Take 2

Chapters

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Chapter One

All of us felt it: the concussion of pure magic. Unfortunately enough for me, I was practically on top of the epicenter, and suffered the consequences: being slammed into a stone wall at speeds faster than an average pegasus could fly, thus, losing consciousness.

When I regained it, I wished I was dead: my ears were ringing from the blast, I was broken and bruised from colliding with the wall, and I was...outside...

I heard the grass rustle a few feet next to me and I knew I was dead: the royal guard didn't take any survivors, at least any changeling survivors. Then, a pony's head popped into view: it belonged to a unicorn filly.

"Mama! There's a hurt pony over here!" he cried out.

I'm not a pony, I wanted to tell him, I'm a changeling, ponies don't like us.

"I'll be there in a second, make sure they have plenty of water and bandages." the filly's mother ordered. The filly held a canteen of water up, but I shook my head, I had to get out of here before the nurse found me.

Turns out I wouldn't have got very far: both of my right side limbs were, and felt smashed to pieces, I had multiple gashes that didn't seem to stop bleeding blue ichor, and the blood loss was making me delirious, and light headed. The only part that seemed to be working properly were my wings.

But before I could even think of flying away, the nurse trotted up to me and gasped.

"Shard, go...um, help the pegasus over there please." the nurse said to him. Shard happily bounced away, eager to help his mom out.

While their exchange was going on, I tried to get up onto my hooves. The keyword there is tried, I could barely move any of my limbs without sending a splash of acid onto my nerves. It was all I could do to keep from screaming in agony.

"Don't try and move, it'll only make your injuries worse." she told me.

"Why are you helping me?" I asked.

"Because it's the right thing to do," she said, and then added,"plus you're pretty cute...I mean, for a changeling..."

I wasn't sure how to react to that, so I changed the subject.

"What are you going to do with me."

"I-I don't know, we can figure that out later. First, let's get you cleaned up..." The conversation then steered towards the amount and severity of my injuries: my foreleg was broken in five places, my hind leg was broken in seven places, and there was a gash that ran along the entire length of my body.

After an eternity, it seemed my entire body was covered in bandages. She helped me up, and then we properly introduced ourselves. By that, I mean, I attempted to get away.

Well, I tried to.

I forgot that standing up caused my legs to burst into flame, which caused me to nearly black out.

"I'll be right back with painkillers. Don't move."

I lay back in the tall grass and sighed, what am I going to do...I mean, I can hardly move, no-pony likes changelings...

My thoughts were interrupted by the tip of a spear hovering a few centimeters above my ribcage, the only place not protected by chitin.

"Who gave you those bandages?" he asked.

"T-the nurse...over there..." I replied, moving my non-broken foreleg in the general direction she'd gone off in.

The guard jerked the spear away and stalked off towards the nurse. I should've at least learned her name...

A few moments later, I heard parts of an argument.

"...did I tell you about helping..." I could only assume he was talking about me.

"I couldn't sit there and do nothing! The poor bastard got slammed through a wall!"

"Well, what are we going to do now?" the guard asked,"the Royal Guards will kill him on sight, and we can't let him go, or else I'll be tried for treason!"

I wondered what their relationship was, probably married.

The pair walked slowly back towards me, exchanging looks with each other.

Thankfully, before I could hear what they said, I slipped into the bliss of unconsciousness.

It took me a minute to figure out where I woke up. Someplace I never thought I'd ever be in my normal form: a hospital, or in public, generally.

I looked around: countless IVs ran into my chest, there were restraints on my wrists and ankles, and numerous beeping machines crowding around my bed.

"Ah, you've finally woken up, and just in time to, my sister, Princess Cadence, and I would like to have a chat with you."

I visibly stiffened in the confines of my cot. The other two alicorn princesses entered my room, and began to talk to me.

"Changeling, first of all, do you have a name?" Princess Cadence asked me.

"I-I don't know..." I tried to think back to what my 'parents' called me.

All changelings were hatched from eggs, and then given to a couple who raised and taught us everything we needed to know, but it's been so long since then, I can hardly remember what the name was! I relayed this information to the princesses.

"Well, in the meantime, we can at least get to know you some more!"

"Why? I'm part of the army that invaded your capital, impersonated a princess, nearly killed you, and you want to 'get to know me'?" Wow, ponies are confusing.

"As far as we know, you haven't done anything so far-" stated the blue alicorn, Princess Luna, I think.

I laughed,"A changeling that hasn't done anything wrong? Yeah, and pigs fly. I've done things I wouldn't normally do, and the only reason I did them was for one reason: I was starved of the one thing I need to survive, which is love."

"How does it feel, to feed on love? Or any emotion for that matter?" asked Cadence.

"Well, love is weird, think about drinking coffee on a winter day, except fuzzier. Actually it's more akin to being under a few layers of blankets, but it's the best feeling I've ever experienced." I said,"and the other emotions feel like how you'd describe them, a sharp heat for anger, all the way to absolute hatred, which I've felt, and it's one the worst feelings any-pony could feel: hate is the opposite of love, comparable to jumping into a frozen lake and sitting at the bottom for a few minutes, hate leaves you cold, empty, and wondering why it exists at all." I shuddered as I recalled my 'hate' experience.

Then, the doctor came into the room to discuss my injuries with me. I don't think he expected the three most powerful ponies in Equestria to be in the room with me.

"Ah, Princesses! What a pleasant surprise!" he exclaimed, and then held up a folder,"I hope you don't mind..."

"It's your job, Doctor."

I sat up expectantly.

"Well, you probably won't be able to walk without assistance, as you right foreleg is broken in five places, and fractured in several more, and your right hind leg is broken in seven places, and fractured in five. Also, eight of your ribs are broken, and, that cut on your side will leave a scar, and lastly, you're suffering from malnutrition. When you're out of the hospital, that limbs that were broken will constantly hurt, and breathing will cause some pain..."

I sighed,"I think I'd like to be alone right now..."

"Do you want any-" he started to say.

"No." I was too upset to want anything, even if it would help me sleep, I didn't care.

——————————————————————

Outside in the hallway, the doctor was explaining how serious my injuries were.

"Princesses, that changeling in there will suffer pain constantly, if he's lucky, and if he isn't, his right-side limbs will be of no use to him. And sadly for us, there isn't a pony within five hundred leagues of here who's decent enough to love a changeling."

"Well, Princess Cadence is the Princess of love..."

The pair turned towards Cadence, as Luna excused herself to go raise the moon.

"I'll do my best..." Cadence said.

——————————————————————

Trying to get rid of my worries, I attempted to fall asleep. Only to have it interrupted by a door opening and closing, but quietly, like they didn't want to disturb whoever was in the room. Then, I heard hoof steps, and felt something I never would've expected from a pony: love.

Love does wonders for a changeling, it heals wounds faster, gives us more energy, and it makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside. And, it also replenishes magic much faster. But, on the other hand, too much love causes a changeling to become like a ticking time bomb, releasing large amounts of energy at a time, usually by shifting forms rapidly. Or small sparks from our horns.

As I fell asleep again, I formed a plan in my head on how to escape, it would take a few days, but it'd be worth the wait.

In the morning, I was brought breakfast, which consisted of pancakes (my favorite), fruit, a glass of water and a pill with a note that read,"Take this after eating."

Food was always good to have, it made me feel more normal having something tangible between my fangs. Then, I took the pill, and kicked myself for not realizing what it was.

Magic suppressant. I should've known...

Normal drugs don't work as well on changelings due to our unique gene sequence or something like that, I didn't pay attention. But magic suppressant was a different story: it was essentially a changeling spell in pill form. And for you who don't know what a changeling spell does, it makes you hypnotized to the administrator of the spell, or knocks you out cold.

The grey around my vision told me that it was latter.

I woke up in a field, with tall grass waving in the wind. When the grass rustled next to me, I knew I was dead: the Royal Guard didn't take any survivors.

Well, at least not any changeling survivors.

But, instead of the bronzed helmet of a guard, a grey unicorn filly poked his head out.

"Mama! A pony has holes in their legs!" he cried out.

No shit, I'm a changeling, but I guess you didn't know that since you're not running away, screaming.

It took me a second to realize that I wasn't in any way injured, and once I did, I leapt up onto my hooves, and stared right into the face of who I assumed to be the filly's mother.

I scrambled backwards as quickly as I could without tripping over my hooves, causing the mare to jump slightly away from me.

When I thought I was far away enough, I crouched down beneath the wheatgrass, planning to stay hidden until dark.

But plans never seem to go accordingly, do they?

Nope. The nurse had galloped away, sure to tell the Guard that there was a changeling on the loose.

When I was sure she was gone, I switched forms into a white unicorn stallion, a pony I impersonated a while ago. I believe his name was Ash...

"He was right here guards..." I heard the nurse say to them.

"You! Over there! Come into the light." one of them ordered me.

As I was confident in my guise, I walked right into it, they gasped.

I looked down and saw my disguise was gone, and me, in my regular form, was on display for them to see.

"Don't move, or you'll be impaled with this spear."

I gulped, What can I do?

I slumped down and sighed,"Then just kill me, it's no use trying to reason..."

The guards hesitated, giving me a chance to escape.

As I leapt up into the air, I was suspended there by a sphere of purple magic.

Next line of defense, magic!

I tried firing bolts of magic out of the sphere, but it rebounded back and nearly hit me in the head.

A purple unicorn stepped into the light, her horn aglow,"I'm assuming you're the changeling?"

I rolled my eyes and said,"No, I'm the other changeling you've been ordered to capture!"

