The Nurse and the Bug

The changeling groaned loudly as he came to. His body ached all over, but he was almost glad of that. It told him he was still alive. He shifted slightly on whatever he was laying on, finding that it was softer than anything he had ever slept on, besides a cloud. That only made him on edge. It confirmed he wasn’t in the hive or in the Everfree.

He dared to slowly crack open his eyes and peer around the room. He was surprised to find that he was in a small living room, lying on a soft couch.

Next to him at his left was a low set coffee table with a fish bowl set on top of it. A few gold fish swam around inside. Next to that was a glass of water. He noticed right away how thirsty he was and snatched up the glass, before downing it in a few large gulps. He set it back down and tried to sit up, but a sharp pain across his chest and abdomen stopped him.

He looked down at himself to find that there was a deep gash across his chitin, but the flesh beneath was unscarred, like nothing had ever touched it. “Somepony… healed me?”

“So you can talk.” A mare’s voice said to his right.

The changeling snapped his head in her direction and hissed. “What did you do to me!?”

Tender Hoof flinched at the harshness in the creature’s tone. “I saved your life. No need to be hostile with me.”

“Liar! You put something inside of me, didn’t you!?” He hissed at Tender. “What do you want with me? Secrets about my hive? Where my queen is hidden? Well you might as well kill me! I will never talk!”

“What the hell kind of sadist pony do you take me for? I’m just a nurse from Ponyville hospital. I found you in the woods after I got home. I healed your wounds and set the broken bone in your leg. Why do you think I would hurt you for some information that I couldn’t even use if I wanted to?” Tender argued.

“Stop lying to me!” The changeling tried to use his magic on the mare, but the strain on his body was too much. He reeled over the side of the couch and coughed until blood splattered onto the floor.

Tender Hoof gasped and ran to his side. She quickly cast a spell to heal the damage his straining had caused.

The changeling slapped her hands away from him. “Get away from me!” He growled, but was stunned when the back of a hand caught him hard on the cheek.

“Now you listen here, whatever you are! I didn’t rescue you from bleeding to death just to torture you. I don’t know who or what you are. I don’t know anypony that would. I found you half dead in the Everfree and I dragged your bloody ass into my home and healed your damn wounds. Now you are going to treat me with respect and gratitude or I can throw your crippled ass back outside. Do I make myself clear, bug?” Tender Hoof growled at the changeling, her ranting having caused him to shrink away.

He quickly regained his bearings and glared up at the mare. “My name is Vector Blade. And I’m a changeling, not a bug.”

Tender Hoof sighed. “At least we’re getting somewhere. My name is Tender Hoof. I’ll be taking care of you until you have healed enough to take care of yourself. I have some fresh clothes for you, but I’ll wait until I know for sure you won’t bite my finger off if I help you.”

Vector harrumphed and looked away. “Fucking pony. Thinks she’s the center of the universe.” He grumbled to himself.

“No I don’t.” Tender stated as she walked away.

Vector was stunned. He snapped his attention back to the mare and was full on ready to make a nasty retort, but his focus was faltered when he caught sight of her cute, yet perfect butt. His mouth began to water slightly, but before he could get caught, he shook it off and looked away again. “So how long am I going to be stuck here?”

“I don’t know. Depends on how long it takes for a changeling bone to heal.” Tender replied from the kitchen as she looked through her full first aid kit. “I need to make some sort of splint for your leg, but I don’t know what materials not to use against your kind of skin.”

“Just use anything. I want to be out of here as soon as possible.”

“Really? Just anything, huh? Whatever.” Tender sighed and pulled two short slabs of wood and roll of medical tape from her kit. She then made her way back to Vector. “So what happened to you in the Everfree? You were pretty messed up when I found you.”

“Timber wolves, vicious bastards.” Vector growled. “Whole hunting pack of them. Five in all.”

“Timber wolves did this? You’re very lucky to have lived.”

“No. Because now I’m stuck in the custody of a fucking pony.”

