Chapters High above the Everfree Forest sat a castle of cloud. A true work of pegasus ingenuity. It was a massive structure. A system of several thunderheads stretched and wrapped around one another, making an entire city that rivaled Canterlot in size, and unlike the pegasus home of Cloudsdale, it had just as diverse a population as the capitol, if a bit less densely populated. It could support a host of ponies of all kinds, earth, unicorn, obviously pegasi, ponies from the crystal empire, even the odd alicorn made their home here. The clouds were solid to anypony, bound with a touch of unicorn magic, and wrought from midsummer thunderstorms, they were hard as stone, and could withstand anything short of the wrath of a dragon's magefire. It sat securely guarded from interlopers by a combination of the jet stream, and a shield of bent air currents, forcing the winds to whip wickedly around the complex, making approach from any side incredibly difficult for an unwanted guest.
Upon one of the many lazily outstretched arms of the cloud system sat The Tyrant Spire: an enormous tower from which a pony could see the entire world. It sat ominously, the seat of power for the entire castle and any other place its owners exerted their presumed authority upon, which was a considerably sized region indeed, following the fracture of Equestria.
The tower had the appearance of a single column, with fluting running up the entire length, and volutes flourishing the top where it met with the base of the throne room; a massive circular room open to the air on all sides. The room was little more than a ceiling and a floor, held apart by heavily stylized columns, and decorated with massively intricate murals on floor and ceiling, depicting the day and the night respectively. The whole of the throne room stood fifty feet tall and over two hundred feet across.
Imagine if you will the peaceful view of this terribly austere place. A light breeze allowed through the air shield. The harsh sun on the stark white of the castle. It was like this on the day our story began.
Then suddenly everything grew quiet, like the hush between a lightning bolt and the crescendo as the thunderclap hits. Reality gave a sharp inhale as magic tore into existence, and then an explosive exhale, and the tower's wall expanded outwards in a cloud of deep, unnaturally purple, smoke. Sailing through the air, visible from the lower parts of the cloud, trailing smoke behind it, was a small pale purple dot. If a pony squinted her eyes hard enough she could almost make out the shape of a winged stallion falling to the earth.
He broke through the air shield, and the air whipped his body around like a ragdoll. His wings caught air again once he was out of the shield's effect, and he slowed. He was clearly unconscious; his body returned limply into a dive pose. Smoke continued to pour out of his coat, feathers, mane, and tail, marking his path through the air. A storm rumbled over the untamed forest. It swirled around him, the eye of the storm allowing him to pass through. The vortex pushed up on him, but not enough to keep him aloft. Windswept clouds twisted and lashed around him as he plummeted.
He broke through the clouds, and was visible to the entire forest and its inhabitants. He continued to drop through the air. The storm seemed to hold its breath for a moment as he fell. Then he hit ground, sending up a massive cloud of smoke that mingled coyly with the trees.
The storm's breathy gusting resumed, sucking the smoke up into the sky. The forest resumed its irreverent din, and life continued on much as it had before.
Author's Note
this is an adaptation of a comic i made for tumblr. i'm probably going to get rid of some of the more gimmicky things, like "Tumblrtron X-Thousand" my parody of Tumblrbot (unless of course someone thinks i should leave him in).
After the dust settled, the winged pony pulled himself out of a vaguely pegasus shaped crater, with purple smoke still rising from it. Through the fog in his eyes, he could see little more than the blurred trees, and the grassy earth rising to meet his face as he collapsed.
After the dust settled in his brain, he shoved the ground wearily away from him. It didn't seem to want to move or let him go from its heavy embrace, but with some work with his wings he managed to stand and even remain upright, despite the feeling of gravity swiveling all around him in every direction except true down.
"The hoof just happened to me?" he asked no one in particular, rubbing one of his own hooves against his brow. He felt around his head, looking for whatever it was that seemed to be splitting his skull open, but whether it was nonexistent, or he simply overlooked it in the swirling ringing pain that filled his senses, remained to be seen.
He looked about and saw a bipedal creature. "You There! Peasant! Tell Us, What Has Transpired Here?"
The creature, a mangy knee high thing with fur striped in rings around its body chittered in response. It picked its way warily towards him, moving its fat body with surprising deftness, and a certain mincing nature which made the pony's head swirl.
"Goodness!" he said, stretching a hoof out to the creature, "We Did Not Quite Catch That, Could You Come Here And Let Me Have A Look At You?" The Royal Canterlot Voice (tm) was taking its toll on him, sending a good amount of pressure from his lungs up into the blood in his head, but standards must be kept, mum always said. Probably. He couldn't quite recall.
"Upon Closer Inspection," he remarked as the creature climbed upon his outstretched limb, "You Are Not a peasant at all. Good, I can stop using this ridiculous diction and speak like a real pony."
He examined the thing further, "Hrm, not really sure I know what you are. You look like you enjoy riding on my shoulder, like a parrot. But you look more like that fluffy thing... someone I know kept as a pet. Something from the land. We Therefore Decree, You Are A LAND PARROT-ow, I need to break that habit."
The raccoon chittered in agreement. It beckoned him closer, so that it could tell him something. Perhaps it wished to tell him the way out of this place. When he brought it close however, it sank claws into his neck and pulled at him. "Stop That At Once, Or We Shall Be Forced To Request That You- ow! What are you doing!? You are behaving a manner most unciv-OW!"
He flicked his hoof and sent the thing flying. It growled and leaped at him, sinking its claws and teeth into his face. With a great deal of struggle, and after acquiring several cuts to his face, the pony managed to fling the raccoon away. It chittered angrily at him and then fled.
"Unruly Beast!" he shouted. "Well, nothing to do now but find my way to the nearest semblance of civilization," he looked deep into the thick forest, "and hopefully avoid anymore of those awful things, or whatever lives in this wilderness."
His progress was slow through the thick brush and tree limbs. He staggered into a clearing to take a rest.
"Oh this is useless. One cannot trot out of a thicket, I am sure I heard that somewhere. And as weary and dizzy as I am, there is no way I can fly. Oh. Am I destined to die here alone, struggling and wounded?"
As if to answer, the foliage broke open and spilled out a jet black mare, with a wickedly crooked and jagged horn, blue hair, what looked like a plate of green armor on her back, and holes -hold on a tick- holes ... in her legs?
She eyed him hungrily as she approached, sharp fangs exposed, and saliva clearly pooling in her mouth.
She mocked him as she drew close, "There you are, my Sweet Delicious Dumpling."
*** Sometime earlier
Princess Veneer ran as hard as she could into the forest. Flying would do her no good, the drones were blotting out the sun, an air escape was impossible. The drumming of the hive still beat in her heart. Leaving the swarm was starting to seem like a bad choice, but staying was out of the question. Her sister, Princess Avarice, would be the new queen and she knew that. She had accepted it, but her sister liked being certain, and a loose end like having a second successor to compete with would never do. So when the moment came, Princess Avarice struck, only to find she was moments too late.
At this point Princess Veneer regretted less that she had left, and more that she had waited so long. She knew she would miss the hive regardless, and that stumbling alone through the wilderness would certainly give her an appreciation for what she had left behind. However, staying would have meant death, so she fled, and now, because of her delay, those loyal to the yet unanointed queen were hot in pursuit.
Before she entered the forest she took a look around. At the prairie which had hosted her every childhood adventure, the towering hive which she would never again call home, and the sky which. She smiled. The squadrons of drones were not the only thing pursuing her. A huge thunderhead was plainly visible in the middle distance. It would overtake her in an hour, grounding the fliers, and making her tracks difficult to find.
With her pursuers blinded and scattered by the storm, no single one of them would be a match for her power.
She rushed into the forest.
It was slow going as she ripped her way through the foliage, relying on the jagged hooks of her horn to rend leaves, stems, vines, twigs, and the like, leaving her path free and clear. Her path was clear, but the process quickly sapped her energy.
As she worked she swore she heard the drumming of wings overhead, but the wind picked up, right on schedule. A chilly wind which seemed to rise out of the very earth, and drag its cool hands across her legs as it passed.
Thunder crackled overhead.
"Finally," she grumbled. Princess Veneer lowered her head and drew energy within herself. A huge beam of green energy crackled out of her horn, and tunneled through the overgrowth of the forest floor. It left behind the smell of charred plant life, ozone, and the sickly smell of the unnatural breath of magic.
She faltered, "Whew, overdid it a little there, but with any luck, the storm masked the spell."
Luck seemed to be on her side, and she made another easy half hour of travel before the storm became too intense for her to weather and she found shelter in a hollowed tree. The storm seemed to be without end, and eventually, the weariness of her exertion, and the stress of the last few days mingled with the calm warmth in the tree and the heavy sounds of the storm outside, and she dozed off.