"Don't be smart."

The sphere started to move, taking me along with it to what I assumed was to be my impending doom.

The great oak doors opened to the castle as we approached, spilling out torch light. The guards raised their spears to let us inside, I slid down even further into my spherical prison.

There was a resounding thud as the doors shut behind us; it carried a mood of finality.

There was a gilded throne at the opposite end of the great hall, and on top of that throne was the Princess herself.

My personal transport bubble popped and I fell to the floor in a jumble of limbs. As soon as I was on my hooves again, the guards had their spears pointed directly at my neck.

There was a moment of dead silence before I realized I missed a huge part of who was in the hall with me: at least thirty other various Equestrian dignitaries and high-ranking officials were staring at me, as if expecting me to say something.

But I didn't, the Princess did.

"Do you know why you're here, Changeling?"

I shook my head.

"I woke up in a field, a pony saw me, called the guards, and now I'm here..." I explained.

"You don't remember going to a hospital?" Celestia asked. She seemed worried about me.

Again, I shook my head.

"Come with me, changeling." she said

I could tell the guards wanted to protest, but knew better than to say anything.

———————

We walked down an empty hallway, our hoof steps echoing in the silence.

"What did you mean by a hospital?" I asked.

Before she could answer, my mind exploded with pain. I collapsed on the ground, my vision filling with black and red.

When I woke up, I felt dead.

"Name and age." a disembodied voice asked.

"Whatsh goin on..." I said,"an why am I numb?"

"You're in the Royal Canterlot Hospital, and you've been given a very high dosage of painkillers. Now, your name and age, please." the voice prompted.

"Muh namesth Kaidtho, an I don' know how ol' I am."

"K, a, i, d, o, correct?"

I nodded.

"The painkillers will wear off in a few hours, then you have a few visitors waiting for you." the voice informed me.

Huh? Visitors? They probably have the wrong room number.

I passed the time by sleeping, and wondering what caused the pain in the first place, and before I knew it, there was a silhouette of a tall pony in the doorway.

"You can come in, it's alright." I said to them.

The figure stepped into the light.

Black chitin, bright green eyes, mane, tail.

Chrysalis.

"I've come back to reclaim my prized drone." she explained. Then, without giving me time to react, sank her fangs into my chest. I shot awake, and heard myself yell,"No!". But I wasn't in a hospital at all, but in a bedroom.

The door opened and light spilled into the room I was in, where ever that was.

"Are you alright? I heard you shouting!" asked a pony, who I recognized as the one who held me in a magical ball.

No. I wasn't alright, the dream felt so real, the pain in my chest, the numbness...all of it. I looked down and let out a small exclamation: there were bandages around my chest.

"What's happened to me?" I groaned. The purple unicorn lit the candle on the bedside table, and laid down in the bed next to me.

"Well, I suppose we should get to know each other first, my name's Twilight Sparkle." she held out her hoof to shake, I took it.

"Kaido."

"Well, Kaido, you blacked out from your right side limbs and eight ribs breaking simultaneously. They're all wrapped and set now, so it should be about a week or so before you're up and moving again."

So that explained the dream...

"What dream?" asked Twilight.

I sighed,"I had a dream I was in a hospital bed, I was given a large amount of painkillers, which made me very numb. Then, a nurse asked for my name, and age, I answered what I could, and she also said I had a visitor coming later. Naturally I thought,'who would visit a changeling?'." I took a break to catch my breath.

"I fell sleep and woke up right before my 'visitor' showed up. The visitor turned out to be Queen Chrysalis, who then told me she'd come back to 'reclaim her prized drone' and then immediately but me in the chest."

I shuddered at the memory of the dream, knowing all too well it could come true.

A knock at the door,"Ms. Sparkle, the test results are here for you, whenever you're ready." A rather large stack of papers appeared on the table.

Twilight looked at me,"We ran some tests on you, while you were knocked out." she levitated the stack of papers on top of the bed, and picked up the first sheet: shape-shifting ability.

"What about it?" I asked. She bit her lip.

"There is a...discrepancy, it seems you aren't able to change forms any more..."

This woke me up out of the half-asleep/half-awake state I was in.

"What!?" I shifted into Twilight. Or tried to: there was the familiar flash of green fire, but I was still a changeling, I tried again, but with no avail.

"Amy other news to ruin my day?" I asked glumly. Rain began to patter against the windows, darkening the room to an even duller grey. I sank further into the blankets.

"I'll make sure no-pony bothers you..." Twilight said, her eyes downcast. The door open and shut with barely a whisper, leaving me alone to pity myself.

No, I'm not going to lie here and do nothing! I'm a changeling for Celestia's sake!

I threw off the covers with a growl and went to open the door. It was sealed shut.

"Oh! So I'm a prisoner now?! Is this how you treat all your guests!?" I screamed to no-pony in particular.

Stuck in my gilded prison, I did what any other changeling in my position would do: I drew myself a hot bath. It had been a while since I'd taken a bath, the water was warm, and I was already sleepy from who knows what. The world drifted away.

"Kaido? Kaaiido? Wake up!" a hoof touched my snout.

"What! I wasn't asleep!" I exclaimed, thinking I was back in the hive, where sleeping usually meant a death sentence, I glanced around and sighed in relief.

"You're cute when you're asleep." said a light grey mare,"anyways, you've been invited to dinner tonight, a suit and tie have been provided. Six o'clock sharp. Don't be late." As she left, I called for her name,"Silverbolt, at your service!"

As promised, a black suit and a blue tie (one that matched my eyes hue for hue) were provided. A few very long minutes later, I was on my way to the dining hall. As I got closer and closer, the dreary voice of a pony grew louder and louder. I could already feel myself falling asleep. The voice stopped when I trotted into the dining room (at precisely 7 pm, mind you).

"What in all of Equestria is a changeling doing here?" Dreary Voice exclaimed. The guards shot to attention, spears at the ready. The smell of hate filled the air, chilling it a good ten or so degrees.

"Chancellor! Kaido is my guest, please treat him as such!" Celestia scolded the chancellor. The guards relaxed, and normal conversation ensued. I could feel the different emotions directed at me: love, pity, sadness, and hatred. A faint blue glow surrounded my horn as I 'ate' the love around me. A plate of food was set in front of me, but I ignored it, love was much more filling to a changeling.

As I finished my meal, a snippet of conversations reached my ears,"...and the changeling just laid there, impaled on the spear, trying to get away..." and as a follow up."That's nothing, I've seem one be burned with acid, it was hissing the entire time, like how logs hiss in a fire..."

I excused myself, and walked towards the window.

"What's wrong there, changeling? Not comfortable eating with your dinner talking to you? Or how about-" the chancellor began, but the princess cut him off.

"Chancellor! That is enough!" Celestia yelled.

"No, princess, it's quite alright, I understand my place in this world. Everypony hates me. I'm a changeling, I can't make friends, I can't be kind, I can't understand." I said, a lot calmer than I felt,"and now, I can't even try. Thank you, chancellor for really helping me out, I appreciate it." My eyes were stinging, and my throat burned.

" I don't even know why I bothered..." I sighed as I walked out, my head sagging. A teardrop formed in the corner of my eye. I blinked it away, but as soon as I did, another took its place. Thankfully, I arrived at my room before I could cry my eyes out.

"I'm a failure of a changeling, I can't shift shapes, and I tried to be friends with ponies! Ponies!" I muttered to myself, taking off my suit and tie.

"Kaido...you're not a failure!" said a grey pegasus, Silverbolt.

I sighed,"Yes I am! I don't even know how old I am, and I can't even change shapes!" I hadn't bothered to turn around yet, but that would've been useful.

"Ah...my prized drone, it's a pleasure to meet again so soon!" The depression and sadness inside me burst into fury.

"Why am I your prized drone?!" Chrysalis laughed her weird two-tone laugh.

"You were the drone destined to kill Celestia." she exclaimed.

"So...why are you here now?" I asked. I was rewarded with the answer of,"because she needs to die. Goodbye drone." With a blast of emerald magic, Chrysalis was gone. I blew out the candles and fell asleep. As it turns out, that wasn't a smart idea.

————————————––––––––––––––––––————

The castle was empty, the streets empty, even the restaurants were empty. Black clouds filled the sky from horizon to horizon, showering the land in rain, and buffeting it with gales strong enough to knock me over.

I called out, and a pony brushed by me.

"Watch where you're going, scum!" he called. Another shoved me, another kicked me. Seeing no other options, I fled down the road, which seemed to have turned into a perfectly straight line, with a tower at the end of it. Just before I reached the door, it seemed I was stuck in amber, but not the angry mob that advanced towards me.

I heard the rage in their voices, I could feel the fury in the air, and mostly, I could see the violence they wanted to impart on me. It came in the form of pitchforks dipped in acid, and several flaming spears. I woke up just before the first pitchfork pierced my stomach.

I may have stared at the ceiling for a while after that, being scared out of my wits, only being interrupted when the sun lanced through the window. On the nightstand, there was a note:

"Dear Kaido-

I'm deeply sorry about what Chancellor Randolph said to you, it was not his place to do so. In hopes of making it up to you, join me on Friday for brunch at ten.

-Princess Celestia"

It was Monday today. The next three days and nights passed uneventfully, despite that fact I didn't get a wink of sleep in that time. But, as nine-thirty chimed, I made my way up to the balcony, where the Princess told me to meet her.

"Are you feeling alright, Kaido?" asked Celestia, seemingly worried. I nodded, and yawned. She gave me a look, but continued on, like having brunch with a changeling is completely normal.

