlot. Here.” He slid a picture over to his brother. Blue Fang took the picture and examined it. It was a picture of what appeared to be a couple of warehouses on the Canterlot port. “Is this where Hive’s being held?” “Probably. Only problem is, the pony with the keys to the place is in Ponyville.” “Alright, then that’s where we’re off to.” “I wish you the best of luck.” Blue Fang smiled. “Thanks.” He turned around and started walking. “We’re gonna need it.” ~~~ “Explain to me what the plan is.” The others looked over to Dagger. “We just went over it Dag,” Mantis said. “I’m sorry! I just… forgot?” “Okay, the plan is, we breach his office building, take out any RG’s in our way, then capture this motherbucker,” Blue Fang told him. “Alright.” Stinger looked at the door. “Are y’all ready to breach?” “Born,” Dagger said. They got ready to breach the office building. Blue Fang found his adrenaline rushing like a river. He positioned his back hooves, and then bucked down the door. They moved into the building, dropping to guards while they did. Blue Fang took point, watching every corner. “Keep moving,” he whispered. The four Fangs continued moving towards the target area. The fact that the office was brightly lit didn’t make sneaking around much easier. The smell of coffee was also another problem, especially since the smell was so strong. “Hold,” Blue Fang said, causing the others to halt. He took a peek around the corner. A couple RG’s stood guard. “What is it?” Dagger asked. “RG’s.” “Why are there so many here?” Mantis asked. “Dunno. But they’re guarding that door.” Blue Fang stepped back and looked at the others. “Any ideas?” “Maybe we could throw something?” Stinger suggested. “But what?” Dagger asked. Stinger looked into one of the cubicles. He found a stapler. “How about this?” “Perfect.” Stinger nodded and threw the stapler into another cubicle, causing the RG’s to perk up. “What was that?” “I dunno. But we should check it out.” “Yes sir.” The two guards walked over to the cubicle, giving the Fangs the chance to drop them. The changelings walked past the two guards and cracked the door. There sat a white earth pony stallion. Blue Fang looked at the others, who nodded. He returned the gesture before bucking the door down. The pony jumped back as the door busted down. “Hooves up, motherbucker!” Dagger yelled. The pony chuckled. “You think you’ve got me?” he said. He looked at Blue Fang. “Well, you’re wrong.” The sound of marching caught their attention. They looked over to the door and down the hall stood a Royal Guard. Before they could react, the RG started hammering them with RFM. The changelings ducked behind whatever was there for cover. “Get down!” Stinger yelled. “Find cover!” Mantis followed. Blue Fang looked over to the pony, who was jumping out of his window. He looked to the others. “He’s getting away!” Mantis looked over. “We can’t let him get away! Go after him!” Blue Fang nodded and ran after the pony. He jumped out of the window and looked at the pony, who looked back. He had a rope tied around his hoof. “You’re half bug, half blueberry.” And with that, he hopped off the building. Blue Fang looked over the side to see him getting out of a trash can and running. Blue Fang found another rope. Ah, what the heck. He wrapped the rope around his hoof and jumped. Before he hit the trash pile, he thought, yeah I probably didn’t think this through! Then he landed in the trash bin. “Argh!” A couple ponies went over to him, asking if he was okay. They helped the changeling out of the trash bin. He got out and dusted himself off. He looked up to see the pony running away. He got up and chased after his target. The pony ran into the alleyways; Blue Fang followed him. The pony climbed up a ladder, which he then kicked down. Blue Fang looked over to a nearby box. He jumped onto it, then kicked off of it, and then he grabbed the ledge of the building.  He chased the pony down the rooftops of multiple buildings, jumping from roof to roof, whilst simultaneously praying not to fall off. The pony turned around and realized that Blue Fang was still chasing him. He then jumped into a nearby wagon full of hay. He crawled out and continued running. Blue Fang followed suit. The pony ran past a café looking back at Blue Fang, who gave chase. The changeling looked over to see a wine bottle sitting on a table. He grabbed it, much to the anger of the ponies sharing the drink. He looked at his target, raised the bottle up, and with his hoof, threw the bottle at the pony. The glass bottle shattered and the pony fumbled. Blue Fang tackled the pony and the two crashed into a painting stand. The many painting frames broke into shards. The pony grabbed some of the frame pieces and smashed it across Blue Fang’s face. The changeling recoiled back. The pony pulled himself up; Blue Fang did the same. The pony threw a punch, and Blue Fang caught it, and in turn broke his opponents leg. He then delivered an uppercut to the pony, which sent him to the ground. Blue Fang picked him up. “Wait! Wait! I can tell you something very important… about the two who sent you here.” Blue Fang waited for the pony to speak up. Before he could, the pony grew a look of terror as in the corner of the stallion's eye, Blue Fang noticed a light flash. Before the changeling or pony could do anything, an arrow ended up in the poor stallion's head, killing him instantly. The many ponies around the two enemies broke out into fits of yells and screams as blood and gore sprayed onto Blue Fang, who simply stared in shock before dropping the body and ducking behind a table. He looked over to the dead stallion. He grabbed his hoof and started pulling the corpse towards him. Another arrow struck the dead pony’s hoof, causing the changeling to flinch and drop the body. He grabbed it again and pulled it towards him again. He examined the body. Poor fella. He searched the body and found the key to the warehouses. He tried taking another step, but an arrow stopped him. He realized he was trapped. Then… “Blue!” The changelings heard his name. He knew that voice like the back of his hoof. A smokescreen formed right behind the table, giving Blue Fang the chance to run. He ran over to where he heard the voice. “Pharynx!” The cyan changeling walked out. “Hey Blue.” Blue Fang smiled at the sight of him. Then he looked out to where the altercation happened. “Dude. What the hay was that?!” Pharynx shook his head, “I dunno. But it sure don’t feel right.” “It sure don’t.” The two friends walked through the alleyways for a bit. Then Blue Fang spoke. “I can’t believe that I’m doing all of this to get Hive back.” “Me neither. Where’s he being held?” “Canterlot.” Pharynx thought for a bit. “Well, I’m coming with you.” Blue Fang was surprised. “Really?” “Yeah. I don’t like him, but he doesn’t deserve to be locked up like that.” Blue Fang nodded. “Well I’m heading there in a few days. I’m gonna lay low here for a bit.” “Alright, whenever you’re ready.” Blue Fang nodded. He looked up to the yellow sun. Hive, if you’re out there, we’re coming for you brother. No matter what. > Chapter 27: Redemption > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Few Days Later Blue Fang and Pharynx found themselves walking through Canterlot, on their way to the resident saloon. The two changelings needed to wind down after last week. Blue Fang led his brother to the saloon. “Why do you think he got killed?” Blue Fang looked over to Pharynx. “What do you mean?” The ladder waved his hoof around in a circle. “The poor fella took an arrow to the skull. But why?” Blue Fang looked down. “I don’t know. One minute I’m chasing someone down, the next I’m holding a dead corpse in my bare bucking hooves.” “Yeah, that’s fair.” Blue Fang looked up. “I just don’t know why-” “Excuse me? Arrowshot?” The two looked back. There stood an all too familiar purple Alicorn. Blue Fang cringed as she said his alias. He cringed even more as he answered. “Yes ma’am?” “I came to find you after that… incident in Ponyville. The princesses want to speak with you.” Blue Fang cringed even more. “Yes ma’am.” He followed the purple Alicorn to the castle; Pharynx followed them.  ~~~ “You called for me?” That was the first thing Blue Fang said, trying not to cringe even harder. He watched as Celestia sipped a bit of tea. “As I’m sure you know, you were the main witness to the… murder.” He nodded. “I want to know why you were chasing him.” Blue Fang froze a bit. He didn’t know what to say. “Uh… he threatened my family?” Celestia and Luna looked at each other. “Really?” Luna asked. He nodded again. “That doesn’t sound like him.” “Well he did.” Blue Fang looked back at Pharynx, who shrugged with confusion. Bucking helpful, Pharynx. “Do you know why anyone would want him dead?” Celestia asked with concern. Blue Fang thought for a second, no one else knew of the pony except Arthrax, Broken and Hex, but why would they want to kill the pony? He shook his head. “Not a clue ma’am. Not a clue.” ~~~ Blue Fang and Pharynx walked towards the saloon. Pharynx shook his head. “What the buck was that, huh?” Blue Fang rolled his eyes. “I don’t bucking know. I don’t even know if I was supposed to kill him.” Pharynx nodded, albeit, reluctantly. “I guess that’s fair.” Blue rolled his eyes again, “come on. Let’s just get to the saloon.” Pharynx nodded. The two friends walked past the many, many shops, trying to find the saloon. The concrete city was as confusing as a rat maze. He looked around until they finally found the saloon. “Why does one city need so many shops?” “Don’t ask me,” Pharynx replied, rolling his eyes. The two friends looked at the saloon, which looked much different than the one in Ponyville. This saloon mostly looked way more fancy. Blue Fang was impressed. “I know the one in Ponyville was bad, but maybe this’ll be different.” “What makes you say that?” Pharynx asked. “A ling can hope. The two friends trotted into the building. Blue Fang was right; the inside of the building was way nicer than the other saloon; glass chandeliers, comfortable chairs, and one heckuva bar table. Blue and Pharynx stood in amazement. “I guess this is how the high class stuff their faces, eh?” Pharynx said. “Yep,” Blue replied. The two friends walked over to the bar stand and found their seats. Blue signaled the bartender. The familiar looking mare walked over. “Hello fellers, what can I get you two?” Blue and Pharynx smiled. “Well miss Sweet Dreams, can we get some wine? Blueberry for me.” “And grape wine for me.” Kydra nodded and went to work. The boys watched as Kydra went to work, moving as fast as a locust swarm. They cheered as she passed the two wine glasses to them. “Dang Ky- er.. Sweet, you have a serious talent in the kitchen,” Pharynx said sarcastically. “Aww, buck off,” Kydra said. Blue took a sip. “Wow. That’s the best wine I’ve ever had.” Kydra smiled. “Thanks.” She leaned closer to the two changelings. “So, how’s the hunt for Hive going?” she whispered. “Well, we’re following up on Arthrax and Hex’s lead. We’re gonna look around the warehouses later today.” Kydra sighed. “Y’know Zen misses him, right?” Blue nodded. “Yeah. We’re gonna find him. If we don’t… Chrysalis be cursed.” “You bet,” Pharynx said. The two friends took more drinks from their wine. A few more ponies trotted into the saloon. They looked around the saloon for a while, as if looking for something. Or someone. Blue and Pharynx ignored them for as long as they could. Then, they looked over to the two changelings. “Hey, you two!” They looked over. They didn’t know what to say, nor think. Blue spoke up. “Yeah? Can we help you fellers?” They trotted closer. “We recognize you! You were the one chasing around our Boss!” Blue and Pharynx looked over. “Pardon?” The pony in front pointed towards Blue. “You. You chased our boss through Ponyville last week.” He then pointed to Pharynx. “And you help him escape.” The two changelings exchanged glances, then looked at Kydra, who nodded. They nodded back, and looked at the ponies. “Look fellers, you got the wrong pair.” They looked at them with doubt. Pharynx and Blue nodded at each other. They looked back at the ponies. They, of course, didn’t believe it. “You two can come quietly, or we’ll force you out.” Blue and Pharynx decided it was to end there. They jumped behind the counter with Kydra. The ponies began firing at them, causing the many patrons to flee in terror. “Buck!” Kydra yelled. “We gotta get outta here!” Pharynx yelled. “How the hay are we supposed to do that?!” Blue yelled back. Pharynx charged his antler-like horns, “we fight our way out!” he said, before raising up and firing at the ponies. Blue and Kydra nodded and rose up to fight. Blue took aim and fired at a couple of the ponies, who took cover behind some of the tables.  A pony peeked over to take fire. His beams struck some wine glasses near Blue. “Buck!” he shouted. “You alright?!” Kydra asked. He nodded. “Yeah… it didn’t pierce me.” He peeked over the counter and took fire at an exposed pony’s head, dropping the pony. Another pony took fire at Blue, causing Pharynx to take fire at the pony, dropping the pony. Two more ponies raised up and fired. Kydra wasted no time, and fired an ES at the ponies. The ES sent a bunch of debris flying. “Get down!” Kydra yelled. The three changelings quickly ducked behind the counter as shards of wood, glass, and chunks of rocks flew towards them. They stood up, coughing as the smoke cleared. They hopped over the counter and walked over to the leader, who had a few pieces of shrapnel caught in his flesh. “Poor fella never had a chance…” Blue said. “Yeah,” Kydra muttered. “Let’s get outta here.” Then, the three changelings walked out of the ruined saloon. They looked around the city, only to see a group of Royal Guards running towards them. “We gotta move,” Pharynx stated. “Don’t wanna get jailed.” “Yeah. Let’s move into those alleyways and lay low for a while,” Blue Fang said. The three changelings then ran into the alleyways to lay low for a while. ~~~ Kydra looked at Blue Fang. He looked a bit stressed. She trotted over to him. “Hey Blue. What’s wrong?” “Nothing, I just… well… I miss Hive.” Kydra tilted her head. “Really?” He nodded. “I still can’t believe he took a shot for me and Zen. I just can’t stop thinking about it…” She smiled. “Aww, Blue.” She walked over to the changeling and hugged him. “We’ll find him Blue. I promise.” He smiled. “Thanks Ky.” She smiled before trotting away. Blue looked over to Pharynx, who waited for Kydra to walk around a corner before saying, “Blue, just kiss her already!” Blue blushed hard. “It’s not like that!” “Oh bull crap! You obviously like her!” Pharynx teased before trotting over. “Just ask her out, already! You’ve been in the friend-zone for the past like eighteen years!” Blue sat against the wall. “And what if I do? She wouldn’t say yes… she’s practically a changeling princess! Me? I’m just a—” “AHH!” The two looked over to the alley Kydra had just disappeared behind. “Kydra!” They called out before running down the alley. They found a pony holding a knife to her throat. “Get back! I don’t wanna hurt anyone! I just want money!” the pony said. Blue and Pharynx watched as the pony stepped towards them. “Just put the knife down…” Pharynx said calmly, “we don’t have any money. Just let her go and maybe we can—” “What?! You don’t have any money?!” the pony asked. He put the knife closer to Kydra’s throat. “Why… I should—” Blue started growling, dropping his pony form, and revealing coal grey skin. “What is that?! Is… that a monster?!” He threw Kydra to the side, causing Blue to become more Enraged. “You ANIMAL!” Blue roared before charging the pony, grabbing his knife and shanking the pony. “No! Please— Slash! I— Slash!” The pony let out a gurgling breath before Blue buried the knife into him one more time, letting the pony slide down the wall. He started breathing heavily before backing away. He looked at the others, who stared at him. “We should move before somepony finds him.” “Alright. The warehouses aren’t too far away from here,” Pharynx stated. “Alright. Let’s move,” Kydra said. ~~~ The three changelings trotted towards the warehouses. Blue Fang looked at the water leading out to the Celestial Sea. He looked over to the docks, watching the many boats leave and dock at the port. He then looked up to the three warehouses. He smiled a bit. Hive was in one of those houses, he was sure of it. He looked at Pharynx and Kydra. “Okay. You both can turn away now. I won’t judge you.” He watched them. “Y’all in? Or out?” “I’m in,” Kydra said. “Me too,” Pharynx followed up. Blue nodded. “Alright. I’ll take the third one.” “I’ll take the second one,” Kydra volunteered. “Okay. I got the first one,” Pharynx waved his hoof. “Now let’s move. Return to camp after you finish your searches.” “Hura!” The three changelings split up and ran to their respective warehouses. Blue couldn’t hold his excitement. He was finally gonna save Hive. He reached the warehouse door. He dropped his disguise and slowly opened the metal door and trotted in. He lit his horn up. “Hive? Are you in here?” He trotted deeper into the building. He looked around the dimly lit building. “Hive! It’s me, Blue Fang! I’m here!” He looked around the building.  