Husklands

by Nighttide

Rating: teen
Tags: Gore, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Princess Cadance, Dark, Alternate Universe, Sad, Changelings, Adventure, Shining Armor, Princess Celestia, Main 6
Length: 46987

Switchback must return to what is left of the changeling hive.

Switchback has been living in Ponyville for three years now, with little knowledge of what has been happening back at his home hive. That all changes when a changeling, severely injured from the conflicts that have been taking place, is found wandering aimlessly through the Everfree forest. Believing that the changelings' situation creates an opportunity for peace, Celestia asks Switchback to go back home, not as a returning runaway, but a representative of Equestria who could forge a bridge between their species. Nopony, is prepared for what they will find.

This story is a sequel to Changelings Like Weddings, but reading that story is not necessary to understand this one.

Published 2015-09-12 06:50:02 UTC
Last updated 2017-10-23 19:54:45 UTC

Chapter 1: A Changeling in Need

Chapter 1

Ever since the Elements of Harmony were returned to the Tree of Harmony, the Everfree forest had started to become a much more peaceful and welcoming place. The poison joke had slowly decreased in population and thanks to Fluttershy, the manticore that roamed freely never bothered anypony. The scary looking trees and thorny vines also seemed to vanish, with many beautiful flowers and exotic plants blooming in their place.

Of course, the clouds still moved on their own and somehow a ghostly fog would accumulate at night from time to time, but for the most part, the forest had become much more hospitable. This made it the perfect place for Twilight and Shining Armor to take a morning walk and spend time together.

Cadence was at the spa relaxing and they planned on meeting up later for lunch. It had been a while since they had seen each other. Shining and Cadence were always busy ruling the Crystal Empire and Twilight had found herself being looked up to more and more for leadership. So it was good to be able to get away and just have fun for once, even if it was only for a day or two.

"...and don't even get me started on the ponies who try to become my friend just get close to Cadence," Shining Armor continued with his conversation. "Oh Prince Armor, why don't you and I share a drink and become best buds so I can complain to your wife about how life isn't fair and it's your fault." He huffed loudly.

Twilight let out a slightly amused laugh. "Sounds like you've had your hooves full."

"Oh yeah," Armor replied. "You have no idea how glad I am to be here and not back in..." he stopped suddenly, staring straight ahead at something in the distance.

"Is something wrong BBBFF?" Twilight asked when he didn't complete his sentence.

"What? Oh right. Yeah, I'm fine," Armor assured. "I think we should head back now." He stepped out in front of Twilight to prevent her from going any further."

"Why?" Twilight asked. "We've only been walking for ten minutes."

"I know," Armor answered. "I just think we shouldn't go any farther than this." He wasn't doing a very good job of hiding his motives with his obviously fake smile. He never could hide his emotions from Twilight.

"Why not? What's over there?" She could tell he was hiding something. This suspicion was only reinforced when she tried to look around him and he stepped out in front of her again. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," Armor replied. "Come on, let's go this way." He started pushing her back in the direction from which they had come.

"Shiny stop," Twilight protested.

"Hey look over there. What's that."

Twilight had had enough. Something was causing Shining Armor to act like this and she was going to get to the bottom of it. Before he could corral her back any farther, she cast a teleportation spell to get around him. What she saw when she did this though, was something that she was not prepared for.

"Oh my gosh!" Twilight yelled.

About thirty yards away, slowly staggering down the trail from the north was a changeling. He didn't look good. His large blue eyes were only half open and a trail of blue, dripping blood was being left behind him.

Twilight quickly ran forward, not caring what Shining Armor had to say.

"Twilight wait!!!" Armor yelled after her. "We don't know if it's friendly!" He started running to her.

Twilight stopped ten feet in front of the injured changeling. He looked even worse up close. He was covered in long cuts and deep gashes. His left leg, the most notable of his injuries, was cracked open and the bottom half hung from looked like blue jelly and spaghetti noodles. He dragged it across the ground as he limped, leaving a blue streak. Twilight gasped in horror at what she was seeing.

The changeling looked up at her, staring blankly with a tired emotionless expression. He didn't move, he didn't advance, he just stood there. Twilight didn't blame him either. She didn't know how far he must have walked, but it was incredible that he was able to walk at all with his injuries.

Shining caught up to Twilight and tried to put a hoof on her shoulder, but before he could, she dashed forward toward the changeling who had started to fall forward.

She caught the changeling in her hooves. His breathing was so faint and ragged and his heart beat was weak. She didn't have much time. "Shiny I need your help!" she said desperately.

"What? No! Put that thing down!"

"Please Shiny! We cant just leave him! We have to help!" Twilight pleaded.

Armor sighed. He didn't want to do this, but he knew his hooves were tied. If he didn't help and the changeling died, Twilight would no doubt blame him and push him away. If he did help though, and it died anyway, than at least he could comfort her. He did feel a little bad after suggesting that they abandon it. Seeing it like that was a little overwhelming.

"Okay, okay," Armor finally said. "What do you need me to do?"

Twilight was already applying magic braces to the changeling shredded leg. "I need you to put pressure on these two wounds," she said pointing to two large gashes that ran parallel to each other, no doubt caused by the teeth of another changeling.

Armor did as he was told, putting his hooves down on each of the gashes. The changeling coughed as he did this. More blue blood spattered onto Twilight's hooves, which were already covered.

"Crap!" Armor exclaimed. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, you're fine. Keep pressing down. We have to stop the bleeding."

Armor continued to push as Twilight finished the spell to keep the changelings leg from flopping around and causing anymore damage. The purple magic bubble that wrapped around the leg wouldn't last for very long. They needed to move him to somewhere that they could get proper treatment. Before they could do this though, they needed to stop as much of his bleeding as possible.

In an attempt to do this, Twilight quickly materialized a hard light disk with her magic. "Move your hooves," she instructed to Shining Armor, who did as he was told. She applied magic construct to the changeling's open wounds carefully and then cast another spell to fix it to his exoskeleton.

The changeling coughed up more hot, sticky blood as he was operated on. Why couldn't these ponies just kill him? Why did they have to torment him by keeping him alive? He was no good. He didn't know anything useful. He would be better off to them dead. Finally, after one more spell from the purple alicorn that was treating him, he passed out. The pain was just too much for him to handle any longer.

"What happened?" Armor asked. "Is he dead?"

"No, no, he's just passed out," Twilight answered, relieved that they hadn't lost him. "We need to get him out of here though. We cant do anymore for him here without the proper resources."

"So to the hospital then, right?"

"No, too far," Twilight replied. "The magic braces wont hold for that long. Come on Twilight, think." A light bulb came to life in her head. "That's it," she said. "Fluttershy's cottage is nearby. I know for a fact that she keeps a big first aid kit in her kitchen."

"Alright, lets go then." Armor carefully picked the changeling up in his magic and placed him on his back.

"I'll fly there and let Fluttershy know that you're coming," Twilight said. "It will be better if we have everything ready by the time you get there." She didn't wait for a reply. Instead, she opened her wings and took off into the sky.

Shining Armor looked at the changeling on his back and sighed. This was going to be a long day.

Chapter 2: Waking Up

Chapter 2

"I think he's waking up," the purple blur said in a deep distorted voice.

A few more colorful blurs came into the changeling's view as he looked up from his comfortable position. He smiled a little with his eyes only half open. He liked pretty colors. Pretty colors were always a good thing, even if they did have funny voices.

"Why is he smiling?" the white and blue blur asked.

"Probably the drugs," the purple one offered as an answer.

"Something tells me he wont be so happy when he sees what we did to his leg."

"It had to be done. There was no other option."

A third blurry figure came into view. It was yellow and pink, but it remained quiet. He didn't know how, but he could feel it staring at him. He sensed the flavor of concern coming from it. That was nice. Nice to see that something was concerned about his well-being. The other blurs didn't seem to share this feeling. The worry was there, but it was different. It was more of a cautious kind of worry. That was alright though. There was nothing to be worried about. Pretty colors always meant things were okay.

The changeling turned his head to the side to see yet another blur. It wasn't as colorful as the others, but it seemed more familiar somehow. It was black with a slight amount of blue on it. He liked this blur the most of all. He didn't know why. He just felt like he shared some kind of connection with it. He offered another weary smile.

He wanted to watch the pretty blurs shift and move around some more, but he felt way too tired. So very, very tired. He closed his eyes and relaxed back into the soft, but surprisingly firm cloud under him. Soft things were nice. He liked soft things.

Just as quick as the changeling had woken up, he found himself drifting back into sleep. He could play with the pretty colors later. For now, he just wanted to rest.

The changeling opened his eyes again and found himself staring at a wooden ceiling. That was strange. Usually you would expect a jail cell to have a concrete ceiling. And what was this he was covered with? A blanket. Upon further inspection of his surroundings, he found that he was also lying on a couch. The room he was in wasn't a jail cell at all. This looked like somepony's home.

He tried to sit up, but pain shot through his body as he tried to do this causing him to moan slightly. He gave up and sank back into the couch, but not before removing the blanket to take a look at himself. He fully expected to see injuries, but instead he saw that he was covered in bandages and gauze. Why had somepony helped him? Who's house was he in? Why hadn't he been hauled off to a prison for interrogation? He had just been captured by ponies after all. Right? He looked himself over some more. Everything seemed fine, except for one major detail. His eyes widened as a realization shook him to his core.

Switchback was a changeling, Ponyville's only changeling. He had been living in the small town for about two years before Pinkie Pie actually convinced him, as unlikely as it sounds, to go out and try to make friends. He never did figure out how she knew he wasn't a pony even though he always kept a disguise on and rarely left his house. It didn't matter to him though. She was a good friend and never told anypony about him.

It had now been a year since he revealed himself at Matilda and Cranky's wedding with the help of Pinkie Pie. It went a lot better than he expected. Even the princesses themselves accepted him for who he was and not what he was, which was incredible to him. He'd never forget that night.

The only problem was that being a changeling could sometimes attract unwanted attention. It also meant that he didn't really get along with Shining Armor, naturally. Shining scared him half to death so he was glad that he wasn't currently here.

Right now, Switchback was in Fluttershy's kitchen, helping her put up the last of the medicines that they had used on the injured changeling that now lied in the living room. Most of his injuries were cuts and gashes that tore through his exoskeleton, except for his left hoof, which was nearly torn off when Twilight and Armor had found him in the woods. Unfortunately, there was no way that they could repair it and they were forced to amputate, a process that nearly made Switchback lose his lunch all over Fluttershy's floor.

He had just finished putting a box of bandages in a shelf when a loud thud came from the living room. This could only mean one thing. Fluttershy tried to make her way to the doorway that connected to the room that the changeling was in, but Switchback held her back with a gentle hoof on her shoulder.

"Hold up, Flutters," Switchback said, stopping her before she could go any further. "I think I should go in first. I can let him know what's going on so he doesn't freak out when her sees you."

"Oh, good thinking. I would hate to startle him after all he's been through."

There was a yelp of terror that caught both of their attention.

"I'll call when I think he's ready," Switchback informed, taking off into the living room.

The other changeling was breathing heavily, looking at where his left hoof should have been in horror. He didn't even notice Switchback rush in. "Wha wha, ah?!?" He was so panicked that he couldn't make words between his short exasperated breaths.

Switchback approached slowly, careful not to catch him too much by surprise. When the other changeling did notice him though, he desperately tried to back away, still struggling to catch his breath. "Get away," he managed to choke out.

"Easy," Switchback said calmly. "I'm not here to hurt you. I'm a changeling like you, see?" He quickly changed into his unicorn form that he used before the wedding a year ago and then changed back. "Take a deep breath and try to relax."

The other changeling tried to do as he was instructed. He could barely do anything. His lungs burned and his chest ached from the several covered up gashes that caused his bandages to be stained blue. Switchback tried to take a few steps toward him, but he held out his stub. "Stay ri-right ther-re." Not seeing his hoof in front of him as he extended what was left of his leg only served to remind him of what was happening to him.

Switchback sat down where he was. The best thing he could do was not make any sudden movements. This changeling was already jumpy and if he tried to do something he could only hurt himself worse. "You're going to be fine," he assured.

The injured changeling began to calm down as he concluded that whoever this was in front of him, wasn't a threat, surprisingly enough. "Where are we?" he asked as he tried to relax back into the sofa he was laying on. "What happened to the ponies? Did you manage to get rid of them?"

"What do you mean?"

The changeling held a hoof to his head, suppressing the migraine that pulsed into his brain as he tried to remember what had happened. "There were two ponies in the woods. They tried to help me, but why? Why would they do that?"

"It's a long story," Switchback explained. "The short version is that I've been living among them without a disguise and as it turns out, they're not as bad as Chrysalis had us believe."

"But how?" the changeling questioned. "They just accepted you? That cant be right?" He thought for a second. "This is some kind of trick isn't it?"

"No, really it's not," Switchback assured. "One of the friends I've made is here right now. Her name is Fluttershy and I promise she wont hurt you." He looked back and motioned for Fluttershy, who had been peeking in the doorway, to enter.

Fluttershy entered slowly, not wanting to scare the changeling with her presence.

The changeling tensed up, causing his muscles to ache. He wanted to get up, back away and keep his distance from the pegasus mare, but his injuries prevented this. All he could do was watch as she walked towards him. As he did though, he noticed something. He could sense something in the mare, but it wasn't any kind of hostility. She practically radiated with a sort of kindness and compassion that he hadn't felt sense he was very young.

"Fluttershy's the one who helped treat your wounds," Switchback explained.

"Um... hi," Fluttershy said nervously, not sure how to introduce herself. She sat down on the floor next to Switchback, only a foot away from the one they had rescued.

He didn't offer a reply. Instead, he just laid there, motionless, with his eyes fixed on the winged pony. To think that his race had once been convinced that the only way to survive was through the conquering of hers. Maybe Chrysalis was wrong. He felt like he could trust this Fluttershy, which felt good. Being able to trust somepony for the first time in months was refreshing and made him feel like he wasn't alone. And it wasn't like Chrysalis was still alive to prevent him from doing so. He held out his remaining hoof cautiously after a few moments of silence.

Fluttershy smiled and returned the gesture. This was good. They were actually getting somewhere.

"Spike!" Twilight called out as she walked through the large crystal halls of her not-so-humble home. "Spike! Where are you?!" she called out again. Her voice echoed through the castle.

Before the echo could stop, one of the large doors within the hallway opened and Twilight's number one assistant slipped out to greet her before quickly shutting the door behind him. "Hey Twilight," Spike said nervously. "Um... you're back early. I thought you were going out to lunch with Cadence and Shining Armor." There was a loud crashing noise behind him.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Uh... what was that?"

"Nothing," Spike shot back, obviously trying to hide something.

Twilight dismissed the disturbance. Whatever kind of trouble Spike was getting into could wait. There were more important things to take care of. At least, that's what she kept telling herself. She couldn't help but be concerned about what was possibly being damaged behind the door. She shooed the thought away. "I need you to send a letter to Princess Celestia. It's urgent."

"Yeah sure. I can do that," Spike said, all too eager to change the subject. After catching a levitated scroll in his claws, he held it up and blew out fire to send it on its way. "Anything else?" There was another crash that made him jump.

Twilight couldn't ignore this any longer. "What's going on in there?"

Before Spike could come up with something to say to hide the fact that the Cutie Mark Crusaders were... well, crusading, he belched loudly. Green fire shot forward and a scroll materialized in the air. Twilight quickly caught the scroll and began to read.

"What's it say?" Spike asked.

Twilight took a second to finish reading before answering her friend. "Princess Celestia wants me to come to Canterlot for diplomatic matters of some sort."

