The Hive Lords Awaken
Chrysalis slumped down on her throne, in the middle of the Changeling hive. Slowly, her eyes closed. The Love Shield…it had wounded her beyond what she could normally heal with magic. Her breaths became slower; her muscles trembled and then relaxed. Her wings fluttered and then closed as she began to snore softly.
She knew she was forgetting something important, as she entered hibernation. She knew there was a reason for the walled off section of her hive. She barely remembered just as her last thoughts strayed away into dreamless slumber…but by then, it was too late.
“Right…Him.”
The next moment her connection to the Changeling Hive came less.
The Hive Mind of the Drones frenetically screamed. It needed a Queen. There had to be a Queen, a Leader. Someone had to guide, to lead. They were followers —they needed to be led! The screams reached through the Hive Mind, through all of the Changelings.
In the end, it reached the minds of six sleeping Changelings.
The Brood Lords opened their eyes then.
They awoke from their sleeping pods, emerging from their liquid beds and adapting their gazes to the dim phosphorescent light of the underground cave. A cold voice called to them, as they stepped into the light of a nearby giant Fungus, beneath which the Sixth stood in wait half-hidden by its stalk.
“Deceit,” a changeling trudged out of the cold shadows, his appearance already morphing to that of a brown mane Earth Pony with a pleasant smile.
“Arrogance,” a female changeling with a gnarled horn shone brightly green with magical energies as a fanged smirk appeared on her face. She had a wet streak of blue and purple hair, falling down to her sides. The magic dried the hair, making it look curly and shiny.
“Grief,” a tall and gruesomely built pony with twisted hooves to resemble claws and a sharp hissing voice slammed repeatedly his head against the nearby wall, cracking the hard rock. Large insect-like wings stretched from his back, with crimson lineaments and dripping on the ground the nutrient liquid of the sleeping pod. His body riddled with scars, he was easily the tallest of them all.
“Avarice,” a mare with bright green fungus growing on her back chuckled as her name was called, her hooves not filled with holes but with mushrooms, all hers to eat upon.
“Betrayal,” a marble white Pegasus trotted out from behind the back of the other Changelings, holding a dagger dripping a venomous green liquid down on the floor. He swallowed the dagger whole a moment later, his fur for but an instant morphing back to its jet-black Changeling nature.
“We awoke,” Arrogance said with a firm and huffy voice. “What is the problem…Sovereign? Has the old hag finally died?”
The sixth and final Changeling turned, his shining red eyes narrowing in anger towards the Brood Lord in question. Apart from the eyes and the dark green armour, he was no different from a mere Drone of the Hive. Arrogance took a step backwards at the venom in that gaze, but she did not shirk from holding her chest up high and defiantly standing against him…until Grief walked in front of her.
“Hold your tongue lest I desire to carve it away,” Grief replied with a hissing and a snarl, his right hoof coming up to threaten. “The Queen shall give us Love and we shall give her plenty of Grief.”
“Now, now, one Queen less to feed, more food for the Hive,” Avarice remarked, “More food for the Hive, more Love for the Hive.”
“Should I tell the Queen of your words, when she awakens?” Betrayal said with a compelling smile, “I am sure she would reward me for that.”
“Do not make promises you do not intend to keep,” Deceit spoke crisply. “To be evil is to be bad, after all.”
“Silence,” Sovereign said.
Silence settled in the hall of stone, beneath Equestria. “No one will take the place of the Queen,” the Changeling with red eyes said. “She is currently hibernating. Until she wakes up…it is up to us to maintain the Hive. How goes the production of Fungi, Avarice?”
“A moment,” the fungus-riddled Changeling murmured. A soft chattering came through the Hive mind, and the reply came back to all of them present in the room.
“We can sustain ourselves for the time being,” Sovereign said. “But we will need to kidnap Ponies again. Prepare the chambers, Grief…do you have enough magic and Love to mutate the Drones in the King’s Guard?”
“No,” Grief snarled. “I need more. Why isn’t there more in the Crystals? Why are there no ponies trapped in the pods?”
“Someone must have freed them,” Betrayal remarked. “It is thankful we were dug down here, far away from the Hive…to slumber until this moment.”
