Forgotten Children

As Chrysalis walked away, Roddi turned back to where where he was still sleeping on the pillow. Laying her head down on her own pillow, she stared across the floor at him. She smiled. He looked so peaceful, and that was good after the long and often sad story he had told. Roddi yawned herself and rubbed her eyes.

She began to daydream and fantasize that she was there with him, flying into battle with the gryphons. She closed her eyes and exhaled deeply, imagining him by her side, the gold armor glittering in the sunlight as he held the enemy back with his mighty spear. And after the battle, exhausted and bloody, they went together back to the castle keep.

Roddi rolled over on her back, and reached a hoof down to her crotch. She saw him in her mind, as she took off his armor and he held her head in his arms, whispering her name. Roddi…Roddi…

“Roddi!”

She opened her eyes in a flash and found herself staring in his emerald eyes. He had woken up and walked over to hover his head over hers.

“Roddi? You alive?” He queried her, “Where’s Chrysalis?”

Roddi could only manage an embarrassed squeak. She was unable to move, one hoof over her nethers and the other on her chest.

“Roddi? What are you doing anyway?” He looked her over. “Ah, I see. Been fantasizing about a certain someone, have we?” He raised an eye.

Roddi squeaked again.

He chuckled. “Its okay. I could see your interest earlier when I was talking. You’re quite the curious one, are you not?”

Roddi opened her mouth but nothing came out. She quickly closed it again and continued to stare into his eyes.

He sighed. “Roddi, stand up.” He backed away and allowed her to roll over and get to her feet. “I assume Chrysalis left me in your charge.” He noticed that she still seemed very nervous. “I understand why you fear me so. But I tell you what, you take me on a tour and I’ll be extra good, okay?” He made a show of bowing to her.

“I’m, uh, I’m not very good at uh, at social, uh, uh…things,” she stammered out. “But, uh, Mother did tell me to…to, uh, take you on a tour and then, uh, back to her.”

He stood back up and smiled warmly. “I enjoyed my nap. Lets leave the pillows here for someone else to take back to Chrysalis and you’ll walk me around and tell me more about the history of this place.”

Roddi, although standing, did not move nor speak.

He sighed again. “Look, you’re obviously young and inexperienced. That doesn’t bother me much because up until now very little has been asked of you. Is there something that I can do to help you out in becoming more comfortable in this situation?”

Roddi looked at him, then at the floor, then back to him. “Well uh, if I could, I mean, if you, uh…”

Now he was growing impatient with her constant stalling. “Spit it out, Roddi. Be confident!”

Taken off guard by his demanding tone, she blurted out, “Can I touch you?” As soon as the words left her mouth Roddi immediately snapped her jaws shut as if trying to catch the words mid-air. “Ah! Oh, oh, not, not like that, I meant your backside! No, shit! The plate on your back! I’ve never seen anything like it so…” she paused, but asked again, “So can I touch it?”

He grinned and walked over to her. “All you had to do was ask.”

Tentatively, she reached up a hoof and placed it on the plate on his back, and ran it up towards his head. Her hooves bounded over the spikes on the plate and she leaned in closer. “Its really rough, I wasn’t expecting that. How long did this take to grow?”

“A long time.” He looked her over while she was fixated on him, but Roddi did not appear to have any physical differences from the other changelings of this Hive. “I think it will continue to grow forever, I remember when it first started and I thought there was something wrong with me. But it continues to expand over time, although it’s not much thicker than it was a hundred years ago.”

Roddi knocked on it. Satisfied, she backed away from him. “Thank you. I’ve never seen one before. Can I write about it in my book?”

“I suppose, I don’t see harm in that.” He approached her. “May we get going? I have a feeling that we are working on a limited time frame.”

Roddi started to walk away and motioned for him to follow. They walked side by side and Roddi would point out things as they walked by. “So here is the outer parts of the Hive. I assume you came in this way. there are a number of entrances, and many more secret exits. Even I don’t know them all. I think Mom decided that if war ever comes here again, it would be better to flee and start anew than risk losing lives should things go sour.”

He nodded but stayed quiet as Roddi continued, “More than just tunnels to the surface, the underground is riddled with caves that lead all over Equestria. Chrysalis used them to get into Canterlot, but they connect far and wide to many different areas. We have some maps but the caves are largely unexplored and uncharted. They are many things lurking in the darkness that would love to gnaw on a changeling, or so I’m told.”

Walking beside her, he asked, “Do the caves that lead from here to Canterlot have safe passage?”

Roddi looked at him when she answered, “I think so, but I’m really not sure. We haven’t used them in a long time. And any matter of beasts may have taken up residence in them. Anyway, over here-” she took a sharp right and walked down a hallway he recognized. “Is the way to the bridge and the armory.”

Passing along the bridge and the line of guards, Roddi waved to them who did not wave back. They were focused on her companion. “Sorry,” she glanced back at him, “You’re still technically a prisoner.”

“Why do you not treat me like one?” he inquired. “Have I really made that much of an impression on you?”

