The (Not So) Secret of the Changelings
Where Do Babies Come From?
Princess Twilight Sparkle had been curiously following the fluffy pink pony that only spoke in spits for some time now. She had seen Fluffle Puff wandering around Ponyville even before she had become a princess, but Fluffle Puff was only an acquaintance at best. The recently converted alicorn grew concerned when Fluffle Puff trotted off into the Everfree Forest.
“Hey! Don’t go in there!” Twilight warned, “Everfree is dangerous!”
Fluffle Puff stuck out her tongue in defiance and gave Twilight a harsh look. She then continued to trot leisurely into the dark and dangerous woods as Twilight reluctantly followed.
“You really should come back to Ponyville!” Twilight advised, “There could be timberwolves!”
Fluffle Puff simply shook her muzzle ‘no’ and continued her pace. Twilight groaned at the fluffy pony’s incompetence and trotted ahead of her. Twilight held out her hooves to block Fluffle Puff, but the Puff simply walked around her.
“Help! Help me please!” cried a far off voice.
Twilight’s ears perked and her head darted around for the source of the voice. The sound emanated from a deep, shadowy clearing of trees.
“You, go back to Ponyville. I mean it.” Twilight ordered the Puff, “I’ll go see what the trouble is.”
Fluffle Puff nodded and started in the direction of town. Twilight flapped her wings and made a stealthy glide in the direction of the voice.
“Please!! Quickly!” yelped a soft voice that sounded increasingly like Fluttershy.
“Fluttershy! Is that you?!” Twilight called out, “Hold on, I’m coming!”
Twilight landed in a dimly lit patch of trees and gasped when she saw Fluttershy collapsed on the ground, struggling to stand.
“Fluttershy, what’s wrong?!” Twilight asked, “Are you hurt?!”
“Twilight...come closer...” the yellow pegasus whispered, “I think I broke something...”
Twilight trotted over to her friend and knelt down beside her.
“I’ll carry you back to Ponyville.” Twilight advised.
“How does it feel?” Fluttershy asked, “Being a princess...that nopony likes...”
“What?” Twilight asked in confusion.
“Your princesshood was just a cheap marketing ploy...” Fluttershy continued, “You’re just Celestia’s puppet...but the real reason...the real reason nopony likes alicorn Twilight...is because nopony likes...”
“CHANGE!!” Fluttershy shouted in an echoing male voice before swiftly transforming into a black pony-shaped insectoid.
“A changeling!” Twilight stammered, “It’s a trap!”
“Mike the changeling, to be exact.” the changeling corrected, “Admiral Ackbar says what?”
“What?!” Twilight repeated.
“Exactly.” Mike taunted, “Princess Twilight, I presume?”
“I can take on one lousy changeling.” Twilight said her horn starting to glow.
Before Twilight or Mike could respond further, a harsh, high-pitched, bloodcurdling shriek filled their ears. Twilight covered her ears with her front hooves.
“What in Celestia’s name was that?!” she wondered.
“Looks like there’s somepony else in need.” Mike observed.
“How do I know it’s not another trap?” Twilight asked.
“Are you willing to take that chance, princess?” Mike challenged.
“First I’m taking you in for questioning.” Twilight threatened.
Another horrific scream filled the air and Mike gave Twilight an evil smirk.
“I can see it now, ‘Princess fights changeling while innocent pony torn apart by timberwolves’.” Mike predicted, “Do you want that on your conscience?”
“I have a bad feeling about this.” Twilight said as she once again took flight in the direction of the noise.
“The Everfree Forest is not to be traveled lightly.” Mike added.
Twilight flew into an even darker patch of woods until her surroundings became pitch black. Twilight’s horn glowed with luminescence and she drew back in horror when she found herself surrounded by the glowing blue eyes of an army of changelings.
One of the changelings stepped forward and cleared his throat, speaking in a deeper voice than Mike.
“Our queen would like a word with you.” he announced.
“It’s a trap...again!” Twilight observed, “Horsefeathers...”
Twilight heard another maddening scream from behind the changelings.
“What are you monsters doing?!” Twilight demanded, “Who do you have back there?!”
Twilight gave a furious glare and lit up her horn. The changelings stepped aside as Twilight galloped through them. Twilight lit up her horn as brightly as she could manage and her jaw dropped in horror.