He walked in a large room, with a small empty chair. He looked at the chair, wondering why it was empty. He walked over to the chair. “Hello? Who’s there— ack!” He felt someone’s hoof wrap around his neck. He looked up to see a Royal Guard standing behind him. “You.” Blue tried to break the stranglehold, but to no avail. The guards grip was too strong. “What are you here for, you buggy bucker?” “Hive… Hunter…” Blue managed to gasp. “Heh. That motherbucker? He sure ain’t here! We couldn’t find him. Maybe you can he—” The guard collapsed to the ground, letting Blue fall to the ground with him. He gasped for breath, before turning, expecting to see Kydra, Pharynx, or both. Instead, he saw Queen Chrysalis. ~~~ “Chrysalis!” Blue exclaimed, surprised by the sight. “Blue Fang. I’m so glad I found you.” She said, almost panicking. “I needed to warn you!” He looked up in surprise. He didn’t expect his former Queen to greet him like this. He expected her to try and attack him, but a warning? He hugged her back. “Warm me? About what?” he asked, still not trusting her. She continued breathing, as if she’d been running. She looked away. “It’s Hex and Arthrax! They’re planning to betray you!” He looked up, his defensive stance dropping. “W-What?!” She nodded. “Yes! They tried getting you arrested with the train, and then tried to kill you with that lead! They don’t care about your gang or it’s loyalty! They only want the money!” “Oh no! The rest of my friends are at camp with them! What should I do?!” She looked at him as if he were crazy or stupid. “Don’t just stand here! Go save your friends!” Blue nodded. “Yes ma’am.” Blue turned and started to run to the exit. “Oh! And Blue Fang?” Blue turned around. “Yes ma’am?” She leaned towards him and kissed his forehead. “I love you.” Blue Fang smiled. “I love you too, mama.” ~~~ Blue galloped towards the camp as fast as he could, trying not to stop. How could he be so naive? All those leads were just death traps! He should’ve seen it! It stuck out like gold in a mud puddle! Why didn’t I see through the ruse? They were so oblivious! He looked up to the twilight sky. He then noticed a deer prancing by a nearby lake, then he noticed a wolf stalking through some nearby trees. He looked ahead. He didn’t know what to expect. I swear… when I get my hooves on those rats! Blue continued running towards the camp, praying to Chrysalis that it wasn’t too late. ~~~ “Hurry up and pack those bags Zenex and Kydra!” Arthrax ordered. “Well, we’re doin’ my our!” Kydra snapped at him, before going back to packing the bags with Zenex. “Well hurry! We ain’t got much time! Hurry!” “We just got plenty of time, Arthrax.” They looked over to see Blue Fang arriving into camp. The others gasped and sighed with relief. Blue looked at the others. “We all need to have a little talk.” “Blue Tooth, you’re back. Hooray,” Hex sarcastically cheered. Blue glared at him before looking at Arthrax. “I just saw an old friend, Arthax. It was Queen Chrysalis.” The others gasped as he said the name, especially Pharynx. Blue continued. “She’s okay. Not like you… care about her. You rats. Both of you.” The two brothers seemed to recoil at that insult. “It seems these two were pretty far from our loyalty.” Hex frowned. “What the hay are you talking about, Blue Tooth?” Blue growled. “You’ll talked.” They recoiled again. “That’s a Chrysalis-danged lie!” Hex snapped. Blue turned to his older brother. “Broken.” Arthrax cut him off, “Broken, think of our future.” “Chrysalis told me,” Blue informed his brother. Arthrax chuckled. “And you believe her Blue Tooth? You believe her?” He turned away from Blue. Blue turned away from them. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen through their disguise. Then he remembered how every lead they’d given them went south. The train, the lead on Hive’s whereabouts. Both death traps. “It all makes sense now…” Arthrax sneered. “...No, it sure a heck doesn’t.” They then turned around, horns charged, ready to fight. The other Fangs recoiled as the two opponents stood in a stalemate. “Broken… think!” Blue pleaded. “Broken… be practical now,” Arthrax tried persuading him to their side. Brokenwing looked at the two opponents, wondering what to do. He always had an answer, but now? Now he didn’t know what to do. “Broken!” They turned to the nearby shrubbery to see a familiar red changeling limping out of the bushes. “Hive?!” Zen said. “They left me… They left me to die!” Hivehunter snapped at them. Broken ran over to him. “Hive… I’m sorry… I should’ve…” “They… they left me!” The Fangs turned to face Hex and Arthrax. Pharynx stepped up. “All of you. You pick your sides now because this is over!” Blue looked at Broken. “All those years Broken; for these snakes?!” Blue snapped. Hex chuckled, “be quiet Blue Tooth, be quiet you live in the clouds!” he yelled, still giving his sinister sneer. Grubber stepped up. “No! You be quiet, you traitors and lower your horns!” The stand-off was getting even hotter as most of the Fangs got up, and started moving towards the Fangs end of the spectrum. Then, Dagger ran over, looking panicked. “There’s RG’s coming! Fast!” They turned to face him. Hex then shot Grubber in the leg while his back was turned. “Argh!” he yelled, collapsing to the ground. “Now!” Arthrax yelled. Grubber convulsed on the floor, still yelling. “Who among you is with us?!” he paused and looked at the Fangs. “And who is betraying us?!” Mitchell and Clover started trotting over to the Fangs. “Mitchell! Clover! Think for yourselves!” Hex tried pleading. Arthrax looked at the changelings. “Blue’s lying… he’s lying!” They stood in a tense stand-off until… “Put your hooves up!” A magic blast struck the ground near them. “Ah buck them!” Arthrax yelled. “Move!” The Fangs got behind cover. Blue looked at the group. “Ready gang?” “Yeah,” Hive said. The Fangs rose up and fired at the charging guards. Blue didn’t think he’d ever feel like this ever again. But he had his friends beside him, and they were willing to go down beside him. A few Explosion Spells landed next to them. “Buck!” Clover yelled. “We gotta go!” “Yeah we can’t stay here!” Dagger yelled back. “Okay! Dagger, start a smoke screen!” Broken said. “On it!” Dagger shot a smoke spell and covered their retreat. Blue found Pharynx, Zen, and Kydra and motioned for them to follow him. “Everyone split up into small groups!” Blue yelled. The four changelings began running through the woods. While running, they found a group of RG’s. “Fire!” Blue ordered. The four changelings began firing at the RG’s. Zen peeked over and fired at them, dropping two. Kydra shot a few ES’s and blew the guards out of their holes.  Another beam struck from behind. Blue and Pharynx turned around and fired at the guards flanking their rear. Blue shot at two of the guards, dropping one, and injuring the other. Pharynx dropped three of them. They looked back to Kydra and Zenex. “Come on!” “Blue wait.” Blue and Pharynx turned back to the two. “What’s wrong?” Blue asked. Kydra looked down. “Blue… we need help.” Blue and Pharynx looked at each other in confusion. She looked back at them. “I think Thorax can help.” “Thorax?! Why him?!” Pharynx asked. “Because we can trust him.” She looked at Pharynx. “Please, he can help us,” she pleaded with them. Pharynx looked down. “I… I guess…” Kydra looked down to Zenex. “Come on Zen, let’s move.” Zen shook his head. She looked at him. “Come on Zen.” He shook his head and looked at Blue. “I’m coming with you.” Blue looked at Pharynx, then back at Zenex. “Why?” Blue asked. He sighed. “My whole life, I’ve been hiding in a shadow. I wanna be brave and do something for once!” Pharynx walked over. “But it’s dangerous, especially for a nymph! You’re better off with Ky.” Blue looked at Zen. On one hoof, Zen would be a great help for them but would be in danger, but on the other, he’d be safer with Ky, however, they might get jailed without his help. Blue looked at Zen. “Please Blue! Let me go with you!” [Take Zenex] (Click Link) [Leave Zenex] (Click Link) > [Take Zenex] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang sighed. “Okay Zen, you can come,” he said reluctantly. “Just... don’t get hurt...” Zen nodded. “I won’t let you down!” he said, happily. Kydra looked at Blue. “But Blue! Zen could get hurt!” She tried pleading with him. “What if the guards or even worse, Hex and Arthrax, get to him?!” “They’ll have to kill me first,” Blue said. He walked over to Kydra. He took her hooves. “Don’t worry. Go and get help.” She nodded and