Roddi pondered this as she led him around the far edge of the bridged chasm and down some steps, past additional guards. “We’ve never had a prisoner here. I suppose I don’t know what a prisoner is supposed to be like? Besides, I heard a lot of gossip while you were in the cell. I don’t pay much attention to it.

“But who I saw in the Hive today was not who I heard about in rumors. You are immensely complex and mysterious.” She blushed. “Oh, uh, no offense.”

He smiled at her. “You’ve been very nice. You’re naturally curious, which is good. Chrysalis was nice, then demanding, which is bad. Which is where we had our…disagreement. Don’t be like that.”

Roddi gulped. She just now realized that she was escorting a very powerful changeling who could probably kill her anytime he chose to. As they reached another set of doors, she motioned for him to go in. “Uh, you first.”

She followed him in and shut the door. Now inside the armory, he looked in awe at the armor hanging from hooks and the assortment of weapons gathering dust on racks. Looking among the rows he asked, “Does this stuff get used for anything besides decoration? It appears very old.”

She trotted up behind him. “Some of it is left over from bygone eras, and some of it belonged to changelings who are no longer with us.” She looked down, and more softly said, “We don’t have any new young to fill their positions.”

He understood what she meant and changed the subject. “This is all very well and good, but can you show me your archive? You appear to be very proud of it.”

She smiled, forgetting her concern for the moment. “I am! I have read every book in there several times. The name of every changeling to pass through our Hive is recorded, and any exploits of their life. Some are…unfortunately short.” She pulled him back the way they came.

Walking further away from the entrance to Chrysalis’ chambers, they reached the archives. “No guards here,” he said aloud.

“Oh there are,” she swiveled her head around. “You just can’t see them. But they’re only here because you are. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be. I like it because its quiet.” As if on cue, a loud noise and a scuffling sounded from inside the arches. She scowled and said to herself, “Audax, what are you doing in there?” She started to hurry in but stopped and pulled at him. “Come on, you gotta stay with me. I like you and don’t want you to get killed.”

He smiled again and followed her in. Inside was a library to rival the size and content of any he had seen before. Rows upon rows stacked with books, but in no particular order. However, the books were well kept and free from dust.

Roddi called out to her assistant. “Audax! What’s going on in here?” A voice sounded from somewhere along the stacks and so they went to investigate. Roddi in front, she first came upon Audax and her sister Fici sitting among some books.

Fici spoke first. “Roddi! You gotta check this out, says here that these males were particularly well known for their rather large-” she spied him behind Roddi. “Dammit! Tell me next time before you start bringing outsiders into the archives, okay?” She picked herself up and started to wind her way back through the archives. “Fucking hell, almost said that right in front of him!”

Roddi turned back to him. “That’s Fici. Another one of my, uh, assistants? She’s really preoccupied with, uh, a-anyway, so here were are!” She laughed nervously.

He chuckled and grinned toothily at Roddi. “This place is more interesting than I thought it would be. Are all the non-conformist changelings down here in the archives?”

“Basically,” mumbled Audax, who was still looking at her book.

“Audax, hush.” Roddi led him back towards the entrance. “Its a bit of a stigma that we who get assigned to the archives are peculiar in some way. Its not true, but I think its because the lack of structure allows us to develop very different personalities than the guard. And I’m sure you’ve noticed how deep they can be.” She rolled her eyes.

He continued to smile, and nudged her. “I like you Roddi. Hopefully later I can come back and talk to you again?”

Roddi looked away. “I thought…I thought you were leaving? You know, after you go see Mother.”

“Eh…” He shrugged. “I was going to, but there is such a wealth of information down here, and I’d like to see you again. And I think you might be able to help me with some, er, things.”

Roddi squeaked with excitement. “Yes! Oh, uh, of course you can come back. I’m always here. We actually set up our own sleeping quarters in the back, so come by anytime.”

Standing in the entryway of the archives, he winked at her and said, “I’ll remember that. But for now, I think we ought to go find Chrysalis.”

She nodded as they walked back up the stairs. “I’ll take you back up to the bridge. I’ll let you go from there on your own.”

He asked curiously, “You’re not coming in to watch? I get the feeling that this is supposed to be quite an event. I expect the whole Hive is going to cram in there.”

“And I expect you are going to put on a show.” She shook her head. “No, I don’t want to see a fake you. I want to see the real you. The more time I spend talking to you the more I want more. I’ll wait till you’re done with your show.” She smiled. “We’re here. Go, and promise to see me again?”

“I promise.” He gave her one last wink and moved past the wall of guards and back over the bridge, noting that he was being guarded just as closely as before. He stood in front of the steel bars as before, and watching them move and shift out of the way, he grinned wickedly.

“I think I will be able to get something out of this deal,” he thought. “Roddi will do anything for me. Too bad she wouldn’t come watch. Just get through this and we’re home free.”

He stepped through the opening in the bars and walked forward into Chrysalis’ chambers.