"Diplomatic matters? What do you mean by that?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but she wants Switchback to come along as well, so I have a few ideas of what this might be leading to." Twilight stopped for a moment to collect her thoughts. "I should start packing. Who knows how long I might have to stay. Do you think you could watch over the castle while I'm gone?"

"Yeah, sure, no problem." Another crash sounded from behind the door. Spike gave an innocent smile. "I should probably go take care of that." He disappeared behind the door.

Instead of heading to her bedroom to start packing, Twilight started for the front door. She needed to get Switchback and tell him about what was going on first. She would also need to let Shining Armor and Cadence know that their visit would be cut short.

Twilight reached Fluttershy's cottage and knocked on the door. After only a few seconds of waiting, the yellow pegasus opened the door and welcomed her in. Almost everypony, with the exception of Shining Armor, was sitting in the living room with the changeling who was now awake. He looked a little uncomfortable though, as if he didn't like all these ponies around him.

Cadence was sitting on one of the sofas to the left of the one that the changeling was lying on and Fluttershy took a seat next to her. Switchback was sitting on the floor just in front of his brethren, doing his best to keep him calm.

"Twilight," Fluttershy began. "This is Crawlway. He's from the same hive as Switchback."

"Hello," Twilight said carefully. "I'm Princess Twilight Sparkle, but you can just call me Twilight if you'd like."

Crawlway didn't offer any form of reply. He just laid on the couch, staring at where his old hoof used to be. His eyes seemed to be concentrating on something a million miles away, or maybe that was just how changeling's eyes were. It was hard to tell. How in Equestria could this happen to him? Why did it happen? He was going to have to live with this for the rest of his life. Life wasn't fair. Why him?

Every sorrowful thought was shown through Crawlway's expression. He didn't seem to be entirely "in the moment."

"Um... Crawlway?" Fluttershy piped up after a few moments of silence. "Could you please tell us what happened to you? It's very important." It really hurt her heart to see him like this. So broken on both the outside and the inside.

Crawlway looked up at Fluttershy and remained silent for some time before looking over at Twilight and then to Cadence. "You're Princesses?" he said in a slightly shaky voice that brought just a little pain to his chest. "Rulers of Equestria? Alicorns?" He had never seen alicorns before so Cadence and Twilight were quite fascinating to him.

"Yes," Twilight answered. "And we'd all very much like to hear what you have to say."

"Not me!" Shining Armor yelled from the kitchen where he was currently sitting in order to avoid the changelings.

"Just ignore him," Cadence said. "He has some problems." She whispered the last part so Armor wouldn't hear.

Crawlway looked down at his missing hoof and then back at the alicorns before him, then back at his hoof and at the alicorns again. Then he looked at Switchback, who gave a nod that signaled for him to go ahead. He sighed tiredly. "What do you want to know?"

"Can you tell us what happened to you?" Twilight asked. "How did you obtain your injuries?"

Once again, Crawlway looked back at his hoof before finally answering. "Competition over food," he answered. "I've acquired most of my scars over the course of a few months, but after searching for food outside of the hive, I was attacked and left for dead. I don't know how long I wandered before you found me."

"You mean the famine is still happening?!" Switchback shot up from the floor. "How is that possible?"

"No one really knows. Things have just been getting worse and worse," Crawlway explained. "After the invasion failed, Chrysalis's generals began questioning her and chaos ensued." Crawlway coughed, which was painful and nearly caused him to gag. He cleared his throat. There was a lot to say. "Everyone started fighting over what was left of the hive, food, territory, even exits were fought over. Chrysalis wasn't able to control it, and with very little progress made, she died. No doubt by the hooves of those who sought to over throw her."

Everypony was silent. What they had all been told was something that none of them could have ever imagined or expected. How in Equestria could they have been so blind to this? Why didn't Chrysalis try and seek aid? How could this happen?

"I'm... I'm so sorry," Twilight said. She didn't much like Chrysalis, but after everything that had happened in the last year, meeting Switchback, becoming friends with him, having study sessions with him, and learning about his race, she had a slightly different view. To think that an entire nation of sorts could go into utter chaos only to have its only form of stability ripped away. It was all a little overwhelming.

"It's alright," Crawlway assured. "Chrysalis had some extreme methods that were frowned upon by many. There was talk of rebellion long before this damn famine. I guess she paid the price for her arrogance, just not in the way any of us expected."

"What happened after that?" Switchback asked. "That invasion was a while back."

Crawlway sighed. "Do you remember Chrysalis's younger sister?"

Switchback was the only one to nod.

This peaked everypony's curiosity. Even Shining Armor was now standing in the doorway, listening to Crawlway's story. It was just enough for him to feel a little sympathy. Only a little though. He still didn't trust this changeling.

"Chrysalis had a sister?" Cadence asked. "Why have we never heard of her?"

"Yes," Crawlway answered. "Much like your monarch's sister, she is much younger and shares some differing ideas. She's never tried to bring about eternal night though."

"Princess Luna was caught in a trap of her own emotional turmoil," Shining Armor scoffed. "How she felt back then can't be held against her and Equestria has forgiven her for her crimes. You'd do good to remember that."

"Forgive me," Crawlway said. "I meant no offense from this." He didn't know who this stallion was, but he irritated him. He didn't waste anymore time on him though. Instead he turned back to the kind ponies who were actually making him feel welcome.

"Her name is Cicadia, Queen Cicadia now actually. She's the only one with a legitimate claim to the throne, but so far she's only been able to secure a small portion of the hive, the royal palace and the district that surrounds it. All remaining territory is known as the husklands. I was a digger there, but I was sent out to find food when we ran into a shortage of able soldiers. You know the rest."

"Is there anyway we could get in contact with Queen Cicadia?" Twilight asked.

"Last I checked, she was still in the palace, trying to provide leadership for the few who were willing to follow her," Crawlway said. "To get to her though, you would have to traverse the husklands, and ponies like you wouldn't survive there."

"Is that a challenge?" Shining Armor asked, but Crawlway didn't pay him any mind, instead choosing to ignore him.

"Why do you want to talk to Princess... I mean Queen Cicadia?" Switchback asked. He had an idea of where this might be going. One part of him liked it, while the other half was terribly scared of what he thought Twilight was implying.

"I wrote a letter to Princess Celestia, asking what the current status of changeling attacks were." She looked to Crawlway. "I suspected that you may have been a casualty from a second invasion attempt. The princess replied with a letter stating that there had been no reported changeling attacks and asked me to join her in Canterlot as soon as possible. She wants me to bring both you and Switchback along."

Both changelings froze. "Canterlot?" they both asked in unison.

"I don't know if that's such a great idea," Switchback said nervously. "I mean, it is the capital of Equestria and where my kind tried to take over. I think ponies seeing a changeling there would lead to some problems."

"Don't worry about that," Twilight said. "We'll have an armed escort. A chariot will be arriving in the morning."

An armed escort. That particularly caught both their attention. Something big was going to happen and it looked like they were going to be in the center of it.

After a few more minutes of discussion, Twilight, Shining Armor, and Cadence said their goodbyes and left. They were going to try and continue on with their original plans as best as they could before heading back to the castle and packing for the trip tomorrow. Switchback and Crawlway on the other hoof would be staying at Fluttershy's.

"Fluttershy, do you mind if I stay the night?" Switchback asked. He had already been planning on helping Fluttershy plant her garden for the rest of the day and figured he might as well stay with Crawlway.

"Why of course," Fluttershy answered. "I would love it if you could stay over. It's been forever since anypony's stayed in the guest bedroom and I know a great recipe for pancakes in the morning."

"Thanks Fluttershy."

For the rest of the day, Crawlway rested on the couch, still trying to recover from what had happened to him. The entire time, he couldn't stop staring at his missing hoof. The most unsettling part of it all was the phantom pain that he would experience from time to time. Every so often, he would doze off before jumping back awake in a cold sweat.

If it hadn't been for how kind these ponies were, Crawlway would really be hating life right now. He didn't know how to feel about all of this though. Many times he would ask himself why they couldn't have just let him die and be done with the pain, and at the same time he would ask himself how he could think something like that. He had after all been given a second chance.

When night finally dawned, neither Switchback nor Crawlway could get to sleep. They both lied awake in their beds thinking about the morning, about Canterlot. Switchback was not a part of the invasion so he had never been to Canterlot, therefore he didn't know exactly what he should expect. Crawlway had been to Canterlot though. He was at that invasion and remembered all to well the great defeat that occurred.

They both wondered what the morning would bring. While Crawlway's head was still clouded and hurt, preventing him from thinking clearly enough, Switchback had a single idea and it scared him half to death. If Princess Celestia wanted them to come to Canterlot, then it had something to do with the hive. He was already afraid of returning to the hive after all these years, and Crawlways description of what had happened only served to embed that fear deeper into his mind. He feared that this is exactly what he would be doing. Equestria was going to try to make contact with the hive and they would need a guide.

Switchback wasn't entirely certain whether his idea was correct or not, but he did know one thing. He would find out exactly what was expected of him in the morning.

Author's Note

The name Cicadia is really just the word cicada with an extra "i" at the end. Here is a link to a list of bug related words for anyone who wants to name a changeling character. I found that you can take several words and change them just slightly to make some interesting changeling names. I hope this helps some of you guys in the future.

Chapter 3: Canterlot - Part 1

Chapter 3

After a long, almost restless night at Fluttershy's cottage, morning finally dawned. With it, came the songs of many birds that nested in the surrounding trees, a fresh set of sun rays, and the smell of pancakes that Switchback was helping Fluttershy make.

Switchback always had a blast when cooking. No matter what it may be, hay fries, cake, or in this case pancakes, Switchback enjoyed it. Cooking was almost like an art, an art that had yet to be discovered by his race, until now. The first time he saw an oven he was more than a little confused as to why a pony would need to heat food up, but once he was able to grasp the basic principles, he practically fell in love with it. He would always be the first to volunteer for helping Pinkie make cupcakes.

Meanwhile, Crawlway sat at the breakfast table looking tired and miserable. He didn't sleep much last night and the soft chair he was sitting in wasn't helping him stay awake very well. Switchback had tried to get him to drink some coffee, a special blend that he and Twilight had figured out wouldn't have negative affects on changelings, but Crawlway turned it down. He even refused to try pancakes.

"Oh come on," Switchback said. "At least try it."

Crawlway looked at the plate in front of him. "No," he said plainly. "I don't like pony food." He instead stuck to feeding off of whatever love was floating around. It was more than enough to sustain him, in fact, Fluttershy's cottage could probably feed a small family for a month.

Switchback sighed, determining that he wasn't going to get anywhere with Crawlway. Before he could sit to eat his own, his attention was caught by a knock at the door. "I'll get it," he said. "It's probably Twilight."

Sure enough, when he opened the door, Twilight was standing there waiting. What startled him though were the two guards that flanked her, one on each side. They held long spears and wore their signature armor that never failed to intimidate Switchback.

"Hi Switchback. Ready to go?" Twilight asked cheerfully.

"Uh, uh... ye-yeah," he was barely able to say as he retreated into himself at the sight of the menacing, armored soldiers. "Just uh, just give us a second."

Twilight made a confused face as Switchback talked to her. Why was he acting so jumpy? She looked at the guards. Each of them was staring Switchback down intensely, as if trying to crack him open with their gazes. She sighed. "Can you please wait in the carriage?"

Without having to be asked twice, the guards left and headed back to the large gold carriage which was parked on the other side of the small creek that ran by Fluttershy's cottage.

Twilight entered the house and was greeted by Fluttershy. "How's Crawlway doing with... you know, with his leg," Twilight asked.

"I'm not sure," Fluttershy answered. "He said he was fine when I asked earlier, but I think he seems a little depressed. That's to be expected though." She looked back at the changeling who was now sleeping with his face down on her table. He was drooling a little and Switchback was trying to wake him up. "I'm worried about him Twilight. He doesn't talk, he doesn't eat, he doesn't look up from the ground at all. I hope he'll be okay."

Twilight put a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder. "He will Fluttershy," she assured. "You did an amazing job patching him up and now he just needs a little time to get adjusted."

"Oh, I hope you're right Twilight."

Twilight felt a little bad for Fluttershy. She knew how much it hurt her to see others in pain, whether they were ponies or not. Her thoughts were interrupted by Switchback, who was helping a limping Crawlway make his way to the door.

"Alright, Twilight," Switchback said. "I think we're ready to go."

It took awhile for Crawlway to get across the front yard, but once he was passed the small bridge out front, it was only a matter of climbing into the carriage, which didn't turn out to be to much of a problem.

The carriage was being pulled by two pegasi guards who didn't take their eyes off of their two changeling passengers for a second. There was no hostilities in any of the guards' stares, just very cautious anger. It was understandable considering all that had happened in Canterlot.

"Thanks again for your help, Fluttershy," Twilight said gratefully after climbing into the chariot. "I'll be sure to write once we get this whole situation sorted out and let you and the other girls know what's going on."

As the carriage took off, Switchback leaned over the back seat and waved goodbye to Fluttershy who returned the gesture. Until they got higher and higher and eventually Fluttershy and her home became just dots in a sea of green forest and rolling hills.

A pegasus mare, two changelings, a princess, and four royal guards. Very interesting. Where had they just left for? Why were they being escorted by soldiers? Who was this other changeling? What was his association with the injured one they had followed? It did not matter. He would pay dearly for taking the side of the enemy.

Who was this pegasus mare? From the looks of it, she had helped and treated the injured one. She too would pay. They would all pay. Their queen should be praised for the order she was bringing them, even if it did cost just a few drops of blood here and there. And yet these changelings not only took the side of the weak, feeble, and unworthy, but now they were conspiring with ponies. Oh they would pay. Yes the price will be heavy. And they would start with this pony friend of theirs.

The carriage flew through the air as fast as the pegasi guards could carry it. Thanks to several different enchantments, they were able to carry it through the sky with relative ease. They still had to be careful though. Pulling a carriage was much different than flying solo. They had to be more gentle, more precise, more controlled than they already were. These two guards did their jobs well.

Twilight, Switchback, and the two other guards sat comfortably in the carriage with no worries at all. At the same time, Crawlway sat leaning against the side of the carriage, lingering halfway between consciousness and the sleep he coveted. At the moment, that was all he wanted. To sleep. One of the guards was explaining something about their destination, but he couldn't make out his voice. He still had a throbbing headache and every muscle in his body ached under his hard black exoskeleton.

"We'll be landing at the medical wing landing pad," the guard explained. Princess Celestia will be there to meet you personally."

"Medical wing?" Switchback asked. "I didn't know the castle had medical wing."

The guard didn't offer a reply, instead staring at Switchback awkwardly for a moment before regaining his composure. "Yes, it's uh- for diplomats and um- other important ponies." He was put a little off by how casually Switchback spoke to him. He turned away towards Twilight again. "Dr. Timely Manner, one of the top ponies in the medical field will be waiting to take the VIP into his care as well."

The rest of the ride went by with relative ease, for Twilight at least. Crawlway was still trying to fall asleep, which was very hard. Switchback was thinking thoroughly over everything that was going to be happening over the next few days. He was going to be in Canterlot. "Alright Switchback. It's just the capital of the country," he thought to himself nervously. "The hive has tried to invade it once and failed, so don't provoke the locals and keep your disguise on at all times and you'll be fine. You'll be fine. Just fine. Just... fine." He began to sweat uncontrollably.

When the actual city, and not just the palace of Canterlot came into view, Switchback could see that there were a lot of ponies walking the streets. There were also a lot of buildings. The whole place had a very vibrant architectural style, but it did little to make Switchback more at ease. By now, he had changed into the red unicorn that Ponyville had known him as for most of his time there, but Crawlway was still too weak to use his magic. With his injuries, it could be days, maybe even weeks before he would be able to change again. This worried Switchback. He hoped for Crawlway's sake that this landing zone was somewhere secluded, where nopony would see them.