The storm had been so loud that she awoke with a start when it finally relented. Weather had certainly gotten out of control since the pegasi of Cloudsdale stopped performing their services for the rest of Equestria. Indeed much of the measured peacefulness that defined the pony kingdom had vanished. But that calm was a distant memory for Veneer. She and her kind relished the chaos, it gave them the openings they needed to prey upon the weak of the herd, and the general discord that swept the land meant no force existed which could threaten the hive as a whole.
A massive thud shook her from her thoughts, and a cloud of purple smoke enveloped her, hiding the stupefied look on her face from all the nonexistent observers. She waited for the smoke to clear, and attempted to discern the direction it had come from. The wind seemed to be taking it directly away from her, so the source of the cacophony had to be in that general direction. Right?
Or was she over-thinking it? Sod-it, the smoke is getting away, better hurry Princess.
She fought her way trough the thick ancient growth of the forest floor and eventually came to a clearing, which contained a roughly pony shaped crater, a trail of smoke still spewing out of it, and a set of hoof-prints leading away.
After yet more tramping through the forest, she finally caught up with the owner of the hooves. A purple and red pony with big wings, and a raccoon on his shoulder. She felt pangs of hunger long ignored perk up at the sight of a strong stallion, and something feral lent her the strength she needed to proceed.
"You've got this," she sighed, "Just play it cool, whoever he is he'll certainly be glad to see me." She chuckled to herself as she cast her transformation spell, tapping into his mind as he struggled, distracted by the raccoon's sudden and unprovoked attack.
When the raccoon fled, she waited for him to recover his bearings and she burst into the clearing with him, crying out to him, "There you are, my Sweet Delicious Dumpling."
"I'm sorry?" he answered, "Do I know you?"
"Darling," she said, growing concerned, "Do you not recognize me?"
"No. Sorry. Who are you?"
"I." She looked down at herself, to find that she had not transformed in the slightest. She looked, as always, like a changeling princess, "b-but, I cast the-" Bucking Hoof Doddling Marmalade, she screamed internally, that's it, my cover is blown and this stallion is more than a match for me in my condition.
"That is," he continued, slyly closing the distance between them, "I certainly ought to know any mare with your beauty, so refresh my memory, and please pardon me for forgetting such a beautiful face, what beautiful name goes with it." Okay come on, the stallion chided himself, you can do far better than that, concussion or no. But to his delight, when he finished rebuking himself he noticed that she was blushing slightly.
"Er, I'm your..." she searched for the term the ponies used, "Special Somepony, Princess Veneer. Do you not remember me?" It was bold, but this tack would bring her closer to the nourishment she craved faster than the cautious route would.
"Oh?" he seemed surprised, "A princess. I must have hit my head plenty hard to have forgotten somepony like you being my Special Somepony. Tell me then, because I seem to have forgotten, who exactly am I?"
She couldn't tell if this was a test, but a quick look at his cutie mark could tell her more than she needed to know to figure out his name. She edged slightly and looked at his flank.
It was bare!
This stallion was at least old enough to have foals of his own, yet his flank was bare.
"Darling, where is your cutie mark!?" she shouted before she could stop herself.
He looked back at his flank in mild shock and concurred, "It is gone!" He looked back to her, searching her face for answers, "What's happened to me?"
Veneer noticed the sharp smell of magic gathering almost a moment too late. She reared back, and a bolt of teal energy passed between them where her head had been. Hopefully the exchange had given her enough energy to last until she could find a better target. His affectionate approach had been a nice appetizer, but she would need a main course before she could confront whatever was approaching.
Before her hooves even hit the ground again, she set a magical blast of fire into the surrounding foliage, and trotted off through the smokescreen. The stallion took a defensive posture, barely registering that she had turned to flee, as he turned to face the new threat.
Veneer did not find out for quite some time what became of the confrontation.
Author's Note
i've had these ideas in my head for a while, it's great to get them out.
2 Everfree Independence Society
The bewildered stallion readied himself. He turned to face the newcomers, and reared up with his wings outstretched, effectively tripling the size of his normal silhouette. Two ponies rushed into the clearing. On second look, one pony and one zebra. The pony was presumably the unicorn who had sent the magical attack at the princess, making him the priority target. He had a light brown coat, and a multicolored green mane, giving him the appearance of a tree, and lending him a good deal of concealment in the forest. The zebra had a far less natural look. Her coat being a dark gray with vivid purple streaks, and her mane being considerably more fluffy than the average zebra's stiff bristly hairs. Despite her lack of magic, she had a certain keen look in her eye that made the stallion rethink his threat rankings.
The unicorn rushed past the purple stallion and took a threatening pose, completely ignoring the winged pony. "And tell the rest of your swarm to go with you highness!" the unicorn shouted after the fleeing princess.
Hold on; fleeing princess? The stallion returned his hooves to the ground and shouted at the unicorn, "What In The Hoof Do You Think You Are On About? You Have Frightened The Princess, Our Betrothed!"
The unicorn gave him a stupefied sidelong glance. He seemed completely impaired by the inanity of the statement. The word 'what,' or possibly 'who' seemed to be forming on his lips, but he just could not quite seem to force it out, "What are you on about?" the unicorn shot back, "Don't you know what a changeling is?" The expression on his face changed, burning away after being lit by a spark of recognition, leaving behind a visage of worry and surprise. "Oh. Hey. It's you," he said with a small tone of distaste, his demeanor having gone through another rapid multistage change, "Wasn't sure at first, but that stupid look on your face gives you away, even if your..." he trailed off, "You're different from last time I should say."
"Do, do I know you?" asked the now very concerned purple stallion, mostly dropping the Royal Canterlot Voice, "Everyone we run into today seems to know us." He was about to inquire further, when something wet hit his forehead and his eye, it broke his train of thought, and he immediately forgot the incident in favor of more pressing matters.
The zebra finally spoke up in the pause he had given her, "From high you've fallen, escaped your doom, high born are you, I presume." The unicorn nodded at her.
"Ye-yes, we thought we might be royalty, being engaged to a princess, and for some reason Using This Ridiculous Voice. But who are you two, and how do you know us?"
The unicorn sighed, "Luna's mane, you don't even remember who you are, do you?"
The two newcomers exchanged a knowing look, and the zebra spoke, "Would a rose be the same, if Furyheart was its name?"
"What are you talking about?" Furyheart demanded
"It's your name!" snapped the unicorn, "Furyheart, prince of thunder. We worked together once."
"So we do know you?" asked Furyheart, "What is your name?"
"You really don't know? Come on, think back," replied the unicorn.
"We seem to have struck our head and cannot remember anything."
"A bump on the head, left his memory dead," commented the zebra.
"Right," the unicorn agreed uncertainly, "Well I guess you can have this one for free. I'm Mortarmer, just call me Mort." The air grew uncomfortably quiet as the stallions looked to the zebra. Mort sighed, "Her name is Poisonberry, she can't figure out how to rhyme it. Anyway, that's all I'm telling you for now."
The bushes behind them started rustling. Mort raised his head, and without looking he sighed, "And here's the rest of the winners."
A pure white earth pony mare with a ragged pink and blond mane crashed through a bush. Across her back rested a feeble, frail looking, red orange earth pony stallion, though he looked barely older than a colt, whether that was from youth, or the reduced size of his sickly frame was uncertain. The mare wore a harness with spaulders, a chest guard, and vambraces. A sophisticated mechanically operated crossbow had been mounted to the rig on her right shoulder, and a quiver rested on her left, each running parallel to the orientation of her body.
The sickly looking stallion's mane had an earthy color, giving him the appearance of autumn. He bore saddlebags with a heavy looking book on his right side, and a toolkit on his left. The mare bowed down, and let her rider dismount. "Sorry to keep you waiting," she panted, "I had to shake a trio of some bucking determined changelings." She drew a bolt and reloaded it into her crossbow, and added, with a smirk, "I winged one, he got away, but the blood trail should still be there tomorrow. Unless it rains more. Hello!" She extended a hoof to Furyheart.
Furyheart raised an eyebrow and took her hoof, "Charmed."
"I'm Prize Hunter, and my esteemed boneless companion is Amber Brilliance."
"Not boneless," Amber Brilliance corrected, "but it does feel damn close sometimes. Brittle bones you see," he said to Furyheart directly, "Afraid I'm not able to carry my own weight in the field."
"Well not literally, " said Prize Hunter, "but I probably wouldn't have caught that cockatrice without your help."
"Any idea why the swarm is here?" Mort interjected, trying to get the conversation back on track.
"No," answered Amber Brilliance, "this incursion is baffling."
"Care for me to make it more baffling?" asked Mort, "We just chased off a princess."
"What on earth for?"
"A Changeling princess," Mort clarified.