It was becoming harder and harder to keep my eyelids open, and then the world went sideways. The shock sent me bolt upright, but only for a moment. To me, it only seemed like I shut my eyes for ten seconds, but in reality, it more to the tune of ten minutes.

My eyes fluttered open again, and I was on a foggy street seemed to have no end. The wind reached gale force, and then the ponies started to run me down, and beat me. I looked behind me, and then I was on the ground, looking up at an all too familiar face.

"Chrysalis." I spat.

"Open your eyes, Kaido, open your eyes."

"But- huh, my eyes are already open."

"Oh, what a pity, then. I'm sorry I have to do this." Chrysalis said, as she lifted an extremely sharp chitin spear, and brought it down on my neck.

I was sitting up when I woke up, nerves buzzing with adrenaline, making my hooves shaky.

"You have a visitor." a voice called.

Visitor? Oh. Ohnonononononono not this again!

The tall silhouette moved towards my cot, recited the same lines as before, and placed her forelegs on my chest.

"Drone, you've already waited too long, kill Celestia!" Chrysalis commanded, and sank her three-inch long fangs into my chest.

I was shaking when I woke up, my breathing was ragged. I felt something soft and warm next to me, and scooted closer to it. My eyes were still tightly shut, not that I realized until Celestia told me I could open my eyes, and that it was safe.

My face grew hot when I figured out that these ponies had seen me when in the most polar situation any of them would've thought of: a changeling nestled under the wing of the most powerful pony in Equestria. It was weird.

"Kaido, it's time you tell me what's wrong, but I suspect I already know what it is."

"Nightmares..." I mumbled under my breath. The princess made a 'hm' noise.

"I know of a spell that will give you more control during dreams, it's very simple, I'll have Twilight cast it on you before you sleep. Follow me, Twilight!"

"That's- that's awesome!" I said during a yawn, and watching the world through a sideways perspective.

The pair returned a few minutes later with a bottle levitating behind them. It smelled like love.

"You can have this if you tell us what your dreams were about." My stomach growled, reminding me of how hungry I was.

That's not fair...bribing me with my favorite food? But then again...free food. Why not? It can't hurt.

"They all started in a Canterlot, but it was raining, and really windy. Then ponies started to mob around me, which escalated to them beating me senseless. But, the past few dreams I've been having are different: Chrysalis is in them, and she's repeating a message." All the ponies leaned towards me as I shut my eyes and said,"I have to kill you."

The bottle landed in my hooves, and my horn glowed green.

"I'm not sure how a drone like you could slay me, no offense meant, Kaido."

"It's fine." I said, taking a break from siphoning love out of the bottle. The princess excused herself, and I was left with five other ponies who were complete strangers to me, I already sort of knew Twilight.

"What does it feel like...your skin?" the cyan pegasus.

"My chitin?" I shrugged,"you can touch it, but it kinda feels like linoleum." After she touched her hoof to it, I added,"Did you know that there are very poisonous barbs on there?" She jumped backwards, but then rolled her eyes when she saw I was collapsed on the floor, giggling.

"I never thought I'd say this to a changeling, so listen up:" the pegasus said,"I have a feeling we're going to have a lot of fun together, and by fun, I mean pranks." The other five mares sighed, and groaned.

After I had my fill of love, I leaned back against the wall behind me, when somepony asked me the questions: what was it like to suck love, and what was the hive like.

"Well, imagine it's a cold winter's day, and you wrap yourself in blankets and drink hot tea." they nodded,"then imagine, that every sip of tea makes you feel fuller, and warmer, more pleasant. That's what love is like. And back at the hive...it wasn't great...I'll leave it at that for now." A few moments of awkward silence ensued, but was saved when the pink earth pony asked why I had fangs, if I didn't bite anything.

"Uh...um, well I could bite things with them, if I wanted to." I said,"they're really sharp." The rest of the day was spent answering questions and telling stories to each other, but alas, it was getting late, so Twilight and I headed back towards my room.

"Never in my wildest dreams, would've expected this." Twilight said, shaking her head.

"What? Talking to a changeling?"

"No," she said,"I never would've expected to be friends with one!" That stopped me dead in my tracks. I sniffed the air, and sure enough, love was in it.

"So...we're friends now?" I asked. Twilight nodded, and I, a changeling, hugged her.

I bid Twilight goodnight and fell asleep.

Chapter Two

[this chapter kinda goes along the lines of S2 finale, but not really...it ends the same way though]

I was standing in the throne room, with a battle raging outside the stained glass windows and oaken doors. The ruler of Equestria looked down at me.

"So, changeling, has Chrysalis sent you to do her dirty work?" She asked.

As Chrysalis was controlling the drones through a hive-mind, I didn't respond. I couldn't respond.

"Why?" The Princess asked.

The Chrysalis in the back of my head answered for me, like a ventriloquist:

"To make room for the new ruler of Equestria: Queen Chrysalis!"

The Princess smiled and shook her head.

At the moment, it was just us two, but a contingent of Royal Guards galloped into the hall through the doors opposite me.

A moment of silence, and then the real fight began.

The unicorn guards started to fire spells from their horns, light blue and pink beams missing me by a hair breadths. I shot off a few spells of my own, hitting the guards directly.

It was almost too easy.

"Very impressive," said Celestia,"not what I would've expected from a drone."

No other guards entered the room, most likely because they were all preoccupied with the invasion.

Celestia stepped down from the throne,"If you are here to kill me, do it. But please, spare the lives of my subjects."

Suddenly, the live-feed from Chrysalis to my head was severed. I blinked, and saw who was in front of me. I scrambled back as fast as I could to the door, only to have it open into my face.

"I'm disappointed in you, drone, you had so much more potential. I'll deal with you later, I have a much more pressing matter to attend to." Chrysalis said, gesturing to Celestia.

For a few minutes, my head was foggy, and I couldn't make much sense out of anything, but then it cleared and I realized what had to be done.

While my former queen and Princess bickered, I crept up behind Chrysalis and did what I do best: control minds.

My horn glowed bright blue as my spell tried to overcome the queen's defenses. Her eyes flicked over to me and I could feel her magic working it's way inside my head, trying to make me a dull, compliant drone again.

But that sure as hell wouldn't happen today.

My spell had gotten far enough that Chrysalis's speech was broken, and that I commanded her complete attention.

I could feel my strength fading, and I knew I wouldn't last much longer.

I poured all the magic left in me into the spell, allowing me to control Chrysalis. Her mouth snapped shut in shock, that a drone had taken control of her mind, along with the entire invasion with it.

With the last bit of strength I had, I ordered them to leave. The queen turned, and left, the changelings following her. Then, there was a shockwave: one that slammed me through the wall and into a field of wheatgrass.

I woke up and sighed: it was the first time in a week when I'd gotten a good night's sleep. I trotted out of my room and into the corridor, where Princess Luna waited for me.

"Kaido, do you understand why Chrysalis appeared in your dreams now?" It didn't click with me until she said that, but when it did, I swayed on my hooves in shock, my mouth open.

"I can't believe she'd to that! Use me to kill the Princess, even when I don't want to anymore!" I shouted angrily.

"I'm fairly certain Chrysalis would do much more than use you to knock my sister off the throne." Luna said, and then,"you wanted to kill Celestia?"

The ceiling was really interesting today,"Well...I mean, I am a changeling after all..." The younger sister chuckled,"Come along, Kaido, you've got a lot of talking to do."

The mood was grey, depressed even, to say the least. I helped myself to some of the emotions surrounding me, but none of it was love; only sadness and regret.

"What's going on?" I asked, a frown on my muzzle.

"It's come to my attention that ponies have become aware that you are staying in the castle. And right after changelings invaded Canterlot, they're not taking kindly to that, and want you out." Celestia said, morosely,"I've tried persuading, but they won't listen."

"Princess, I understand, I wouldn't want an invading species living with the rulers of my country either. In fact, I can just walk outside the castle doors and just disappear."

"If that is what you wish, then so be it. Farewell, Kaido!" called Celestia, as Luna bid me goodbye with a simple head nod.

*** *** ***

A few fours into my exile, I heard the flapping of wings. And it was getting louder. I ducked behind a tree. Not even five seconds later, I heard a twig snap, and a muffled curse.

Rain started to spear through the pines' needles, making me cringe every time a drop landed on my chitin. I watched as the grey mare trotted deeper into the forest. I formulated a plan in my head and began to follow.

As the day transitioned to night, the pegasus I was following started to mumble to herself.

I closed the gap between us to comprehend the words better.

"...why did I ever leave! Silverbolt you're such an idiot! Agh! I should've at least told Pell...he'd know what to do." the mare sighed, and turned around, looking sadly at the distant lights of Canterlot. She pulled a picture out of her saddlebags of who I could assume to be her and Pell.

This is good! My plan is way ahead of schedule now, I thought to myself as I studied the stallion in the picture: he looked like he could've been Silverbolt's brother. A few seconds later, I heard the sound of another pony making their way towards Silverbolt. I watched as the figure stepped into the fading sunlight: it was Pell.

"Hey! Where've you been, everypony has been worried sick about you, especially since there's that changeling running around." Her gaze sank to the ground.

"Well...that's the reason I'm out here...I was looking for him..." She said, scraping a hoof on the pine needle-covered ground.

Pell sighed,"C'mon Silvy (Silvie?), let's get home..." When Silverbolt didn't follow him immediately, he went back and said the three words that mean 'food' for a changeling:

"You know I love you, right? This is for your own good..." I prepared a spell to absorb some of their love, but I wouldn't need it.