Celestia stood in a darkened room that was no bigger than a small bedroom. It didn't even look like it was a part of a royal palace. More like a unmaintained storage room. She was going over a few pictures on a table, each taken at different times and places, but each was very similar. They were all very grim and disturbing. She was glad that she had developed a strong stomach over her years. Literally having the chance to taste every food ever created has that affect on somepony.

Each picture was of a changeling, but none of them were living. Each body was mangled, twisted, or just plain torn to shreds as if by angry timberwolves. One of which actually was torn apart by angry timberwolves. She pitied that one. The fear and pain it must have gone through before... She looked away from the pictures, not wanting to think about that one anymore.

"If this is bothering you," a stallion to her left began. "We can always do this tomorrow."

"No," Celestia said. "We must not delay any longer. The fate of an entire species hangs in the balance."

"If you say so." He went back to examining the photos. This earth pony was a soldier, a part of Equestria's military, but he didn't wear anything that would make that known. Instead of armor, he wore a rough cargo jacket and a side bag that looked worn and tattered as a result of extended use. He also wore a backwards cap that covered his short mane and a pair of overly tinted high quality sunglasses sat just above his eyes. There was no kind of insignias on his apparel though. No patches, no engraved buttons, not a single clue as to him being a guard or soldier. He didn't even carry a visible weapon.

The stallion looked down at his watch. Digital, waterproof, shock and heat resistant, and very comfortable. It even had a built in Geiger counter and self destruct code, although the latter wasn't really necessary. He smiled a little at the time. "I think it's time for you to get to the medical wing. These VIPs that you're so confident in will be arriving any moment now. Unless of course they got mauled on the street by an angry mob."

Celestia gave him an unamused look. "That's not funny. The north really wasn't good to you was it?"

"Snow, snow, more snow, some rocky terrain, and a big angry bear," he answered. "Also, you should definitely invest in a few bear pelt coats. They are super good at keeping you warm. Also, if you're going to go yanking me from land of crazy zebra war lords to killer winter wonderland land like that, you have to at least let me run my mouth a little."

Celestia sighed. "Fair enough."

"Of course it is. Now how about I give you an escort?"

Celestia was very happy to see the carriage touch down. She had not seen Twilight in a long time and it would be good to talk to her while Dr. Timely Manner, who now stood to her left, cared for the changeling until he was well enough to give them the information that they needed, especially after last night. She hadn't slept since waking up to raise the sun the prior morning, which was really taking it's toll, even though it didn't show on the alicorn. Luna actually had to do raise the sun this morning so that Celestia could get the work she needed to get done finished. She spent the entire last night going over photographic and biological evidence. Evidence that suggested that something big was happening in the changeling hive. Something on the level of extinction.

"Princess Celestia," Twilight said with excitement as she exited the golden carriage. "It's good to see you again."

"As it is to see you Princess Twilight," Celestia answered. "I hope you didn't have any trouble getting here."

While Twilight talked to the sun princess, Switchback helped Crawlway climb out of the carriage with the help of the guards who had escorted them. There was already a group of armor clad ponies, who wore special patches on their armor with red medical crosses waiting with a stretcher. When Crawlway was finally laying on it, the ponies began to carry him off slowly toward a large set of open doors. They were followed by several doctors.

"You're the other one, aren't you?" a voice asked Switchback from behind, catching him slightly off guard.

Switchback turned to see a cream colored unicorn with a white mane. He wore a suit vest and a pair of rectangular reading glasses from which his green eyes stared in curiosity. "Um what?" Switchback asked hesitantly.

"Oh, please forgive me," the unicorn apologized. "Where are my manners? My name is Dr. Timely Manner. I was told that there would be two changelings arriving and so far I've only observed one. You're the only other pony who got off the carriage so I assume you are him." He held out his hoof in a welcoming gesture.

Switchback returned it. "Um, uh... yeah. I am a changeling," he replied as he realized that he had his disguise on. "Sorry, but is it alright if I don't change until we get out of the open." He looked around nervously, surveying the skies for passing pegasi. "I don't really feel comfortable here."

"Of course," Dr. Timely assured. We can talk more once you're settled."

Switchback followed the doctor a short ways to a large over sized door that lead into the castle. Twilight and Celestia were discussing something about Crawlway, who was now unconscious on the stretcher. The doctors had given him something for pain that also apparently made you drowsy.

Celestia sighed in grief as she looked over the broken changeling. He looked young, frail, almost innocent. This was all her fault wasn't it? She looked over to see Switchback approach. "Hello, my little changeling."

"Um... hello Princess," Switchback said somewhat uneasily. He hadn't seen either Celestia or Luna since he first met them at the wedding, so it still felt a little weird talking to a ruler of the country that he was technically the enemy of. "How are you?"

"I'm am well," Celestia lied. "There is much for us discuss and not much time. We are going to need your help."

"My help?" Switchback questioned. This was the moment that he had been fearing. It was the moment that he would find out what was expected of him. He was about to be given a responsibility of dire importance and that alone scared him.

"Yes," Celestia confirmed. "Please, come. We can discuss this somewhere more private."

The small party made it's way down the halls of the castle and eventually split as Crawlway was wheeled into a room where he could receive any treatment that they were unable to give him at Fluttershy's cottage. There was a lot of tension in the air. Switchback could feel it. Something really big was happening and stress levels were very high for Celestia. That was very strange. When he first met her, she was almost unreadable, but now, it was as if she wore her heart on her sleeve.

They spent a few more minutes walking down the hall in silence before coming across a set of double doors. They weren't oversized castle doors though. They were just standard sized doors. The room beyond them wasn't all that special either. In the center was a long wood finish table. There were several padded chairs surrounding it. This room looked nothing like the royal court that Switchback had expected. It all looked like a normal conference room, not different from one a company would use to discuss stocks and shares or whatever it was that pony businesses discussed.

When they entered, there were already several ponies waiting for them. Princess Cadence, a royal guard officer that Switchback did not recognize, and Shining Armor all sat at the table patiently. Shining Armor specifically scared Switchback at the moment. He was wearing his full set of Captain's armor, minus the helmet. Just the way he looked made Switchback nervous. This was Canterlot, Shining Armor's home turf. He decided that he would stay with somepony at all times.

Before any introductions could be made, the stallion with the rough apparel jumped up into a chair, causing it to spin, before finally resting his rear hooves up on the table and leaning back to make himself comfortable. "Alright, let's get this show on the road," he said. "I've got some sleep to catch up on."

The other guard frowned. "Who invited this guy?" he asked seeming quite annoyed.

"He has very valuable information to share," Celestia assured the irritated officer. "Agent Chaser will not cause any interruptions. Will you now?"

Chaser rolled his eyes and sat up in his chair normally. "Like I said. Sleep. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner I can get back to it."

Twilight noticed that Celestia had called Chaser 'agent.' Whatever it was that they were going to be discussing must have been big. She had a few ideas of what was going to happen, but she would have to wait to see if she was correct. In the meantime she went ahead and took a seat next to Shining Armor, acting as a buffer between him and Switchback.

Celestia too took a seat at the head of the table and gathered everypony's attention to begin their meeting. "Before we begin," Celestia began. "I'd like to introduce Captain Rampart of the Canterlot Royal Guard and Spook Agent Rogue Chaser of the Equestrian Covert Operations Bureau.

Captain Rampart gave a firm salute. "It's a pleasure to meet all of you. I look forward to serving."

Agent Chaser gave what could barely be considered a wave. "Hey."

"Now that introductions are out of the way, Agent. Would you like to open by presenting the evidence that you've collected over the past months?"

"Gladly," Chaser replied to Celestia happily as he pulled a large file out from under his over coat. He opened it up and passed out small stacks of pictures to everypony. "Here's the situation. Five months ago, these little bastards started showing up dead along our northern border and just outside the crystal mountains," he explained, referring to the mutilated changeling bodies that each photo displayed.

Switchback felt his stomach turn upside down and he started to turn a little pale. He opted out of viewing each photo, letting them pass by him so he didn't have to look. Chaser noticed this.

"I know it's pretty nasty huh? Autopsy reports confirm that the bodies were fresh at the time of their discovery, each only being a few days passed expiration. The most interesting part is that they weren't killed by ponies. Tests say that the wounds matched up with those that are left by changeling style swords and fangs, which means that they were killed by their own kind."

"And this lead you to believe that some kind of conflict was taking place?" Cadence asked, already knowing what was happening.

"Precisely," Chaser answered. "The only problem was that we didn't know diddly squat about what was actually happening. I was then dispatched and deployed to go investigate. After a few weeks of finding dead and wounded changelings, I managed to triangulate where the hive might have been located and eventually found what I believe to be an entrance."

Chaser pulled another photo out of his portfolio and had it passed around the room. In the photo was a large cave, dug into the side of a mountain. There were large pillars that reached from the floor to the roof made from where massive stalagmites and stalactites had connected. The architectural style was almost none existent, instead favoring to let nature take its course with little assistance. There was also large amounts of green webbing hanging from the ceiling and linked between much smaller stalagmites and stalactites.

"There wasn't any kind of posted guard or lookouts. After setting up camp, I observed a few changelings leaving and entering along with one skirmish that broke out. Besides that there wasn't much activity. After getting called back here, I was informed that our newest princess along with our friends from the Crystal Empire might be able to provide further intel thanks to their recent encounter." He looked to Twilight, Cadence, and Shining Armor. "Would any of you care to explain that? How about you Captain Armor? I'm sure you can give us all a good report of the situation."

Shining Armor rubbed the back of his neck. "Actually... I wasn't really paying attention," he reluctantly admitted.

Chaser raised an eyebrow. "Okay then. Moving on to somepony who actually does their job. Princesses? Do either one of you care to share what you've found out?"

"Actually I think I might be able to help out with this part," Switchback said, catching everypony's attention. "I don't mean to suggest that the princesses don't know what they're talking about, it's just that I think I might be able to give some more useful background info. I really don't mean any disrespect, honest."

Everypony gave him a bit of a weird look, wondering why he thought they would think he was being disrespectful. What they didn't know, was that Chrysalis more than likely would have had him executed for suggesting that he was more well informed than royalty. Sure he was friends with Twilight and sort of knew Cadence, but every now and then his changeling cultural habits would show.

Agent Chaser dismissed this as just a strange changeling thing. He put his hooves together and leaned in closer. "Alright my insectoid friend, shoot."

"Um... okay. Where do I start?"

"How about you start at the beginning," Princess Celestia suggested. "What was happening at the hive right before you left?"

Switchback sighed nervously as he tried to recall everything that had happened to him and what he knew of the past situation. Then he began to explain everything he remembered about the hive he once called home.

Dr. Timely looked over his unconscious patient in amazement. Changelings truly were an interesting species and he couldn't wait to discover more about them. Whoever had performed Crawlway's amputation and cleaned his wounds had done so with great precision and a skillful hoof. The cut was very clean, and based on the overall condition of the inner tissue, he could tell that they managed to prevent large amounts of blood loss and keep the wound clean to prevent infection. That was the real killer. The operator could do everything right, but the second this kind of injury got infected, it was game over.

The doctor and the several nurses that assisted him had unwrapped Crawlway's stub to make extra sure that everything had been done correctly and that there would be no complications. There weren't, and they were easily able to set out on their primary goal of bringing him to the medical wing. Their primary goal other than getting him well enough to talk to Celestia that is.

Having time to inspect Crawlway's wounds also allowed for analysis of his anatomy, more specifically how his muscles and exoskeleton all fit together. This wasn't for their own benefit though. Dr. Timely was absolutely fascinated by Crawlway and wanted to learn as much he could from him, but he knew that the creature needed him now more than ever, which is exactly why he was inspecting the tissue underneath the hard exoskeleton.

Dr. Timely had a plan. He had been working on prosthetic limbs and how to improve them almost his entire life as a personal project of sorts when he was not studying the unexplored depths of science or passing on his knowledge to the next great generation of pioneers at the university that he most often found himself in.

He had several models of prosthetic legs that would work just fine for the situation, that is if Crawlway was a normal pony, but he wasn't. Crawlway was a changeling which meant that so many variables were changed. He needed to get a good idea of how a changeling's muscular systems worked before he could even begin repurposing existing leg models, making modifications to prototypes, or even drawing up new designs for entirely new models. There was much work to do, but thankfully, he would not be doing it alone.

There were several highly trained nurses assisting in the research project that at the moment was being kept secret. Celestia had even allowed for some of the most promising students from Canterlot University's medical programs to join Dr. Timely. That was one thing he loved about his job. Science to him was like a form of art. Whether it be medical practices, quantum physics, or something that tried to unravel the mysteries of the arcane world, all science was art. Each discovery was a brush stroke that helped paint a clearer picture of the world on a canvas that was their reality. And he got to pass this knowledge down to the future generations. That was an art of its own as well.

Dr. Timely pulled himself from his thoughts and focused back on the changeling that was still sleeping before him. There was still work to do. And he was a long way from being through. All in all, he couldn't have asked for a better way to spend his next few weeks.

Celestia thought hard about everything she had just been told, while Agent Chaser finished scribbling down notes on a now full notepad.

"So these husklands that you mentioned," Chaser began. "Do you actually have any experience with them, or are you just going off what Crawlway told you?"

"That's just what Crawlway said," Switchback answered. "I haven't been back to the hive since Chrysalis began enforcing marshal law."

"Then we will need to speak with Crawlway once the doctors are done with him," Celestia said. "We must find a way to open a line of communication with Queen Cicadia if we hope to save your hive."

Switchback perked up suddenly. "You mean, you want to help?"

"Yes," Celestia replied. "It is my belief that saving your hive will help to create a lasting peace. Some would see your hive's situation as an opportunity to stamp them out once and for all." She shook her head disapprovingly. "I will not allow such a thing to happen. Genocide is not a crime I wish for Equestria to have on its hooves, nor is it the answer to our problems. Instead, I wish for us to extend a hoof in friendship."

"With further information from Crawlway, we'll be able to formulate a plan that will allow us to do just that," Chaser added. "It's just a matter of waiting for him to wake up."

"Hold on," Shining Armor demanded. "Princess, with all do respect, you do realize that we are referring to a race that just straight up attacked our capital. They could have tried to be friendly. We didn't even know they existed. But no, they just decided to invade us instead. Switchback could be a plant, and for all we know, Crawlway is too!"

Chaser let out a little laugh. "You're kidding right? That has to be the most preposterous claim I've ever heard. So you're saying that a covert changeling operative has been living in close proximity of an alicorn princess for several years without making a move? Plausible, but do you really think that if another operative was sent out that they would rip his leg off?"

"Crawlway could have acquired those injuries in any way," Armor argued. "Whose to say that he didn't get attacked by a bear on his way to his mission?"

"Right, because a creature with wings is really going to walk all the way from the Crystal Mountains to Ponyville. Last time I checked, the only flying bear was being held in a government containment facility."

"Enough," Princess Celestia demanded in a firm tone. "Nothing will get accomplished if we argue amongst ourselves."

Chaser leaned back into his chair. "You got it princess."

"Captain Rampart," Celestia continued. "Begin assembling a team and remain on standby for further orders."

"Yes your highness," Rampart said as he gave a firm salute.

"As for rest of you, you are dismissed. We will meet again tonight once I have consulted my sister on the matter."

Agent Chaser was out of his chair and heading toward the door before Celestia could even finish her sentence. Like he had stated before, he very much wanted to catch up on all the sleep he had missed out on, which was something Switchback thought wouldn't be a bad idea for him to participate in as well. He hadn't slept well the last night. All he was able to think about was the hive that he had abandoned.