“You mean, banished from the Hive’s collectiveness,” Deceit stated plainly. “We are Brood Lords, second to the Queen, all able to become Queen by ourselves…or King,” he added carefully. “We are not needed when a Queen is awake…”
“Silence your tongue, Deceit!” Sovereign bellowed, his right foot slamming on the ground and creating a small crack with it. “We must dig our way outside,” he gestured towards the smooth wall of rock. “And then into the Hive.”
His horn glowing softly, Sovereign spat out thick acidic saliva from his mouth, which began to sizzle and burn through the rock.
Soon, his spit met with that of the other five Changelings.
The Hive needed to grow…
It needed to become stronger.
And it would become such!
Ponyville – One month later
“Tell me again, Spike, what is so important you can’t wait just five seconds?” Twilight Sparkle huffed, blowing a light gust of air out of her mouth to keep her mane in check as she followed her dragon assistant down the stairs of the library.
She had barely slept the night before, busy as she was working on a first draft for her own book on the Elements of Harmony Magical Applications.
“Because it can’t!” Spike exclaimed. “I mean, there’s somepony at the door looking for you, Twilight! And he looks creepy.”
Twilight shook her head. Really, Spike was scared of his own shadow. She wondered what creepy level he was talking of.
She stilled halfway down the stairs as her eyes caught to something that wasn't supposed to be down there in the lobby. Her draft was there; open, on the table just next to the pony in question. He was a Unicorn with a mottled brown and white fur, a cold icy blue gaze and holding a pipe in his mouth. The cutie mark on his flank was of a pair of glasses and a magnifying lens. His horn glowed softly as he held up a book to read with magic, skimming through the pages of ‘Magical Theory applied to Unicorns’. He held a thoughtful gaze, before turning to look around once more. His interest went to the draft on the table’s surface. She paled and opened her mouth wide in shock.
She took a deep breath. She could do it.
“Hey there!” she cheerfully said, blurring quickly through the remaining steps and the library's floor as she intercept the Unicorn. “What can I do for you?”
Up close, she suddenly understood Spike’s fear. There was something unnatural about the pony in front of her. His appearance was contained —he looked cold and seemingly disgusted at being in the library.
“Need a book?”
“Yes,” the pony acquiesced. “This is the library, is it not?”
“Of course it is!” she said back with a hesitant smile. She felt slightly cold. “Are you from Ponyville? I never saw you before.”
“I am Detective Shadow Hunter,” the Unicorn remarked. “I have been hired to look into…disappearances of ponies, happening around Canterlot and Ponyville.”
“Oh my! I didn’t know about that!” Twilight’s eyes bulged.
“The disappearances have been few and in between, but one can’t help but find a pattern in it, you see?” the pony remarked dryly. “It was done with magic most of the time, so if you had any books concerning possible means of kidnapping through magic, it would be much appreciated.”
“Of course, immediately!” she rushed off, running around the library to grab a few. When she returned with a small stack, Shadow Hunter smiled.
“How much do I own you?”
“The library’s lending of books is a free service!” Twilight replied proudly. “Just bring them back before the end of the week.”
“Will do,” the pony nodded. “Be mindful while going around at night. The major kidnappings have been of mares and elderly colts,” he shook his head. “Really, to prey on the weak…that’s disgusting.”
“Yeah,” Twilight nervously smiled. “Is there anything else?”
She couldn’t help but wish he’d leave. He hadn’t been rude but…it was just unnerving to be in the same room as him.
“Certainly,” and leisurely, the pony trotted off.
Twilight Sparkle watched him leave and sighed in relief. She went to collect her draft…and it was then that she realized it was missing.
She looked for Spike, but the dragon was already in the kitchen eating biscuits.
“Spike! Did you move my book draft?”
“Uh…No?”
Twilight’s eyes widened. She looked at the door…it couldn’t be, could it?
Changeling Hive
Sovereign hissed and clicked, as two drones stood to attention and began to move the pod of Detective Shadow Hunter among the others. “How fares the Love Crystal production?”