"I'm not going with you, back home, I don't have anything for me there! I want to explore, meet new ponies, discover new things! Not be stuck in an apartment for the rest of my life..." Silverbolt exclaimed. Then, she turned away from Pell and galloped away.

"There goes my dinner..." I said to myself, forgetting there was a pony less than twenty feet from me. The grey stallion flapped his wings and rose to be level with me, his mouth slightly open and an eyebrow cocked.

"Are you the changeling my sister was talking about?" I nodded and moved over so he could sit next to me.

"You were going to steal our love, weren't you?"

"I was going to to what I have to do to survive: so yes, I was going to steal your love." I said, and the after a few moments,"I should be going, I have a lot of ground to cover."

Pell called for me to wait,"Hey, if you're going to same way as Bolt, I'd appreciate it if you kept an eye on her for me!"

I blinked,"You're ok with a changeling watching after your sister. In a dark forest. With no other ponies around for miles?"

"Yes, because you specifically haven't done anything to wrong me, sure you're species may have invaded out capital city, nearly killed out ruler, but you haven't done anything to me, which means I can trust you. To a degree, of course..." Me, being very not-changeling like, pulled him into a hug."I wish there were more ponies with your mentality, Pell." He patted me on the back and sent me on my way.

He also managed to scrape up some love for me as well. What a nice guy, I'll have to thank him sometime.

I trotted through the misty underbrush of the forest, tracing Silverbolt's path. After a few minutes, I caught up to her, and put up a disguise, not wanting to scare her.

"Excuse me, miss, your brother sent me to keep and eye on you." I said.

"Figures...hey, I've got a question for you! Have you seem a changeling pass by here recently?"

"Well...yes--kind of--yes I have..." Her eyes lit up,"Which way did he go?"

"Before I tell you that, why are you looking for the changeling?"

"I wanted to keep him company...he looked so sad and lonely...plus I want explore Equestria, so bam, to eggs with one hoof! Now, where did that changeling run off to?

"Are you sure you want to know? You won't go screaming off into the forest? No? Good." With that, I shed my disguise in a flash of emerald flames.

"So," I said,"where should we go?" And expression of confusion flashed across her face, but was quickly replaced by a smug grin. I studied her face and leapt back with a cry of surprise.

"What have you done with Silverbolt!" I exclaimed, horrified, as the disguise fell and revealed the only changeling I never hoped to see again: Chrysalis.

I hovered at her eye level.

"Why are you here?" I said, with a growl.

"Me? I've come to take back my own! Come along, Crysis." she said, putting emphasis on that last word, shoving it deep into my heart. That was my name-- former name, and every memory associated with it was terrible.

"No. I am not going with you!" I yelled, furious. My former queen cocked an eyebrow,"Would these motivate you in any way?" A full regiment of twenty-five changeling guards stepped out from behind the trees.

I smirked,"You think a regiment of guards is enough to stop me? I think you forget who broke you mind control spell and forced you to leave!" The guards shuffled on their hooves: Chrysalis obviously forgot to tell them that part.

The queen snarled at me,"In that case, I will take you by force! Guards! Seize him!"

My horn lit up with a bright blue light, and the changelings charging towards me, stopped. All twenty-five of them. I ordered them to lay down their weapons and go home, wherever that might be, leaving Chrysalis and me, Crysis alone.

"Oh wow, look at that! A 'simple-minded drone' took out a regiment of your highest-ranking guards!" I said, purposefully mocking her.

For the first time ever, I saw a new emotion in the queen's eyes: fear. But that only lasted a second before anger replaced it.

"You will not live to tell about this, Crysis! I. Will. Destroy. You." Chrysalis shouted.

"Oh really? Good luck with that!" I said, shooting up into the sky, followed by a very angry Chrysalis. A bolt of green fire shot just above my horn.

I led the enraged changeling queen through the sunlit streets of Canterlot, shouting at ponies to move out of the way. With her larger wingspan, Chrysalis was gaining on me, but I didn't have much farther to go, the castle was dead ahead. I threw the doors to the throne room open with my telekinesis, allowing me to land on my hooves and slide along the tile floors to a stop.

With the last bit if energy I had, I slammed the doors shut. Our sudden appearance startled the many ponies inside the hall, two of which included Princess Celestia and Luna. Chrysalis snarled at me, with death in her eyes.

The hall was silent except for the sound of the queen's hoof steps against the marble, everypony shocked at the sudden appearance of the queen.

"Crysis...you betrayed me! Your hive! Your kind! How can you live with yourself!" Chrysalis cried in shock.

"Just...shut up, before I snap your neck!" I yelled,"and my name is not Chrysis! It's Kaido!"

Chrysalis seemed slightly taken aback at my threat, but still responded by condemning me to death.

During our argument, the ponies had now formed a (rather large) circle around us, watching the events unfold.

The two Princesses stepped down and walked over to us.

"Thank you, Kaido, we'll handle it from here." said the solar Princess.

"Wait, I have a question I'd like to have answered: where is Silverbolt?"

The queen laughed,"You mean that little grey pegasus you seemed so fond of? Her body is in the forest. Where nopony can find it."

I was blinded by a blizzard of emotions: sadness, anger, hatred...the list could go on.

"I'm sorry I took away your personal food source, but there are plenty of other ponies in this city...I'm sure you can find another one." Those words just poured more fuel into the fire of anger that was burning inside my chest. I ground my teeth and flitted my wings angrily, the other ponies in the hall with me backed away, including the two princesses.

I slammed my hoof down on the tile so hard, it cracked.

"Tell me something Chrysalis, while you were disguised as Silverbolt, did you feel the love I was giving to you? Did you feel anything? Because she was not just a source of food! She was the first pony outside this castle to act nicely towards me when I wasn't in a disguise, the first pony I have ever cared for!" I was inches away from Chrysalis's face,"and you took all of that away from me. Why? Because you were scared you might lose the only drone strong enough to kill a Princess! You stole my love because you were scared! Now I know why ponies hate us, because that's exactly what you're doing to me!" I was screaming in her face, oblivious to the twenty or so other ponies in the room.

The queen's horn flared, and I was thrown across the room in a split second. I charged at the queen and shot a bolt of pure magic into her chest. Chrysalis staggered backwards a step, smiled at me, and then with a flash of fire, changed into the mare I loved: Silverbolt.

I felt lightheaded. Specks of white and black filled my vision, my ears rang, and I couldn't quite control my limbs as I stumbled over to the body.

"Silverbolt!? No! Nonono!" I cried out, mortified.

"Kaido, that body in front of you is not Silverbolt, it's Queen Chrysalis." said Celestia, trying to reassure me. I fell back onto my haunches and wept. I think that was the first time I ever cried in public.

A wave of anger washed over me and suddenly, I was on my hooves again.

"Be safe, Kaido...be safe."

I gave the Chrysalis-Silverbolt corpse on last glance and galloped for the door. When I opened it I was overcome with a tidal wave of emotions. Mostly anger and relief.

"Look, there it is! The one who took my daughter, Silverbolt!" a pony yelled. I heard the ponies behind me take a quick inhale.

"Whichever one of you ponies said that, come here. NOW!" I shouted.

A large dark grey stallion stepped forward, with fire in his eyes.

"Follow me." I said, barely containing my rage. We walked back towards the dead body of Chrysalis.

"This," I said, pointing at the body,"is queen Chrysalis, she adopted the shape of Silverbolt, so she could lure me into coming back to the hive with her."

"Woah, woah, woah, how could my daughter lure a changeling?" Silverbolt's father asked.

I looked down,"Because...because I love her...she was the first pony to ever care for me, the first pony to love me for who I am. And all the ponies in this hall can testify for what I said a few minutes ago." They all nodded.

"Sir, Kaido-" the Princess started to say.

"Crysis." I corrected, connecting the name to me killing a queen.

"Crysis single-hoofedly drove the invasion out of Canterlot, he's a much better pony-- changeling than some of the ponies that take residence in this city."

He grunted in approval,"All by yourself, huh?"

I held out a hoof,"Crysis. My name is Crysis." He shook it,"Thunderhead." I walked out of the hall, and the ponies stepped aside to form an aisle for me to walk through. I didn't need it as I had already teleported into the forest.

The first place I checked was where I encountered Pell and his sister. To my surprise, Silverbolt's body was lying in the dew-laden grass. I galloped to Silverbolt's side and to my relief, she was still breathing. But it never was that easy, was it?

A changeling stepped forward, encased in dull dark blue armor.

"Ah, the hero finally shows!" He said. I recognized the changeling before me: his name was Shadow, and was notorious for making traitors (suspected traitors, I might add) into 'examples'.

"Chrysalis is dead." I spat.

"I know...which is why we've come to you." Shadow replied.

We? A dozen or so more changeling guards entered the small clearing. I recognized a lot if them.

"So, why are you here, exactly?" I asked.

"We...we didn't know what to do, but when we heard you were in Canterlot, everypony wanted to find you." said one them, I think her name was Azure.

"We want to live alongside ponies, not against them...but sadly, we're the only ones who think this way." another continued.

I nodded and wrapped Silverbolt in a blanket of blue magic,"C'mon, I'll escort you personally to the castle." With a small bit of hesitation, they followed.

"Hey Crysis, why is your magic blue?" a smaller changeling asked.

"I thought blue was the normal color." The other changelings in the group took turns casting spells, and sure enough, their horns lit up a sickly, bright green. Interesting.

