Chapter 1
Changeling
Going into the badlands is quite a long and hard job and if a pony would want to go there he will need alot of things. At first he will need to get a ticket from Celestia herself which will let him pass the frontier where the royal guard are guarding the entrance to the badlands. Then he will need to travel a desert but not the same kind of desert that are close to Applelosa. this desert unlike the other one, contains creatures that most pony have never encountered. Rock wolf that can slice a pony in half with one bite, the dangerous diamond scorpion whose poison acts like acid in your vein, or the mortal chimera who plays with you leaving you with the sentiment that everything is alright but then at the last second he jumps on you and opens your stomach, eating your inside in-front of you.
If a pony can survive this desert, he will arrive at the center of the Badlands where the Changelings have made their home. Somepony may say that the desert is more dangerous than the Changeling palace but they are wrong. You can outrun the rock wolf, you can fly away from the scorpion and you can hide yourself from the chimera. But you can’t do this when it comes to the changeling. You can't fly away because they can fly , they can use magic to grab and torture, they can change their appearance and finally they can feel our emotion. Try to outrun a creature who can feel your fear and by the same time know where you are.
And maybe its because of that, maybe is because they are dangerous that they have made the pony kind fear them. But are they so different from us ponies? We will never know.
Brun the brown.
Royal Explorer of Canterlot
Chrysalis closed the brown book she has been reading since this morning. Tonight her dear mother will give her a test about the ponies who live in the green land on the other side of the desert and she wanted to make her proud of her, so she has been studying since she knew it would be her who would supervise the test.
Unlike the most common Changeling, Chrysalis was part of royal blood which not only made her the next Queen of the Hive but it gave her a different appearance. Unlike the other Changelings who all look the same from a ponies point of view, Chrysalis was easy to find in a crowd of Changelings by her blue mane and green eyes. Her green belly to was something exceptional compared to the others and the little crown on the top her head was the last thing that separated her from the rest of the changelings. The only other Changeling who looked like her in the Hive was her beloved mother.
Chrysalis slowly opened the door to her room. Her favorite guard was standing outside of her door. Since Chrysalis was a princess, and a filly always getting into trouble, she needed to have a guard outside of her door at all times. This guard's name was Tarek. He loved to play with the little princess, and she loved to play with him.
Tarek had been assigned to be her bodyguard since she was born, not only was it the biggest honor that a member of the guard could have, and he was proud of that, but the thing he loved most about his job was to being around the little princess. He even consider her like his own little filly, and the feeling was mutual. Chrysalis never really knew who her dad was so Tarek become her father figure, he was even invited when Queen Thorax had a family reunion.
Chrysalis sneaked behind her bodyguard, trying to scare him like each morning even if she never succeeded. But this time was time.
She tried to sneak up on Tarek, walking slowly out of her room but she couldn't contain her giggling. Tarek could hear her sneaking up on him so he decided to play a trick on her. Faking a sigh he started to talk outloud .
"Hm. what a boring day, alone here with nothing to do, if only someling could give me hug...”
Chrysalis's giggles showed that she was getting close and when she jumped, Tarek turned around. He lunged at the little filly, tickling her.
“Stop it stop it! i surrender!” Yelled the young princess between her laughs, tears in her eyes.
“Only if i get a hug in return little Chryswy.”
Chrysalis frowned as she heard him call her that. When Chrysalis was a little youngling she was having difficulty to pronouncing her name properly and she hated it when someling reminded her.
“I told you to not call me that.” Said the young princess.
“Only if you give me a wubsy hug”
Chrysalis sighed but she still gave him is hug, feeling his hooves around her always reassured the young princess, and she would have stayed like that if it was not for her rumbling stomach. Both of them followed the long corridor that lead to the dining room, on their way the could see a portrait of each ruler of the Hive hanging on the wall and like each morning Tarek helped Chrysalis learn her history lesson by asking her some question about them.
“So little princess, which Queen tried for the first and only time to try make peace with another nation?”
“oh oh i know!” Exclaimed the little changeling, wanting to make Tarek proud of her.”Her name was Cocoon and she tried to collaborate with the dragon races but she was arrested and exiled by her younger sister Mirror Edge.”
“Good and who was the husband of Queen Hyprocrate?”
“General Buzzling!” Yelled Chrysalis happy to know the answer.
“Good and the last of them: Who has been the greatest ruler of our land?”
“MISTER SNOWY!”
“Mister....snowy?” Confusedly asked Tarek.
“Yes mister Snowy, i forget him in my room!” Answered Chrysalis on the verge of crying. Mister Snowy was a plushie representing a albinos Changeling and it was her favorite one. Wherever she was going she needed her plushie with her.
“We need to get him now!”
“But the breakfast? we will soon arrive can’t you wait till after we eat to play with him?”
“NO! I’m the princess and I order you to go get Mister Snowy!” bellowed a unhappy filly.
“As you wish your highness...” Tarek sighed heavily, walking back in the direction of her room while Chrysalis was cheering behind him.
When she finally get her plushie back they both returned to the dining room. Queen Thorax, the mother of Chrysalis, was already there waiting for them to start to eat. She was wearing her usual crown and her green mane was, like always, perfectly brushed. In her red eyes one could see how happy she was to see her daughter enter in the room. The room was heavily decorated with a huge dark brown table and six chairs stolen from other species royal courts. The walls were painted in a pure black, but the room was still illuminate by the sun who shined through the three huge windows.
As always the breakfast was composed of a parasprite soup and some brown bread to accompany it. Chrysalis put her plushie on the chair between her mother and her and waited for the permission to eat which she immediately got from her mother.
“Have you sleep well honey?” Asked the Queen while Chrysalis took a full mouth of her soup, savouring the feeling of the squishy dead parasprite between her fangs.
“Yes mother, like always, but this morning I was wondering something while I was playing with Mister Snowy.” ”
“And what is it?” Answered Thorax.
“Can I have a little brother to play with?”