“We’re absorbing Love from the captured ponies in the Chrysalis at full rate, Sovereign,” Avarice cackled. “More and more will be ours.”
“The Fungus Chamber? Do the Changelings larvae eat?”
“Oh, acting the worried father now, are we?” Avarice remarked dryly. “Worry not; our new batch has recently hatched. They have a wicked gleam to them, let me tell you.”
“I know, I can sense their minds in the Hive,” he snorted back. “What of Arrogance?”
“She is strutting around the Hive like she owns the place,” Avarice rolled her eyes. “The Hive belongs to Us…that silly Changeling will never learn.”
“Deceit has done his job, I can feel his smug satisfaction from here,” Sovereign muttered. He gave a careful glance to the centre of the Hive, where Chrysalis was sleeping.
“Careful there,” Avarice warned. “Those thoughts could damage the Hive…and nobody likes a damaged Hive.”
“She proved herself inferior.” Sovereign remarked. “The Hive has no need for weaklings.”
Betrayal swooped down from the sky, flanked by a company of four Changelings morphed to resemble Pegasus like him.
“We have found a spot to relocate the Hive.”
“Good, how far from our enemies?”
“A bit…there are strange cat-like animals there however…” slowly, Betrayal moved his teeth towards his back, and then flung forward and on the floor a white haired cat.
It was holding a pillow with the words ‘I love you’ written on it. A heart shaped symbol replaced the word ‘Love’.
“Sickening,” Sovereign grumbled. “Throw it in the harvesting pods, with the other ponies.”
A drone hissed baring its fangs to the creature in question, which trembled and looked scared for a moment. Sovereign gazed at the fluffy looking thing for one more moment, and then let his horn glow as he lifted it.
The next instant, he splattered the disgusting thing against the wall of the cave, smashing its corpse repeatedly against it with sickening thumps and wet lurching noises. Blood dribbled down the wall as Sovereign turned to gaze at the Drone with hard glaring eyes.
The Drone recoiled slightly.
“You have a horn, use it next time,” it angrily clicked to the Drone who still looked confused —if afraid.
“You haven’t lost your touch,” Betrayal quipped, staring at the gory mess of the once fluffy cat.
“I am Sovereign,” he remarked dryly. “To rule through Fear…that is my call.”
Slowly, he walked towards the centre of the Hive, where Chrysalis slept unable to hear.
“I am the first-born,” he whispered. “And I will make mother proud…even if her will was for Chrysalis to rule in my place.”
“Cue cruel laughter now?” Betrayal stated. “Because, if you want to slice her neck now, I’m all for it,” the Pegasus clicked as his Changeling guard disappeared into the tunnels of the hive.
“No,” Sovereign commented.
“I want to make her suffer,” he hissed. “I want to see her broken. I want to hold her body in my hooves…and Hear. Her. Scream.”
He opened his wings wide.
“I want a lot of things,” he sang. “I want to be the first,” he flapped them as he rose. “I want to be the King of Kings,” he circled around the sleeping Chrysalis, “I want to quench my thirst!”
He hissed, showing his fangs. “I know that it’s a long journey ahead…” he drawled, “But I’m sure we’ll all behave…” he sweetly added, moving closer to Betrayal. “For I can do without your head,” his horn glowed as it passed nicely close to the Pegasus Brood Lord’s neck, “And if we’ll all be brave,” he looked towards Avarice, “If we all show our might…”
He carefully walked closer to Chrysalis, his horn glowing as a thin sheet of fungus filaments floated, gently, to cover the Queen of the Changelings.
“Then we will win our fight!”
He slammed his hooves on the ground, making a ‘thump’ sound as if to enunciate he was done. He breathed slowly and deeply. The drones began to clap politely —mostly, because he ordered them to.
“Do you want to be the one to tell him how much he sucks at singing?” Betrayal whispered to Avarice.
Avarice just looked back at Betrayal with a hurt look. “I’m not as stupid as Arrogance, dear. You tell him that, and I’ll have your back.”
Betrayal snorted. “It was worth a shot.”
As Sovereign cackled madly, Deceit carefully strode in. His appearance as Shadow Hunter soon morphed back into a friendly brown mane Earth Pony.