"Hm...I don't know. Ah! Here we are, Canterlot Castle!" I announced, magically opening the door (quite literally).

"Kai- Crysis! I didn't except you to be back so soon! And you have Silverbolt..." Said Celestia, her voice trailing off when she saw the changelings behind me.

"I'm getting to that part," I reassured,"but right now, I'd like to make sure that Silverbolt is ok."

The other changelings found their way over to the dead queen's body, which, I noticed, had changed back to its original form.

"Do you think that the residents of Canterlot will accept these changelings? I mean, it could work, with a little help from both sides." I asked.

"Anything is possible, Crysis, we'll just have to see how it works out. For now, they will remain in the castle, and be allowed to make trips into the city, with the accompaniment of a guard." I called the others over and told them the offer, which they all accepted gladly.

A medical pony came up and cleared his throat,"It seems the patient is in a stable, healthy condition with no signs of trauma, shock, or magic. She'll be awake shortly." I visibly relaxed, letting out a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

True to his word, Silverbolt woke up within the hour, and was up and chatting to the many new changelings before I could even say 'hello'. When she finally made her way over to me, I was wrapped in a hug for a good minute or two.

"You killed a queen for me, does that mean I have to love you now?"

"Wha-- I- um-" I stuttered, but was silenced by the pegasus's hoof being placed over my mouth. The other changelings, along with the Princess, laughed quietly at my terrible social skills. I glared at them, but laughed in my head.

I yawned. "It's been a long day, and I'm going to get some sleep. Princess, would you mind if-"

"Not at all. It's the least I can do." I sighed and trotted slowly back up to the room where I first stayed, with Silverbolt following at my heels.

"Shouldn't you be home with your dad and brother?" I asked.

"it's late, they're probably asleep by now. I'll wait until after breakfast tomorrow morning. Plus, I kinda wanted to spend the night with you..." Her voice trailed off at that last part.

"You want to do what?" I asked, my sleep-deprived brain trying to comprehend what she was saying.

"I. Want to. Spend. The night. With you." I waved her inside and yawned again,"Well, make yourself at home, if you need me, I'll be asleep, so, goodnight Silverbolt!"

I crawled under the blankets, only to find that a few minutes later, a soft, warm, (more than slightly adorable) pegasus was snoring softly next to me, her forelegs wrapped around my neck. I smiled, I liked being loved.

The next morning I felt sick; apparently there was only so much love a changeling can eat at a time.

"What time is it?" I asked, my voice hoarse from sleeping.

"Time for you to get up, and go introduce your self to some ponies." said the pegasus at my side.

"Since when do I have to do all of this?"

"I don't know, the other changelings just assumed you're their new leader."

I groaned, partially because I didn't want to be held responsible for anything, and be jade my stomach-- or wherever love is kept hurts.

"What's wrong? Do you need some medicine?"

"I think what's going on here is the equivalent of you eating too much food."

"Oh. Tough. Now come on, you can deal with it for a few hours." Silverbolt said, tugging on my hoof, pulling me onto the floor. As I stood up I realized something.

"Am I...taller?" Normally, I was about half an inch shorter than Silverbolt, but today, I seemed slightly taller than her.

"Actually, now that you mention it...yes, yes you are."

"Weird. I'll ask around about it, because I was done growing a few years ago. Anyway, let's go meet some ponies!"

The stomach/organ-ache lessened in intensity as we walked along towards the throne room, but it didn't go away all together.

"Hey Silvy! Wait up for me!" a voice called, and Silverbolt groaned. A small filly, who was a spitting image of Silverbolt, skidded to a stop next to us.

"So, who's this? Your lover?" said the filly.

"Agh...no...This is Crysis. Crysis, meet Eclipse...my little sister." Silverbolt said, none to happily.

"Hey, Silverbolt...guess what?"

"What?" Before I could answer, the door opened, and a changeling poked his head out.

"Crysis, come in here, we've been waiting for you!" he said. I stepped into the room, followed by Silverbolt. I would've backed out of the room if Silverbolt hadn't shoved me forward.

"Oh, it's that changeling..." I heard one say. I trotted over to him.

"I can't say we've met before, sir." I said, holding out a hoof.

"It was a few weeks ago, and I believe you were wrapped in a magical ball." Oh. These ponies.

Celestia cleared her throat. "Crysis, if you'll sit by the other changelings, we'd like to get started."

"Oh, right." I made my way over to the rest of the changelings.

*** *** ***

Politics are boring, I thought after the court was dismissed. I blinked in the sunlight and walked over to the group of changelings.

"What do you guys think about that offer? We get the same rights as ponies, with some exceptions."

"The agreement is fine...all I'm worried about is the ponies' reactions." said Azure.

"Well, there's only one way to find out..." I said, walking towards the main doors.

"Actually, before we go, we should find a way to differentiate between all of us." I said. Changelings could easily tell each other apart, but ponies couldn't, at least not as well.

At the end, I was the only normal-colored changeling there, easily distinguishable from the others.

We all split into groups of two, Silverbolt wanting to be in mine.

"Hey Crysis, let's go over to my place, you can come and meet my family!" She announced.

"Uh...sure?" I said.

Wow. Good comeback, I thought to myself, as she grabbed my hoof and started to fly towards the outskirts of Canterlot. In a few seconds, I was able to extend my wings and buzz along next to the pegasus.

"Well, here we are!" said Silverbolt, stopping at a small house on a tree-lined street. She opened the door.

"Hey Dad, Pell, Eclipse, I've got a friend I want you to meet!" She called. The family members in question already knew me, but they played along.

A few minutes later, we were sitting around a table eating bread with soup and talking about all sorts of things. I had avoided being the subject of conversation for most of it, but my luck ran short.

"Crysis, tell me something, what was your life like before you came to Equestria?" Pell asked.

I scratched at the back of my head.

"Boring. Monotonous. I would wake up, dig tunnels, and fall back asleep. That's all that was to it, until I 'volunteered' for the guard." I shuddered. "I was taught everything about ponies, but in a terrible light. I was taught that ponies were only meant to be food sources, nothing more, and that if any changeling was caught with a pony without permission...they-- they would be executed." I said,"In fact, I was almost one of the ones executed...but all of that was a long time ago, it's not something I like to dwell on."

"Oh, I'm sorry, if I'd know..." Pell apologized.

"Don't worry about it, just try not to bring it up again!"

I thanked them for the meal and excused myself.

a voice shouted inside my head.

"No! Get. Out. Of. My. Head!" I yelled.

"Please! Just stop. I killed you. You should be dead. Gone."

I fell on my back and stared up at the ceiling in horror and shock. Once I was sure the changing queen in my head was done for now, I stood up and shook my head.

A few of my changeling friends watched me with curiosity and slight amusement. I noticed I was a few inches taller than them. Before any of them could say a word, I teleported myself to the castle.

I was scared. I didn't want to become a monster like Chrysalis.

The voice inside my head told me.

"No! Shut up!" I yelled.

"I-I didn't say a-anything!" said a pony next to me. I apologized.

There was probably something somewhat disconcerting about an angry changeling yelling at nopony. I slowed to a trot and took a breath before entering the throne room. I didn't help to calm my nerves. Or composure.

"Help! I'm turning into Chrysalis!" I said. Well, that's what I thought I said, it probably sounded more like,"Help! Chrysalis!"

"Crysis! Calm down! What's causing you to act this way?" Celestia inquired.

I explained my dilemma.

"That's very intriguing...I will ask Twilight Sparkle to look into it...in fact, I think you should take the train to Ponyville. You'd like it there."

I was still nervous about what was happening to me, but I decided it was best to take the Princess's advice and take the train down to Ponyvile.

It wasn't until I got on the train that I earned some looks and nervous glances; the ponies not in Canterlot still had to receive the news. I sat down and waited, not really caring what anypony else thought.

The train car was packed full of ponies trying to sit as far away from me as possible. Finally, after a little over an hour, the train stopped in the town of Ponyville. The purple unicorn, Twilight, greeted me as I stepped off the platform.

"How was the train ride?" she asked.

"Terrible. Too many ponies in one area, too many conflicting emotions."

"Oh...anyways Princess Celestia wrote to me about your...condition, and I'm very interested to see what's causing it. Aren't you?" The smaller unicorn said excitedly. I sighed.

"Well, here we are!" Twilight announced when we stopped at a large tree.

"A...tree? Do you live in there?" I asked.

"Yes, and it doubles as the Ponyville Library!" Twilight exclaimed.

A few minutes later, I was infected with her excitable mood (I think you get what I'm saying) and was eager to begin research.

"Let's start with some simple questions: What are you? When did this start?"

"I'm a changeling from the Eastern Wastelands, and it started after I killed Queen Chrysalis, which was a little over two days ago."

Twilight stopped scribbling and stared at me.

"You killed the Queen?!"

"Well, yes...and it nearly killed me." I said, trying to figure out why is was so hard to wrap your mind around it.

"Um...ok, how good are you at casting large-scale spells?"

"Well, I took control of Chrysalis's mind during the invasion and sent the army away. And two days ago I ordered a regiment of the Queen's personal guards away. And it's been getting easier...which scares me..."

Twilight set her clipboard down,"I think I know what's causing this. Follow me." I did as she said, and groaned.

"So...when a changeling kills their queen...they become her?" I asked in disbelief.

"That's the general idea, yes."

I sank down to the floor,"But I don't want to be their ruler! I want to live peacefully. No conflicts. No wars. No violence. I've had enough!"