"That is less baffling than alarming," said Amber Brilliance, "and it might be prudent of us to get back home, no doubt our noble guest would like a place to rest away from harm."
"I've got no room for him," said Mort, "At least, no room that's up to his elevated standards." He turned and led the way out of the clearing.
"You must forgive him," said Amber Brilliance once he had remounted Prize Hunter. "He has a certain mistrust of, er, outsiders."
"I'm sure he has his reasons," said Furyheart.
"He thinks so."
"That's all that matters then isn't it?"
Amber Brilliance considered this, "Quite."
"You know, now that I think about it," Prize Hunter said, breaking her incredibly long silence, "that squad of drones probably flew right over you guys before we found you. They were strafing us, and then suddenly they saw something and took off in that direction, which was about the time I drew a bead on them and got that shot off, and then we found you. You can't think of anything they would be chasing can you?"
There was a long pause during which Furyheart suddenly realized she might have been addressing him. "Oh, me?"
"Well duh, everypony who wasn't with me then is out of earshot, except you, AB doesn't know, he was with me, and Mort and Berry seem to be deliberately keeping away from our conversation, so you're the only one I can ask."
"I didn't notice any -drones were they?- I didn't notice anything flying overhead."
"I only ask," Prize Hunter explained, "Because one of them at least would have been bleeding, and I spotted splatter around your eye. So obviously if they abandoned our flight just to fly over to you, they must have noticed something worth taking a bolt to the leg. And if they thought flying past you was more important than flying to you, then they must have been chasing something that was either past you, or fleeing from you."
Furyheart checked his eye, and scraped off something that had the smell and texture of dried blood, but was so dark it barely seemed to be red. It had more of an iridescent sheen of green and ocher. "Come to think of it," he said, "something did splatter onto my face, I had taken it for raindrops, and maybe some of my own blood from my scrape with that land parrot impostor. Vile beast. And the only thing I can think of running away from us was- my goodness! My betrothed! We must rescue her immediately!"
"Wait what?" asked Prize Hunter, "You brought your girlfriend? Why didn't you introduce her?"
"She fled into the forest when your friends startled us! Princess Veneer! She needs our help! She must be what or who these drones were after!"
Furyheart made to leave, but Amber Brilliance's voice stopped him, it sounded suddenly grave and commanding despite its weakness in volume, "I would advise against that. Princess Veneer is not who you think she is. She is a sadistic and wicked mare who uses ponies' love as a source of food. Did you say that she is your betrothed?"
"Yes, why?"
"I would like to be absolutely clear, Princess Veneer was not impersonating your fiance, she is your fiance. This is a true statement?"
"Yyyyyyyyes? This is what she told us. Your questions are strange Amber Brilliance."
"Please, call me AB, it saves time and such," AB replied as he pondered what he had heard. "Describe her for me."
Furyheart described her, from the jagged horn all the way down to the holes in her legs.
"Uh, AB?" Prize Hunter asked uncertainly, "Why didn't the princess of the Changelings transform into this guy's special somepony?"
"That is the question. Isn't it Prize? It seems like a novice mistake, unless of course our guest cannot remember anypony he loves, in which case her love unraveler charm would not affect him, which would in turn support my theory that he has retrograde amnesia. It is unlikely that he will ever remember anything more than bits and pieces of his life before his traumatic brain injury."
"But, AB," protested Prize Hunter, "I read a story where somepony hit his head a second time and his memory came back."
"I'm afraid that was little more than a story, Prize. In actuality the Hippocampus is a complex and mysterious part of psychology, and we lack any means of repairing it without alicorn magic; a rare thing these days. Fortunately his ability to remember details of his journey since then means he is at least able to form new memories. We're getting off topic though. Furyheart, I want you to understand something: changelings are deceitful creatures, anything Princess Veneer told you was meant to manipulate you into loving her, so that she could feed off of you like a parasite. If you do have a betrothed, I'm sure she misses you, and she would not wish for you to fall into the clutches of the changelings. If you are worried about her, I assure you, she will be quite safe with her own kind."
Furyheart grew gravely silent, it seemed the natural response to realizing what a fool he was. "Fine, we shall stay with you for now, but if this proves to be ill council, or malicious advice, we will hold you responsible, Brilliance."
"I would bet my life on my words," AB said with a severity that made Furyheart feel a small amount of shame, "Please come with us."
They arrived at a small forest village without further incident. After the grave conversation they had just finished, nothing else seemed appropriate fare. The village, such as it was, consisted of little more than a few hovels gathered around a healthy looking stream. The hovels were simple two story homes with one room on each floor. The upper floors were made of wood, and all had a balcony of sorts with a rope ladder hanging down. Several of them sported a pulley system for hauling large objects up and down. The lower floors all seemed to be clay, or some other earthen material, with a good deal of stonework, and possessed much heavier looking doors than the upper levels'.
In the center of the town sat one building unique from the others. It stood as tall as any of the others, but lacked any doors or windows in the upper portions of its walls. It was mostly stonework with massive riblike wooden supports. Around the structure stood several massive tree trunks carved into effigies of the saints: the six matrons of harmony, the patron of chaos, the sisters; all of them gone from Equestria. How do I know that, Furyheart wondered to himself, but then he noticed the stream and his list of things worth thinking about made a drastic change. He rushed to the stream and began guzzling from it. AB and Prize Hunter joined him.
AB took a moment to stretch his chest. "Drink up AB," Prize Hunter commanded him.
"I hardly did as much work as the rest of you today, and I drank a good deal of rain during the storm."
"I mean it," she insisted, "It was plenty hot this morning, and I know excitement really gets me parched, you're much more excitable than I am, therefore," Furyheart got the distinct impression she was imitating him, as her voice took on an officious tone, "you must drink."
"Hah, well when you put it like that I am a bit thirsty," AB chuckled. As he drank next to Furyheart, he seemed to notice something on Furyheart's face, but he never mentioned whatever he thought he saw.
"Ah-hah! There you are!" exclaimed a new voice, "You must be Furyheart!"
Furyheart looked up across the stream and spotted a pegasus mare with a golden mane. What little he could see of her coat and feathers was pale blue, like the haze around the sun on a cloudless day after a cold front. An old flight suit from Canterlot's aerial teams hid the rest of her body. Over the flight suit she wore a rig like Prize Hunter's, but the padding seemed to focus around her neck and her belly, instead of her chest and shoulders. Strapped to each wrist Furyheart could see a spring release blade, and she had at least five one foot metal darts with a tassel on the end, strapped to her chest. Furyheart shuddered to think of the effect they could produce after a skilled pegasus flung one in mid flight.
"Mort and Berry told me all about you, but allow me to be the first to welcome you to the Everfree Independence Society!"
"We? The who?" Furyheart asked, eloquent as always.
"The Everfree Independence Society, that's what we call ourselves here! Or at least I do, I'm the only one who seems to care about anything that matters these days!"
"Things liike..."
"Oh, loads! But mostly maintaining our independence from every despot coming along claiming she rules us, because nopony rules as much as me!" She flexed her front limb and gave a photo smile.
"And you are?"
"Oh! How could I forget to introduce myself?" she slapped her forehead, "I," she jumped up and did a tight loop in the air, rising no more than six feet from the ground, "am Sunspot! You can call me Sun for short, or Sunny, Spots, Spotty, but call me Spot and I'll bite like a dog and give you the ol' Whammy!" she demonstrated by pantomiming some sort of martial art strike with her front hoof. "Anyway, I am Sunspot and my mission is keeping the proletariat safe from the inequity of tyrants until a kind and loving ruler can return to the throne in Canterlot!"
Furyheart blinked as he processed this, and said "Wow, that is a lot of responsibility for one pony."
"Well the others help, but I coordinate the efforts. I haven't gotten much farther than keeping this village safe from tyranny, but one day I hope to spread the word."
"Well I would love to hear all about it, but I really ought to go... somewhere."
"That's fine! I have pamphlets! Let me go get one from my home," she trailed off and Furyheart watched something fall into place in her head, "Oh! You need a place to stay! You should have just asked, you don't need to be so shy about it."
"Well I didn't want to intrude," said Furyheart.
"Nonsense, AB has asked for you to live with him, at least for a while, I think he wants to study your condition. He's wanted to work on a psychology paper for a while, but there's only a dozen of us. Even if we are all crazy, that's still not a lot to work with! Well, I'll see you around, feel free to stay as long as you like, and, if you want to do work for us, we won't stop you!" She hopped up and flew back to the massive building in the center of the village.
"That would be our de facto leader," explained AB, who had waited patiently through the whole exchange, "She has the most ambition, and the most will, therefore everypony follows where she leads. Now if you'll follow us, we can show you to your new home."