“I found something interesting,” he remarked. “The Elements of Harmony that defeated our Queen…they are seemingly amusing.”
“Seemingly amusing? What is?” Arrogance strolled in from another tunnel. “We heard the most rasping and ugly sound ever to be uttered. Did someone let Sovereign sing?”
“It was an evil monologue at first,” Betrayal swiftly said, nodding eagerly. “We couldn’t stop him afterwards.
”
“Let me see that, Deceit,” Sovereign said, his horn glowing green as he grabbed the stack of papers. “Deliver the books on magic kidnappings to Grief. He’ll need to learn how the enemy thinks.”
“That’s wasted on Grief,” Arrogance rolled her eyes. “We could do a far better job.”
“Arrogance,” Sovereign warned once. “Silence.”
“Arrogance —Silence! Really,” the Changeling Mare parroted. “We will not be silenced by —is that a dead cat?”
“It was fluffy, a Drone was too stupid to use his horn…Sovereign acted,” Betrayal quipped. “He has a surprisingly short fuse.”
Arrogance swallowed nervously, and then remained quiet.
“You were saying something, Arrogance?” Sovereign asked, lifting an eye from the stack of papers.
“No,” Arrogance murmured, shaking her head. “We were not.”
“I see what is amusing, Deceit,” Sovereign murmured. “It is interesting, but hardly relevant.”
“Oh? You’re right of course, it hardly is…”
“Deceit,” Sovereign quipped. “Do not force me.”
“Fine,” Deceit whined. “I hate saying the truth, bleargh, my tongue feels funny…” the Changeling in question sputtered, before finally starting to talk. “I think the problem is their so-called Harmony elements. They are polar opposites or countering ours…” he turned thoughtful. “This means that when we were made, a long, long time ago…we were supposed to counter them.”
“Why have seven possible Queens…” Sovereign’s eyes glazed over, as he seemed to recall something from the long forgotten past. “One would have sufficed,” he turned his hardened glare over to Chrysalis. “I cannot believe she did not know.”
“Maybe she didn’t,” Betrayal quipped. “She would have woken us up otherwise.”
“Shall we deliver Grief upon them?” Avarice asked. “He’d enjoy tearing them apart.”
“No, not yet,” Sovereign muttered. “The enemy must be observed. It must be understood…and then it must be destroyed.”
His red eyes shone with malice. “Deceit…get closer to them. You among all of us have better chances.”
“Shadow Hunter will go hunting shadows,” Deceit grumbled back. “Do I get some Love out of this though?”
“Go and get your fill,” Sovereign quipped. “I’ll be in the Feeding Chambers…to make sure no Changelings gets more than what he needs…”
He turned to gaze at the remains of the cat.
“Get those out of here.” Then he left, without looking back.
A Drone moved to obey, using its mouth.
Another slammed into it with its flank and hissed, tapping its horn with its right hoof.
The two drones nodded, then stabbed with their horns the carcass of the cat and began to carry it out. Deceit watched the Drones leave and brought a hoof to his face.
“No one speaks of this to Sovereign.”
“You make it sound so easy…we’re a Hive Mind,” Avarice quipped with a tired and forlorn look.
The Hive’s floor trembled for a bit.
“How about you go and console him, Arrogance? Play the little filly?” Betrayal suggested with a leer.
“We do not play the little filly,” Arrogance drawled out angrily. “Why don’t you go and play Hang-Pony with him?”
“The Hive’s stocks await me,” Avarice muttered as she left the rest of the Changelings there.
Betrayal left next —in the opposite direction.
Arrogance remained alone in the center of the Hive; the Hibernating Chrysalis rested beneath a thin sheet of fungus vines, interwoven with one another to form a floral pattern.
She walked closer to where the Queen of the Changelings hibernated, and then clicked her tongue against the top of her mouth.
“We hate you, Mother.”
Arrogance left then for her own lair.
In her sleep, Chrysalis stirred for but a second…and then smiled.
Author's Note
A sort of 'What if the Changelings were more Zerg-like than usual'. First fanfic posted on this site, thus I have no clue if the formatting is correct or not.