Meanwhile, Cadence was trying her best to talk to her husband about everything that was happening. "Come on honey. I know you're angry and you still have the nightmares from Chrysalis being in your head, but you need to let that anger go."

"I'm not angry anymore Cadi," Shining Armor insisted. "I just... just get these bad vibes. That's all. I cant shake the feeling like this is all leading up to something really bad."

"You worry too much," Cadence said. "Everything is going to be fine."

"Cadence is right," Twilight assured. "We'll get this whole changeling thing sorted out and then everything will go back to normal... I hope."

Shining Armor huffed loudly. "I still don't like this. Not one bit."

Captain Rampart watched as everypony vacated the meeting room. He knew what was coming. This was merely the calm before the storm. He just hoped that Princess Twilight was correct. The last thing Equestria needed was a full scale war with the changelings. Sure they were weak now, but a war with them would still bring losses. War always did. The only thing that had kept it from happening earlier on was the famine that Switchback had described in great detail.

He began to go over a list of ponies in his head, making mental notes of those best suited for a diplomatic job. Good, strong warriors, but not too aggressive or overly offensive. He wasn't one hundred percent sold on the idea of establishing contact with the changeling hive, but he would follow the wisdom of Princess Celestia. He checked off several more names from his mental list and then headed for the door.

Author's Note

Finally. After set back after set back and rewrite after rewrite, I finally got this chapter done. I am so sorry it took that long. I hope this is everything you guys hoped for and maybe even more. Anyways, thanks a ton for everyone's support and patience. Stay awesome you guys.

Chapter 3: Canterlot - Part 2

Crawlway opened his eyes and found himself staring at a plain white ceiling. Where was he? Why did he feel all... loopy? He tried to shake the feeling from his head, but found that it only gave him more of a headache.

"Easy friend," a calm voice instructed. "We're not quite to the point where you can go about shaking yourself like that."

Crawlway looked to his right to see one of the doctors from earlier standing next to him. There was also this annoying beeping noise coming from somewhere in the room. He must have been taken to some kind of hospital. The whole room was very bright and conveyed the feeling of being very clean.

"The drugs that we gave you should be wearing off soon. If you feel groggy or drowsy, don't worry. That's perfectly normal. When you begin feeling up to it, you have a few guests who would like to speak to you."

Crawlway simply nodded before closing his eyes again and resting his head back down on his pillow.

"How long do you think he will be?" Celestia asked.

"I'm not entirely sure," Dr. Timely answered. "Could be five minutes, could be an hour. There is still so much that we do not know about his race. It was a risk just giving him the medicines that we did."

Celestia sighed. She hated seeing any creature in so much pain. He looked so broken and helpless. It was almost like looking at any other pony lying on the bed. How? It was all she could keep asking herself. How could she have ignored the signs for so long? How could she have seen them as monsters just like any ignorant child would? It did not matter now. She had to right those wrongs.

About thirty minutes passed before Crawlway finally opened his eyes again. This time everything wasn't blurry. His headache had also subsided and noises no longer echoed through his head.

"How are you feeling?"

Crawlway looked over to the doctor, but didn't answer. His gaze narrowed as he inspected the pony. He was curious, maybe a little too curious for his own good. He was also very excited, although he didn't really show it on the outside. Crawlway could taste it though. There was some worry there as well along with some amazement. Any and all anger or hate was absent. He was able to conclude that the pony wasn't a threat.

"Better," Crawlway said barely above a whisper.

"Do you think you can carry out a conversation?" the doctor asked. "There is somepony here who would like to talk to you."

It was time. Crawlway knew it. He had been waiting for this moment since he found out that they were headed to Canterlot. And now it was happening. He was going to be talking to the Princess of the sun herself. Even after all the time he had spent preparing and going over this moment in his head, he was still nervous.

Crawlway sat up, faced the doctor and nodded. "Bring her in."

The doctor walked out of the small room through the door. In a second he was back, this time walking along side the princess.

"Crawlway," the doctor addressed him. "This is Princess Celestia. She would like to ask you a few questions regarding the nature of your hive and how we might be able to help."

Crawlway felt every muscle in his body tense up as he caught sight of the much larger alicorn. She smiled at him. It was a sad, but hopeful smile. One that said everything was going to alright, even if he knew it wasn't.

"Hello," Celestia said as she took a seat next to the bed. "How are you feeling?"

Having so many constantly ask about how he was doing or if was okay felt weird for Crawlway. He had spent weeks alone in the husklands, the only contact with others being the occasional fight or robbery. The rare few that were friendly usually ended up dead before he could get to know them.

He shook himself from his thoughts. "Fine," he answered bluntly, not even making eye contact with the alicorn.

"That is good. I know it must be hard for you to trust me, but we need your help."

"You say this as if our nations ever truly went to war. We invaded you, and you chose not to take retaliatory measures. It should be you that does not trust me," Crawlway pointed out.

"Yes, I suppose you are correct. That does not change the matter though. I need you to tell me everything about what has happened at your hive. Do you know how we can reach your Queen?"

Crawlway remained silent for a few more moment, carefully inspecting Celestia. Switchback or one of the other princesses had probably already told her what he had explained back at Fluttershy's house, so he figured that there was no use in withholding basic details. He began to explain. He told her about the state that their hive was in, why he was sent out, and how he acquired his injuries. In exchange, Celestia presented him with why exactly she wanted to save his hive.

Later That Evening

The day had been a long, mostly uneventful one for Twilight. She had gotten up at a relatively normal time this morning, taken a carriage to Canterlot, and attended a very important meeting. That was pretty much it though. After that she had settled into a room across the hall from where Shining Armor and Cadence were staying. From there, she had basically just waited for something to happen. She finished reading a book that she was halfway finished with, but besides that there was really nothing else to do except talk to Cadence and her brother about what could possibly happen in the few days.

"If a treaty is signed with the changeling hive," Cadence was explaining. "There will probably be a section representing the Crystal Empire to make sure that we get all the benefits of the peace as well."

"I guess that makes sense," Twilight confirmed. "The Crystal Empire is technically its own sovereign nation despite also being a part of Equestria so it's probably best that you put something in the treaty about it."

"I wonder if the changelings even know about the Crystal Empire," Shining Armor said from across the room as he polished his old helmet. "I mean, it's only been back for a few years now, and if they knew about it, I'm sure they would have tried something by now."

"What do you mean?" Twilight asked as she repositioned on the comfy bed.

"Well, think about. If the changelings are as desperate as we think, then what is keeping them from going after the crystal heart? That thing could probably sustain them for decades."

"Makes sense," Twilight agreed. "Speaking of changelings, can you please go easier on Switchback. I really have no idea how he's taking this hole situation and I don't want to risk upsetting him."

"I agree," Cadence said. "I cant imagine what it's like knowing that your entire race is on a path to extinction. I don't think he needs anymore pressure."

Shining Armor sighed as the two mares looked at him. "About that. I've been doing a little thinking lately and..." Before he could finish his sentence, there was a knock on the door that got all three of their attention.

"It's open," Cadence called out.

The door opened slowly and a guard took a few steps in to the room, cleared his throat, and spoke. "Princess Twilight, Princess Cadence, and Captain Armor. I have been sent to inform you that a dinner has been prepared for you in the dining room. It is requested that you attend as Princess Celestia would like to discuss further business afterwards."

"Okay, thanks," Shining Armor said. "We'll be down in a bit."

The guard nodded before turning to Twilight. "Princess Twilight," he said. "I think you should know that when I tried to relay this information onto your changeling friend, he wouldn't open the door and refused to come out. I believe he may have barricaded himself inside his room."

"That doesn't sound good," Cadence pointed out.

"Seems a little suspicious to me," Shining Armor said.

Twilight sighed, being visibly frustrated with her brother. He was generally a pretty nice guy, but when he decided that he didn't like somepony, the feeling would remain for a while. "He's probably just sad or something. I'll go talk to him."

"I'll come with you," Shining Armor said as he began to stand up.

"No, you'll just make things worse," Twilight replied.

"Twilight's right," Cadence agreed. "You go and talk to him Twilight. Shining and I will meet you down in the dining room when you're ready."

While Shining Armor and Cadence exited the room and walked down the hall, Twilight instead walked to another door identical to the one that lead to her own room and the one that Cadence and Shining were sharing. This door was to the room that Switchback was currently inhabiting.

Twilight hesitated before finally knocking. There was no reply at first, so she tried again.

"I told you I'm not coming out," Switchback's slightly muffled voice sounded from the large oak door.

"Switchback," Twilight called through the door. "It's Twilight. Can I come in."

From behind the door, what sounded like a heavy piece of furniture being pushed across the floor, being accompanied by a terrible screeching noise as it dragged across the hard floor, was heard. Only seconds later, the familiar click of a lock being moved into position told Twilight that either Switchback was trying to keep her out, or he was allowing her access.

She enveloped the door handle, with her magic and tested the lock. Sure enough, the knob completed a full turn and the door opened slowly. Twilight peeked her head in ever so slightly, just enough for her to see a distraught Switchback sitting on the floor, back planted against the side of the large bed in the middle of the room, and his head held low.

"Switchback?" Twilight asked softly, conveying as much concern as her voice could carry. She opened the door some more and took a few steps toward the changeling. "Are you okay?"

Switchback didn't answer for a while, instead favoring to let the silence do the talking after a simple shake of his head. After waiting more than a few moments and eventually seeing Twilight sitting at his side, worried, strong taste, he finally mumbled something incoherent to his alicorn friend.

"I'm sorry, what?" Twilight asked after she was not able to decipher Switchback's faintly expressed words.

"This is all my fault," Switchback repeated, looking up at Twilight through tear filled eyes.

Twilight was caught slightly off guard by this. She felt bad that it was only now that she noticed just how grief stricken he seemed. His fins that grew along the top of his head, much like a pony's mane, were a little off kilter, each leaning in different directions. There were bags under his eyes, and his body shook and jittered just slightly as if very nervous. His breathing also seemed to stagger and trip over the air that it grasped.

"What is?" Twilight asked stupidly, already knowing the answer to her own question.

"Everything," Switchback replied through a shaky breath.

Twilight remained silent, allowing Switchback to let out his feelings, something that she never knew changelings had before she met him. She had always seen his species as an insect, which they were, and a parasite, which they also were. All purely by definition of course. Twilight cursed her knowledge of science for a moment knowing that none of her thoughts would help this situation. She felt ashamed every time she saw Switchback sad. Ashamed when she had found Crawlway in the forest. Ashamed when she thought about her being the princess of friendship and having prejudices against beings with feelings.

"Those changelings are dead because of me. I'm a murderer," Switchback confessed, feeling not an ounce better after hearing it out loud.

"Don't say that," Twilight demanded as she put her hooves in one of Switchback's. "We both know that isn't true."

"But it is!" Switchback proclaimed louder, angry only at himself. "If I wasn't so afraid of everything all the time. If I wasn't so useless, maybe they would all be alive."

"You can't blame yourself for..."

"I already do though!" Switchback yelled, allowing his tears to flow freely. "I didn't seek aid. I didn't ask for help when I had the chance. I just assumed that Chrysalis had fixed everything when an invasion force showed up in Canterlot. I took an easy way out while they all died. I don't deserve to..." He didn't finish. It was Twilight's turn to interrupt him, in the form of a hoof upon his lips.

"Don't you dare say what I think you're about to say," Twilight demanded in a soft and loving, but stern and unmoving tone. Switchback felt a deep sorrow growing in her heart. The taste made him even sadder, but also glad to know that she was there for him. "None of this is your fault."

"Then why does it hurt so badly?"

Twilight didn't answer, instead wrapping a hoof around Switchback and pulling him in close to her embrace, allowing him to cry on her shoulder. "I don't know Switchback," she said as one of her own tears escaped. "I honestly, really don't know." She continued to rub the back of his neck and head as he sobbed on her shoulder.

The two sat there, on the floor for several long minutes. Switchback continued to cry until there were no more tears to cry. And when his eyes were dry, he continued to sit, still wrapped in Twilight's hug. He trembled just slightly as he tried his hardest to calm himself and catch his still shaky breath.

When Twilight was confident that Switchback had let out everything that he needed to, she let him go, keeping her hooves on his shoulders as she stared at him through sincere eyes. "Feel better?" she asked softly.

Switchback nodded. "A little," he answered no able to bring himself to make eye contact with her. How could he. After everything he had done, he didn't feel like he was worthy of that.

Twilight placed a hoof under Switchback's chin and forced him to look at her. "I'm not going to pretend to know how you feel, because to be completely honest, I really don't. But I do know that you have to forgive yourself. It's the only way you can keep moving forward with this."

Switchback just sat in silence for a moment before finally replying. "I guess we should go meet Celestia now, huh?" he said, looking up from the puddle of tears that had formed on the tile floor.

"We could wait a little longer if you need more time," Twilight suggested. "I'm sure everypony would understand if we kept them waiting just a little longer."

"No," Switchback denied. "You're right. I have to keep moving forward with this."

"Okay then."

Twilight walked in to the dinning room followed by a very distraught looking Switchback. Everypony, almost everypony that is, had waited for them to arrive before beginning to eat, as was proper etiquette. In front of everypony was a large salad set in luxurious glass bowls.

"Sorry it took so long," Twilight excused. She didn't elaborate on the matter anymore. The way Switchback was laying his head down on the table like a sad puppy told everypony everything they needed to know.

"It is quite alright Twilight," Celestia assured. "Now that you here we may get down to business. Although some of us have already started." She shot a glare at Agent Chaser who sat to her left, already half-way through a second salad. "Do you even know how rude that is?" she criticized, sounding super annoyed.

Chaser looked up from the bowl with an almost emotionless expression. "Oh give me a break," he said through a mouth full of lettuce. "I haven't had real food since that time you sent me to spy on the dictator of Neighpal. He may have been a power hungry nut, but damn did he know how to find good chefs. Too bad I had to blow up the kitchen, because that was a really nice kitchen."

"Yes, of course you did," Celestia said, seeming even more irritated. "As much as I'd absolutely love to argue with you about how I specifically told you not to blow up the kitchen, but we must get to discussing the matter at hoof."

"Yeah, I know, but you have to admit, it was a lot more fun my way."

Celestia sighed as she wondered to herself exactly why she hadn't court marshaled him yet. Maybe it was because deep down, in that part of her that knew dirty work had to be done, she also knew that she needed him. As much as she hated it, she knew it was true. Only seconds later, after straightening her flawless mane that had some how become just slightly frayed, she recomposed herself into a form that suggested that nothing had been said at all. "Anyways, back on topic," she said. "I have consulted my sister on the matter of the changeling hive and we have both come to the conclusion that it would indeed be best for Equestria to formally offer aid."

Switchback perked his head off the table after hearing this. He seemed very hopeful at that moment.

"We have decided that a party will be sent to locate and establish contact with Queen Cicadia. Given that she accepts our help, we will then work toward the stability of the hive and eventually a full peace treaty." Celestia paused. "We also believe it would be best if Princess Twilight was the one to go in representation of Equestria."

"What!?!" Shining Armor exclaimed, practically jumping out of his chair. "You cant be serious!"

"I am," Celestia began to explain. "According to further intel that I have gathered, the changelings know nothing of her ascension. Cadence, Luna, and myself are all known by the changelings and after the invasion, any of us showing up may be seen as a personal challenge in the eyes of some."

"It's true," Switchback confirmed. "The leader of a city that the hive has tried to conquer showing up on the doorstep is actually a way of calling for a duel."

"Indeed. I am afraid that Twilight is the only choice we have."