***
In a distant part of the forest, just near the edge, Princess Veneer, still clinging to the title, cowered in an abandoned building. It had clearly once been a barn, as evidenced by what little remained of the flaking paint, and what remained of the apple orchard now choked by much hardier plants. Also in addition to the general size and shape, which a concerned observer could still imagine, even if half the wretched building's frame had collapsed in on itself.
"What are you doing?" she asked her reflection in a puddle that had gathered beneath a hole in the roof, "What kind of life are you holding onto?"
She sighed and watched the setting sun. The last of its warm rays reminded her suddenly of that stallion, whoever he was. She had stolen love from so many ponies before, it was love intended for somepony else. She had never felt even the slightest bit of affection directed at herself. He seemed concerned beneath the bravado, and the weak attempt at slick charm.
No, just another lustful stallion, easily snared by pretty eyes, a sleek mane, and a sob story, or some other fake emotional play. He would prove to be just like the rest of them, if she ever saw him again, which was unlikely.
Still, now that she was truly alone, having felt the warmth of honest connection, without the thin cover of lies, just punctuated how truly lonely her life had been. "The hive knows no love it does not steal," she muttered. Then she returned to the corner, and bedded down on a lump of rot that might have once been hay.
High overhead a trio of changeling drones flew in tight formation, searching with their deep senses for any trace of their princess.
She's weak
She'll be easier to catch
But she's harder to find
Patience hatchmates, She will betray herself soon. How is your leg?
It's fine. I hunger.
There will be plenty of time for that later.
There will be plenty of time for me to heal later
Focus brothers, we need to focus to find her.
Yes sister.
Yes sister.
The trio picked up their pace and dipped down into the forest near where they had seen the green otherworldly fire of changeling magic.
Now, we start from the beginning, and track her properly this time.
It will be easier without those ponies attacking us.
Indeed, now, ssseeeeek!
***
Furyheart settled down on a straw pile next to the central chimney in AB's hovel. AB had used one off the freight elevators to ascend, though Furyheart had offered to carry him up himself. Whether it was pride, or just not wanting to feel like a burden, Furyheart could respect him and his reason.
"Now then," AB began, "I noticed your flank is bare. I wonder if that could have anything to do with your current mental state."
"Frustration?" asked Furyheart, who had only just started realizing the severity of his situation. "I have a question, since you're so smart." He suddenly hoped he hadn't sounded sarcastic.
"Ask away."
"Why do I know things?"
AB blinked at him, "You know things?"
"Yes. Like words, how am I able to talk? Or, for example, I can remember that -one- Equestria -two- is in turmoil, after -three- the dissolution of Canterlot's rule. Three things I can remember, three useless facts that I know, despite having no memory of who I am!"
"Please try to relax, I don't want you to black out again."
"What's the point!" Furyheart stamped his hoof, and heavy dust puffed away from where it struck the wood. For a brief moment AB thought he could see a Cutie Mark on Furyheart's flank. "I even know why the kingdom fell. It fell when the sisters failed to properly transfer power to the princess of friendship. I can even list all the saints! You have totems of them! Discord, Luna, Celestia, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rarity! And I could pray to them all night, but it won't matter because none of them can help me remember who I AM!" He stomped both his hooves, and still more dark dust puffed into the air away from a completely clean floor.
In his heart, Amber Brilliance knew he had seen a Cutie Mark, but he did not like to think of its appearance. From the brief glimpse he caught, it looked like a Hearts and Hooves heart, with a spike through it, wreathed in crimson flames. He could only guess what kind of special talent this would grant a pony, and his guesses were none too pleasant.
"Some, times," AB said shakily, "Evidence is gathered. Which suggests. That there are multiple kinds of memories."
Furyheart heard the quiver in his host's voice, and saw the tremble in his body and felt ashamed yet again. He paid close attention, this pony deserved that at least.
"These memories can take different forms. Episodic, semantic, procedural. These are the three we have identified, but they may have subcategories. Episodic is memories of events. Semantic is learned information. Procedural is commonly called 'muscle memory."
"So you're saying that even though we, I cannot remember events of the past, my knowledge of facts can remain intact."
"Yes, you may also have a certain emotional memory linked with events or other ponies which could remain. Also, you likely retain the ability to perform any skill you knew beforehand. Like for instance walking or flying."
"Flying?" Furyheart's heart leaped. He certainly remembered good emotions about flying. He looked back at AB, who seemed to have noticed that thing on his forehead again, but again, made no mention of it. "I'm sorry to have intruded in your home, I must take my leave of you now."
"Mhm, yes," AB said absentmindedly, lost in thought. The words only struck him when Furyheart turned towards the door, pushed it open, and took off into the sky. "No! Wait! Just because you can doesn't mean that you should! Oh bother."
Author's Note
inb4: trust me, the colors for Prize and AB totally work, i spent like an hour messing with them on a palette mixer. i only say this because, well, by Celestia, it sounded like an awful mix when i wrote it down. yeah, there, i've convinced myself.
The cool night air blasted in Furyheart's face and ears. As he rose through the clear night sky it began to feel like needles of ice being dragged across his hide. The smell of the storm still lingered in the lower atmosphere, the air having calmed considerably since the thunderhead passed. Streaks of thin wispy clouds hung in the sky like paintings on a wall, catching moonlight and casting it back as a soft glow.
A brief temptation to perform an aerial maneuver grew inside of him, but when he tensed his muscles in preparation for the exertion, he felt an unwilling response echo back from his every nerve ending, and the temptation swiftly fled.
Furyheart watched the still forest pass idly beneath him. Nothing moved above the trees, but Luna only knew what moved beneath the canopy. He had just caught sight of a trio of birds dart briefly over the treetops, when he heard wings behind him. He craned his neck around.
"Sunspot," he greeted her.
"Heeyy," the pegasus dragged her response out. As good as she was at being friendly to strangers, she hated confronting uncomfortable social settings. "What are you up to?"
"Flying, thinking, trying not to think," Furyheart replied.
"So I heard you and Amber Brilliance were having a... discussion."
Furyheart sighed, "You mean I have overstayed my welcome and offended my host."
"What? No, honestly he's more concerned that he offended you than anything else, and we're all concerned for your health right now."
Furyheart's eyes narrowed. "Why?" he asked suspiciously.
"Because you're a recent concussion victim, you're acting erratically, and you don't have any memories or any idea where the village is."
Furyheart looked around and realized he did not know the intricacies of this forest, including the whereabouts of his temporary home. "Valid points to be sure," he said, "but why do you care?"
And then it was Sunspot's turn to be confused. "Because we don't want you to go out and get yourself killed? What reason do we need?"
"None I guess, but, and I have no idea why I am thinking this way but I find your lack of personal incentive hard to trust. Let me put it this way, if you had something to gain from me being alive and safe in your community, I could understand your inviting me to stay, but..."
"But because you don't see any reason for us not to stomp you to death in your sleep you don't trust that we will resist the urge, or you think we have a hidden agenda you might not like to be a part of?"
"Yes, more or less."
"Well," Sunspot took a breath for emphasis, and to help her through what was shaping up to be a long-winded rationalization, "AB needs you for research, I could always use an extra worker, Prize can always use help out in the field, and Mort, well, Mort's motives are confusing. That enough selfishness for you to trust our intentions?"
"Yes."
"You willing to admit that you just can't stand feeling like a burden on others?" Sunspot asked, shooting a cheeky grin at Furyheart.
Furyheart shook his head and laughed, "Not quite."
Sunspot peeled away and led Furyheart back to the village. They landed in a nearby clearing, and walked into the housing area. Ponies were milling about, clearly having been awoken by the commotion. They stood in small clusters huddled in the emotional shelter of one another's homes and open doorways, speaking in hushed tones, exchanging speculation on the few scraps of details that they had gotten from Amber Brilliance.
A number of the windows were lit, casting stretched images of themselves onto the ground, but generally not giving much illumination. Prize and Amber Brilliance stepped out to greet the two flying ponies. "Is everything alright?" asked Amber Brilliance.
"Just needed to clear my head," replied Furyheart, "Thank you for your concern. I hope I have not been too much trouble."
"No, no, we're just glad to see that you are still well," said Amber Brilliance.
"Well, as well as you can be!" Prize added enthusiastically. "What?" she asked to the glares her friends gave her, "He's had a concussion, been completely cut off from everyone he knows, and found out that his fiance is a wanted criminal. I'd be crying in a corner right now if I was him."
"You're not helping, Prize," scolded Sunspot.
Furyheart heard a familiar voice approaching from his left, "Oh hey, you're back." It was Mortarmer, with Poisonberry in tow. Furyheart swore he saw 'Berry pass Mort a few bits. "I was betting you would be," Mort added.
"Yes, I think we should be getting back to bed now," Amber Brilliance interjected, "we have a busy day tomorrow."