Twilight sighed,"We will find a way to help you, all we need is time and patience."

The next morning, I woke up much later than usual, and then hit my horn on the top of the doorframe. I walked down the stairs grumbling about how the doorframes were too short.

"Good morning, Crysis!" Twilight said, happily.

"That is not how you address your ruler. I will be referred to as: King Crysis, Your Majesty, or Your Highness. Do you understand?" I snapped, before I realized what I said,"Oh Twilight, I'm so sorry...I-I didn't even think..."

"It's OK, I know that's not you, that's Chrysalis talking."

"Get. Out. Of. My. Head!" I yelled, causing Twilight to flinch backwards.

"Twilight," I said,"Is it possible to get cast a spell on yourself?"

"Depends on the spell, teleportation is the easiest, the next being transmutation, what kind of spell are you talking about?"

"Mind-control. Chrysalis's mind is inside my head. I need it out."

"Well, there is a spell I use for ponies with multiple-personality disorder, that could work." Twilight said.

"Let's do it, with no more hesitation."

"Hold on for second, let me go get it ready." I nodded, already feeling freed.

chrysalis said, putting an emphasis on drone.

Twilight returned to find me yelling at the kitchen sink.

"Um...are you ready?"

I paused,"Yes. Yes, I am." Twilight had me lie down on a bed, and then her horn slowed a bright purple. The first spell made me feel numb.

Anesthetic spell, I thought. The next one however, knocked me out, leaving me to the mercy of Twilight

I woke to a wasteland. Twilight's tree was in ruins, and smoke stained the normally blue sky brown. Everything was dead. I stared in shock and horror.

"Is this what you want, Crysis?" An all too-familiar voice asked.

I spun to face it.

"No. I only want peace. No wars. And you can't stop me, Chrysalis!"

The former queen laughed,"You think you have killed me, but I live on. I live in the minds of those who are still faithful to me. I. Will. Return!"

"To what? The Equestrian Ruins? Yeah, have fun with that." I said, mockingly.

"You have not won yet." She said, her voice like venom,"and do not think for one second that you are more powerful than me!"

I rolled my eyes, or did the best I could. I charged my horn with a spell. It fizzled out with a hiss and a puff of blue smoke. The Queen laughed.

"What did I tell you, drone. You will never outmatch me! And you have failed me. You know what failure means...don't you?"my eyes widened. Chrysalis touched her horn to my chest, and my nerves exploded in pain. The post-apoctolyptic dream vanished as I woke up, screaming in terror, my hooves shaking, my breathing fast and shallow. The sun had set and the moon was high in the sky, a silent guardian.

I sat up on whatever I was laying down on...a couch, I think, and held my head in my hooves. A door whispered open, barely making a sound on oiled hinges.

"Hello? Crysis? Are you alright?" I heard the purple unicorn whisper.

"It was just a nightmare. Nothing I can't handle." I said, not exactly reassuring myself. The smaller pony sat beside me; I could feel the concern and sympathy directed towards me.

"I'll be fine. Tha- what are you doing?" I said, and asked when Twilight wrapped her forelegs around my shoulders.

"This is called a hug, you looked like you needed one." The unicorn said softly. A little purple and green dragon made a gagging motion in the doorway, before he cleared his throat.

"Um...hey Twilight? Why are you hugging that and Applejack wanted you to come over for lunch at one." Twilight made a 'tsk' noise,"Spike, I thought I taught you better than to be rude to my guests, no matter how strange it seems." Spike apologized and ran off to do who knows what, leaving Twilight and I alone.

"Hey, Kai- Crysis, would you like to join me for lunch? I can ask Applejack to make room for one more."

"You can call me whatever you're more familiar with, and know that I think about it, Kaido is less threatening than Crysis. And I'd love to come...I mean, if I'm not welcome than I can understand..." I glanced up at the clock: it was ten am.

"I think your spell worked, Twilight," I laughed,"I've stopped growing, and I'm only, what, three inches taller than you?"

"That's amazing news!" Twilight said, both relieved and happy,"And I have some errands to run before we go. In the meantime, you can straighten yourself up, I think your...chitin, is it?"

"Yes."

"I'm pretty sure your chitin has seen better days." I laughed and looked down, it was scratched and had hairline fractures in a variety of places.

"I'll be back in about an hour." She told me, and then to Spike: "Try not to burn the kitchen down!" There was a sigh from the dragon,"I won't...at least not on purpose." He laughed. Twilight left the two of us and went about her business.

After a minute or two, I got up off the couch I fell sleep on and buzzed my wings a few times to et rid of the tension built up inside the flight muscles.

"Can you tell me where the shower is?" I asked Spike.

"Upstairs, second door on the left." I trotted up the stairs, looking forward to getting clean, and having a hot shower.

Thirty minutes later, a very happy and content (not to mention clean) changeling stepped out of the bathroom.

"Geez, how long does it take?" I heard Spike grumble.

"Have you ever tried getting chitin clean? It's a pain!" I defended.

"Suuurree..."

"Shut up." I told him, rolling my eyes. The 'click' of Twilight's front door opening stopped our bickering.

"Kaido, you may want to come see this..." Twilight said, already backing out of the door.

"What is it?"

"You'll see, we're not entirely sure." Twilight galloped to where she was taking me, while I flew beside her.

"Does that buzzing ever get on your nerves?" Twilight said. I changed the insect-like wings into dark grey pegasus wings.

"That better?" Twilight didn't reply, she merely pointed ahead. A few meters ahead of me was a small group of changelings, looking scared out of their wits. I ordered the ponies to back away, and let me talk to them.

The three changelings didn't seem to calm down, in fact they only seemed to grow more agitated.

"Names and position?" I asked.

"C-Crimson, I-Infiltrator..." The first changeling said. The others were Nocturne, another Infiltrator, and Surge was a Royal Guard. I sat down in the dirt next to them; they were terrified, starving and exhausted.

"Why?" I asked. It was a simple enough question.

"There's nothing for us back at the hive...it's gone to ruin...complete chaos." Surge told me. The others nodded their heads.

"Follow me," I said, and then,"just you three." When other ponies started to follow me. The trio stood up on shaking legs, most likely scared of the larger, stronger changeling leading them away from love.

"Is it true? About the hive?" I asked, worry etched on my face.

Nocturne answered my question: "After the queen didn't return, there was a struggle for who should be our leader, in fact, it was still going on when we left. The power shift caused complete anarchy: the lack of supervision made the changelings do very, very stupid things, which I'm not going to elaborate on. It seems we're the only three to have at least a small amount of independent thought." I shook my head,"There's about a dozen more Royal Guards back in Canterlot," I nodded to Surge,"You'd like them."

"If you don't mind me asking...what's your name and position?" Crimson asked. He was a lot younger than me, or the other two for that matter, most likely a few years from full maturity.

"My name at the hive was Crysis, now it's Kaido...and I was the one-- the one who was supposed to kill the Princess, and I'm the one who killed your Queen." Crimson gasped in shock, Nocturne and Surge merely bowed their heads.

"B-but how?! There hasn't been a changeling drone powe-" Crimson began.

I smiled,"Love is a powerful thing. I was angry, Chrysalis took the only pony who cared for me when I was like this, without a disguise. She showed me that ponies aren't our enemy. They only want to help. Now, you have a few options, you could take the train to Canterlot and meet up with the few that are there, or you could stay here, and lastly, you could wander around, and find a place to stay by yourselves.

Surge immediately wanted to be with his former Guards, but Nocturne and Crimson decided to stay with me.

"Then it's decided. Surge, hold onto me. Crimson, Nocturne, wait here for a moment while I get Surge to the train station." Surge held onto my foreleg as I teleported us to the platform.

"Goodbye, and good luck." I said. He nodded and stepped into one of the cars, I could tell he was nervous and confused, but he played it off very well. I teleported back to the forest, and led the two newest residents of Ponyville out into the waiting crowd. None of them looked particularly happy. All of them were brandishing some sort of weapon or club, from baseball bats to simple two-by-fours.

"Don't think for one second you are welcome here, changeling scum!" A large white stallion shouted. I was terrified, he was at least a foot taller than me! I crouched down into an attack position, my companions followed suit, preparing for the worst.

A cyan pegasus streaked down from the sky and landed between us.

"What's going on here?" She asked suspiciously,"Was there a reenactment of the invasion scheduled without me?" She trotted over to us,"Wow, you're costumes are really good!" Nocturne snapped his jaws at her,"Wow...down to the last detail...almost like-- those aren't costumes are they...you're actual changelings?" I shook my head in awe of the mare's ignorance.

"Rainbow Dash! Get back from there! They could bite you!" I heard a small orange filly yell. I straightened out my body and drew myself to my full height, a few inches taller than the rest of the ponies there.

"Please...we don't want to bring you any harm...we want to coexist. Peacefully." I said, Crimson and Nocturne nodding their heads in agreement. I wondered where Twilight had disappeared to. There was a flash of light and Twilight appeared next to Rainbow Dash, both looking equally confused.

"Kaido, can you and your two companions follow me, quickly?" I scooped up the smaller changelings onto my back and trotted after Twilight, very confused on what was going on.

Ponies are very weird, I finally decided, thinking to myself.

Chapter Three (3 Years later)

The last three years in Equestria had been hectic, I was always teleporting here and there for some lecture or an interview. Changelings were still a very, very small minority in the total population of Equestria; only three more changelings had joined Equestria after Crimson, Surge and Nocturne, which puts our numbers at around thirty...ish.