Twilight thought about this situation for a moment. She had been a princess for quite some time now and she had finally become comfortable with her role, but she had never acted as a diplomat before, let alone one to a hostile nation before. Of course she was scared, but this had to be done. "I wont let you down Princess," Twilight said confidently.

"Then I'm coming with you," Shining declared.

"No," Celestia said simply. "Cadence's status extends to you as well. Perhaps even more so than Luna and I, for it was your spell that tipped the changeling hive over the edge and into the state that it is currently in. This is also the same for the other element bearers. The presence of all the Elements of Harmony would be seen as a threat."

Shining Armor sat back down and grumbled something to himself.

"Do not worry Captain. Captain Rampart has assembled a team of his best soldiers to act as an escort. I have read each of their files personally to make sure that the best choices were made. Twilight is in good hooves." Celestia then looked to Switchback, who looked less sad than he did scared. "Switchback, as the only one with knowledge of the hive, we would like to ask you to act as a guide. Will you please accept?"

Switchback froze. He knew that this was coming. Had been foreseen it. Had been anticipating it ever since they were called to Canterlot. It had always seemed obvious that it would all lead up to this. So why did it shock him so much? What was causing this to come as such a surprise and make his entire body tense up?

All eyes were fixed on the changeling as one thought raced through his head over and over again, dominating his mind. Switchback took a deep breath and swallowed the lump in his throat. "Yes."

Dear Friends,

As you may already know, Switchback and I have been called to Canterlot for an emergency session with Princess Celestia along with Cadence and Shining Armor. After being filled in, some debate, and I must admit a little boredom, it has been determined that Switchback and I are to be sent to the changeling hive to establish contact with their new queen in hopes that a lasting peace can be established.

Unfortunately, none of you are permitted to accompany me in this effort, although both Switchback and I really do wish you could. According to Princess Celestia, the presence of all the Elements of Harmony could be seen as a threat, even with us being disconnected from the Elements themselves. Something I believe that the changelings are not yet aware of.

I will be heading out first thing tomorrow morning. I consider you all family and love you very much. I hope that all will go smoothly and I will be able to return to you shortly. Wish me luck.

Forever your friend,

-Twilight

"Daaaaaw, isn't that sweet?" the changeling said as he crumbled up the letter and tossed it over his shoulder. "She loves you." His tone was harsh and mocking.

All Fluttershy could do was cry, hoping that her tears would somehow melt the green gooey binds that plastered her against the wall and held her mouth shut. She looked around frantically, wishing, hoping, praying that something would save her. Everywhere she looked though, all she saw was more and more of the green slime covering the inside of her cottage, ensnaring every small and big critter that she lived with. They were all absolutely helpless. All of them, but one.

Under the couch, hiding, frozen in absolute fear, Angel Bunny shook uncontrollably. He looked on at Fluttershy and the seven jet black creatures that held them all hostage.

Fluttershy noticed Angel, but did not say anything. She did not want to bring attention to him. For only a few seconds that seemed like an eternity, the two just stared at each other. Angel recognized the look in the mare's eyes. It was a look that he had seen before only on the Nightmare Night when Princess Luna had first come to visit. It was a look of complete and utter terror. And instantly Angel knew what he had to do. He flinched as one of the creatures grabbed Fluttershy by the neck with a dark, sharp, menacing claw and yanked her forward.

Fluttershy closed her eyes and tried to look away as she still sobbed silently, not able to control the violent shaking of her body.

The changeling smiled a wicked smile as he got real close to her face with his own. Close enough for her to feel his warm breath against her coat and for him to hear her pounding heart. He chuckled evilly. "So scared, so terrified..." he leaned in closer, his muzzle nearly making contact with her ear. "So delicious," he whispered maniacally.

Fluttershy shuddered at the sound of his deeply accented voice. If evil ever had a single voice, it would have been this one. It rang in her head like a scene from a horror movie that just kept replaying over and over again. The changeling tightened his grip around Fluttershy's neck, causing her to gag and struggle to cough through the goo that silenced her. With a long forked tongue he licked the side of her face and then worked down to the side of her neck, slowly taking his time as he tasted his prey. He stayed this way for several long, agonizing second.

Just as Fluttershy thought he would let go, she felt them, row after row of jagged, razor sharp teeth piercing through her skin. Pain shot out into her entire body, soliciting a muffled, but still loud scream of desperation from the young pegasus. As her vision became blurry and failing, and her world faded in and out of black, the last thing she saw was Angel darting across the floor towards the door. Then everything went dark and a coldness embraced her.

Author's Note

Hope you enjoyed. Stay awesome.

Chapter 4: To The Rescue

Chapter 4

Switchback looked down at his breakfast uncomfortably. Everypony else was digging in to their eggs, hash browns, pancakes, and other breakfast foods happily. They may have been going on a super important mission, but that didn't mean that they couldn't eat well. They would need to for the hike that would surely come when they reached the crystal mountains.

"Something wrong?" Chaser asked the changeling looked down at the two eggs that formed the eyes of a smiley face on his plate.

"Oh, uh... no. Nothing wrong." Switchback levitated a fork onto his plate. "I was just thinking. That's all."

Chaser looked into Switchback's eyes and traced where they were leading. Upon doing so, he instantly realized what was making the changeling so uncomfortable. "You know," he began. "If I were you, I'd go and give the chef a piece of my mind."

"I'm sorry?" Switchback asked, acting as if he didn't understand exactly what Chaser was getting at.

Chaser motioned to Switchback's plate. "Eggs. You don't want to eat them, do you?"

Switchback looked down at the eggs in front of him and then back at Chaser, before looking back down and then up again. He then finally found his voice. "Um... no, not really?"

"How can you not like eggs?" one of the royal guards that was accompanying them asked. The group that would be escorting them was also eating breakfast. "They're like the best food ever."

"Especially with ketchup," another pointed out. He received a few strange looks from his fellow guards. "Oh screw off. I can have my own opinions."

"It's the texture isn't it?" Twilight asked from across the table. "When I was a filly, I didn't like eggs because I thought they were too squishy. Weird how that changes."

"No it's just that... you know... uh..."

"Changelings lay eggs," Chaser interrupted before Switchback was able to spit it out.

Twilight stopped chewing and looked down at her own plate and then at Switchback. She now felt really bad. "Oh right. I kinda forgot about that. Sorry."

"It's okay, Twilight," Switchback assured. "It just feels strange, that's all. I know that foods that I've already had, like bread and cake have eggs in them, but eating one that isn't mixed into something just... it's just weird. Especially when you've seen your own kind hatched from an egg before. You know?"

"Yeah, I think I understand how you feel." Twilight dropped her fork and pushed her plate forward. "I think I'm done eating as well."

"Same," one of the guards, a stallion named Talisman, said, mimicking the motions of Twilight as he too gave up on breakfast.

The pony who had made the comment about ketchup immediately began shoveling the left overs into his mouth. "I'm not letting it go to waste," he explained after getting an irritated look from Talisman.

Talisman rolled his eyes and rested his head on his hoof. It was a weird feeling for him to be eating a meal with VIPs instead of standing guard while they ate, but it was Rampart's orders. Something to do with cohesion between them, the princess, and the changeling whom he still found strange and somewhat unsettling. Talisman would follow Rampart into the deepest levels of Tartarus if he was asked to, but sometimes he questioned some of his senior officer's methods.

Forming personal bonds with other ponies was never really Talisman's strong suit, and he failed to see how it would help their mission, but if Rampart deemed it necessary, then he would follow without complaining. Besides, the princess had allowed it so there was no harm in any of it.

Talisman looked back over to his fellow guards ponies. There were four of them in total, including him. He didn't really know any of them all that well, but he knew their names, and they knew his.

First, there was Gunnery Sergeant Jackpot Jr. whom they all called JJ. He was an earth pony who was now sitting to his left, eating any leftovers that remained. He had been stationed in Canterlot longer than any of them, beating Talisman by only a few years. He served as a training supervisor. Across from the table and to the left, sitting on Agent Chaser's right was Staff Sergeant August Sky. He was part of one of the aerial patrols that found the first changeling bodies in the Crystal Mountains. The pony that sat next to him was a unicorn named Brisk. He was a little younger than the others and was only a Private First Class, but he was the only one among them to actually go to an academy. Finally, there was Sergeant Talisman himself. Like August, he too was a pegasus. He had been working alongside Rampart in Canterlot for most of his military career.

"So it works like a chicken? Right?" the mostly quiet Private Brisk asked Switchback, who was explaining the incubation periods of a changeling egg.

"Um, do chickens come from eggs?" Switchback asked, answering the question with one of his own.

Brisk simply nodded in response.

"Then yeah," Switchback confirmed. "It works a lot like chickens."

Before any other conversations about eggs, whether or not they tasted better with ketchup or without, and other things could take place, Captain Rampart walked into the room with a pair of rough, old, sage green saddle bags upon his back. Upon seeing this, Talisman stood from his chair.

"Officer on deck," he said loudly, but more casually than one would expect from a royal guard.

He was followed by his fellow guard ponies who also stood and gave solutes of their own. All were now standing, except for Twilight, Switchback, and of course Chaser, who gave a quick half solute without even standing.

"At ease," Rampart said. "Gentlecolts, it is nearly that time. Grab your gear and meet at the west court yard in five mikes." After finishing, all the guards began to grab saddle bags of their own, each more modern and in better condition than Ramparts old bags. They then began to file out the door. "Your highness, ambassador," Rampart continued, addressing both Twilight and Switchback. "A chariot is being prepared and should be ready in fifteen minutes. If you'd like, I can take you to it now."

"Yes, thank you," Twilight said as she got up and began to head toward the door, following Rampart with Switchback close behind.

"Have fun you crazy kids," Chaser called out from behind.

"Oh good," Rampart said. "You've decided that you aren't coming after all."

"Yep, I have other things to do today," Chaser explained. "Like here in a few minutes, Luna and I are going to replace all of Celestia's shampoo with whipped cream. It's going to be great. I even have this special stash that I've been saving hidden under one of the tiles in the grand hall. The stuff is like five years past its expiration date."

All three looked at Chaser with gaping mouths and shocked expressions.

"What?"

Meanwhile

It was early morning in Ponyville. The sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon and not a single pony was up yet, but there was a rabbit.

Angel panted heavily as he ran through the streets as fast as his little legs could carry him. His lungs burned and joints ached, begging for rest, but he couldn't stop running. Had to keep running. Couldn't stop, had to find help. It had taken him only fifteen minutes to get to town, but this was not where he would find the help that he so desperately needed. No, he did not have time to scour the small town in search of an early bird pony that he would barely be able to communicate with. There was only one place where he would find his help. Sweet Apple Acres.

Angel continued running, no matter how much it hurt, no matter how much his body protested. He kept going until he saw the entrance to the farm where the Apples had no doubt already gotten up and began their early morning chores for the day.

After running nonstop for miles, Angel stopped at the entrance of the apple orchard were he would find his salvation. He placed one of his little paws on the gateway post with his other against his chest as he desperately tried to catch his breath. When he could finally breath somewhat normally, he looked around to survey farm. There was nopony. From where he was, the fields appeared to be empty. There was nopony around the barn either. The must have still been in the house. They had to be in the house. They just had to be.

He ran down the path leading to the house as fast as he could, cutting corners and straying off into the grass to save time. When he was at the door, he began to pound on it as hard as he could with both paws clenched in an attempt to get somepony's attention.

The door flung open and Angel was flung from the porch and into the dirt below.

"Hello?" Apple Jack said as she answered the door, not even noticing the small white rabbit until he started hopping into the air as high as only a rabbit could and began flailing his arms. "Angel?"

Angel ran to AJ and grabbed her hoof and began yanking with one paw and pointing away with the other. As he did this, he made all manners of high pitched squeaks and rabbit noises at a rapid pace.

Apple Jack raised her hoof away from Angel and looked at him in confusion. "Slow down there little critter. I don't follow."

Angel frowned. He didn't have time for this. There would have to be a better way to breach the language barrier other than yelling and trying to play charades. He looked passed AJ and into the house. Then an idea struck him and he ran straight through the doorway.

He knew how to get AJ to follow him. He would need to find Winona. He always thought her to be somewhat of a stupid dog, but right at that moment she just might have been the thing that saved Fluttershy's life.

Sure enough, Winona was sitting right next to the breakfast table eating out of a small chrome dog dish. Angel ran to her and began jumping in front of her, but when she didn't notice him, he grabbed her by the ear and forced her to look at him. Once he had her attention, he relayed his message. "Changelings! Fluttershy is in trouble! Need help!"

Winona perked up at what Angel had just told her. "You're sure?" she asked with a little bit of doubt.

"Do I look like I'm joking?!?" Angel yelled desperately. "Grab AJ and Big Mac, we'll need them both, and get them to follow you to our place! Please!"

Winona could tell this wasn't a joke and quickly grabbed Angel and flipped him onto her back, before she began barking loudly at AJ and Big Mac.

"What is it girl?" Big Mac asked from his seat at the table. "What's going?"

Winona just kept barking and even gnawed on one of AJ's legs. She then rushed out the door and stood on the porch, looking back and continuing to bark loudly.

"What's that? Fluttershy's in trouble?"

Angel nodded at AJ and Big Mac who was also now standing in the doorway. He had no clue as to how AJ was able to sort of understand the dog, but she did and that was a good thing. The faster they got to Fluttershy's cottage, the better. Soon Angel, Winona, Apple Jack, and the stallion that Angel was sure would be able to fight off anything, Big Mac, took off in the direction of the farm entrance, and then to the edge of the Everfree forest.

Apple Jack knocked on Fluttershy's front door several times and waited only a moment before repeating this process. "Fluttershy, you in there? Angel came and got us." There was no reply AJ became more and more worried about what disaster could possibly be taking place. "We're coming in Fluttershy."

Before AJ even had a chance to reach for the door handle, the door slowly opened to reveal and entirely unscathed, not so in danger Fluttershy. The yellow pegasus stood there for a second, examining the two ponies, dog, and rabbit before her. Her eyes met those of Angel and she smile happily.

Angel responded to this smile with a loud, rabid hiss, characteristic of a vampony being burned by sunlight.

"Oh, Angel," Fluttershy began, "I'm so glad your safe. You must have had such terrible nightmare to have run off like that. I've been looking everywhere for you, but I never imagined that you'd actually run all the way to Sweet Apple Acres. Thank you so much for bringing him home, Apple Jack."

"Oh it's no trouble, really," Apple Jack said, "but, uh, is there... you know, something going on? Angel here seemed mighty shaken up when he got to the farm."

"Eeyup," Big Mac said, confirming what AJ had just stated.

"Nothing that I can think of," Fluttershy answered. "He must have had a nightmare. When he was very young, he used to have nightmares and I would have to sing him back to sleep with a lullaby."

Angel couldn't believe what he was hearing. Was this actually Fluttershy? Had he really imagined it all? He remembered those nightmares from all those years ago. He remembered those lullabies as well. Had could a changeling replacement possibly know all of that? There was one way of knowing if what had happened was really real or not.

Angel jumped off of Winona, who was now looking at him like he was mad, and darted passed Fluttershy and into the house. What he saw only confirmed everything. Nothing in the house was disturbed. The small birds that often sat in their cages, sung softly to each other. The green sticky substance that had held all of the others down in place was gone. The furniture, which he thought had been tossed and turned over during the attack, sat in its usual position. It was as if nothing had ever happened at all.

The small rabbit looked back at Fluttershy and then back at the room around him. This was his home, and nothing bad had happened to it. An instant and over powering sadness all of a sudden came over Angel all of a sudden. He began to realize just how much in his life he had taken for granted. He looked back at Fluttershy for a moment, before running up and hugging Fluttershy's hoof.

Fluttershy, who had been talking with Apple Jack and Big Mac while Angel was inspecting the house, leaned down and returned the loving gesture.