Tender Hoof groaned. She ripped off a piece of tape in her magic and slapped it onto Vector’s lips. “Do yourself a favor and shut that mouth of yours. You’re doing nothing but pissing me off.”

Vector ripped the tape off, hissing slightly in pain from the stinging on his lips. “Just put the damn splint on.”

‘Stubbornest patient ever.’ Tender thought as she placed the wood splints on Vector’s leg and wrapped the medical tape around it. “Do you know how hard it was to set your bone through your shell? Like trying to stop bleeding through chain mail. I did it though.”

“Wonderful. Are you done yet?” Vector groaned, not at all comfortable with a pony touching him.

“But the way your body works is fascinating. Are these hole natural?” Tender stuck her finger through one of the hole on the changelings leg.

Vector blushed. “G-get your finger out of there!” He snatched his leg away, but it turned out to be the broken one of the two. He whimpered in pain and grasped at the splints.

“Hay! Relax! I’m a certified nurse. If you want to get out of here sooner, you will need me to take care of you while you heal. Like it or not, you’re helpless as of this moment. I could put you outside right now and you’d probably die in the Everfree.” She grabbed Vector’s leg from above the splint and made him lay it back down across the arm rest. “Ugh… You Everfree creatures are so hostile.”

“I am not an Everfree creature! You can tell by the mortal wound I almost died from! Get your facts straight, pony!”

Tender rolled her eyes. “You think I’m messing around with you, huh? Alright. I can be a bitch.” Her horn lit up as her aura glowed around Vector.

“Wait… W-what are you doing?”

The mare didn’t answer as she lifted Vector off the couch and carried him toward the back door. She threw it open and levitated the changeling toward the Everfree.

“Wait. Wait. Wait! No! They know my scent! No! Please no!” Vector begged, struggling in Tender’s magic grip in fear of being put back on the menu.

Tender stopped, letting the changeling float right at the edge of the woods. “First off, my name is Tender Hoof. Not pony, or fucking pony, or stupid pony. It’s Tender Hoof, Tender, or miss Hoof.”

“Ok, ok. I-I’ll call you by your name. What else?”

“Second… I need to know what you want for dinner.”

“Dinner… What? Wait, you’re over it just like that? I thought…” Whatever Vector was about to say sputtered and died when he finally felt the slow trickle of compassion type love. From how slow it was moving into him, he guessed it had been flowing the entire time, but he hadn’t noticed it until now. “Oh… Umm… I’m... not picky.”

“Good.” Tender stated as she pulled the changeling back toward her home.

A week or so passed with a few hiccups here and there, but other than a few mishaps, Vector behaved himself. He was still very much on edge when he was around Tender. He didn’t trust a single hair in her blue coat and he did his best to keep it that way. But there was something about Tender that felt, well… Different than any other pony he’d ever run into before.

The thing that made it truly odd was that the oblivious mare didn’t even know what a changeling was. Vector would have thought that news from the wedding incident would have reached everywhere.

Even still, something about her radiated compassion, as if she would have helped him even if she had been one of the many ponies that had been attacked. And it showed with how well she treated him. Weather he liked it or not, he needed Tender’s help. And while his pride and feud with ponykind didn’t like it, another part of him enjoyed the kind mare greatly. This only caused Vector’s mind to rage war at itself while he lay there healing. The vicious battle often kept him up at night, but that small part of him would always back down and call him a fool just before one in the morning.

His lack of sleep would leave him tired and cranky, but thankfully Tender would give him something to to let him sleep till noon, though he didn’t cooperate with her giving him medication. She always found a way to get him to take it. She even one time tricked him into thinking it was the pain medication, but not five minutes later, he would be out like a light.

Then one day Tender showed him a real act of kindness.

“You can have the spare bedroom.” Tender said while her and Vector were having lunch.

Vector choked on his drink and nearly spit it into his plate, but it ended up spilling down his chin and soaking his shirt. “W-what?”

“You heard me, bug boy. I said you can have my spare room. I don’t use it, like at all, so it’s empty. Well, mostly empty. It has a bed with a blanket and pillow and what not, but it’s pretty plain. It’s yours to do whatever you want with it, besides destroying it that is.”