I sighed and wondered what was happening at the hive, a years after Chrysalis 'disappeared'. I brushed the thought out of my head as I trotted towards the flat that Silverbolt and I shared.

I unlocked the door.

"Hey, Bolt! I'm home!" I called. A muffled,"I'll be right there," came from the bedroom. I laughed to myself, apparently it took all day for a mare to 'get ready' for a formal dinner.

"Do I look okay?" She asked cautiously.

"Okay? You look amazing!" Silverbolt blushed and shifted on her hooves.

"Well, now it's your turn. Go on." Bolt teased. I rolled my eyes and with a flash of green fire, was in a black suit and a blue tie.

"There, you ready? We're about to miss our cab!" I said. We waited for the cab when I heard a faint whistling noise.

"Do you hear that? The whistling?" I asked, looking around. A few moments later, the whistling was accompanied by a distant rumble, like thunder. I grabbed Silverbolt's foreleg and teleported both of us away, but I was too late: the missile hit a few hundred yards away from where we stood, blasting us away from the city.

"Where did you teleport us, exactly?" She asked.

I looked around, if was a barren wasteland, and I happened to hit the only tree for miles around.

I swallowed nervously, realizing where we were.

"The hive..."

"It wouldn't happen to be the hive that you came from, could it?"

"The same." I didn't have the strength to transport us all the way back to Canterlot, so I started walking. I stopped after about fifty meters.

"Here we are, home sweet home...and, you may want to stay out here, I don't want the changelings in here sucking you dry." I said, grimly.

"Are you sure? I mean-"

"I'll be fine, I took care of a queen, what could go wrong?" I said, with a confidence that surprised myself. Silverbolt gave me a hug and trotted off to the tree I was slammed into.

In front of me was a simple stone building, nothing too special to the casual observer, but I knew what secrets it contained. I knocked.

"So you finally decided to come back, you filthy traitor! To come own up to your crimes against the queen?" A guard hissed at me.

"Let me in."

"Only after you state your name and buissness." The guard replied.

"My name is Kaido, former Infiltrator." I said.

"Never heard of you."

"Does 'Crysis' ring a bell?" The guard's eyes widened, he opened the door.

I walked in, and observed what lay before me: it all seemed the same as before.

At my entrance, multiple changelings glanced in my direction, and then did a double-take. After a few minutes of standing still, I had attracted a decent crowd.

"I have good and bad news..." I said. The crowd listened attentively.

"The good news, is that changelings are free to live in Equestria, as long as you don't assume any disguises and steal love through one. You have to earn it. Like I did." A few hooves went up. I picked one at random.

"D-do you know what happened to our Queen?"

"Yes, and I'm getting to that...but first, answer me this...would you come back with me to Equestria?" I said. There was a ripple of doubt and uncertainty, but it was replaced with hope. I sighed, that was a good notion.

"And now for what happened to Chrysalis..." I bowed my head,"Your queen is dead. I-I killed her..." The hope was replaced with anger and then...fear?

"Please, do not be afraid of me! I just want to help...that's all I ever wanted."

I heard the guard outside shouting at something, and then I smiled at who he was arguing with.

"Oh, Silverbolt..." I said to myself, walking up the stairs. The mass of changelings followed me, plainly curious about my sudden change of heart.

"You have to let me in!" Silverbolt exclaimed.

"I can't." The guard replied simply.

"Is there a problem here, Warden?" I asked, using the guard's name. He gestured towards the exasperated pegasus.

"It's fine, she's with me. Let her in." Warden cocked an eyebrow, and I heard the crowd mumble behind me.

"Thanks Kaido, now, let's meet some changelings!"

I cleared my throat.

"This is my very close friend, Silverbolt." She waved, smiling at the changelings (who were all very confused). "Ever since I was in Canterlot, she was there for me, and looked out for me. And I did the same for her." Silverbolt nodded in agreement and added,"Yep! And you'd be surprised at how many ponies are ok with changelings coexisting!"

"So...how much love are you getting?" A changeling asked.

"More than I could ever need, in fact, the first day I stayed, I felt sick the next morning." The more Silverbolt and I explained, the more of my kin gravitated towards living in Equestria. I was actually quite surprised to see how many wanted to go.

*** *** ***

After a few days' rest, I was fully recovered and ready to depart. I was pretty sure a huge cloud of changelings flying towards Canterlot was a bad idea, especially after what happened at the Royal wedding, so I made all the changelings accompanying me change into the exact same pony, so that they all looked like identical twins.

"I'm assuming you all know where to go to, right? Good. Now, any of you who can't teleport, would you please step over by my side." Luckily for me, there were only a few, maybe five or six, who couldn't. We would be leaving in small groups, twenty at a time, which meant eight or nine trips.

"Alright! Groups one and two, you're cleared!" I announced, and then teleorted away.

An instant later, I was back for the next two groups, and then the two after that. The move didn't take more than ten minutes, and when all the changelings had departed for Canterlot, I bid the hive and the ones who stayed farewell.

"If you ever change your minds, you know where I'll be." I told them, and then with a flash of white-blue light, I was gone.

When I reached Canterlot, I arrived to the scene where a few Royal guards were asking one of the many 'twins' what was happening. One of the guards just happened to be their Captain, Shining Armor.

I trotted up to him,"Hell-" but was cut off by him jumping backwards and leveling his spear at my throat.

"Since when do changelings get to roam free in Equestria? He growled.

"Since about three years ago, and wasn't there a missile?." I replied calmly, just as Silverbolt trotted up to me.

To me:"That was just one of those decoy ones." And then to Silverbolt:"Miss, it's best if you back off for now, changelings are very dangerous creatures." Shining informed my marefriend (girlfriend, same thing).

"Mhm, but that's not stopping me from loving him." She said happily, wrapping her forelegs around my neck.

"Can we go inside?" I asked. The other one hundred and sixty odd changelings looked up expectantly.

"Uh...fine...just don't go around stealing emotions, or in disguises. Got it?" He said. They nodded, and one by one shed their disguises.

"Are you sure they won't-" the captain started to say.

"They won't. I'm sure of it." I finished.

Funnily enough, none of the changelings went into the city. I trotted over to them.

"Go on, meet some new ponies, explore the city! Or follow me and become and official Eqiestrian citizen!" I prompted. Most of them seemed to like that last option, so I set off towards the castle, my entourage following in my wake.

A very young changeling trotted up next to me, looking scared.

"Are you sure they won't- won't kick us out?" He asked.

"Nah, the Princesses are really kind and forgiving, so don't worry..." I faltered at his name.

"Apex, sir."

"Don't worry Apex, and don't call me sir, I'm no more qualified at anything more than you are."

"Sorry, sir." I sighed, this could be a trend. The guards at the castle bristled at out arrival, and weren't very open to changelings being in the castle.

"They're perfectly behaved! And I'll be the first to discipline them if they act out of line." I said, shooting a glance towards them.

"I'm sorry, we just can't allow it."

"Allow what?" The Princess said, appearing at the gate. I could feel the other changelings' fear and terror.

"Your Majesty, the changelings behind me wish to live in peace with Equestria, and promise to not steal another's emotions without their consent, and will not assume disguises, except for on Nightmare Night." I explained.

"My dear Kaido, I appreciate your thoughtfulness, but the most pressing matter at hand is finding room for all of these new citizens." Celestia smiled. I felt relief sweep through the changelings behind me, and curiosity through the ponies farther back.

"I have room for one or two of them!" I heard a pony say.

"Any volunteers?" I asked. All of their ice blue eyes turned towards me, and two flew over to the pony offering housing.

Gradually, the word got out, and changeling after changeling was swept off towards a new life and a new family in Canterlot, until it was just me and Apex, who didn't want to leave my side.

I yawned, and Silverbolt flapped over to me.

"Wow...I didn't expect all of them to be taken in so quickly..." She said. I nodded in agreement.

"Hey Silverbolt, I'm going to head down to Ponyville for a couple days with Apex, do you want to come along?"

"It's about time you got a vacation."

"Do you know what comes before vacation, though?" I asked. Silverbolt shrugged.

"A nap." I said, stifling a yawn.

Silverbolt laughed softly,"I expected as much, now c'mon!" A Royal guard trotted up to me.

"Sir, there's something for you." He said, handing me an envelope.

"Awards Ceremony...blah, blah, blah, please attend to see the honorable

Ponies of Equestria receive to medals that recognize what they've done. Including, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Kaido..." I stopped on that last name, I never would've expected to be in an awards ceremony.

"Thank you." I said to the guard, who nodded and flew away. I was freaking out. The awards ceremony was in a few hours and I had to prepare a speech!

"I've never seen you this stressed out before, are you are you're not overreacting...even a little bit?" Silverbolt said.

I stopped my pacing and took a breath,"I guess you're right...It's just an award ceremony in front of who knows how many ponies, the rulers of Equestria, and the six ponies who repeatedly save Equestria from various threats. And look at the time, we've got to go!"

Silverbolt sighed,"Alright...c'mon, let's go. And Kaido, you can calm down now." Her words didn't do much to calm me, but I knew she was right. As we entered the building, I was directed towards backstage, and my companions to the audience. The other recipients of the awards were already there, and their conversations stopped when I trotted in.

"So you're the changeling, huh?" Said a rainbow-maned pegasus, who I could only assume to be Rainbow Dash.

"Rainbow Dash! There's no need to be rude! My name's Rarity," a white unicorn said, and then,"and you are...?"

"My name's Kaido, and I already know who all of you are..." I said.