"Well, we best be getting back," Apple Jack said. "It was good talking to you Fluttershy. I'm glad that is was a false alarm and that you didn't fall down the stairs or something."

With that, the ponies said their goodbyes and Fluttershy gently closed the door. She then turned around and smiled at Angel as he sat in the middle of the floor. The smile was filled with sharp, jagged teeth and long menacing fangs.

Angel's eyes widened as he felt his heart drop into his stomach. How could he have actually believed that he was safe?

There were several bright green flashes as "Fluttershy" turned into a jet black creature, the likes of which would give any nightmare a bad dream. Reality shattered around the house like glass as an illusion spell was deactivated, revealing the ransacked state of the cottage and the green stringy webs that bound so many animals to the walls and ceiling. They were now all in large, mostly translucent pods.

Within seconds, Angel found himself pinned to a wall by a black claw. The creature that held him in place looked angry, angrier than when the house was first stormed. "You should have just stayed put," the monster said in his deathly voice.

The front door opened and two more monsters walked in. They each carried an unconscious pony on their backs. One was a large red stallion and the other was an orange mare who wore an old Stetson hat.

Author's Note

Wasn't planning on releasing another chapter anytime soon, but I got bored and didn't feel like working on any of my other projects. So here you go you beautiful people you. Hope you enjoyed it. I know I did.

Chapter 6: Arrival

The golden chariots soared through the sky high above the clouds that weaved around the mountain tops. Switchback had never seen the Crystal Mountains from the sky before. They were absolutely massive, but everything that was going on, coupled with their great height at the moment, made them seem small and insignificant.

Switchback looked down and watched as the mountains slowly moved out of his field of vision. He didn't like this. He didn't like this one bit. Everything was coming back to him, the memories, the stress of his final days in the hive. He could feel everything building up inside of him. It all made him feel a little nauseous, but most of all he felt scared.

He was so terribly afraid of what he would find when they entered the hive, of what would happen in the next twenty four hours. Part of him just wanted to jump out of the chariot and fly to somewhere he could hide, where nopony would ever find him, but he had to do this. He had to be brave. He had failed his people once and probably caused more damage than what would have originally come. He had to right this wrong. He had to redeem himself, but not for the sake of redemption.

"We'll be landing shortly," one of the pegasi who pulled the chariot called out, pulling Switchback from his thoughts.

Soon, the group dropped below the cloud layer. They were now level with where the snow began to meet the tips of the mountains. This too brought memories back for Switchback. The snow was a vital part of his escape. He remembered eating it when he was thirsty, hiding in it when groups loyal to Chrysalis passed, bleeding on it when he had been injured.

"Are you coming, Ambassador?" Rampart asked.

Switchback was so entranced by his thoughts that he didn't even realize that they had landed minutes earlier. He looked around to see that they were now in a large camp, set in a flat area. There were tents everywhere, with even more guards wondering to and fro. Each tent was marked with a large medical cross and was filled with what appeared to be medical equipment.

"Y-yeah," Switchback answered. "I'm on my way." He climbed out of the chariot and started trotting to catch up with the rest of the group. He stopped when his attention was caught by another chariot that was landing. Several royal guards filed out, but instead of carrying a spear or sword, each was working to carry stretchers. On the stretchers were changelings.

"I know it's a lot to take in," Rampart said, "but if we stop to look at things every five seconds, we wont get anywhere."

"Right," Switchback said as he again began to follow the soldier. "What's going on here? I thought we were going to the hive."

"We are," Rampart assured, "but first we're stopping here. The hive entrance is only about a mile away, so we'll hoof it the rest of the way once we finish up here."

"And where exactly is here? What is all of this?" Switchback asked.

"This is a small outpost that was set up last night," Rampart explained as they walked. "A field hospital has been established to treat any wounded changelings found. From the looks of it, there are quite a lot."

"This was all set up in a single night?" Switchback questioned, clearly amazed that such a large base could be constructed in such a short time. The hospital wasn't the only thing there. Several large watch towers had been constructed from wood. The sheer amount of medical equipment that was on site was impressive. It looked like it would have taken days to get it all put together and functioning and yet the royal guards had managed to get it all done in a single night.

"Yes," Rampart answered. "The Royal Guard doesn't just take up responsibilities related to fighting. We also respond to disasters. Training for such events has made creating a field hospital like this one quite easy."

"I see," Switchback said as he walked along side Rampart.

The camp was very well organized, the tents forming a giant U with a landing pad big enough for multiple chariots to come and go in the empty space. Switchback and Rampart entered one of these tents where they found the rest of their group. Talisman was giving Twilight instructions on how exactly they would go about protecting her and Switchback.

"... and if we get ambushed at any point in time, do not run off unless instructed," Talisman finished.

Twilight nodded in confirmation. "Understood."

"Good." Talisman looked to Rampart and Switchback. He saluted his superior officer before giving a short report. "I just filled the Princess in on what to do in the case of an emergency. She's completely up to speed, sir."

"Excellent," Rampart stated. "Go ahead and give Switchback here the same orientation. I'm going to make last second preparations with the rest of the group."

As Talisman went over the same procedures with Switchback, Rampart walked over to August, Jackpot, and Brisk.

Brisk, being the quiet unicorn that he was, stood and listened as August and Jackpot debated exactly what they thought they would find when they entered the hive for the first time. Consequently, he was the first to notice Rampart and the first to snap to attention. Both August and Jackpot followed when they too noticed their Captain.

"At ease," Rampart said. "From this point on you can be more casual if you like. It'll help ease some of the tension in the air. Anyways, go ahead and get your travel packs ready. Then meet me outside in ten minutes." He then walked off without even dismissing the three guards.

After each member of the escort geared up and prepared themselves for what would come next, everypony met outside just off of the landing area. This was it. This was the moment that they had all been waiting for. It was finally time to head out to the hive and start this rodeo.

"Alright," Rampart said as he stood before the party. "You're all probably expecting me to say something inspirational or even motivational... well the truth is that I don't really know anything about giving speeches. So I will just say this. Everything is riding on what we accomplish here today. It is a lot of pressure and even scary, but I have full confidence in everyone of your abilities. I want to make this quick and clean. We go in, find Queen Cicadia, stay as long as we need to before leaving, hopefully with a new ally. So let's go do this."

Twilight, Switchback, and their escorts stood before the massive opening in the side of the mountain. The darkness made it seem as if the path within went on forever.

"I was expecting it to be bigger," August joked, coaxing slight smiles from everypony else.

The group stood in the fresh sunlight, staring into the cave, for a few moments before Jackpot finally broke the silence. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get this over with."

"Agreed," Rampart said. "Brisk, light up and take point... and stay ready for anything."

Brisk nodded confidently as he activated a light spell and took several steps forward toward the entrance to the hive. He stopped short before looking out into the cave. He gulped loudly, knowing full well just how nervous he was. There was no going back though. This was it. He regained his composure and headed in. He was followed by Talisman, then Rampart, Twilight and Switchback, and then finally Jackpot and August. One by one, they began their adventure down the rabbit hole.

Agent Rogue Chaser, arguably the most dangerous pony in all of Equestria and self-proclaimed adventuring badass, laid on a bed staring at the ceiling. After so many missions back to back to back, he had become extremely tired. There were times that he wondered if he was operating to his full potential, even questioning some of his decisions at times.

He was certain after finally getting to come back to Canterlot for a while, he would be sleeping through the days like a thestral. He had gotten more sleep that day than he usually did in a night, but after waking up in the middle of a relatively uneventful dream, he found himself feeling well rested and ready to take on the world.

Unfortunately though, there was really nothing for him to do. He had done some sit ups and about two hundred push ups to pass the time, but soon found himself longing for something else to do, something tense, something that would give him purpose again.

He finally stopped counting the panels on the ceiling, there were about eighty six in this room by the way, and looked over to his right, hoping to find a giant fire bomb of death set to go off in thirty seconds, the source of a deadly zombie virus, or even just a simple death laser pointed at him, laying on the other pillow. Alas though, there was nothing exciting there. Just empty space.

Chaser looked back up at the ceiling and sighed. "I'm bored."

Author's Note

So here we are. We've finally made it to the hive. Get ready, because the next chapter is where shit gets real. I hope to have it out before the end of this week.

Chapter 7: June Bug

The group wondered through the darkness for several minutes, with nothing but the light from the horns of the unicorns of the party to guide them. It was relatively slow going. They had spread out some, creating a formation around Twilight and Switchback. Rampart stayed close to them at all times, making extra sure that they were both safe.

"Quiet," Talisman said, causing everypony to stop. "I heard something."

"Sorry, sorry, that was me," Brisk said. "I think I stepped on a twig."

"I heard it too," August said. "It sounded more like you stepped on a potato chip."

Jackpot, who was brining up the rear of the group raised an eyebrow. "Really, August? A potato chip? What would potato chips be doing in a place like this?"

"I don't know," August answered. "That's just what it sounded like to me. It's not like there was anything else for me to compare it to and..."

As August explained himself to his comrades, Brisk looked down at his hooves. He couldn't really tell what he was stepping in until he held his head down lower to cast more light on the ground. The shadowy face of a dead changeling husk was revealed to him. It was laying on its back and his own hoof was driving through its chest. "Oh crap," he nearly yelled as he jumped back, catching everypony's attention.

"What is it Private?" Rampart asked after noticing Brisk's alarm.

"There's a body."

"Already?" August questioned. "That cant be right. The husklands are supposed to be deeper into the hive. We haven't been walking for that long, have we?"

"At least we know that we're in the right place," Jackpot pointed out. "If there's a changeling body hear it means that this is the hive, right?"

"Guys," Talisman called out.

"I think we should keep moving," Rampart recommended. "One body doesn't mean that this is the hive, but Chaser seemed pretty sure that this was it. We should keep moving."

"I agree," Jackpot concurred.

"Guys!" Talisman called out again, this time successfully gaining the attention of his comrades.

"What is it Sergea..." He didn't finish. "Dear Celestia."

Talisman had lit a flare while everypony was debating and had tossed it ahead to get a better look at what they would be walking into. In doing so, he revealed the scene of a massacre. Several, dark grey changelings lay on the ground, their dry mouths open and their eye sockets empty, each staring on into oblivion. The red glow of the flare flickered off the corpses, casting long, dark shadows through the cave.

The husks were everywhere, but most disturbing of all was the way that they had been arranged. Many were strewn around randomly, as was to be expected from the aftermath of a battle, but many, many more had been lined up along one of the walls of the cave. Side by side, each lay in a similar position on their stomachs as if having fallen forward upon their deaths. The row of dead went on for what seemed like forever, disappearing into the darkness at the edge of the flare's light.

"What happened here?" Brisk asked nopony in particular.

The group walked on for a moment, stepping over body after body as they did, completely silent.

"This is so screwed up!" Jackpot said, being the one to break the silence.

"No discarded swords, no armor, no nothing," August pointed out. "What kind of battle was this?"

"No, no," Talisman said as he looked over the row of corpses. "Look at the way they're all lined up. Look at their wounds. Each one was killed by a slit throat. This wasn't a battle. This was an execution." He looked around for a moment, desperately trying to find answers, but none could be found. Finally he looked to Switchback. "Switchback, do you know anything about this?"

Switchback didn't answer. He was paralyzed in place at the sight of this horrific scene. He stood frozen with eyes wide and a look of absolute terror. Tears welled up, threatening to escape and run down the sides of his face.

"Switchback, are you alright?" Twilight asked the changeling. She too was visibly shaken.

Switchback did not answer. Instead, he stood there without moving, without blinking. He shook in fear as he just stood there, silent, looking on at the corpses. The sight had ensnared his mind taking him back to when it all happened.

Three Years Ago

A large group of changeling marched along through the dimly lit cave that they now found themselves in. It had taken them months to get as far as they now were, but after all their work to get everyone together and escape they were finally almost free. There was a little over fifty of them, each one from different parts of the hive, all united in an effort to leave their crumbling world.

The famine had begun long ago. Each changeling did their best to save as much food as possible, but after their stockpiles of love began to run dry, starvation quickly set in. They needed more love, or else they would go extinct. Unfortunately, sending out their scouts to the pony civilizations to bring back small amounts of love at a time was not going to cut it anymore. They needed more than just the standard barrels that they were used to getting. They needed to suck as much out of the ponies whom they had always relied on as possible.

At first, it was only ever one or two ponies who were ever brought into the hive, but eventually it began to become more. And they weren't just feeding on them, erasing their memories, and letting them go. It got to the point where they actually started sucking them dry, before putting the weak and withered ponies into slave labor where they eventually died.

This was the reason for the exodus of these fifty some changelings. They refused to resort to these methods. They refused to let themselves turn into monsters. Instead, they sought hope, hope that they could live among ponies and save their hive. There were many who disagreed with them though, and they knew that if they were caught "conspiring" with what was now their "enemy" the price would be heavy.

Switchback walked in the middle of the large group with his head held low. He placed a hoof on his abdomen as he heard a rumbling noise come from that area. "It isn't much longer," he kept telling himself. "We're almost there." He looked over to the changeling to his left. She seemed just about as depressed as anyone else in the group.

After a few more minutes of walking, the group suddenly stopped, causing more than a few changeling to bump into the rears of those in front of them. There was a scream and then chaos ensued. Everyone ran in different directions, scattering and trying to get away from whatever had spooked them.

"They've found us!" someone yelled from within the scramble of changelings. The sound of swords clashing and fighting could be heard as the fighters who had been protecting the group engaged their attackers.

Switchback looked around frantically, catching several glimpses of the changelings that had ambushed them. Each wore the signature blue armor of Chrysalis' private army. They had been caught. It was all over now and they had been so close. The most startling detail of this, to Switchback, was the absence of a certain female changeling.

Switchback's eyes widened in fear even more than they already were. Where was she? She had been right next to him only a second ago. How could he have lost her so easily? He quickly began running through the mass panic, just as everyone else was. "June!" he yelled over the hysterical sounds of war. "June!"

He kept running, kept searching for her, kept weaving around and bumping into whoever happened to be in his way. He had to find June. Switchback's efforts were cut short though when he felt a heavy blow strike him in the back of the head. He fell to the ground with a thud as everything around him blurred in and out of darkness.

Despite being mostly blind, Switchback managed to start crawling. He used all his strength and his will to go on, coupled with the adrenaline that now pulsed through his body, to get away from the chaos. He needed a second to recover before he could go back and find June.

The world continued to fade in and out of black. He crawled along the cold floor with every bit of his determination. All noise became muffled and his ears rung loudly. His limbs felt weak and he soon found himself slipping into the void of unconsciousness.

"No, no," he thought. "Got to... stay... awake. Got to find... June." His determination alone was not enough and just as quickly as the chaos had begun, Switchback was embraced by darkness and sleep.

As he struggled to stay aware of his surrounding, Switchback found himself in a limbo state, between the sleep that his aching, hungry body craved, and the consciousness that he was attempting to maintain. It was a strange feeling. At times, he didn't know if he was awake and if what was happening was real or if he was dreaming.

"But sir," he could hear a voice protesting as he caught short glimpses of reality through his failing vision. "We can't do this. It isn't right."

"They have all defied the Queen, and all who defy the Queen are traitors," a much firmer changeling voice responded. "Therefore, each and everyone of them must be punished as traitors."

Switchback was not entirely sure if what he was hearing was real or not. His brain could not register anything correctly as pain shot through his head, no doubt from the hit he had taken. He did notice though that the screaming and yelling had stopped though, if this was real, it meant that the battle had ended while he was out.

"Y-yes, General," one of the voices replied, stuttering in nervousness. "By your order."