turned to run. “Kydra?” She turned back around. “Yes Blue?” He walked over to her. “You’ve done so much for me and I wanted to thank you for giving me the courage to do this...” She looked at him. “Do what?” “This.” He closed just eyes, leaned forward, and put his lips onto hers. Pharynx and Zen gasped as they watched it. Neither of them could believe it. Kydra’s eyes widened and she blushed, before closing her eyes and leaning into the kiss. She passed him a small key. Blue pulled himself back, then looked at the key. “Thank you.” She nodded and turned to run. He smiled and looked at the others, before nodding and running in the opposite direction, with Zen and Pharynx close behind. They continued to run through the woods until they came across another group of Royal Guards. The three changelings took cover behind some fallen trees. Zen looked up and fired at the guards. Then an arrow landed close to his head. He ducked back down. “I almost got hit by an arrow!” They looked at him, then two the arrow. “What in?! Where’d it come from?!” Blue asked. “I dunno!” Zen yelled. The started contemplating whether to look back over the tree when... ”BLUE FANG!” The three Fangs flinched when they heard the voice yell Blue’s name. Pharynx perked up. “That sounded like Hex!” he pointed out. “Yeah! And he’s ticked!” Zen exclaimed. The others agreed with Zen. Pharynx looked over the log. “The RG’s are leaving! They must’ve found Hex!” “Good!” Blue said. “Now, let’s move!” The three continued running through the woods. Blue looked over to see a deer clashing with a wolf, before they faded away. He didn’t question it, and kept running. He looked over to the other side. A group of RG’s charged them. “Watch the left!” They aimed their horns at the Royal Guards and fired. Some guards shrunk behind their cover whilst others dropped from the multitude of beams hitting their position. A guard popped his head out to fire... ...and got dropped from someone else. The guards started yelling and firing at someone else, but seeming from their panicked screams and yells, whatever they were shooting, they weren’t hitting. The Fangs took this time to continue running through the woods. “Come on! Their should be a nearby cliff we can climb up!” Pharynx yelled. Blue nodded and looked at Zen. “Zenex! Go in front of me!” Zen nodded and ran in front of Blue. “They’re all over us!” Pharynx called. The three continued running. “Run guys run!” Blue looked at Zenex. He smiled as he watched the nymph run. Zen was fighting along side him, and nothing would change that. ”ARGH!” Blue looked ahead before tripping over something. He looked up to see Pharynx motioning for him to move. He ran up and fired at the guards attacking their position. The guards fired back. Blue rose up and fired at the guards, dropping three of them. He sighed with relief until he heard it. A faint crying... He looked over. No... He ran over to Zenex, who had an arrow sticking out of his stomach. He looked up to Blue. “Blue? What’s going on?” Pharynx asked. “Give us a second...” Blue looked at Zenex, who was still whimpering. He slowly caressed the nymphs face. “B... Blue... I don’t wanna...” Zen started to tear up. “Shh... shh... it’s okay... I’m right here...” Blue embraced the nymph, starting to tear up. Zen smiled one more time... “Thank you...” Blue reached up for Zen’s beautiful eyes and brushed them closed for the nymph’s final rest. He ran back to Pharynx. “Come on Blue... let’s go...” Blue looked up. “But what about the money?” Pharynx looked at him as if he were crazy. “Kydra gave me the key.” “We head back there, we’re dead in five minutes! We got a family, and that’s more important.” Pharynx was right, family is more important. But with Zen gone... ...what did Blue have to lose? “Maybe you’re right... but...” “Look, you want the money? You head down! I’m going back to my family!” [Go With Pharynx] [Go Back For The Money] > [Leave Zenex] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue smiled. “Sorry Zen, but you have to stay with Kydra.” “B-But Blue! I-” “It’s okay. I’ll come back, I promise,” Blue hugged the nymph. “Promise you’ll be safe?” “I promise.” Blue looked over to Kydra, who walked over to him. “Blue, please be careful.” He gave a reassuring smile before taking her hooves. “I will. Now... go get help. Thorax knows he can help us.” She nodded, before turning away to go get help. “Kydra?” She turned around to see Blue trotting over. “Thank you. You’ve always been there for me. And I wanted to thank you for giving me the courage to do this...” She tilted her head. “To do what?” “This.” Blue swept her off her hooves, holding her in his hooves. He leaned forward, closed his eyes, and planted his lips on hers. Pharynx and Zenex gasped, watching the kiss. Kydra blushed before closing her eyes and leaning into the kiss, wrapping her hooves around Blue. He let her down before saying, “Thank you.” She blushed before grabbing Zen and running. Blue looked at Pharynx. “Come on. Let’s buy’em some time.” Pharynx nodded. “Yeah.” The two changelings ran through the woods, leading the RG’s away from Ky and Zen. Blue looked up and saw a deer triumphantly standing over a defeated wolf. He smiled and continued running. The two changelings kept running through the woods. Pharynx looked at him. “Alright. We should split up.” “What? Why?” Blue asked. “We can cover more ground that way.” Pharynx pulled out a crossbow. “Here, use this if you see those rats.” “You got it.” Blue took the weapon and arrows. “I’ll see you in Tartarus, brother.” “Right back at ya.” The two brothers split paths and ran through the woods. Blue looked around the trees, noticing silhouettes of the RG’s chasing him. Blue fired his horn at them, dropping some, and injuring others. He looked back ahead. Their plan was working. Until... “ARGH! HEX!” Blue froze. He recognized that voice like the morning sky. Pharynx. He turned and ran towards the sound of the changeling. He looked around, trying to find the source of the voice. Then, he bumped into someone. He looked up. “Mitchell?!” Mitchell looked at him. “Blue!” He stood up. “What happened? Where’s everyone else?” Mitchell looked over to see the other Fangs, followed by Thorax and some other changelings. “Here we are!” Kydra said. They looked around. “Where’s Pharynx?” Another yell echoed out. Mitchell looked at Thorax. “We’ll find him, I just can’t guarantee we’ll find him alive!” They began running. “Mitchell! I’ll take point!” Blue ran through the woods. “Pharynx!” Broken! Hurry! Blue! Blue take the shot! Everything's coming full circle... Blue thought. All I’ve done... All I’ve wished I’d done... It’s like my whole life has been leading up to this moment... ~~~ “We need to head home, baby brother.” Broken started walking towards the hive, before collapsing onto his knees. “Broken!” Blue ran over to him. Broken let out a breath before collapsing. ~~~ You almost died that day because of me... and all because I couldn’t... couldn’t... Blue shook his head. “Buck me. I’m coming Pharynx, you’re not gonna die brother. Not now. But today.” “Don’t run!” Mitchell called out. Blue looked back to see he’d run ahead of everyone. There was no turning back now, so he kept pushing on. He looked up. “Pharynx!” Nothing. He continued running. He looked around the woods. Then he heard voices and he continued running. He found a small opening and started to climb through. Then... “Argh!” He looked up to see a cyan changeling falling to the ground, with a certain scarred changeling loading a crossbow. Blue grabbed his crossbow and began to take aim. Blue! Blue take the shot! This time, he wouldn’t hesitate. He aimed the arrow right to Hex’s neck. Hex looked over with a look of horror, before he found an arrow in his neck. He collapsed to the ground, gasping for air before going limp. Blue ran over to Pharynx. He looked up. “Is that Blue..? I must be dreaming...” Blue stared in horror at Pharynx’s bruised body. “What did he do to you?” Pharynx coughed before managing to say, “I thought I was left behind... I thought I might die alone out here...” The other Fangs ran up, gasping. Blue looked at them, before looking back at Pharynx. He pulled out a canteen of water. “Here, drink some.” Thorax and Stinger ran over to him. Stinger picked him up. “Easy. Easy. Pack him onto Thorax.” The changelings gently sat Pharynx onto his brother’s back. Blue looked over to Broken. “You always looked after me Broken. And I reckon you did today. Cause there’s one thing that keeps you going on that long march; and that’s having your siblings beside you. ~~~ “When the hive called, you nine answered,” Thorax said, standing on the stage. He smiled at the Fangs. “From your walks of life, you came to defend our peace and honor,” he continued his speech. “Wherever you’re path takes you all, know this: You’ll always be a part of a Brotherhood of Heroes.