I have crash landed in Sweet Apple Acres. Boy, am I hungry. Apples are rubbish. They taste horrible, and besides, they don’t fill me like love does. The holes in my limbs are growing closer to my heart and I haven’t a clue what to do. It’s zap apple season and I hate it. Rain and thunder aren’t really my thing, even though I am named Storm Cloud. Or Lost Cloud, now. I found a place to stay. Its a little house in the middle of a farm. Small ponies enter regularly, so I stay in the top floor, or attic, I think. It’s incredibly dusty up here. I keep on sneezing. When I was wandering through the forest I found a doll. It’s FULL of love, and it is MINE! And NO PONY is getting it from me. It’s so tasty. Oh, and if you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m a changeling.
“Come on girls, we’ve got more gear upstairs,”
Eep. An orange filly with a magenta mane climbed in I dove into my box, which I had been sleeping in for the last month. Lucky me. The first box they looked in was mine.
“CHANGELING!” the orange one yelled. I hugged the doll close
“Don’t hurt me,Don’t hurt me,Don’t hurt me,Don’t hurt me.”
“You can talk?” I slowly nod my head.
“Don’t bring the pink one, don’t bring the pink one!” The orange one said, “You mean Pinkie?” Eep. A yellow one appeared out of nowhere and said, “Scoots, we should tell Twilight.”
“ NOOOOOO!” the yellow one looked at me quizzically
“Well, maybe she’s cool?” the orange one said.
“A changeling, cool?” said the yellow one sarcastically. I love sarcastically. I learned it in a book. I love books. Books, books, books.
“Well, maybe we can keep her, like a pet?” the yellow one looked like she was about to object, but I interrupted her.
“Yes, yes, yes, yes. Keeping is good. I can do all sorts of things, like...uhh... Rent! I can pay rent! I’ll get a job and pay you rent. I can read you stories, or I can act them out, or play dress up, I’m very good at dress up,” To prove my point I rapidly changed forms. The orange one looked at the yellow one in a pleading manner. to attempt to seal the deal I said: “And I can help you look for your cutie marks,”
That did it. Both of them brightened up. “Sweetie Bell! We have to have an emergency Cutie Mark Crusaders meeting!” And then out of nowhere a white unicorn appeared. And the she yelled
“CHANGELING!” The other two dragged her into a group huddle, and after a few seconds of whispering, the orange one spoke,
“We have made come to a consensuses. You can stay as long as you abide by the conditions you set, with a few of our own. 1. you cannot feed on the following ponies: Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Twilight, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie,”
The yellow one interrupted, “An’ Big Macintosh,”
The orange one sighed, “And Big Macintosh,” “An’ Granny Smith,” The orange spread out her hooves, “All of the Apple Family, Happy?”
“An’ us, of course,”
“2. The rent has to be at least 60 bits a month.
- Um...... well we don’t have a three yet, but there might just be one.” they started to walk out, but then the orange on turned. “What’ your name?”
“Stor- uh... Lost Cloud,”
Chrysalis surveyed the badlands, as far as she could tell, she was still in Equestria,but to far from any civilization. The arid landscape was riddled with canyons. She might as well go back fruitless to the land of the changelings, and continue hunting, but it was already drained to the point of a desert landscape, just like this one. Some of her subjects had regrouped around her, but quite a few were still missing. She could afford to lose a few pawns, but her numbers were so few that cannibalization would only get her a few days closer to anything living. Any natural food wouldn’t be enough even if there was any the wastes. She tried to move her wings, but the crash had torn them up even more, and Shining Armor’s love wasn’t enough to allow her to regenerate. Her legs were slightly crippled too. Darn that princess. Curse her own stupidity. She should have figured that that upstart Twilight Sparkle would have freed Mi Amore Cadenza. She should have figured Cadenza’s love would have at least equaled Shining Armor’s.
“Spyder, come here.” he stepped forward
“Mylady?”
“I told you, you will only address me as Queen.”
“Yes, Queen Chrysalis.”
“Spyder, are you afraid of what I am about to ask? I will not use a timid subject.”
“Obviously, Queen, so I am not afraid.”
“Good, because the task is fairly simple. You and Larvae will fly as far as you can in search of life and civilization, then report back to me.”
“Of course Queen.”
***
Larvae was not particularly surprised when she heard the news. She and Spyder were the only ones that had landed on their hooves instead of there backs. But really? Spyder was one of Chrysalis’s guards and she was just a drone. As she flew she wished that they would actually find something to eat. The effort from flying was so taxing that she couldn't believe that her wings were resisting air enough to keep her supported. Spyder responded to her thoughts by expressing his own discomfort. the hive-mind was annoying at times, but was incredible in battle. Suddenly, a giant cloud of dust erupted in her eyes. Their thoughts were the same and it wouldn’t need discussing. As they sped after the unidentifiable cloud a sudden snap shook through the hive mind. They have left the boundaries. Larvae could still feel Spyder next to her, but the others were gone. It was an odd feeling, very lonely, but almost peaceful. Apparently every changeling takes it differently because Spyder was going in convulsions next to her. She would have stopped but the cloud was moving so fast she couldn’t risk it. Instead she sent soothing thoughts in his direction.
They were in luck. Whatever was making the cloud was slowing around a water hole. It was a herd of buffalo.