This was all Switchback managed to pick up before slipping back into rest. When he did finally wake up fully, his head pounded in pain and his limps still shook with what was left of his adrenaline.

He looked around in the darkness, seeing that he was alone. What had happened? Where was everyone? Had they left him behind. He gasped in horror as he noticed the darkened clumps on the floor. He had not seen them at first because of the dull lighting, but upon approaching, he was utterly shocked to see that these clumps were actually bodies.

Tears welled up in Switchback's eyes as he looked on at the gruesome sight. Everyone of the changelings that he had been walking with what had only seemed like moments ago laid before him, their twisted and lifeless bodies strewn out on the floor.

Switchback began walking through the field of corpses, looking at each as he passed, fearing what he may find. He eventually found himself in a full sprint, heading the direction that he had crawled from during the battle. "There have to be survivors, there just have to be," he repeatedly told himself, panicking more and more with every fresh body he saw.

"Hello?" Switchback said loudly. His voice echoed through the cave, but there was no response. The lack of a response only panicked the changeling more as he continued through the blood bath.

He stopped and stared on, his heart plummeting into the depths of his stomach as he came to ground zero of the battle, where it had all begun. He had already seen so many bodies already and if it wasn't for the fact that he had no eaten in days, he would have already thrown up, but this, what now laid before him, nearly made him gag on his own breath.

There were more bodies, but these ones were different. They made up a majority of the group. Each body lay next to another in a long line, side by side along one of the walls of the cave, execution style. The flies had not yet made it to them, but the smell of freshly dead flesh was a pungent miasma that assaulted Switchback's senses like a hurricane.

This scene could only mean one thing, and Switchback knew it. There were no survivors but him. He was all that was left. Still, he denied this, carrying on in search of June. He refused to give up until he found her, even though he feared what exactly he would find. He kept searching though, his heart racing as he ran through passed body after body.

Finally, he found her. "No, no, no, no, no," kept saying as he saw her motionless body lying on the floor. He ran to her and held her in his hooves. "No, please, no," he said again. His greatest nightmares were all becoming a reality before him.

Switchback put a hoof to her chest, feeling a very faint 'dunt... dunt' with many seconds in between each beat. June was still alive, but only barely. She was bleeding immensely from the right side of her abdomen which had been torn open by a strike from a sword.

Switchback covered the wound with his hoof and pushed down, trying his best to stop the bleeding. He looked around the cave frantically, hoping, praying that someone else who could help him was alive. "Someone help!" he yelled. Yet again, his voice echoed through the cave with no reply.

He looked back down after feeling slight movement in his hooves. "June?" he said, hoping that he would see her okay.

June opened her eyes and gave a sad smile before coughing. "Switchback?" she said in a weak voice that was just above a whisper. "I'm so scared." Tears were welling up in her own eyes from the pain that seared her body. She shook just slightly in Switchback's hooves.

"Hang on June," Switchback said. "I'm going to get you help. You're going to be okay."

"No, Switchback," June replied with a cough. "I'm finished. It's over for me." Her tears now began to flow freely as she gave into the pain.

"Please don't say that," Switchback said, his heart dropping even deeper into his sick stomach. "You can't die now. I can get you out of here. I can fix this," he kept irrationally insisting. June's injuries were far to serious for him to fix, but in his desperation, all he could think about was how much he wanted her to be with him and how much he wanted to be with her.

"We both know that's not going to happen, Switchback," June said. "Please just be here with me. I don't want to die alone." She coughed again, choking back her tears. "I'm just... not..."

"Please don't go," Switchback demanded. "I can't do this without you. I don't want to do this without you." Switchback paused. It was time that he told her how he felt, before he forever lost the chance to do so. "June," he started again. "I-I love..."

He was interrupted when June's lips met his own. At first, Switchback was filled with shock, before relaxing just slightly, closing his eyes and returning the kiss. The two stayed this way for more than an extended moment, each crying openly and letting it all out, knowing full and well that this was probably the last time that they would ever see each other. A small puddle grew beneath them as their tears fell from their faces and mixed together on the ground.

Finally, and inevitably, their kiss was broken as June's head fell back and her whole body went limp.

"June?" Switchback shook her lightly, desperately trying to get her to wake up. "June? JUNE!!!" He panicked as he found that there was no heart beat to be found. He shook her again, this time more violently. "JUNE PLEASE!!!"

He put her down on the ground and began pushing down on her chest. "No, no, no, no, no!" he thought frantically to himself as he continued his attempts at restarting her heart. It was all in vain though. No matter what he did, June would not wake up, and Switchback soon found himself just pounding on June's chest like a drum as his entire world fell apart yet again.

Switchback held her body close, weeping loudly. He opened his mouth, but no words ever came. Instead the sounds of agony poured from him before he let out loud cry of grief into the air. June was dead, gone forever. And there was nothing he could do about it.

Present

"Switchback, do you know anything about this?" Talisman asked as he investigated the bodies.

When the only living changeling among them did not answer, Twilight gave it a try, putting a hoof on his shoulder to try and get his attention. "Switchback, are you alright?"

For several long seconds, Switchback remained silent, not answering, before blinking away the water in his eyes that never got a chance to escape. "Y-yeah, I'm fine. I just don't like it here," he finally answered. "And no, I don't know anything about this, let's... let's just go." He took several steps forward passing his escorts as he continued through the caves.

Talisman shot a worried look to Twilight. It was obvious to him that seeing so many of his own kind in this state was having a negative affect on Switchback. It must have been obvious to Twilight as well, because she simply replied with a nod that said "I'll take care of it."

As disturbing as this all was, the group had to move on. There was still a job to be done.

The guards caught up with Switchback who didn't really need as much protection as Twilight, being a changeling and blending in an all, but they decided it would be best if they remained close.

Twilight rejoined Switchback and walked beside him. "Switchback, are you sure that you're okay?" she asked worriedly.

Switchback sighed. "No, I'm not sure," he replied with a heavy heart, "but we have to keep going. We didn't come here just to get scared away, right?" He tried to seem more relaxed and less worried, but the slight shudders of his body that Twilight was also displaying; she was also doing a better job of hiding it, told everypony otherwise.

"Well if you ever need to stop just say something," Twilight instructed. "I'd be more than glad to talk."

"Thank you, Twilight. I really appreciate it."

The group moved on through the darkness, still following Brisk's faint glowing horn. They moved slowly, cautiously, watching every shadow for where an attacker could be waiting in ambush. They didn't get far though. Even with everything around them, with everything that they had seen that supported the theory that this was the hive, they somehow managed to hit an obstacle that completely impeded their progress.

They had hit a dead end.

Author's Note

Probably going to take a short break, unless I really feel like writing. The Division comes out on the 8th of this month (Tuesday) and I've been waiting for forever to get to play the full game (I've also gotten addicted to World of Tanks). That means I will probably not be writing as much for the next few weeks.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this. Stay awesome.

Chapter 8: Encounter

Shining Armor sat impatiently in the small room as he waited for the "doctor" to finish his analysis. The others had thought him crazy. Some told him he was just stressed and gave him pills to help him sleep. He refused to accept this though. He had heard her. He knew he had. That bitch was still in his head and he wouldn't rest until she was out.

Fortunately, one pony was willing to take him in. It had been a long several hours since he heard the voice, but he had finally found someone who didn't think he was going insane. Dr. Cognitive Function.

"And what were the exact words you heard, Mr. Armor?" the unicorn asked his patient.

Shining Armor sighed before answering. "She said, "Now it begins.""

Dr. Function wrote down a few more notes on his clipboard. "And you say you've also been having consistent nightmares as well?"

"Yes, Doc, ever since I got mind controlled," Shining Armor confirmed. "I've seen psychiatrist after psychiatrist and while the frequency has gone down, I still have them."

"Yes, I think I understand now," Dr. Function stated. "What you're experiencing isn't due to stress or paranoia. Your issue is less of a mental health issue and more of a magical one."

"Magical?" Armor questioned. "That can't be right. Chrysalis is dead. There's no way she could still be tormenting me."

"And yet her magic lingers," Dr. Function replied. "Mind control is a very special kind of magic. It links into not only to the mind of the victim, but into the mind of the caster. It can be very dangerous for both ponies even when it is performed correctly, and Chrysalis was able to become more powerful than Celestia, making it even more potent. It would seem that whatever she did has left a mark on your mind."

"No, that can't be possible," Armor denied. "Chrysalis is dead! How can she still be doing this?"

"It is no longer Chrysalis. Like I said before, she became more powerful than even Celestia. With that kind of power, there is no telling the extent of damage she could have caused if you had remained under her spell for much longer. I do know this though. The magic inside of you is no longer connected to Chrysalis. It can't be."

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean," the doctor continued, "is that the magic that Chrysalis used on you was able to become an independent construct, imbedded into your sub-consciousness, and now it is feeding off of your fear. You have a magical parasite living in your brain."

Shining Armor leaned back in his seat, staring straight ahead with wide eyes and beads of sweat accumulating on his head. The words began to sink in and he found himself shocked at what he was beginning to realize. This all made so much sense. This doctor was right. He didn't know how he knew, but he was right.

Shining Armor took a deep breath. "Is... is there anyway to get rid of this... a cure?"

Dr. Function thought for a moment. "Yes, I believe so. There is a procedure that could be performed, but it is risky and well..." he paused, knowing Armor would not like what he was about to say.

"What is it, Doc? Please you have to tell me."

"It will require the same type of magic that created this parasite to begin with."

"Mind control magic?" Armor questioned.

"No," Dr. Function answered. "Changeling magic."

"So what you're saying, is that all I need is to get my hooves on some changeling magic and then you would be able to cure me, right?"

Dr. Function sighed. He wished that there was a way of just capturing a changeling's magic in a crystal and then just using it as was need, but it wasn't so simple. "I'm afraid it's more complicated than that," he said sorrowfully. "The procedure would require a live changeling and even if you could locate their hive and capture one, it would still have to be willing to help, or else it will not work. I'm sorry, but your condition can only be treated, not cured."

Shining Armor thought about all of this for a moment, letting the words of the doctor sink in. In order to purge this parasite from his head he would need changeling magic from a live changeling and it had to be willing to help him. Switchback was out saving his hive with Twilight and he doubted that he would he would want to help him after the way he had treated him.

Suddenly, something clicked inside Shining Armor's head. That's it! Crawlway was in Canterlot. All he had to do was convince that changeling to help him, but how? It wasn't like Crawlway actually liked him. He had kind of alienated him when they were at Fluttershy's cottage. Would a simple 'sorry' be enough? No of course it wouldn't. It would take time and patience, but he would get the help he needed, one way or another.

"Are you freakin' kidding me?!" Jackpot exclaimed in frustration.

"Well this is unexpected," August pointed out.

The group looked on at the large heap of crumbled rock that now impeded their progress in confusion. How could they have already hit a dead end? This didn't make any sense, unless of course, it was a cave-in. It certainly looked like one.

"It seems to be a cave-in," Rampart acknowledged. "How did this happen?"

"So what now?" Talisman asked. "Do we go and just come back with some shovels?"

"Maybe there's a way around," Twilight commented.

"It's a cave-in, Princess," Jackpot pointed out. "I don't think one of this size would have a way around. It is in chunks though, so maybe we can move it?"

"Oh, gosh," August complained. "This is going to take forever."

"Not unless we all use our magic," Rampart said, "or at least those of us who have it. Brisk, you're with me. Talisman, August, Jackpot, stand guard and make sure nothing sneaks up on us from behind." He turned to Twilight and Switchback. "Princess, Ambassador, I hate to ask of you, but..."

"It's no trouble Captain," Twilight interrupted. "We'll be through this in no time at all." She started toward the large pile that Brisk had already begun moving.

Twilight was followed by Switchback, who still seemed a little distraught. He looked up at the large mound. "I have a bad feeling about this."

August paced around uncomfortably as his colleagues stood guard. At least, Talisman was standing. Jackpot had sat down with his back against one of the cave walls and now held his head low with his forehooves crossed. Talisman on the other hoof was focusing on nothing in particular, just the darkness of the cave at the edge of the newly lit flare that he had used. He looked over to Jackpot and rolled his eyes, knowing that he wasn't the kind to be disturbed. Besides, it wasn't like they would even have all that much time to sleep anyways. Might as well get it while they could.

Talisman went back to focusing on the dark before his mind quickly fell into line with the rhythm of August's hooves. "Clip clop clip clop clip clop," they would go as he walked in circles on the hard stone floor, trying to pass the time. Eventually, after what seemed like an eternity of the echoing noise, Talisman snapped.

"Would you cut that out!?" Talisman almost yelled.

"Sorry," August apologized. "I cant help it. I guess I'm just nervous."

"Yeah, well cut it out," Talisman demanded. "You're making me antsy."

August frowned with a sigh, before finding a seat. The defeated, shameful manner that he had done this in made Talisman feel bad about snapping at him the way he did. "Sorry," he said. "I'm just a little on edge ever since... well..."

"It's alright, bro," August assured. "I understand." He went quiet for a few moments, letting the silence of their surrounding take hold of them once more. After thinking for awhile, he found his voice. "What do you think happened back there?" he asked, trying to not be too pushy with the subject. "They all... just..." he tried to continue but found himself choking on the words.

"I don't know," Talisman answered. "I don't understand how something so horrendous could take place as to leave something like that behind. It all gives me a really uneasy feeling, like something is very wrong here."

"I think we're being kept in the dark," Jackpot said suddenly, catching both his comrades off guard.

"What do you mean?" August asked.

"I mean that we're not being told all the details," Jackpot answered. "I think something's being kept from us."

"Let me guess, you think Switchback knows something about it, don't you?" Talisman inquired.

"Yeah, and I don't like it." Jackpot stood from his position and headed back in the direction of the cave-in before stopping short. "Something tells me that there's something he doesn't want us to know. And I think if we're going to be guarding him all the way to the royal palace or castle or whatever it is that the Queen lives in, we ought to know about everything that's going on."

"That's ridiculous," Talisman insisted.

"Is it? Didn't you see how careful and hesitant he was acting back there? He's hiding something, I know it."

"You would have done exactly the same had you been in his shoes."

Jackpot's eyes narrowed as he stared down Talisman with a slight bit of rage in his expression. "What are you trying to say, that I'm a liar, that I would keep secrets and potentially endanger the mission?"

"We were surrounded by bodies, Jackpot!" Talisman replied harshly. "They were changeling bodies. Do you really think that being surrounded by more than fifty dead of your own kind doesn't have some kind of affect on ponies? He's not acting any weirder than any of us would have, especially not somepony who cant control their anger!"

"You know nothing about me!" Jackpot shouted angrily. "I've only ever done what was necessary!"

"Necessary?! I'd hardly call what you did back in Canterlot necessary!"

"It was an invasion, Talisman! Mercy wasn't a luxury that we could afford at the time. Not with the entire capital city of Equestria crawling with enemy combatants!"

"Guys!!!" August interjected, trying his best to stay between the two stallions who were not making any attempt to get out of each other's faces. "Get a hold of yourselves! You're letting all this stress get to your heads. If we cant keep it together after seeing a bunch of dead changelings then how are we ever going to make it through the husklands?"

Both Talisman and Jackpot relaxed a little, realizing what they were getting themselves into. This wasn't at all how they should be behaving. "Listen," August continued. "We all did things that we aren't proud of when the changelings attacked Canterlot, but this is the here and now. We can still make this all right. So what do you guys say?"

"August is right," Talisman said with a sigh.

"Agreed," Jackpot confirmed as he extended a hoof towards Talisman. "We cool?"

"Yeah," Talisman said, returning the gesture. "We're cool."