Vector was so surprised at this that he didn’t even care that Tender had just called him a bug again. “Why… why are you giving it to me?”

Tender smiled. “We I can’t just have you sleeping on my couch all the time. That would be rude of me. But it’ll be here even after you’re gone in case you ever need a cozy place to stay. From what you tell me about the hive, that couch is about the softest thing you have ever slept on, correct?”

Vector nodded. “But I-” His mouth was clamped shut by Tender’s magic.

“All I want to hear is a thank you, Vector. Nothing more. Nothing less.”

Vector couldn’t help but blush as his mouth was released. He looked away. “Th-thank you.”

“You’re we-”

“For everything.” Vector interrupted.

It was Tender’s turn to blush. “Well… I was only doing as anypony should.”

“You’re doing what everypony wouldn’t.”

Tender would have been lying if she had said she wasn’t shocked from the accusation of ponies everywhere. “Wait… Why wouldn’t they?”

Vector sighed. “I wouldn’t expect you to know, Tender. You didn’t even know what I even am before a week ago. What I am about to tell you should not be held against me, because if I didn’t follow my orders, I would have never been around long enough to have been found in the woods.”

“Vector… I don’t understand. What could you have…” Tender trailed off when the changeling held up his had for her to stop.

“I don’t want pity or anger toward me. I just want you to listen. What you think of my queen is your decision. Just please. You deserve to know what we are.”

Tender took a deep breath and nodded. “Ok.”

“First…” Vector began. “I’m not a normal creature. Dragons, griffons, ponies. These are all normal. I’m none of these things. My kind doesn’t survive off of solid food like any other being. We consume love, be it given or stolen. We need it to live. How we get it…” The stallion was consumed by green flames before an exact replica of Tender Hoof sat there in his place. The only thing that showed it was still Vector was the gouge across her chest and the swelling on her leg from Vector’s broken bone. “We can change to fit the form of any pony, griffon, or dragon to sap the love from the ones who love them.”

Tender gasped and backed away slightly. “When were you planning on telling me this?”

“I wasn’t… I was going to wait until I was fully healed then I was going to take over your mind to sap every bit of love from you.” Vector looked away in shame. “It’s what we do. It’s what I was taught to do. And it’s how I’ve survived my whole life. What made me want to tell you was the very fact that until today, I had no reason to trust you. I guess not all ponies are the same.”

Tender sighed and placed her face into her hands. She took another deep breath to calm her nerves, before looking back at Vector. “Is that all?”

Vector shook his head. “Far from it.”

“Continue.” Tender urged.

The changeling took a deep, steadying breath. “A year ago. On the day of prince Shining Armor and princess Cadence’s wedding day, our queen kidnapped the princess and took her place. I and about two thousand others were ordered to to attack once the protective barrier was taken down.” Vector stopped. “You know what? Why don’t I start from the beginning? Help me up. I can’t tell a story when I’m laying down.”

Tender gently pushed her arm under Vector’s back and helped him to a sitting position, propping his leg up onto the coffee table.

Vector sighed. “Thanks… I guess I should start with when my entire hive was pulled together for the queen’s ‘pep-talk’.”

The sound of thousands of hooves clacking on stone echoed through the wide tunnels as hoards of changelings of differing sizes and shapes marched toward where they had been summoned. Vector Blade, one of the clutch mates of sector nine’s strike team, was among them. He, like many of his brethren, were clueless as to what task their queen had set upon them all. What little information they had told them that it was one of the greatest love raids the have had ever undergone.

The changelings whispered among themselves, discussing their thoughts on what might be in store for them. Where as his clutch mates conversed as well, Vector remained quiet and kept a steady composure, something his mentor had taught him before he was killed in a previous love raid on Trottingham. The earth pony’s use of a new weapon proved devastating to their ranks, leaving many from the strike team dead of severely wounded.

Vector kept a clear mind about fears of weapons such as that. They would only get in the way of his combat performance.

“Hey, Vector. Wanna help me catch one of those little pony bitches to have fun with later?” One of his clutch mates asked from his left, snapping him from his trance.