“ ~~~ The Story Continues in Epilogue: Redeemed Souls... > [Go With Pharynx] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue Fang looked at Pharynx, then at Zenex. He sighed. “I’m coming with you,” he growled, “I’m gonna get you outta this mess if it’s the last thing I ever do!” Blue ran up past Pharynx. “Thank you.” The two continued running towards the cliff side. Blue looked up to see a deer standing over a defeated wolf. He looked at Pharynx, then to the now very close cliff. He stopped and looked at Pharynx. “Okay, this is as far as I go. You need to find the others.” “But... but Hex! He’s still—” “I’ll deal with him. You get back to our family.” He took his dog tags off. “Here. Get back to our... your family.” “Blue Fang...” “Go to your family.” “Blue Fang!” “Get the hay outta here and be a gosh darn adult!” Pharynx sighed. “You’re my brother, Blue.” “I know...” Blue sighed. “I know...” The two friends split up, Blue running up the cliff, while Pharynx ran through the forest. Blue turned and began firing at the charging guards. “Chrysalis curse you ponies!” He turned and continued running up the cliff. He kept going until he found a sort of ledge he could stand on. He stared over the edge, watching the guards move past him. He sighed and looked around. Then... “BLUE FANG!” Blue looked over to see Hex charging at him. The ladder clashed with the former. The two went at it, exchanging punches. “You should’ve messed with us!” Blue snapped, throwing a right-hook. Hex recoiled back. “What makes you say that, Blue Tooth?” he said, almost taunting him. “Cause when you do, you get hurt!” Blue snapped. He drew his knife; and so did Hex. The two blades began clashing together, almost like a dance. Blue and Hex battled atop the cliff. “You’re rats!” Blue snapped. “I’m a survivor, Blue Tooth. A survivors is all there is... in living and dying!” The two continued their dance of blades. Blue snarled as Hex tried cutting at his neck. He ended up getting pretty close to Hex torso. The two continued their "dance". Blue felt a blade brush too close to his shoulder. He winced as the blade scratched his shoulder, tearing a bit of flesh away. “Once I finish you, Blue Tooth, I’ll go kill Pharynx, then Kydra, and then Broken... and the whole Fang Gang!” He looked up to his opponent, and they continued, until... Slash! “ARGH!” Blue grabbed Hex, who now had a big gash in his leg. He grabbed Hex and began dragging him towards a nearby rock, and began bashing his skull in. Blue wanted Hex to pay for what he did, and now he would. Blue raised Hex up to see his face, which didn’t even look like Hex’s face. He discarded the body. He stepped back. He was free. He finished the— Slash! Blue’s eyes widened and he looked down. It didn’t take him long to see the knife in his stomach; he collapsed. He looked up to see... Arthrax He fell onto his back and looked at Arthrax. He growled. “You’re a rat... both of you...” he wheezed. He frowned. “You’re dying Blue Tooth... You’re blind...” He looked over to his younger brother. “I made it... I’m the sole survivor of the fall of the Fang Gang...” “Pharynx made it...” Blue snarled. “Everyone else made it...” He snarled, before pointing Hex’s crossbow at him. Blue snarled. “Go on...” Arthrax growled, before withdrawing his crossbow. He picked up his brother’s body. Blue watched as he walked away. Blue began crawling away from the brothers, moving towards the down side of the hill. He kept pulling himself towards Zenex’s body. He rested himself by the little nymph. He looked up to see a sunset rising. He smiled. He took a breath. “In Elysium's Fields, the roses grow Between the gravestones, row by row That mark our place; and in the stars Our sisters, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the bombs below We have perished, some time ago We lived, felt dawn, watched the sunset glow Loved, and were loved, and now we lie In Elysuim’s Fields, in Elysuim’s Fields There’s no more quarrel with the foe Together we help each other grow The torch, be ours, to hold up high If ye break faith with us who’ve passed We shall not sleep, though roses grow In Elysuim’s Fields.” He smiled before he started to drift off to his eternal rest. He looked up to see a golden reformed changeling floating down to him. “Zenex..?” The changeling took his hoof before lifting Blue’s spirt from his body. He looked down to see the others running up to the two resting changelings. Blue looked up to see his body transforming into a golden reformed changeling. Zenex smiled as Blue landed in the Golden Fields of Elysium. ~~~ The Story Continues in Epilogue: Thou Sins Have Been Forgiven... > [Go Back For The Money] > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blue sighed. Zen was gone... what did he have to live for? He passed Pharynx has dog tags. “Here.” Pharynx looked down to the tags. He took them. “Thank you...” “Yeah, Yeah... Take care Pharynx.” Pharynx ran away, leaving Blue to run back to camp. He looked up. “Arthrax... Hex... Get out here and face me like adults!” he yelled. He continued to run towards the camp. He noticed a wolf tearing flesh away from a defeated deer. He flinched before continuing. He soon found the camp in flames. He looked over to a nearby chest. He took out the key Kydra gave him. Thank you, Ky. He ran over to open it. She was right! The key did work! Blue smiled, looking at the multitude of bits and gold bars in the chest. He closed the chest and picked up the chest. “BLUE FANG!” He looked over to see Hex charging him. He dropped the chest and engaged the changeling. “You...” Hex snarled. “Came to steal from us?!” “No. I came to take what what’s mine!” Blue snapped. He drew his knife; and so did Hex. The two blades began clashing together, almost like a dance. Blue and Hex battled atop the cliff. “You’re rats!” Blue snapped. “I’m a survivor, Blue Tooth. A survivors is all there is... in living and dying!” The two continued their dance of blades. Blue snarled as Hex tried cutting at his neck. He ended up getting pretty close to Hex torso. The two continued their "dance". Blue felt a blade brush too close to his shoulder. He winced as the blade scratched his shoulder, tearing a bit of flesh away. “Once I finish you, Blue Tooth, I’ll go kill Pharynx, then Kydra, and then Broken... and the whole Fang Gang!” He looked up to his opponent, and they continued, until... Slash! “ARGH!” Hex looked down to see Blue’s knife stuck into his stomach. Hex looked at Blue before falling down dead. Blue snarled, withdrawing his knife. He looked over to the chest. The money was theirs to keep. He smiled before... Slash! Blue’s eyes widened and he looked down. It didn’t take him long to see the knife in his stomach; he collapsed. He looked up to see... Arthrax He fell onto his back and looked at Arthrax. He growled. “You’re a rat... both of you...” he wheezed. He frowned. “You’re dying Blue Tooth... You’re blind...” He looked over to his younger brother. “I made it... I’m the sole survivor of the fall of the Fang Gang...” “Pharynx made it...” Blue snarled. “Everyone else made it...” Arthrax snarled, drawing his crossbow. “Curse you...” “Curse us both!” Arthrax pulled the trigger, sending a crossbow bolt into Blue’s head. He cackled before grabbing Hex and walking off, leaving Blue to burn in flames. Blue’s spirit looked up to see Zen looking down before walking away into the Golden Fields of Elysium. He tried following, but was dragged underground. He soon found himself in a cage. He looked around in shock. He was in Tartarus... ~~~ The Story Continues In Epilogue: The Sinner’s Path... > Redeemed Souls > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A few days later… Blue sat down at the table, smiling. It’d been a few days since the whole deal with Hex, who’s body had been cremated by the Fangs. They believed that the bucker deserved his fiery grave. Blue didn’t let that bother him. Today was a special day for him and certain changeling. He started shaking, both nervously and excitedly. He didn’t think this day would ever come! A date with Kydra! This is something he’d never think would happen. “Mommy? What’s wrong with that pony?” Blue’s ears perked up as he heard a foal ask their mother that question. He bowed his head down a bit. He was fully aware that many ponies were looking