"I'll leave him in your care AB," said Sunspot. She turned to Furyheart, "And you, try to take it easy, and remember what we talked about." She turned and trotted back to her home. The rest of the group followed suit and returned to their beds.
"Busy day?" Furyheart asked Amber Brilliance as they walked back to his hovel, "Should I be worried?"
"I have a theory about how we may be able to help you recover some of your memories," Amber Brilliance explained, "Ah, here we are." He looked up at the pulley elevator. "This thing gets taller every time I use it," he said with a chuckle.
"It is not my intention to be rude," Furyheart said reluctantly, "but seeing as it is so late, and the only reason you are out of bed is because I inconvenienced you, I wish you would let me carry you to the top."
AB sighed wearily. "Well, since it is so late, I think that would be alright."
Furyheart lowered himself so that the pony could climb onto his back. Amber Brilliance was lighter than expected, and felt strangely emaciated. Furyheart could have easily leaped to the top, but decided to take the ascent gently. Once they were inside, he helped Amber Brilliance into bed.
"Thank you," said Amber Brilliance, "Hate to admit it, but I was not looking forward to that climb."
"I should thank you," replied Furyheart, curling up in the corner of the dark room, "for allowing me to be useful. I am not learned enough to understand more than the notions of what you say most of the time, Amber Brilliance, I was not given that blessing, so as long as you use your gifts to help me bear my burdens, then I can use my blessings to help you bear yours."
"Oh, stop being so dramatic, I just do what little I can."
"You are too humble my friend," said Furyheart, "but if I cannot convince you, I will drop the subject."
Amber Brilliance warmed slightly at the complement. "Well that settles it then, we can owe each other favors until the day we die, neither of us able to satisfy our own debts."
"Agreed," said Furyheart.
"I am excited for the tests tomorrow though," said AB, trying to restrain himself from gushing over every last detail. "I wish I could tell you about them, but I know Mortarmer would rather I wait. Oh tomorrow cannot come soon enough. I can hardly sleep."
"I feel as though I've never slept," said Furyheart, his mind wandering down a tangent. "What will happen? Who will I be when I wake?"
"You will be whoever you choose to be," answered Amber Brilliance, "but I'll just let you rest, it has been a long day."
"Indeed."
That last word rang in Furyheart's head for what seemed like hours. It was the last word he heard that day. His brain latched onto it and mulled it over. What a strange way to stop talking to somepony. The word distorted and lost meaning, the syllables became almost comical. He thought about his thoughts in a very self referential and confusing way until his breathing slowed, and he finally fell asleep.
***
Furyheart was woken in the morning by Mortarmer and Amber Brilliance discussing something, both of them looking all too cheerful, especially Mort. "Oh hey, you're awake," Mort greeted him with the flat, unenthusiastic tone Furyheart had come to expect of him. "Good. Let's begin."
"I think we should tell him what to expect first," said Amber Brilliance.
"Oh there's time, we have some setup left, and I know how you are about getting informed consent from subjects."
"Participants," Amber Brilliance corrected with some exasperation. Mort grinned mischievously and busied himself with some vials of a clear liquid and-
An injector? Furyheart felt his skin prickle with a sudden burst of panic. "Is there going to be an injection?" he asked nervously.
"Yes of course," answered Amber Brilliance, "that's part of what I need to brief you about."
"Don't worry," added Mort, "I'm very good at this." He tapped his hoof against a syringe that he had filled from one of the vials; apparently with enough deftness that Furyheart had not even noticed the process.
Furyheart's voice croaked, "Uh, Amber Brilliance, I am worrying. I am worrying right now!"
"Don't worry, the substance is perfectly safe, and Mortarmer is very practiced at this. He has delivered several local anesthetics to me for surgeries in the past," said AB. "But please let me explain the experiment to you. Among the vials you see is a 'beta-agonist' which we developed in earlier tests."
Mort interrupted, "We had to draw blood from mice, and then I had to develop a means of comparing it to control blood samples, then taking the difference and synthesizing it with things available in the forest. All this after a chemical analysis which I did by way of magic nopony else in Equ-the world knows how to do. It was very time consuming."
AB replied, with marked frustration in his voice, "I don't think that's entirely relevant to the-"
"I just want him to appreciate how much of a hint I'm giving him right now."
The frustration had been replaced by slight confusion when AB spoke again, "Riiight. The purpose of the compound is to elicit your emotional memory as it were, hopefully any stress you were feeling leading up to your collision with the ground will have left its mark somehow." He paused briefly, seemingly squinting at something on Furyheart's forehead. "The others, are, pla-placebo. Saline specifically, but with a mild irritant mixed in, as the specific formula of the agonist leaves a slight stinging sensation.
"After a control of no shots, you will be given the other shots at three hour intervals, each followed by a brief break to let the chemical take effect." Amber Brilliance exhaled deeply and finished, "Do you have any questions?"
Furyheart scratched his head and asked, "Lunch break?"
AB answered curtly, "At noon, after the first two tests." For some reason this made Mort laugh under his breath. "Let us begin then, tell me, if anything, what you can remember happening before you woke up in the forest."
Furyheart tried. He raked his brains and found it felt simultaneously like pushing against a wall, and swinging his hoof through the empty air. There was nothing to hit, and the nothing was impenetrable. He thought he might remember something, but it had no form, it was the notion of things he probably ought to remember, but it seemed as though nothing existed before that day. He pushed at the edge of reality, and it did not yield. He shook his head.
"Alright, perhaps something more directed," said Amber Brilliance, "Where do you come from? What is your home? What is it like? Who lives there?"
Furyheart cudgeled his brains from the inside, the answer had to be in there. "Clouds," he blurted out after some struggling. "It's very cloudy."
"Not surprising," commented Mort, "explains the fall, and the 'being a winged pony'"
"Do you know why you fell?" asked Amber Brilliance.
"I, was, hit? No. Not really sure," answered Furyheart.
After a few more questions Amber Brilliance let him stop. They readied one of the vials, and injected it into Furyheart's flank. It stung slightly, and then he felt nothing more.
AB asked him the same questions, but Furyheart could not come up with anything he felt confident in, and soon that test came to a conclusion.
He received another injection. This time it stung less, and he felt nothing. As he returned to his seat however, he felt a wave of anxiety rush over him. His heart pounded and he felt his body light up like a storm. This must be what an agonist feels like. The thought pieced itself together through a mixture of emotions, feelings, and generally unbalanced humors churning around in his stomach.
Without being prompted, Furyheart told what he saw, "I remember you Mortarmer. I remember tackling you to the ground and biting your shoulder. Then you flailing madly and somehow ending up on top choking me. Why did that happen?"
"If I remember correctly, that description doesn't exactly narrow things down," said Mort, "you'll have to be more specific."
"I have attacked you on a regular basis?"
Mort grinned, "Not wholeheartedly, but you do have a very expressive demeanor when you're not trying to keep a low profile."
Furyheart's expression turned remorseful as he spoke again, "This feels truly angry though. I am sorry for whatever I have done."
"What about the fall? Do you remember anything there?" asked Amber Brilliance.
Furyheart struggled and said, "I felt something akin to the feeling I had in the forest right before Mortarmer shot that bolt of unearthly magic. It swelled into me, and then exploded in my face, obscuring the stallion, unicorn I think. Must have been, someone had to have attacked me, must be him. The magical blast threw me backwards as I blacked out from the shockwave."
Mort and Amber Brilliance looked at one another with raised eyebrows. Mort began writing as Amber Brilliance asked, "Aside from this incident do you remember anything else?"
"I remember feeling angry, and tearing through the skies. I burst through a cloud wall and smashed my hoof into a pegasus's face."
Mort looked confused suddenly. "What about the unicorn?" he asked, "How was it standing in the clouds?"
"Must have been magic," suggested Furyheart.
He waited through more questions, steadily losing his ability to really focus on them, or the past, or memories. He had to fly. He had to move. Something was coming after him. Nowhere was safe. He needed to go.
Poisonberry's entrance into the room snapped his attention back to reality. "All work and no play, keeps a mare's success at bay," she said as she unloaded the food she had brought with her.
It smelled delicious. The smell of something oily and burnt that could sit heavily in the stomach for all the lazy hours in the day. The kind of food that got onto one's muzzle no matter how careful they had been. The kind that made one feel disgustingly satisfied. As she opened up the small clay jars the smell became stronger.
It was some mealy substance, mashed up and then fried by the looks of it. Furyheart became aware of two things simultaneously. Firstly, that it had been at least half a day since he had last eaten. Secondly, that he had been drooling heavily since Poisonberry opened the door.
"What... is that?" Furyheart asked hungrily.
"From the earth this does grow, we call it here 'potato'," answered Poisonberry.