He looked over at the stallion that had asked the question. “Why would I want to do that? That’s sick, Thorn.”

“Oh, c’mon. You know you like getting it on with those mares you like to steal love from.” Thorn persisted.

Vector balled his fist and slammed it into the stubborn changeling’s jaw, making him stumble. “I’m a virgin. I wouldn’t think of wasting it on a low life food buffet. Do me a favor and stay out of personal affairs.”

Thorn clutched his jaw from where he had been struck. “Why’d you go and hit me for? Just trying to get my friend something to help him out, you know? It’s not like you ever even try to look for a mate.”

“What’s the point? Every mare I try is either already taken or dies in a raid.”

Thorn threw his arm around Vector’s shoulders. “That’s why I wanted get you a cute mare to do what you want to. I got to help a clutch mate out, you know?”

Vector sighed. “Well I don’t like that kind of thing. I only even try to hit on ponies while in disguise is because I’ll die if I don’t. Now shut up. We’re almost to the queen’s throne room.”

As soon as the changelings crowded into the massive dimly lit throne room, they notice that the throne in which the queen would normally be sitting was empty. Unsettled murmurs passed among the crowd, until a tall changeling with a deep green mane and tail walked out. He wore a dee grey robe over his toned body and a black spiked crown on his head. It was the queen’s mate, king Cocoon.

The murmurs quickly quieted down as thousands of eyes gazed upon the king.

“My dear subjects.” Cocoon bgan. “I have come in place of my lovely Chrysalis to inform you that she has most successfully taken place of the princess of love and has now infiltrated Canterlot!” The king exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. His statement caused an instant uproar of excitement from the crowd. “By this time tomorrow we shall be feeding from the limitless quantities of love from the entire of Canterlot! And I, as your king, shall lead you to Canterlot in a swarm of destruction to await for our queen to take her place as queen of Canterlot!”

The crowd cheered louder, changelings buzzing around the throne room as the excitement of victory surged through them. And in his clutch, Vector Blade seemed to be the only one to have shown nothing for the promised victory. None of what was being told was a promise. What he had learned from his mentor proved that, but orders are orders.

“Go now, my children! Prepare for war!” Cocoon finished. His last statement sent the crowd of changelings into a swarm as they rushed for their clutch armories. Once reaching his own, Vector dawned himself in a slightly dented, but sturdy plate mail armor. He slipped then slipped the sling of his scabbard over his head, letting it rest on his shoulder. His deeply trusted sword, Wasp, sat sheathed inside of it.

“Vector!” The commanding voice of the strike leader called.

Vector stood at attention. “Flight leader, sir!”

The battle scarred stallion in similar armor approached him. “As you were.”

Vector relaxed. “You called for me, sir?”

“The flight leader of sector ten is ill. I will be taking his place by his request. I want you to lead this flight, Vector.” The gruff changeling said.

Vector made to salute, but his hand was stopped. “No. I want you to lead permanently. This will be my last raid weather I survive or not. The king has already cleared it. Don’t disappoint me, flight leader.”

“I… I won’t.”

“Good. I better see you complete the mission and come back from it. I don’t want you to die on your first mission as flight leader. Remember, Your mission is to take out the defences, while the other flights distract them from above. Once that shield comes down, you give them Tartarus. Understood?”

Yes si-... Yes I do, Rage.”

Rage nodded. “If I don’t come back from this, it was a pleasure knowing you, commander Vector.”

“To you as well.”

Rage stood tall and called to the rest of the clutch. “I’m resigning my command and have chosen a new flight leader. Treat Vector Blade with the utmost respect. He’s your new commander.”

There were a few murmurs from his clutch mates, but they were quieted when Rage hend his hand up. “I want him to come back from this mission. If he slips up, do your best to cover his ass until he can get his head right, because I quite like this kid. But I don’t think you should have much of a problem with him. I’m more worried about one of you not taking his command seriously. If he doesn’t come back and I find out it was because you didn’t listen to him, I’m going to personally toss you all down into the septic level and have you on cleaning duty for life.”