at his coal, grey body. He didn’t mind so much. He guessed that it would be pretty strange for ponies to see an unreformed changeling sitting down in a pony restaurant, casually waiting for something. He sighed, before taking a sip of water. “Hello Blue!” Blue almost spat out said water. He swallowed it, before coughing a bit. He looked up to see a familiar changeling’s violet eyes, and a pleasant smile on her face. “K-Kydra! Hello!” Blue greeted nervously. She sat down across from him. He smiled. “You look beautiful, Kydra.” She blushed. “Oh, you.” He smiled, still shaking a bit. “I’m… kinda nervous about this,” he admitted. She smiled back. “To be honest, I am too.” Blue looked up in surprise. He smiled shyly. He looked at his menu. “What should we get?” She looked at her menu. “I’ll take a salad. What about you?” He stared at the menu, and was almost shocked by it. “There’s no… Y’know… protein.” She giggled a bit. “Well Blue, it is a pony restaurant,” she pointed out. He chuckled sheepishly. “Yeah, that’s fair.” He continued looking through the menu. He then found something he’d ironically enjoy. “I’ll have a…” he blushed a bit. “... a blueberry… muffin…” Kydra giggled. She smiled. “Good choice.” Blue smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, rub it in all you want.” She smiled, “it’s okay Blue. You may be a blueberry, but you’re my blueberry.” He blushed harder than ever, and smiled nervously. “...Thanks…” She smiled as the waiter came to take their orders. After the waiter left, Blue took a look around. “We’re still getting looks.” Kydra looked around, noticing a lot of ponies staring at them. “It’s okay Blue, just ignore them,” she said, reassuringly. “I’m sure they won’t do anything to us.” Blue sighed and took a drink from his water. He sighed heavily. This wasn’t the whole ‘drinking champagne on a sunset beach’ he’d hoped for. But, winners can’t be choosers. He looked at her. She smiled at him. He smiled back. The waiter walked over with their food. “Thank you, sir,” Kydra said. He nodded and walked off to help someone else. The two sat and ate in silence for a while. Kydra looked up. “Y’know, we didn’t really get to finish that kiss,” she said, blushing. He blushed as well. “You… uh… wanna finish it?” She smiled at him. “Why I’d love—” They were interrupted by the door opening with a loud slam. They looked over to see two unreformed changelings bursting into the restaurant. They ran over to the two. “Sorry to interrupt!” Mantis said breathing heavily, as if he’d been running.  “What’s wrong?” Kydra asked with concern. Mantis looked too out of breath to speak, so Dagger spoke up. “We found you-know-who!” The two changelings almost jumped outta their seats. Blue looked up. “Are you serious?!” “Yeah, we got someone who says she knows where he’s at!” Mantis said. Kydra and Blue looked at each other. “Who is it?” Kydra asked. “You have to see it to believe it!” Mantis said, “now come on!” Kydra and Blue got up and the four changelings ran towards the exit. A pony looked up. “Hey! You need to pay!” Blue looked at him. “Ah, bill it to Thorax!” With that, they ran out of the restaurant and headed towards the hive. Blue looked up to the nighttime moon. They’d been looking forward to this forever. They’d finally be able to get Arthrax. ~~~ “Chrysalis?!” Blue looked up to the former Queen. Out of everyone he expected, he didn’t expect his former ruler. He looked at Pharynx, who looked at the Queen with an angered expression. Blue stepped up to the Queen. “I didn’t expect to see you again.” She nodded. “I can say the same to you.” She looked at the Fangs. Pharynx growled. “Can you get to the point?” She nodded a bit. “Well, I’ve found Arthrax.” The Fangs exchanged glances with each other. Broken looked up to her. “Where is he?” She looked at them. “He’s in the dragon lands, hiding.” The Fangs snarled. “Coward,” Dagger said. “Waiting for us to find him.” “He ain’t gon be waiting long, I can tell you that for sure,” Blue growled. Chrysalis looked at them. She started to walk away. “I’ll be on my way.” She continued walking towards the exit, leaving the hive and heading back to where she came from. The Fangs looked at each other, then to Thorax. He nodded to another changeling. “I’ll send Ember a message saying we’re on the way.” “We’re?” Blue tilted his head. Thorax nodded. “We’re coming with you.” Blue smiled. “Really?” Thorax smiled back. “Of course! You go down, we go down with you.” Blue smiled. “Thank you.” The changeling king nodded. “Now come on. We ain’t got a lot of time.” The changelings then ran towards the exit, heading to the Dragon Lands. ~~~ Blue Fang looked around the many lava pits. He’d never felt so hot, even in Saddle Arabia. He almost felt like he was going to melt into a puddle. He looked over to Thorax. “Are you sure we can trust Ember?” He smiled and nodded. “I’m sure, Blue. We’re friends.” Blue sighed. The group continued walking through the lava lands. Dagger sighed. “I would make a joke about the girls being smoking hot, but…” he took a couple breaths, “...I… I think it’s been burned outta me. Literally.” He couldn’t even chuckle at his own ‘comedy’. The others simply groaned. “Somethings don’t change…” Hive said. The changelings continued their trek through the flaming lands. Blue took out his canteen, only to realize the water was gone. His eyes widened. It can’t have evaporated! We’ve only been here for five minutes! He leaned the canteen over, expecting water to fall from the canteen, but nothing fell out. He sighed. “Buck this place…” They continued their long trot through the fire and flames. Blue looked over to Zen. Usually, Zen would stick close to Hive, but now they were a good distance away from each other, as they didn’t want to overheat each other. Blue looked at Thorax and Pharynx. They seemed to be determined to finish this mess. Blue sighed. This was the longest hike he’d ever been on. ~~~ A few minutes later… “Whew!” Blue looked over to Dagger, who wasn’t over exaggerating his pain. It was as hot as a hundred suns. Blue looked over to Broken. “Why haven’t our bodies adjusted yet?” “It needs some time to adjust to this heat...” Broken panted. “I feel like every cell in my body is going to explode,” Kydra said, wiping away what was either sweat, or bits of herself melting off. They continued walking until they found a blue dragon waving at them. “That’s one big lizard…” Dagger said, staring at the dragon. Thorax glared at him. “She’s not a lizard.” “Then what is she?” “Well, she’s a dragon, and she—” “And a dragon is just an overgrown lizard.” Thorax rolled his eyes and they continued walking. Blue looked at her, and some of the dragons behind her. “Ember!” Thorax called out to her. She waved at him. “Hello Thorax!” She flew down to the changeling king and greeted him and his brother. Then she noticed the Fangs. “Who are they?” she asked a bit defensively. Thorax smiled. “Don’t worry. They’re my friends.” He pointed a hoof towards them.  The Fangs waved at Ember. She waved back and opened her mouth to talk, but Mitchell cut her off. “Excuse me, ma’am. But we ain’t got time to talk. We’re looking for Arthrax.” She frowned at him. “And who are you?” Mitchell glared. “Why should I—” “Sorry about Mitchell,” Broken stepped in. “We’re looking for a changeling who came through here.” Thorax nodded. “Yeah. We got a lead that someone named Arthrax is camping here. Have you seen them?” Ember thought for a few seconds. Then it hit her. “Actually, yes I have. He was headed up to Mount Charcoal.” She pointed up to a large volcano. The Fangs stared at the giant volcano. “He’s up there?” Hivehunter asked. “Yeah. He ran up there holding something. Some kinda weapon of some sorts.” The Fangs frowned. Arthrax knew they were coming for him. “He’s running scared,” Mitchell said. “Yeah. Bucking coward,” Dagger growled. Zenex looked at Hive, who smiled confidently. Zen smiled back. Blue looked up to the volcano. “Well, what are we waiting for? Come on, Fangs.” The Fangs nodded and followed Blue up towards Mount Charcoal. ~~~ Blue stared at the cave. This had to be it! Arthrax had to be in there! He looked over to the others. “Ready?” They nodded. He looked up ahead and led them into the cave. They lit up their horns and looked around the cave. They continued walking until they saw an opening, leading outside. They walked out, and found Arthrax hiding behind a wall… ...standing behind an automatic crossbow. The changeling’s eyes widened and they quickly scrambled for cover as Arthrax began cranking the crossbow, before a wave of arrows came volleying