"This is all so exciting! I should throw a 'Welcome-the-changeling-and-celebrate-awards' party!" A very, very hyper pink pony said.

I edged away,"Yeah...that's be nice..."

"Oh! Did I do something wrong? I hate to see ponies sad.." The pink pony said.

"No, no, you didn't do anything, it's just that all of this is a shock to me...I never expecting to get an award...and I'm not very good in front of a large amount of ponies..." I said, my head dipping down.

"Well, you're an all-powerful changeling! What could scare you?" Rainbow Dash said.

I looked her in the eyes,"A whole lot of things, actually, silly things, now that I think about it. Large crowds, I mean, if they tried to attack me I could take control of their minds in the blink of an eye-"

"You can do mind control?!" The pegasus said, clearly shocked or amazed, I wasn't sure.

"Well, yes..." I said, shifting around on my hooves.

"Rainbow, stop scaring the poor guy, he's been through a lot." Twilight said. There was a fanfare, and then the stomping of hooves.

I could hear the Princess's voice.

"This ceremony is to honor the ponies who have done this country a great service, and without expecting something in return. I would like to welcome these seven ponies to the stage for their efforts: Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Flutterhsy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and lastly, somepony who did more than just serve his country. He proved that not all changelings are evil. Please welcome, Kaido!" I was petrified, but I swallowed and walked out into the spotlights. As soon as I did, I noticed two things: the amount of changelings sitting in the crowd, and the amount of positive emotions.

I was already feeling better about receiving my medal, but when Twilight started to give a speech I immediately lost all of that confidence.

I'm going to make myself look like an idiot, aren't i? , I thought. The ponies following Twilight also gave speeches, so I knew I couldn't get out of it.

"Thank you for your service, Kaido," the Princess said, bowing her head.

"I suppose I can't get out of a speech, can I?" I asked under my breath. The process just smiled and shook her head. I could tell she was laughing.

I rested my forelegs on the podium and looked out at the crowd.

"When I first came to Canterlot, well, crash-landed in Canterlot, there was a pony who cared for me when I was me, not covered by a disguise, or under a spell. And now that I think about it, I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for her, I'd probably be in a forest somewhere." I smiled,"And I owe this medal to her, because if I never knew her, I wouldn't have taken on my former Queen, I wouldn't have met all of you amazing ponies. And lastly, I wouldn't have ever loved. (Woah, super cheesy I know)."

*** *** ***

"That wasn't the most stressful experience of my life." I said to myself. Just then, Silverbolt ran up to me and wrapped me in a hug,"Did you really mean it?" She asked.

"Of course I did! I wouldn't lie about something as important as that!" Silverbolt laughed, and led me away from the hall.

"C'mon let's go on vacation- wait, do you hear that?" Silverbolt said, looking towards the sky.

There was a low rumbling noise, and a bright white column of fire, which meant only one thing: missiles.

"Who the hell keeps firing those things!" I heard myself say. Guards were galloping around, trying to calm the panicked masses.

There was an earth-shattering crash, and then the shockwave carried dirt, dust, debris, and...bodies.

Ten minutes later, Canterlot-- or at least part of Canterlot-- lay in ruin, buildings were reduced to piles of ash, stone and mortar, even the castle was damaged.

Another ten minutes and it was decided: Equestria was going to war.

Chapter Four: War

Equestria devoted most of its resources to military technology: magic energy weapons, conventional firearms, ICBMs (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile), powered armour suits, and more advanced detection software (Radar, FLIR, LIDAR).

"Do you really have to go?" I heard Silverbolt ask.

"I wish there was another option, but it's the Princess's orders. I'll come back without any holes-- well, any extra holes!" I said.

"Be safe, please..." The pegasus said, resting her head on my shoulder.

There was a knock on the door, interrupting our last moments together.

"Sir, your chariot's about to leave!" A guard called.

"Give me a minute!" I shouted back. I looked into Silverbolt's eyes,"I love you, and I promise I'll be back." In response, she squeezed the breath out of me.

"I love you to," she said,"Now hurry up before you miss your cab."

I picked up my suitcase and walked out of the door, saying one last goodbye.

Equestria was a very different place now that the once-peaceful nation was in wartime: cordons of guards patrolled constantly, there were roadblocks at every major entrance into a city, among other things. The sunlight that filtered through the ever-present haze of smoke and smog was weak and distant, barely warming the ground beneath it.

I was sitting in the cab with a few other ponies and changelings, I recognised Apex, who gave me a weak smile, and the others just nodded in greeting, their faces grim. The journey only took twenty minutes, but to me, it felt like a lifetime, knowing there was no going back. As our transport pulled in front of the castle, the Princess stepped out to greet us; she looked tired, worn, even her mane seemed less vibrant that usual. Even so, there was an air of warmth around her.

"Go ahead to the briefing room, I'll be with you shortly," Celestia said, and then,"Second floor, sixth door on the left." The Princess then trotted towards the city, leaving us to head up by ourselves.

"It's a bit unnerving to see the Princess so worried." A pony said, she was dark grey, almost black in colour, with a lighter mane,"The name's Ebony, and that's my sister, Ivory." Ivory was an exact copy of her twin, except with her colours inverted, it was actually kind of creepy.

The briefing room was occupied by only a few other ponies, excluding our group. I recognised Spitfire, and her second-in-command Soarin, there was Princess Luna, and a few other official-looking ponies.

On the table in front of them, however, were what really caught my eye. There were five suits of armour on it, they looked like a cross between a robot and an insect, with sharp joints and what looked to be energy rifles mounted on the sides.

Next to those, I saw six uniforms, and on closer inspection, each of our names were written on them, along with our rank.

I knew there was something fishy going on here.

But before I could form something to say, the Princess walked in and called the meeting to order.

"Thank you all for being here on such short notice, we have a lot of things to discuss, namely why these three ponies and three changelings are here." She gestured towards us and then Luna took over, addressing us, rather than the assembled ponies,"You are going to be our counter-intelligence team, and as I'm sure you have noticed, each of you has been assigned a rank, and the corresponding armour." We all waited, I could feel the suspense in the air.

"Fleet Admiral Crysis, Captain Ivory, Commander Apex, Ensign Moonlight, Lieutenant Razor, and Lieutenant Commander Ebony. Please step forward and claim your respective armour." (I don't give a fuck if they're not in order.)

"Hold up a second! Fleet Admiral!" I exclaimed,"But, I don't have any sort of training or experience!"

"You have experience, you're a master of stealth and espionage, and from what I've heard, you've got guts." Spitfire said.

Oh my Godesses. I've just been complimented by the Captain of the Wonderbolts!

"T-Thank you!" I stuttered. As it seemed we were taking too long, a suit of armour was placed in front of me, the others' were to. The armour was light, lighter than me, perhaps, and painted matte black with blue accents, I noticed they corresponded to our primary colours.

"So...how does this work?" I mumbled to myself, looking for a way to get in it.

"There's a switch on the inside of the hind leg, flip it. And then put said leg onto the switch." Soarin said, looking at us like we were idiots, which we probably were.

The entire suit collapsed into a parcel no bigger than my hoof.

"Now put your right hind hoof into the indentation, and stay still." He continued. As soon as we did, the armour folded outward and encased our entire bodies with it, leaving space for our wings and the changelings' horns.

The HUD display flickered to life, showing everything from altitude, speed, wind direction, to longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates, weapons, ammo, and virtual tags. I noticed a button that read 'Adaptive Camouflage'.

"How do you press buttons in this thing?" I asked, a grin across my face.

"Just say the command, and if you want to shut off the mic, click your tongue." Spitfire said, and then,"what? It's simple to do and easy to remember!" I made myself a note to try that out later.

"Now enough messing around, you have a mission waiting for you." The Princess said, a slight edge in her voice. That got all of us sobered and listening attentively.

"Recently, we have found out who launched the war on Equestria, and frankly, I'm not surprised either." A screen extended out of the wall, and a map of the world appeared (Equestria = USA), a small red dot was blinking. It was labeled,"Alta".

"Your mission is to infiltrate," (every single pony in the room looked at me),"And cripple their network and infrastructure, and gather as much information as you can. We need to know when they plan their next move."

"When do we leave?" Asked Moonlight.

"Hold your horses, (lol pun) you've still got to stock up on weapons and ammo." Spitfire called, and then waved us over.

"Meeting adjourned," the Princesses said, in unison.

"Now, those rifles on your sides are extremely powerful. They will melt anything they come in contact with. Anything. The plus side, is that you can switch between metal bullets, magical ammo, and my favourite, napalm!" Seeing our blank stares, she explained what napalm was,"Napalm makes your rifles into a flamethrower. Ok, intro is over, now go on flap yourselves over to the airstrip and await further instructions." The sudden change caught all of is by surprise, but a few seconds later, we were in the air, trying to get used to the armour.

"I wonder how long it took them to make this..." I heard Ivory say through our shared radio link.

"Pretty damn quick, that's for sure!" I heard the other changeling say, I think his name was Razor.

"Attention, Operation: Endgame is in play (lol another pun). Your flight leaves in ten minutes." The radio scratched out.

We landed with multiple 'thumps' on the paved tarmac. The sky had cleared up and I could see splotches of blue strewn about. The wind picked up and was threatening to push us over, so we hurried into the plane that would take us across the Hooflantic Sea.

The engines spooled up to operating temperatures and we set off on our journey that would take us around the world.

"So," I shouted above the engines' roar,"Tell me about yourselves!"

Wow, good way to start a conversation...I thought to myself.