"Potato," repeated Furyheart.
AB was looking hungry himself as he spoke, "I think in the interest of science, we should put this on hold. Don't want to be distracted."
They ate in silence, save for the noise of Furyheart hungrily stuffing his face. He finished first and looked over at Amber Brilliance who had barely finished half of his meal. The 'potatoes' had barely taken the edge off of Furyheart's appetite.
"Are you still hungry?" asked Mort through a mouthful of potatoes.
Furyheart nodded.
"Celestia above," remarked AB, "You certainly have an appetite. Have mine if you're still hungry. Breakfast was quite enough to keep me going."
"Thank you," said Furyheart, and he quickly polished off Amber Brilliance's portions as well.
After they had digested a while, Amber Brilliance adjusted himself in his seat and sighed, "Well. I think we should consider resuming." He noticed the hesitant look on Furyheart's face. "Is that alright with you?"
Furyheart replied reluctantly, "Actually. I think I've had about all of the experiment I can handle. I was hardly able to concentrate during the agonist trial, the third one."
AB winced. "Oh well, so much for the double blind experiment," he said with disappointment.
Mort chuckled, "If it's any consolation, none of your peer reviewers will hold it against you."
"What, you mean you and Poisonberry?" Amber Brilliance asked.
"See? The collapse of academia wasn't all bad, now your review process is a lot faster."
"That's hardly comforting."
"Anyway," Furyheart interrupted their banter, "The agonist made me incredibly restless and I would like to go out and do some work if I can, but seeing as part of my staying here relies on me helping you. I don't know if I ought to."
"You can withdraw your participation at any time without fear of repercussions," said Amber Brilliance. The line sounded rehearsed, like he had said it many times in a very prescribed manner. He added, "And with the data we have collected so far I would say we can confirm some of our theories, even if, as always our sample size is low. I will begin writing up a summary of the day's events, and leave you two to your respective business."
"Amber Brilliance, thank you," said Furyheart.
"I feel I ought to be thanking you," Amber Brilliance replied, "You've put yourself under immense stress to help me."
"Heh. Then I guess each of us will owe the other?"
AB laughed, "Indeed we will."
Furyheart exited the hovel into the broken sunlight of the forest, and set about searching for Sunspot.
***
High above the Everfree Forest, in a castle made of clouds, in a terrible and imposing tower wrought from the very fabric of storms, lounged a pure white stallion with a mane that blazed like the sun and flickered like fire. He rested in a gently drifting cloud bed in the throne room of the Tyrant Spire. Lying on his stomach, he occasionally flapped his wings to keep the cloud bed oriented so that he could see his visitor, with whom he was in the middle of a discussion. His horn flared briefly as he played with the fire of the torches on the far side of the room. His cutie mark was simple, four military boots crushing a globe into a square between their soles.
"What I'm saying," he interrupted casually, "Is that there is doubt as to where your loyalties lie. We all know you love our family more than any one member, but it is no secret that you loved our dear cousin very much. So it is not out of the question that your feelings may make you blind to seeing what is best for the family, for the kingdom. Which is why it is in your best interest to prove your loyalties by doing this one small thing."
The pony to whom he spoke was an alicorn like himself, but where he was fairly tall and lean, she was shorter and heartier. She had a deep purple, almost black coat, and her mane held a deep blue. Her cutie mark resembled a heart made of roughly cut blue ice. "This one small thing you speak of is traveling down to the surface with a squad of hunters loyal to you and either A, finding and identifying the body of our best friend, or B in the unlikely event he lives, tracking him to whatever hole he dragged his body into for the express purpose of killing him off, finishing the job started by somepony I have made no secret of holding in great contempt. This one small thing is neither small nor one thing. So yes, I agree that it will exactly prove what kind of loyalty I have regardless of the outcome. Will that be all, Little Boot?"
"No. Remember that while you may hold us in contempt, we are not the ones who committed treason against the crown. Your entire claim to your estate is in jeopardy, there are plenty who would be willing to replace you. Consider whether or not his is a banner worth waving. Now that will be all. Please leave us." Little Boot flopped over onto his side, facing his back to the alicorn. She marched quickly to the edge of the room and dropped out of one of the arches. As the dark mare left, Little Boot was certain that he heard her cursing in a most unladylike fashion.
He looked up at the banners hung about the room, repeating the same phrase "Dominium sub sole; Cum unguis, penna, et mort." Little Boot mused to himself, "You can curse us all you want, but you will not defy us."
***
Princess Veneer woke up, stinking of rotted hay and wood, dirt, and brackish water. She still felt exhausted, so exhausted that it took on a taste, and rolled about her head until it had riled up a healthy throb in her temples. The previous day's events rolled through her mind, as they had continued to do so ever since she had enough peace to think for a moment. She even dreamed of the previous day, a regal looking stallion bursting through a cloud and smiling upon her, giving a ray of love like none she had ever felt. Then suddenly he grew horns and wicked fires enveloped them both. It was the kind of perpetual waking dream that plagues the guilty, the frightened, and the feverish whenever their bodies and minds grudgingly give in to exhaustion.
"This is getting me nowhere," she muttered to herself. Her stomach muttered something back and she looked desperately out over the abandoned farm. No doubt the wholesome ponies who had once lived here would be a filling meal, but they would have the same flat taste of anypony whose love she stole. Damn him! Before that day she had never known how empty her diet could be, but there she sat, dissatisfied by the thought of even a family of quaint, hard working earth ponies.
Princess Veneer's anger finally gave her focus through the competing pain of hunger and fatigue. The unmistakable drumming of drones' wings drew near. Mild panic rose within her. Had they smelled her warm reflection? She needed to keep her feelings in check lest they attract the no doubt starving hunters who had been pursuing her all night.
Not that it would have done her any good. A small swarm of drones landed in the fallow she had been surveying from her vantage point. They immediately fanned out, leaving a trio of watchers to guard the rendezvous.
Veneer quietly ascended into the rafters. She set down on the rotted beams, carefully placing her feet like a spider resting in a web, and waited. A team of drones cautiously picked their way into the barn through the broken doors. Best case scenario, they don't find me. Worst case, they don't taste very good. She watched them, shaking as they poked around the piles of plant matter on the floor of the barn. One of them lifted off the ground. He made his way up to the loft and looked around. There was little debris, making his search more of a cursory glance. Finally he flew up to the rafters, and peered into the darkness, but by the time his eyes adjusted to the dark, Veneer was upon him. He saw a flash of green, and deep within his soul, felt a single resonating word: Obey.
The drones on the ground felt something move in the primal parts of their mind, the instincts coded into them through years of nature culling their ancestors. They shuddered and looked up to the source of the sensation, but saw nothing in the shadows above. They exchanged glances and a pair of them rose away from the rest of the group. Faint traces of heat loomed above them, but no bodies were visible in the darkness. Their comrades watched them disappear into the rafters. Another flash of green lit up the barn briefly, accompanied by a sickening wet noise. After a moment a drone fell from the rafters and landed in the middle of the group, brackish blood covered his horn, mouth, and throat.
Veneer and the second drone she had recruited descended upon the group. Veneer tackled one of her pursuers to the ground and swung her horn around, cleaving through a second's flank as she released tongues of fire into his body. The drone on the ground sprung up and sunk its teeth into a distracted victim. The scuffle did not last long, but the struggle, both internal and external, had left her hold on the drones weak. She elected to crush their minds and left them to fate. She did not relish what she needed to do, but her journey had left her no alternatives. It was not an uncommon practice, especially in new, small, or otherwise struggling hives, for a queen to sustain herself upon the weak of her brood in times of hardship.
Their absence would not go unnoticed. Veneer knew this, and had little idea about how she could get away undetected, especially after using domination magic, its traces would be evident to members of the swarm. It was a great fortune therefore, when three unusually colored changelings approached. She watched them through a hole in the barn, and knew immediately who they were. A trio of expert hunters and fighters, all hatch-mates from the same egg clutch, two males and a female. The female had a deep red carapace, and of the two males, the larger stockier one's carapace was forest green. He was also incredibly muscular, and for some reason holding one of his legs strangely as he flew. As he neared, the reason became apparent; a large gash on his flank, probably from a recent run in with one of the forest's inhabitants. The other male, with a navy blue carapace, flew ahead of the other two, and led them to the group of watchers in the center of the farm.
They landed and trotted up to the other drones -except for green, who kept his wings buzzing to avoid showing a limp. Even at a distance Veneer could see that the encounter started off on the wrong hoof, a very hostile hoof at that. The other search parties were returning, but rather than reforming their swarm, they circled around, assessing the scene as it got more and more heated.