The group of changeling cringed at the mention of septic level.

“Am I clear?”

The changelings saluted and chimed together. “Yes sir!”

“Good.” Rage nodded toward the clutch mates, before about-facing and striding out of the barracks.

“Mandible. Get me a refitted commander’s armor. I can’t be seen leading you all in this banged up nutshell.” Vector ordered. “The rest of you, sharpen your weapons. You heard Rage. Our mission is a direct assault. I want you all ready for when the king calls for the swarm.”

“Yes sir!” They all chimed again. While Mandile ran to the armory, the others began grinding various sharpening stones across their various weapons.

Mandible soon returned with an arm full of fresh plate mail from the armory. It was a different style than the older versions of the armor, covering vital areas, while still providing enough bare areas to move swiftly. He handed them to Vector.

“Thank you. Now get your axe ready for use. We have a war prepare for.”

The changeling saluted and ran to his bench to collect his weapon and began sharpening it as well.

“I’d still like to know how the hell he can remember every armor size in the clutch.” Vector said to himself as he stripped from his current armor and donned the new commander’s armor. It was a tad heavier, but it was balanced better. Not to mention it looked better on him than that old, beat up armor.

“When are you going to get to the point?” Tender Hoof interrupted.

Vector rolled his eyes. “As you can see, my leg is broken. I have plenty of time to take if I want to. So would you just listen?”

“I don’t get how talking about your cool new armor is telling me anything about what happened to make ponies hate you and you hate ponies.”

“I’m getting to the point! But trust me, the detail about the armor will come into play later.”

Tender crossed her arms.

Vector groaned. “Fine. I’ll skip to the part where the shield breaks.”

“Good changeling.”

“Hay! I’m not a pet!”

Tender giggled. “I’m just teasing. Please continue. This story is getting good.”

The changeling lifted an eyebrow. “The story… is getting good?”

“Yeah. There’s a lot of places where I see the same friendships as ponies. Like that stallion… What was his name?”

“Thorn?” Vector suggested.

Tender snapped her fingers. “That’s it! Now I don’t approve of his behavior, but there’s friendships like you have with him. As well as ones you have with Rage.”

“Had.”

“Excuse me?”

Vector looked away. “Friendship I had with Rage.”

“Oh… I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be. He died from an arrow through his head while he was holding a foal hostage. The moment he touched that foal, our friendship was done.” Vector stated. “I don’t care how evil I find a race, a child is never an enemy of war.”

“He really pulled something that low?”

Vector nodded. “Anyway, I was telling a story.”

Tender cleared her throat. “Yes. I’m sorry. Please continue.”

“Anyway… To the part where all Tartarus breaks loose.”

With the sharp sound of shattering glass, a massive hole was punched through the dome shield over Canterlot castle. The cracks ran from the initial break, all the way the the base and shattered along that, leaving the city wide open.

That very moment was when Vector gave the order to attack. With him at the lead, the sector nine strike team dove toward the guarded gates. As they came within range, magic bolts shot upward from the guards stationed there.

Vector drew his sword. “Concussion! Take a team of three and draw their fire! Mandible! Take three more and head in a straight line toward the gate! Hex! Shockwave! Follow me! We’ll clear a path for Mandible!” Vector called out to his team.

The eleven clutch mates split up to carry out their orders. Vector’s team dove straight for the guards with Mandible’s at their tail.

Vector shot a bolt of green magic at the ground by the guard’s hooves, knocking them away so that the two teams could land. “Mandible, I need your team to stick behind us until we clear the guards. Once you have a shot, take it. Don’t hesitate.”

“Yes sir!” The changeling confirmed.

“Good, cus this may take a minute...” Vector said with a nervous smile.

The first move was taken by one of the Canterlot guards. He was the obvious egotist of the group, being the largest and the first to attack.

Vector lifted his sword just as the stallion brought it down over his head to strike him, but he used the the stallion’s larger size to his advantage and forced his sword toward the ground. This caused the guard to lose his balance and gave Vector the opportunity jab the butt of his sword handle into the bridge of the stallion’s snout. He went cross-eyed and fell to the ground unconscious.