at them. “Die you buckers!” Blue Fang growled. “Give up, Arthrax! You have nowhere to run!” he shouted. Arthrax cackled. “That’s why I’m just gonna kill you all!” Blue dug through his satchel, then found some dynamite. He looked up to Pharynx, and smiled. Pharynx returned the smile as Blue threw the dynamite over to him. He pulled out his crossbow and some rope. He began tying the dynamite to the arrow and lit it. “Fire in the hole!” He fired the arrow at Arthrax’s barricade. Arthrax quickly ran from it before the dynamite exploded. “Buck you!” he yelled, continuing to run away. “Come back, you coward!” Stinger yelled at him. The Fangs gave chase and followed him. After a while, they found him standing by a lava lake, knife drawn. Blue stepped out from the Fangs, drawing his blue steel knife. He flew down to Arthrax. “Come on, Arthrax. It’s just me and you!” Blue snarled. “Yeah. It’s just me and you.” The two began to engage in knife to knife combat. Arthrax snarled. “You killed my brother!” Blue threw an angered slash. “And you tore our gang apart!” Arthrax glared. “You were only in it for the money!” Blue glared back. “It was never about the money!” Arthrax let out a yell. His blade clashed with Blue’s. His expression soon turned from angered to a smug smirk. “Curse you.” He then tripped Blue, and pinned him to the ground. He tried burying the knife blade into Blue’s chest. The others watched as the struggle continued. Thorax himself was the most worried. He growled. He had always stood by and watched. Now? Now, he didn’t want to leave his brother to suffer. He looked over to Pharynx and grabbed his brother’s crossbow. He took aim, looking right at Arthrax. “Hey Arthrax!” The changeling looked up, his expression going from smug to shock. He looked down to Blue, who was smirking. “Curse us both.” Before he knew it, there was an arrow deep in Arthrax’s chest. He looked up to Thorax, who was breathing heavily. He started laughing as he got off of Blue Fang. “You… You shot me…” He started coughing and laughing, trying to walk off, but fell down dead. The other stared at Thorax in disbelief. He lowered the weapon and looked at Blue Fang, who smiled at him. Blue then looked over to Arthrax’s body. He walked over to him and glared. Without hesitation, he kicked the changeling into the lava lake. He watched as the changeling burned in the pit. “I’ll see you in Tartarus, you motherbucker.” ~~~ Blue Fang stared at the party that Thorax had going. Many changelings and even other creatures had come from all around, including the four princesses. He walked along the edge of the party. He looked around, noticing the many creatures, who were interacting with his friends. Then, he heard a certain voice from behind him. He smiled. “Hey Kydra.” She walked over to him. “Hey Bluey.” Blue blushed at his old nymph-hood name. “Heheh, I’m surprised you still remember.” She nuzzled him. “‘Course I remember, Bluey.” She smiled a bit shyly. He looked at her, wondering what she was thinking. Then… ...she put her lips on his. His eyes widened and he turned pink as she planted the kiss on his lips. He didn’t know what to think. He looked over to Cadance, who had a smug smirk on her face. He looked back at Kydra, who slowly opened her eyes and pulled back. She looked at him. “Blue…” He stared at her. “...You taste like blueberries,” she said giggling. Blue on the other hoof, blushed as she pointed it out. “Uhh… K-Ky… I… uhh…” She cut him off by gently brushing a hoof across his face. “It’s okay Blue, I love blueberries.” He blushed again. “Really?” She nodded, still smiling. “Yep. You may be a blueberry,” she playfully booped him on the nose, causing him to blush harder. “But you’re my blueberry.” He blushed again. He looked at Ky and smiled. They kissed yet again, not a care in the world for who was watching. They just went with the flow. Blue smiled. This was the end of the chapter, but the start of the story… The End. > The Sinner’s Path > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A few days later..  Broken and Ky walked through the hive cemetery. They walk towards a certain resting spot. They held back tears as they read the name. Zenex. A few feet away, was another grave. One that belonged to a bug named Blue Fang, but they didn’t talk about him. Broken still teared up at the sight. Sure, he left them for the money, but they were still brothers. He looked at Kydra, who started to tear up. He sighed. “Come on, Ky. Let’s go.” She nodded and decided to follow Broken. They walked out of the cemetery, and bumped into someone they didn’t expect to. Broken looked up. “Chrysalis?” The royal changeling nodded. She smiled at them. “I know I’m not supposed to be here, but I need to tell you something.” They exchanged glances. “What is it, Mother?” Broken asked. She looked around, then back at the two changelings. “Well, I know where Arthrax is.” They looked at each other. “Really?” Kydra asked, wiping the tears from her eyes. “Wh-Where is he?” She looked down. “He’s at the dragon lands. At Mount Charcoal.” The two changelings looked down. “He’s hiding. He’s waiting,” Kydra said. Chrysalis nodded. She looked back. “Well, I better get going. I wish you the best of luck.” With that, she flew away. The two changelings watched her fly away, then looked at each other. They bowed their heads. “Come on, Ky.” Kydra looked at Broken. “Let’s go get the Fangs. And let’s bag this bucker.” She nodded and ran off. Broken looked back. He sighed. “We’re coming for you, Arthrax. You better watch yourself.” ~~~ The Fangs along with Pharynx, trotted through the dragon lands. They looked around, trying to find Mount Charcoal. They continued to search, until they noticed a giant mountain off in the distance. Mantis looked up. “I wonder… what Blue’s doing…” Dagger snarled. “He’s probably resting in Tartarus for what he did,” he growled. “After all the trouble he went through together, he decides money is better than his family!” Stinger nodded. “So much for no changeling left behind.” Hive was the most furious. “I can’t believe that he turned around and left! After how I took a shot for him, he turns and leaves it in the dirt! And on top of that, Zen was… was…” He started to drop his composure. “It’s okay, Hive,” Kydra said. “We didn’t know it would happen like that…” Hive sighed. “I guess… but I should've been there… I could’ve prevented it…” Mitchell looked over. “We all wish that. But, what’s in the past is in the past. As much as we hate it… we can’t do anything about it.” “You sound like the voice of experience,” Mantis said. “Trust me. I am,” Mitchell said, looking down. The Fangs continued to walk. Soon, they would be at Mount Charcoal. Soon, they’d find Arthrax. Soon. They’d have their revenge. ~~~ The Fangs continued to walk, finding a small cave. Pharynx looked ahead. “I guess this is where we go.” The others agreed. They began walking. Pharynx started breathing heavily. Something felt… off. He looked back to the other Fangs, who nodded at him. They continued walking until… Bang! They looked behind to see a large explosion, followed by falling rocks. Pharynx’s eyes widened. “RUN!” he yelled. The Fangs started running, trying their best not to get crushed. They eventually found the exit and just barely escaped the cave in. Pharynx looked around. “We made it!” he cheered. “But where is Dag? And Mitchell? And Stinger and Mantis?” Kydra asked. They looked around, and started yelling out. But got no response. Kydra felt her heart drop. They… …they were gone… Pharynx sighed. “Come on… let’s go…” he muttered. The Fangs continued to walk towards the peak. Pharynx sighed again. “I’m… sorry. I hope you’ll wait for us. I hope you will.” ~~~ “HAHAHAHA!” Pharynx looked up at Arthrax as he cackled. He snarled. “Give up, Arthrax! You’re done!” “I could say the same thing about the Fangs!” he yelled back. Pharynx growled. He looked over to Hive, who had a stick of dynamite in his hoof. He looked at Pharynx. “Pharynx! Go to Sire’s Hollows! Tell Lavender… I’m sorry!” Pharynx’s eyes widened as Hivehunter lit the dynamite and charged. “Hive! No!” Before he knew it, an explosion shook the ground up. They looked over to see the barricade destroyed and Arthrax running away. Pharynx, Kydra, and Brokenwing gave chase, not before stopping beside Hive’s body. Pharynx sighed. “I’ll tell them. I’ll tell them you’re sorry…” ~~~ Pharynx looked down to see Arthrax waiting, knife drawn. He drew his knife, along with Kydra. The two flew down and began to fight the changeling. “You tore our gang apart!” Pharynx yelled. “So what?! You killed my