Finally the situation boiled over, and one of the watchers lunged at blue, only to be slammed aside by green's bulky mass. Green slammed his hooves down on the prone figure, beating him mercilessly. The rest of the group seemed to take exception to this, because it was only a short time before they had all joined in, and a battle had begun. Veneer did not wait to see its conclusion, she knew who would win. Three against fifty would hardly be fair, even if one of those three was injured. She made her escape out the back of the barn while the drones covered her exit.
Veneer had no idea where to go, but far from the forest was a safe bet, it could only be so long before she found civilization.
Author's Note
after about a month or more of this being in my drafts, it is published
Furyheart eventually found Sunspot in her "office," a small pitch tent near the flight zone. It sat within the clearing, but was draped over with a mesh of very convincing camouflage cloth. Inside, Sunspot had put together a desk from crates, and a map board on a stand. The map contained pins representing significant events, and strings showing where the patrols from the past few days had swept. Sunspot looked particularly frazzled when Furyheart arrived. Her combat rig was slung over the desk, and her jump suit hung open, having only been zipped halfway up. Her mane was in a Braid similar to those used by mares in Prance.
"Fury, good to see you. The research going well?"
"We've put it on indefinite hold," he replied, "I think AB learned what he wanted to."
"Well I'm glad your day is going better than mine. My fliers are grounded. There are reports of changeling drones everywhere, it's just too dangerous, which means everypony is doing patrols on foot. Not normally an issue, fliers can't really spot many things through the trees, but I can't send a messenger to get reports from," she paused to gesture at the map, "that outpost. There's no easy access, and hoofing it around this gulch here takes a while. So my plan is that we take all the grounded fliers -for added troop strength- trot our happy little flanks on over there, and make a small hop across the gulch, hopefully without alerting the swarm."
Furyheart examined the map and read it out loud, "Friendship Gulch, sounds pleasant actually."
Amber Brilliance pushed his way into the tent and said, "Formerly Chasm of the Apostate Sister, until of course Princess Twilight cleansed Princess Luna of her condition."
"That sounds a little less welcoming," replied Furyheart. "So is there room for me to join you?"
"Oh good," said Sunspot, "and I thought I'd have to convince you. We have some gear you can use, including a pig sticker."
"A what?"
"Sorry, you wouldn't likely know about those. It's an augmentation for a head harness or armor piece. Pretty much just a spike or a blade that goes on your forehead, like a horn, it's a bit weird flying around like an alicorn, but I think you'll get used to it."
Furyheart sighed, "I can't imagine alicorns instill the same kind of reverent admiration that they used to. Well, not any of the ones I'm related to I'm sure."
Sunspot shrugged and said, "Eh, don't worry, these days ponies wonder if alicorns ever existed, the ones that are supposedly still alive haven't come down to the ground in years. so nobody directly fears them. Any pegasus with a horn, ponies know they're one of mine," Sunspot seemed to realize her little informational moment had not really lightened the mood, so with forced enthusiasm she added, "But hey, let's get you some equipment. Everyone loves new equipment."
They headed to the supply lockers, a series of trunks and wardrobes in the lower level of one hut. Prizehunter was already there, attempting repairs on her crossbow. "Oh hey Furyheart! You coming with us today?"
"With you?" asked Sunspot, "I didn't know you were headed out. Anyway he's coming with us, so he can't go with you."
"Huh? Which is it, is he coming with us or isn't he?"
"He's heading out in my party, Prize."
"Well that's fine! So are we!" Prizehunter went back to her work. After a moment realization dawned on her, "AB! Did you tell them that we were going to go with them today?"
Amber Brilliance shook his head, "It seems to have slipped my mind."
"That's okay! I can tell them!" Prizehunter turned to Sunspot, "Hey Sunspot!"
"Let me guess," Sunspot interrupted, looking up from the pile of gear she had been quietly assembling, "You're coming with us? Any reason AB?"
"Well, Prize has a feeling that there is a rather dangerous monster somewhere around the castle, and I would like to keep an eye on her, and an eye on Furyheart; just in case. Either way it's always a good day to get some field time."
Sunspot gathered the gear into a neat pile and slammed it awkwardly onto the service table. She caught her breath and said, "Hey, any time I can get Prize on one of my patrols is a boon. Enough of that, Fury, get over here, you need some equipment."
Fury trotted over to where she beckoned him.
Sunspot held up a harness and armor pieces, "Legs through here. You look pretty hearty, so you get the metal plates. Prize, help please." The two mares pulled the straps tight on Furyheart's rig. He felt a strange mix of comfort, familiarity, pressure, and weight as the armor closed around his body. The straps just barely bit into him and then slackened as the buckles settled into position. "You also get darts like mine, just pull on this tassel with your teeth and the knot will release. And here's the pig sticker and your helmet piece." She lifted a battered headpiece. It had foregone the usual Pegasopolis style that most pony helmets used, in favor of mimicking a dragon's head. The ears were guarded by sharp, jagged metal fins, and as promised it had a metal horn set through a hole in the front and anchored to the back by a base plate. The helm obstructed Furyheart's vision slightly, but he was happy for the protection if there truly were monsters about.
When they went to secure the helm however, it seemed to press unevenly against Furyheart's skull. He protested, "Uh, Sunspot? This thing is uncomfortable."
"It's military gear, what do you expect?" Sunspot assured him.
Prizehunter confirmed Furyheart's complaints, "No it's definitely not sitting right. It's like there's a knob on his head." She pulled the helmet off of Furyheart's head. "Hold on." She smashed her hoof into the helm's interior several times, denting the base plate and the area around the hole.
"Prize!" scolded a surprised Sunspot.
"What? It works," Prizehunter replied, slamming the helmet down onto Furyheart's head.
"She's not wrong," Furyheart offered as a disgruntled Sunspot tightened the straps around the base of his head.
"That's not the point," Sunspot grumbled back. "Regardless we have one last thing. Some bracelets that will keep you relatively safe from magic." She tossed two sets of brass bangles onto the table in front of Furyheart. They were etched with symbols that made Furyheart go cross-eyed briefly.
"Fancy," he forced out, trying to put the bangles over his fetlocks without looking at them. When the first one went over his hoof he felt immediate revulsion. "No! Not fancy! What in the hoof is this?"
"Just a protective spell," answered Amber Brilliance, "I assure you it is no dark magic. These were made by Princess Celestia to protect her sergeant at arms from Nightmare Moon should she ever return. They guard against even alicorn magic. If there are drones and changeling princesses around I must urge you to put them on."
Furyheart shook his head slowly as he put them on one at a time. His head spun faster with each ring. The straps on the helm grew tight, and the metal made a protesting noise briefly. Furyheart regained his senses briefly. He stopped swaying, gathered himself into good posture and said, "I don't feel at all well," with remarkable clarity. Then the room swiveled around him and the ground slammed him in the jaw. Everything went black.
***
The dark mare set hooves down in the forest; an alicorn followed by four pegasi and two unicorns. The rest of her squad landed softly behind her. The glow from the unicorns' horns subsided and the cushions of air beneath them dissipated, sending a puff of air and dry leaves in all directions.
The dark mare turned back to address her squad, "Little Boot has ordered us to find and destroy any remains of Furyheart. We feel it is necessary to caution you, our quarry is not to be taken lightly, he is strong, calculating, and when the mood takes him, incredibly aggressive. He will not hesitate to end any of our lives should he suspect our purpose. He is not our biggest threat here, but we will address that when we come to it. For now, we move."
They set off at a light trot. According to the estimation she had made, the point of impact was two miles away. It would be slow going in this ancient forest. Her squad, while capable fighters all, would be at a severe disadvantage in the growth. They were all accustomed to fighting in the clouds. Storming a cloud city was one thing. There was plenty of open space for the pegasi to maneuver, and for the unicorns to send their arcane energies at clear targets. It was like grappling almost, the victor was the one who more quickly flanked her enemy and closed upon him, twisting him into a disadvantaged position.
The brush however. There was no maneuvering by reflex. There was maneuver by subterfuge. The advantageous position was meaningless when an enemy could be lost the moment the net closed. The limbs gave walking ponies the advantages of three dimensional tactics normally reserved for fliers, and a single skilled opponent could keep an overwhelming force confused long enough to eliminate them as single foes.
The longer she walked the bigger and more oppressively the forest loomed about her. The vines strangled her vision, tangled in ancient trees who bore many secrets she could never learn to read.
"The moment we make contact," she said to the lead unicorn, "I want you to burn the foliage as far as you can reach, and smokescreen them. We take no chances, and we fight on our terms."
"Understood my lady."
The knowledge that she could eliminate the forest's grip at any moment comforted her, but not much. She had no idea how Furyheart would react to their encounter. Would he want to see her? Would he be as ruthless as she had made him seem? After he had dealt with her retinue would he believe that she had misgivings about her task, and the situation she had been put into.