“I guess not…” Vector looked around him to see that the rest of his team had taken up the fight. Mandible’s team had made a break for the gate and by now it had been blown apart. They were in, but the guards were still moving.

He tightened his grip on his sword and rushed back into battle to help his smaller clutch mates, soon rendering all of the guard useless as they were covered in bright green binding goo. There were amazingly no casualties.

Vector looked up into the air and signaled the other flight teams through the hive mind. ‘Sector nine mission complete. Phase two is a go.’

‘Thank you, sector nine. We’ll take it from here. Remain stationed at the gate. We’ll call if we need you.’

‘Yes sir. Vector Blade out.’

“What now, sir?” Mandible asked as he gazed down at one of the knocked out stallions.

“We wait.” Was all Vector replied. “They’ll need us. They always do.”

“Right…”

“Well I, for one, think we should just run in there and bash their puny heads in!” Concussion growled.

Vector shook his head. “No… Stay put. If it was this easy to take these guards out, then the queen must have control by now.”

“What, guard duty again? You know, I thought you would be different from Rage, Vector. But you are still having us wait at the gate when we’re told.” The mare named Hex said.

“Because it’s orders. I don’t question them and neither should you. Now shut up and wait.”

“Wait for what, Vector? Wait for all the action to end? C’mon, man. Don’t be like Rage.” Thorn added.

Vector spun around on his clutch mates, gritting his teeth angrily. “For the love of the Gods above, shut the hell up! I ordered you to wait and you will fucking wait!”

Thorn, who was the closest, flinched. “Geez, man. What kind of hate did you eat?”

“The obvious hate from my insubordinate clutch mates.” Vector replied. “And you will refer to me as flight master. I didn’t give your permission to speak freely to me.”

“Oh, cut the BS, Vector. You’re not c-” Thorn’s mouth was clamped shut by an aura of magic.

“Shut up and let me listen.” Vector growled as he listened to the hive mind. ‘Could you repeat that?’

‘Sector nine. Be advised. Six mares who Celestia claims to be the Elements of harmony are heading your way. They blew through three sectors already. Don’t let them get past that gate!’

‘Understood.’ Vector turned his attention back to his clutch mates. “We have orders. The Elements of harmony are headed this way. Under no circumstances are you to let the pass. Don’t get cocky just because they’re mares. The eye in the sky told me they knocked out sectors two, three, and five.”

“Finally! Some action!” Hex exclaimed and drew her halberd.

“I said don’t get cocky!”

“Whatever. We’ll take them down. They’re just mares.”

Vector growled. “Fine. You forced my hand.” He called back through the hive mind. ‘Sector nine is in no shape to fight. I’d like to report insubordinate behavior.’

‘Thank you, Vector. I’m sending sector six to your aid. Commander Fury will handle the situation. You’ll take lead of sector six for now. Let your sector hold the elements off until six arrives.’

‘Yes sir.’ Vector drew his sword and stood at the back of his sector. “The poor fools are gonna get killed.”

Within moments, Six mares like the eye in the sky had said skidded to a halt in front of sector nine. Vector knew who they were just by looking at them.

He guessed Twilight was the lavender unicorn wearing the casual white blouse with the black school girl skirt. Her mane was straight and black with a pink stripe running the length of it. She looked worn out and so did her friends.

Luckily, a fight never broke out because sector six appeared behind the mares and restrained them. There was a lot of yelling and some crying from a couple, but Vector couldn’t make outany words.

Commander Fury strode up to sector nine. “I got a call about you all not listening to orders. Until such time as you can see that commander Vector is your superior, I’ll be your flight leader. Only, you won’t be doing any runs like you did today. You will be strictly reinforcements.”

“Aww, what!? We didn’t eve-” Thorn was silenced by a hard backhand.

Fury then turned to Vector. “Thanks for letting us know. I’ll take care of sector nine. Sector six should do well for you until these fools can listen. Take the elements back to the castle.”