brother!” “Your brother killed Zenex!” “And what about Blue?” he asked, smuggling. Pharynx growled. “He left us… he ain’t one of us.” “Too bad the other Fangs aren’t here to see this!” He snarled. “They’re watching over us right now!” Kydra yelled. “I wish that were the case.” They continued to battle. Pharynx and Arthrax clashed blades while Kydra joined in when she could. Then, Arthrax knocked Pharynx to the ground and tried to kill him, but Kydra intervened. The two clashed blades. Then, Arthrax slashed at her leg, causing her to fall. He then dug the knife into her abdomen. Brokenwing’s jaw dropped. “KYDRA!” he cried watching her lifeless body fall down dead. Pharynx looked up. He stared in horror as he watched Arthrax kick her body into the lava pit. Broken gritted his teeth. Without hesitation, he jumped down and engaged his opponent. Arthrax was caught off guard and Broken slashed Arthrax across the neck. Arthrax fell down gasping for air, before Broken started going wild on his body, stabbing it in fits of rage. He then backed up to see what he had done. He felt nothing. He grabbed the body and threw it off the side of the mountain. He looked at Pharynx. “Come on.” Pharynx nodded and followed Broken. ~~~ Brokenwing looked at the brothers. Thorax was a bit emotional. “Are… are you sure you wanna leave?” he asked. Broken nodded. “The Fangs are gone, but I’m still here. Creatures all around are going to hear of our legacy.” Thorax ran over for one more hug. “We’ll miss you.” He smiled and hugged him back. “I’ll be gone for a while, but soon, I’ll be here to stay.” “You’re always welcome.” Pharynx walked over to Broken. “I… I don’t know what to say…” he tried to hold back tears. Broken smiled. He wrapped Pharynx in an embrace. “It’s okay Pharynx. I’ll be back. But first, I have to spread our legacy. Our struggles. Our story… it’s what they would’ve wanted.” “Of course.” They said their final goodbyes before Broken departed. He looked up to the sky. The Fangs were gone, but their stories will be told for all to hear. The End > Thou Sins Have Been Forgiven > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Fangs trotted through the reformed hive, soon entering the cemetery. Kydra had tears forming in her eyes as they stood over the two graves. Mitchell wiped her eyes. “It’s okay, Kydra. They’re in a better place now.” She looked at him. “Okay... okay.” She wiped her eyes, then placed a bouquet of flowers on the two graves. Broken clutched his hoof. “Blue...” he muttered, starting to tear up. He sniffled as he imagined his brother’s smile. He wiped the tears from his eyes, only for more to form in them. “I’m sorry... I’m so... so sorry...” Despite all of their mourning, one of them was the most audible. They turned to the red-eyed changeling, who was sobbing in between the two grave stones. “Zenex...” he sobbed, looking at the nymphs resting spot. “Blue Fang...” He turned to face his former rival. The others walked over to the crying changeling. “Hivehunter...” Stinger said, rubbing his carapace. “I... I miss them so much...” Hive said, wiping the tears away. “We all do, but you can’t beat yourself up for it...” Mitchell said. The other Fangs hugged the changeling. Hive smiled and leaned into the embrace. “Such a cute family.” They turned around to see a certain changeling Queen looking at them. “Mother?” Broken said. She trotted over to the grieving changelings. She sighed, sitting next to the two graves. “Two more children gone.” Broken looked at her. “Why are you here?” he asked. She laid two bouquets of her own and sighed. “I know where Arthrax is.” They perked up. “Where is he?” Hive asked. She looked over. “The Dragon Lands,” she said solemnly. Hive growled before running off. “Hive wait!” Kydra called out to him, but he kept running. Broken placed his hoof on her shoulder. “Just let him go, Ky,” Broken said solemnly. She nodded, leaning into Broken’s chest, sniffling a bit. He sighed and wrapped his hooves around her, letting her cry a bit. “I miss them so much…” Broken nodded, rubbing her head. “I know Kydra. I know…” he sighed, a few tears leaving his eyes. He looked over to the others, who watched the two interact. They looked at Broken, waiting for approval. Broken frowned and nodded. “Let’s get this bug.” “Hura sir,” Mitchell said. “Hura.” ~~~ The Fangs had marched for a while, trying not to melt like changeling-cicles due to the heat of the Dragon Lands. They looked back at the large group of reformed changelings following them. Mitchell looked at Pharynx. “Are you sure bringing Thorax and these guys along?” Pharynx nodded, looking back at them. “I mean, Hive isn’t here… we’re better off safe than sorry.” “Okay, okay…” Mitchell looked over to Broken. He frowned, looking at his Captain, who was kicking a pebble across the ground. “You okay, sir?” Broken shrugged. “I dunno anymore…” he managed to utter. “Blue… Zen… both gone… who else can we lose?” he asked, as they trekked through a cave. Mitchell dared not to answer that question, instead focusing on the nearby exit. Pharynx looked over. “Is it weird that I sorta… miss Hive?” The others looked over in surprise. “Really?” Pharynx silently nodded. “I feel bad for him… especially since Zen is gone.” The others nodded, looking at the exit. “I’m sure you two can talk when we get home...” Thorax said. “I’m not so sure about that…” Mantis said, his eyes going grey. They all looked to the exit to see a certain red changeling sitting against a few rocks… ...with an arrow sticking out of his abdomen. Pharynx’s eyes widened and he ran over. “Hive? Hivehunter?!” he kneeled down to the injured changeling. “Hive!” he says, lifting the red changeling’s head up. “Medic! Anyone!” “Pharynx...” “Not now buddy, just rest!” he said, putting pressure on his wound. “Someone do something!” he cried out. “Come on, stay with me buddy!” Hive pulled out a bloodied envelope. “Pharynx…” he uttered, grabbing Pharynx’s hoof. “Deliver this to Sire’s Hollows…” he ordered. “Tell her… I’m… sorry…” His eyes didn’t even shut. He just went limp, much to Pharynx’s dismay. He started shaking his head. “Oh nonononono! Hive! No no! NO! HIVE!” he cried, shaking the limp changeling, trying to wake him up, but to no avail. A changeling ran up. “Pharynx! We have to go! Now!” Pharynx pushed the changeling away. “Get off me!” he snapped, trying to hold back tears, before looking back at Hive and grabbing his letter. “I’m… I’m sorry…” They stared at his limp body before continuing up the mountain. ~~~ Broken watched as Arthrax swung his knife at him. He winced, grabbing Arthrax and kicking him back. Artrax snarled, and tried to slash Broken, but Kydra grabbed him around the neck, choking him. He shook her off, pushing her closer to a nearby lava pit. She yelped, rolling away from the lava. He and Ky began fighting, slashing and throwing punches. He eventually pushes her to the ground. Arthrax snarled, charging Broken. He rolled out of the way, trying not to get stabbed. Broken swings again, but he got knocked to the ground, before finding a knife in his stomach. Arthrax smirked, pulling out his brother’s crossbow. “Goodbye, Captain Broken.” Before he can fire, Kydra tackles him, sending the arrow into the ground next to him. The crossbow dropped, and the two continued fighting. Broken crawled over to crossbow, but Arthrax kicked it away, then kicked him in the face. Broken slipped in and out of consciousness, watching as Arthrax tripped Kydra and began beating her with his hooves. Broken looked at the knife in his stomach, before grabbing it and pulling on it. He winced, feeling the knife cuts his stomach, before finally yanking it out. Broken’s eyes glow piercing blue, before twirling the knife in his hoof. “Broken. Take the shot!” Blue. Broken growled, before throwing the knife at Arthrax, burying it in the changeling’s eye. The changeling fell down limp. Kydra laid there for a bit as the others ran down to them. Stinger examined them, first checking on Kydra, who sat up. Then, he ran over to Brokenwing. “It looks worse than it actually is. You’ll live.” Broken groans as they lift him up. They grab him and carry him off, letting Kydra kick Arthrax into the lava. ~~~ A Few Days Later… Broken looked at a photo of Blue Fang. His eyes began tearing up a bit, before he set the picture down. His brother was gone. As well as Rage. Two souls extinguished at once… Heh, not yet. Broken immediately sat up, looking around. “R-Rage?” he asked, looking around and wiping his eyes. Then, his looked down, before looking back up, his eyes glowing sharp blue. Hello Broken. The End.