In the back of the small cavern that Twilight found herself in, a certain insectoid queen was screaming in pain as she gave birth to her changeling army. Twilight had to keep herself from vomiting as a baby changeling protruded from Chrysalis, encased in green slime. This was the same green slime that had once imprisoned Twilight’s fellow ponies, was now covering the cavern floor, and what Twilight was stepping in.
“That marks the fourth one in two hours.” a nearby changeling commented.
An attending changeling wiped the slime away and slapped the newborn with his hoof, causing it to cry and breathe for the first time. Chrysalis struggled to take the newborn in her front hooves and affectionately licked its face to console it.
The newborn looked at its mother/queen with bright blue eyes and cooed. Chrysalis coddled the baby for a few moments before passing it on to another changeling who corralled it in a corner with about a dozen other freshly hatched changelings.
“Twilight...Sparkle...” Chrysalis struggled to say in her echoing voice, amplified even more by the cavern walls, “How nice of you...to join us.”
“What...what is all this?” Twilight asked in wonder and disgust.
“Fool...of a princess...” Chrysalis mocked, “Where do you think...babies come from?”
“I thought changelings hatched from an egg.” Twilight observed.
“It depends...on the season...” Chrysalis explained, “Some gestate...more quickly...than others...either way...”
“How many of you are there?” Twilight asked curiously.
:”Our number...is pretty...consistent...” Chrysalis continued, “Hundreds...sometimes thousands...most die off in less than a year...”
“So you’re the mother of all these changelings?” Twilight observed.
“Twilight...you idiot...I am queen of the changelings.” Chrysalis remarked, “We’re insects. Put two and two together.”
“Ohhhhhh.....” Twilight whispered in epiphany.
“My queen...” said a voice from behind Twilight, “The prisoner has been captured.”
“Excellent work, Mike.” Chrysalis said as Mike fluttered to her side, “You shall be the first to feed off Twilight’s love, after myself and Fluffle Puff of course.”
“Fluffle Puff?” Twilight asked.
Just then, the pink fluffy pony marched past Twilight and poked Chrysalis, who nuzzled her in return.
“Wait, what?!” Twilight shouted.
“That’s right, princess.” Chrysalis said, “Fluffle Puff lead you to Mike, and Mike lead you here. Fluffle Puff is my special somepony.”
“That, that doesn’t make any sense!” Twilight scoffed.
“Do I have to spell it out for you?” Chrysalis answered, “I mate with all of my changelings out of duty to produce more changelings who may or may not make it to next year. This cycle repeats until a select few changelings grow up to kings and queens of their own hive and our kind continues. Fluffle Puff is my special somepony because I cannot find romantic affection within my own kind. In fact, my mother ate my father after their first mating ritual. Don’t you ever read?”
“I was never really interested in changelings...” Twilight admitted, blushing.
“Now about that pesky brother of yours...” Chrysalis pondered.
“You keep your filthy hooves off Shining Armor!” Twilight warned.
“Do I detect a hint of jealousy?” Chrysalis mocked, “I saw the way you looked at me when I was disguised as Princess Cadence, the way you still look at Cadence now...”
“Shut-up!” Twilight demanded, her horn glowing red.
“Time to face the facts, Sparkle.” Chrysalis concluded, “You’re in love with your own brother.”
“That’s not true!” Twilight shouted, “That’s ridiculous!”
“Search your feelings, you know it to be true.” Chrysalis said.
“NOOOOO!!!!” Twilight screamed in agony.
“Darth Vader says what?” Mike added.
“Shut-up, Mike.” Chrysalis ordered.
“Sorry.” Mike said with a sheepish grin.
“Now that we have exploited Twilight’s hidden love for her brother, it’s time to feed, my children!” Chrysalis announced, “FEED!!”
All of the changelings bared their fangs and surrounded Twilight. Even as an alicorn, she could not defend herself from hundreds of changelings all draining her at once. Twilight collapsed to the cavern floor as a withered husk. Twilight looked up weakly at Fluffle Puff, who poked her with her hoof.
And then Mike the changeling burst through the screen and said, “Th-th-th-th-th-th-that’s all folks!!”