It troubled her, she knew her capabilities, but Furyheart was a glass cannon. With flight and pure rage alone he could handle her squad, or be taken out by a lucky shot in seconds, and she had no idea which would be the worse outcome.
When they arrived at their first coordinate, she looked around. The search would be hopeless. Her vision was too restricted, and she had at least ten square miles to scour. There was little she could do to seek him by anything but her basic senses. His ethereal presence had been cut abruptly short the day he disappeared, leading her to believe he was dead, but the timing of things confused her. "Fan out," she commanded her squad, "unicorns at the end. Send green flares inward every thousand paces, or red flares if you find anything, or black if you run into trouble. Send response signals to confirm. Pegasi, you know the drill, find the closest one of us and we will relay messages. We head east, do not exceed a thousand paces without seeing the flare. With any luck my estimates were right."
They set off, barely covering an area the size of a tournament pitch, keeping close together to maintain visual contact. Several times while walking the dark mare became so lost in thought that she lost her pace count. Fortunately her end points were diligent and sent signals in the appropriate fashion. She was about to hold for one of them to send the pace mark, when a red bolt cut through the trees over her head. She passed the flare down the line and it returned. Within a minute all seven ponies were gathered in a clearing.
She saw why as soon as she realized that it had not always been a clearing. There had been a fight here, magic had been used, the area still contained a faint trace of nether-worldly forces. "What is your thinking madam?" asked the lead unicorn.
"We feel that these hoof prints, the group, likely contain the prints of our target. Which means that these," she pointed to a single set approaching from the other direction, "were him as well."
"Not those?" asked the second unicorn.
"Idiot," rebuked the senior unicorn, "Those are changeling prints."
"We go," commanded the dark mare, and she followed the tracks back to their source. They were spotty at best, and the group had to use dead reckoning at times to keep on them. They found the site of a brief struggle. Something had clearly lost a non trivial amount of blood. It had unfortunately left, so they continued.
Through what seemed sheer luck the group stumbled upon a pegasus sized dent in the ground. "He was here," the black mare said with grave certainty, "and he was alive. We must go back and determine where he managed to escape to."
They had almost returned to the site of the battle when the dark mare felt a nagging feeling. It told her to redirect slightly north. She could not put a hoof on why, but she knew where he was. Perhaps he really had survived.
After a great trek they came upon a deep gorge. At a distance it split into two. She knew that a castle lay on the outcrop which split the middle. The Castle of the Two Sisters. That was where she would find him, but not with her squad. Things were accelerating, and she would be entering this encounter without a solid plan. It was not a situation she liked, probably why Little Boot had given her so little time to prepare.
Inspiration struck her suddenly. She looked about the far side of the gorge to select a good location. She elected to take a point near the castle, but well out of sight of it. "Go over there," she said, "and form an ambush line. We will lure him to you. Be prepared for us to call you in for assistance."
"Yes madam," said the unicorn, who had just resumed his position as acting squad leader.
***
Furyheart awoke with everypony standing around staring at him. "Is there something on my face?" he asked snidely.
"No, we were just a bit worried because you collapsed for a few seconds," replied Sunspot.
"You know, normal stuff," added Prizehunter.
"Well I feel fine now," Furyheart assured them, "These bracelets, must I wear them?"
"You really should," said Sunspot.
"As long as you're done blacking out," added Prizehunter, helpful as always.
"Thank You, Prize," sighed Sunspot. "But really, are you sure you should be going?"
"Yes," replied Furyheart with some forcefulness, "I don't know why, but now I really feel like I ought to go."
Sunspot rolled her eyes, "If you insist. Let's go ponies, we've got no more time for delays."
They joined with the rest of the group and headed out immediately, joined by a hoof-full of pegasi. The going was easier than it had been the last time Furyheart braved the forest. After a while he realized that they were on a very subtle path, marked only by the lack of thick scrub.
They arrived at what Furyheart could only assume was Friendship Gulch. He could see where it once had a bridge. "Sunspot, why do you not rebuild the bridge if walking around is so inconvenient?" he asked.
"Because we can fly or carry anypony across that we want to, while anypony we don't want to cross here has to go around. Strategic value my friend," answered Sunspot.
"Alright Sun, I'm off to the castle with AB," interjected Prizehunter.
Sunspot waved her off, "Good hunting. Stay light on your hooves."
Prizehunter trotted off with Amber Brilliance across her back, crossbow ready for whatever her intuition had tipped her off to. The rest of the party made the quick hop across the gorge, and the rest of the trip to the outpost. Something he could not quite explain told Furyheart that he should have gone with Prizehunter.
The outpost was not what Furyheart had been expecting. He had not be expecting much, but this was definitely not it, a pit dug into the base of a large hollow tree, with access to the top for lookouts. They were greeted by a stern looking pegasus stallion with a similar setup to Sunspot's. "Greenhollow welcomes you," he said cheerfully, "I take it you noticed the swarm moving around today."
Sunspot smiled and briefly threw a forelimb around him in a very aggressive hug, "Yup, I figured it would be better not to have any fliers moving around today."
"Who's this?" asked the stallion.
"Oh, we really don't know," said Sunspot, "He showed up with trouble at his heels, but he's good help, and doesn't have any reason to betray us, so we'll just call it good. He calls himself Furyheart."
"Nice to meet you, Greenhollow," said Furyheart, accepting the stallion's hoof.
This confused the stallion, after some thinking he said, "My name is Leaf Trotter, Greenhollow is the town we live in near here."
Several things clicked in Furyheart's mind at once. Chiefly that he had just been interpreting everything in the royal voice. Among the other realizations was the idea that the Everfrees were a larger group than they had first appeared. "I'm sorry," said Furyheart, "I haven't quite been myself lately."
"Well that's fine, you can be whoever you like as long as Sun and I have a say in things. But enough pleasantries and platitudes, Sun, we have some time sensitive news for you."
"What's that?" asked Sunspot.
"We saw a squad of royal looking soldiers moving around the gulch. They headed towards the castle."
Sunspot's eyebrow raised almost all the way off of her face, "Soldiers? Here? I know that's why we have these outposts, but still, this is unexpected."
"There's more, they were accompanying an alicorn."
Sunspot's jaw dropped, "We have to get Prize and AB now. Do you know how we can reach the castle without alerting this squad?"
"Yes, if we keep to the far side of the gulch we should be able to avoid detection."
"Let's hope we can end this day without a fight," said Sunspot, her tone making it clear that she doubted this as a possibility.
***
"Are you sure about this?" asked Amber Brilliance, "The monsters usually avoid this place. Even dragons are fearful of treading near here."
Prizehunter sighed and adjusted him on her shoulders. "When you become the master huntress we'll start following your gut," she replied, "But for now we search here." She carefully climbed a tower, ready to fire at any moment. Once they were in the shattered turret of the tower, she shrugged Amber Brilliance off of her shoulders. "Alright, get those spectacles spectacle-ing; we've got a monster to find."
They surveyed the castle and grounds for a while before Prizehunter nudged Amber Brilliance. "Monster?" he asked quietly.
"The worst kind," Prizehunter whispered back to him. He saw where she pointed. An alicorn, colored like dusk on a clear night was moving carefully through the castle grounds. She seemed to be looking for something, and while she kept herself well concealed, there was no hiding from Prizehunter's eyes.
Prizehunter climbed onto one of the shattered walls and prepared to sight her weapon. "Distance?"
"Two hundred forty out, forty down, put it at two hundred twenty out."
She made the adjustments as Amber Brilliance estimated them. "Windage? Nevermind, it's calm enough right now."
Prizehunter tracked the alicorn. It was difficult due to her target's random movements and the frequent obstructions, but the alicorn was moving slowly. She released the bolt. The alicorn must have heard it, because she vanished from sight the moment the wooden shaft had been loosed. It clattered harmlessly across the stones of the courtyard.
"Oh this is bad. AB, stay here. I'm going hunting."
"Be careful," said Amber Brilliance.
"You know me," Prizehunter replied, bouncing down the stairs and out of sight.
"That's why i'm worried."
Prizehunter stalked through the courtyard. She found the bolt, but held back and watched, listening for anything at all.
When she heard no sounds, Prizehunter approached the bolt. As she reached for it, a small sound of grass crushing under hoof alerted her. She wheeled left, and found herself face to face with an imposing figure, wings outstretched, talons raking the stones, fangs barred, flame pouring out of her snout. At long last, the Dragon of Dark Embers was hers.
She fired an instant before realizing that none of this made any sense.
"Sorry, but you lose," said a voice behind her. Prizehunter's hairs stood on end as the crackling energies of the nether poured into existence.
Author's Note
so i got caught up in my research paper, and then Christmas, but i'm back now