When everypony calmed down and went back to their duty of standing guard, the silence returned and they each found themselves growing more and more anxious to get moving. None of them liked standing in one spot for so long, especially given their current situation. Eventually, it was August who spoke up, hoping he could start a conversation in order to pass the time. "So," he began, only to find that there was really nothing good to talk about. There was of course what they had seen only minutes ago, but it was obvious that that subject matter should be left alone.

Before August could think of anything, Brisk arrived as if he were an angel come to answer a prayer to end the boredom. "We're though," he said simply before turning around and walking back to where Twilight, Switchback, and Rampart patiently waited just as the others had.

"Good," Jackpot said as he began to follow the young unicorn. "I was bored."

As the group made the short walk back, Talisman turned to August. "What was that you were going say?" he asked, curious to know what was on the pegasus's mind.

"Nothing really," August replied. "You know... just... so."

"Hmm. Yeah," Talisman mumbled as he thought. "I know how you feel."

Agent Chaser sat in a hallway of the royal Canterlot palace looking just about how you would expect a bored and depressed stallion to look. He slouched lazily against one of the walls as he rested on the floor, throwing a rubber ball to keep him busy. First he would throw it forward into the floor where it would bounce up and then ricochet off the opposite wall and fly back into his hoof, only to begin the whole circle over again.

Clah tunk, clah tunk, clah tunk, clah tunk

As he threw the ball, finding a constant rhythm to the noise that it made, he couldn't help but think about how much time he was wasting. He had trained four long years for his job. He had pushed his body far beyond its limit many times just to prepare for what he would face in the field. He had dedicated his mind to learning and mastering the ability to think and adapt on his hooves at a seconds notice. He had chosen a hard and uncomfortable life full of danger and stress, and here he was, sitting on his butt in the middle of an air conditioned castle, probably annoying the crap out of someone on the other side of a sheet of drywall.

Clah tunk, clah tunk, clah tunk...

The noise suddenly stopped as Chaser caught the ball and stood up. He then began to head to the throne room where Celestia was more than likely putting up with some spoiled brat of a noble complaining about his drinking water not tasting pure enough. In Chaser's experience, that's basically what the day court boiled down to.

As he walked through the long and twisting halls, he made no indication that he had any interest in the many stain glass windows or that he was going to stop to admire the craftsmanship of the elegantly made wooden doors that any carpenter would have gone bananas over. Instead, he continued down the hall at a slightly rushed pace. It was time he found something to do. He needed a new mission.

Switchback stared up at the hole they had dug at the top of the pile of rubble. It was small, big enough for only one pony to squeeze through at a time. It had taken them some time and energy to complete the task, and no doubt put them behind schedule, assuming that they ever really expected to be able to keep one in a place like this, but they were now through the rubble and ready to move on. So why was everyone just standing there?"

They had entered the hive already, prepared themselves for the worst and stepped into the darkness only to find that there were no threats to them. Everything was dead. But now, now they were about to truly enter dangerous territory. There was no way of knowing what was on the other side of the rocks. Perhaps it was this fact, the fear of the unknown that caused each pony to stay stagnant, looking on at the hole without saying a word.

"Well, tallyho... I guess," August muttered nervously as he took a few steps forward.

"Yeah," Jackpot agreed. "Let's get moving." He too sounded somewhat nervous, just as they all had when first seeing the entrance to the cave that they now occupied.

One by one, as the group moved through the hole and to the other side of the rubble, they each noticed that the air was considerably warmer and it was just as dark as it had been when they first entered the caves. Just how dark it was was very unsettling. They had already seen the bodies in the cave and there was no telling what else could be lurking within the black void.

Brisk continued taking point, doing his best to light the way with his horn. Rampart, Twilight, and Switchback all lit their horns as well, providing a good sized bubble of light. It was their own little sphere of protection from whatever horrors their minds might trick them into thinking they saw. This comforting light though, soon became irrelevant as they came across what could be considered an anomaly for the cave they were in.

Up ahead was a light source. It was faint and flickered and shimmered ever so slightly, but it was there, and it scared the crap out of everyone. No one really showed it, but they had all been scared, even though most of them would never admit to it.

The light grew stronger and larger as the group neared it source. They stopped though, as that source became visible. Up ahead, was a single, lone changeling. He sat on the floor with his head against the wall. His eyes were closed, but the small fire burned bright. He appeared to be sleeping.

Rampart extinguished his horn and signaled for the others to do the same. "Alright," he began. "This is our first contact with the changelings of the hive. It is imperative that we get this right. Switchback, it would be best if you went in first and see if you can talk to him. If you can use reason, we might be able to avoid any unnecessary complications."

Switchback took a deep, nervous breath. "Okay, I'll try," he replied.

"Don't worry, Switchback. You can do this," Twilight reassured him.

Switchback nodded. He looked up to Twilight at times, so having her there for moral support really helped.

"The princess is right," Rampart added. "Besides, we'll be here to aid you if anything goes wrong."

Switchback took a few seconds to compose himself before stepping out into the flickering light of the fire while the ponies all took positions within the darkness. It was time to find out if Switchback was still in touch with his own people.

He walked slowly and cautiously, being careful not to spook the other changeling. "Um, hello?" he said cautiously.

There was no reply with the exception of the faint snoring.

Switchback tried again. "Excuse me."

This time it worked. The unknown changeling began to wearily open his eyes. He blinked a few times before his eyes shot open and he jumped back at realizing someone else was with him in the cave. "Stay back!" he shouted in a defiant voice. He grabbed a sword that had been leaning against the wall and pointed it in Switchback's direction. "Who are you? What is your business here?!"

Switchback took a step back, knowing if he wasn't careful, this could end very very badly. "Uh, I-I uh." He was fumbling his words like an idiot and he knew it. Dammit, why did he always have to screw these types of things up. After taking a moment to find his voice, he spoke. "My name is Switchback," he said, trying to sound confident.

"Right," the changeling said with a raised eyebrow. He looked passed Switchback and into the darkness. "So you went through all of that alone, huh?"

Switchback looked back over his shoulder toward where he had come from. "You're talking about the cave-in, right?"

"Yeah, that and the bodies."

"Oh, you know about those."

"They're the reason we blocked off the cave to begin with," the changeling replied condescendingly. "Why would you go through all the trouble to get through that?"

"Well, I... uh," Switchback took a deep breath. "I have to speak with Queen Cicadia. I have an urgent message for her."

The other changeling just stood there for a moment, thinking about what Switchback had just told him. "A message for the Queen you say?" The changeling paced side to side as he thought. "Well, that is a good reason to go through a field of husks and then dig through a cave-in. So tell me then, why did you come from the outside? As far as we know there are no settlements outside of the hive."

Switchback began to freak out a little on the inside. "Crap, crap, crap, crap," he thought to himself. He still hadn't figured out how to tell another changeling about his alliance, no, his friendship with the ponies. "Why do you keep saying "we" when you refer to yourself?" Switchback asked, doing his best to dodge the question while he came up with a way to tell this changeling about the ponies.

"I am not referring to myself," the changeling informed. "I am simply a lookout for a small settlement deeper in the hive. I was posted here as a precaution, in case someone did get through the wall. Now Switchback, answer my question."

This changeling's advances made Switchback even more nervous. He seemed aggressive and spoke in tones that were almost unfriendly, as if he would not hesitate to end Switchback's life if he made a false move. He seemed almost hostile.

"Well, you see..." Switchback fiddled with his hooves as he looked around as if a nearby sign was just sitting somewhere displaying an answer. "I didn't come from another settlement."

"So you're one of the Queen's scouts then, and you found something that the Queen should know about? Or are you just another outscav on a self righteous quest of indignation?"

"I'm sorry," Switchback apologized. "Outscav? What is that?"

The changeling gave Switchback a strange look. "You really aren't from around here, are you?"

Switchback shook his head.

"An outscav," the changeling began, "is what we call the scavengers who chose to live their lives outside of the hive. They risk everything, their possessions, their bodies, their lives, just to try and make it on their own. It is no way to live though. A changeling who abandons his hive, is no changeling at all. He is something different, something... wrong. So I will ask you again. Where are you from?"

Switchback took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Here went nothing. "I'm from Ponyville," he said as calmly as he could manage, "although I actually came here from Canterlot."

"Canterlot?" the changeling questioned. "You mean the capital of the ponies?"

Switchback nodded this time.

"So you're a spy then?"

"Not exactly."

"So what then?" the changeling snapped. "Have you just been hiding among them? Did you see something in the ponylands that the Queen must see?" He eyed Switchback down carefully as he waited for an answer.

Switchback dodged this question again. He wanted to just come out and say it already, but the way that this changeling was levitating his sword with his magic made him very nervous. He had to treat this as a delicate situation. "I-I... Do you think that the hive needs help?"

"What? What are you talking about now?"

"I mean, do you think the hive needs help," Switchback insisted. "Do you think that the current state of the hive warrants the necessity for assistance from an outside force?"

"Oh, you better not be saying what I think you're saying," the changeling challenged. "Did you conspire with them!?! The ponies!?!" He now seemed very angry now that he realized exactly what Switchback was trying to say. When he did not answer and only stood nervously trying to think of how to respond, it was only solidified in his mind more. "You're a traitor!"

"No, no," Switchback said as he began to take steps back. "Please, just hear me out."

The other changeling, who had begun to advance on Switchback with his sword drawn looked only angrily upon him. He made no signs of stopping until for some reason, as if an angel had come to save Switchback, he halted suddenly. He looked passed Switchback and into darkness of the cave. His eyes went wide and his jaw stayed agape as he look out with disbelief. "You led them here," he said quietly under his breath.

Switchback looked back over his shoulder. Sure enough there were five royal guards standing only a few meters behind him. They had obviously been drawn out by the initial yelling. Switchback was very glad to see them. None of them had their swords drawn yet, instead favoring a less aggressive approach.

The changeling just stood there for a moment, one that must have seemed like an eternity to him. He was more than a little shaken by the fact that he was currently in a staring match with five royal guards, five pony royal guards. What should he do? Should he run? Should he try to say something? He knew he wanted to do one of those, but not which. His hooves seemed as if they were frozen in place, and he couldn't wipe the dumb, shocked expression off his face.

Before he could come to his senses and make a decision of what he should do, something caught his eye. It was something that changed everything about the situation that he was now in. Standing just to the side of one of the guards, looking just as confident as the guards themselves was another pony. A mare, who wore no armor and held no weapon. She wasn't just a normal mare though. No she was something far more special. She was an alicorn.

Author's Note

It took way to long to get this chapter finished. I think I rewrote this at least five times. The biggest problem I'm having is writer's block. So far, I have point A and B solidified in my mind, but it's the little in-between parts that are giving me trouble. Hopefully this was worth the wait.

Chapter 9: Light in the Dark

Chapter 9

The day court was still in session when Agent Chaser walked into throne room of the Canterlot palace. Sure enough, some stuck up noble was giving a proposition to Princess Celestia who seemed like she was more than bored with her duty. Could anypony really blame her though? She had been doing this job for several thousand years. That kind of work would take its toll on anypony, even a goddess of the sun.

Chaser didn't bother to wait in line like all the other ponies who had business with the princess. He simply walked passed the ponies who waited their turns to present their petitions and presentations, whatever they may be. Before he was even able to reach the front, somepony grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Hey. You cant just cut like that!" the noble who wore a fancy suit, that Chaser really didn't like, said in an angry whisper. "Get to the back of the line."

"Sorry bud, but I think my business with the princess is a bit more important than your complaint about the silverware not meeting your standards," Chaser mocked. "Now, if you'll please excuse me..." He walked off, leaving the noble standing there speechless.

Upon reaching the front of the line, Chaser walked out into the open area in the middle of the spectating crowd, if it could even be called that, there really wasn't that many ponies in the court today or ever. After getting passed the noble who was currently presenting a plan for a new and improved sewer system that would more efficiently move waste by 60% - there was no way that number was correct, Chaser knew he was just looking for attention - he sat down next to Celestia.

"Good morning Princess," he said just loud enough for her to hear. "How's the court going?"

"You never talk to me unless we're working together, you have something to report, or you just want something," Celestia said, doing her best to listen to the noble who was still talking while also carrying out a conversation with her Agent. Participating in two conversations at the same time was a skill Celestia had become quite adept at over the years. She could even carry out four on a good day, so the fact that Chaser was interrupting her court was not really much of a nuisance. "What is it you need?" she asked Chaser before making an astute comment about the noble's sewer proposal to show that she was actually listening.

"I'm getting bored, like, extremely bored," Chaser informed. "I need a new mission and since I was working on the changeling case long before you called in Switchback and Princess Twilight, I figured I could help with that."

Celestia frowned as she began to realize what this was leading up to. Still, despite her better judgment, she contested Chaser. "Why do you want to take on the changeling case in particular?"

"Like I said," Chaser answered. "I'm getting bored. Beside, I already know everything about the changeling case, which means I'd be able to hop right into it. So what do you say?"

"You do realize that Switchback and Twilight's mission is one of diplomacy, correct? Not one of assassination."

"So what?" Chaser said, not caring what kind of mission it was. "If what we've been told is true, it means the hive is practically tearing itself apart. I could be your extra set of eyes in that chaos. I could get you any kind of intel you need. I could go on my own little intel gathering mission. It will be fun, and well worth it too. I guarantee it."

Celestia sighed. She knew that Chaser had a perfectly valid point, and she did give him the month off, which only indicated that there were no other missions for him to go on. This meant that she couldn't lie to him, by telling him that there were other important things for him to do. She really hated Chaser sometimes. He was the only pony that she had ever met that got under her skin in the way he did and made her feel like she was several thousand years older.

"Meet me in my office after I adjourn this session," Celestia instructed.

Chaser smiled. It looked like he would be getting a mission after all.

Moth walked through the tunnels of the hive not entirely sure of himself. Was he making a mistake? What would their leader think? Was this at all a good idea? These questions rang in his head more than he would have liked them to. Uncertainty was his biggest hatred in life. He found that any times of uncertainty, someone always ended up getting hurt, someone close. He hated it that things had to be that way.

Nonetheless, there was nothing he could really do about his current situation except continue down the cave with the ponies in tow. He was leading ponies back to his home. What was wrong with him? He really didn't know the answer to this question, neither did he want to know. All he could focus on now was what he was currently doing.

Not even five short minutes ago had he been approached by another changeling. No big deal right? Wrong. That changeling was friends with ponies. How could that possibly be? There were six of them. The first five that he had laid his eyes upon were all royal guards from Equestria. They each wore their unmistakable gold armor and wielded deadly swords. The sixth though, was special. She was an alicorn.

Moth's first thoughts upon seeing her were ones of confusion. He didn't at all understand why she would be there. Equestria sending soldiers seemed like a logical move, especially after the changelings' failed attempt to invade Canterlot that ultimately left them crippled beyond recovery. But the ponies had not just sent soldiers. They had sent one of their princesses. They had sent something that should have been safe in a castle running a country or doing whatever it was that princesses did.

It had taken a moment of thinking before Moth remembered the words Switchback had said. Help. Had the ponies really come to help? Was that why the Princess was there? Was she supposed to be acting as a diplomat? Moth figured that this made the most sense in the situation. He really didn't understand why the ponies would want to help them though. It was kind of weird to see a hostile nation just show up unannounced and say they wanted peace.

Despite the bad gut feeling that Moth was getting, he was still leading these ponies back to his home. Did this mean he trusted the ponies? Absolutely not. There was no real reason for him to. Anyone can say that they want peace and then stab you in the back only seconds later. For this reason, he was being very careful, keeping his sword close to hoof.

He had no plans on helping the ponies, but there was still that peace, that help that the ponies claimed to be offering. Everything that he had seen lined up with their claims, but what he couldn't figure out was why they would want to help. He continued walking on as he thought about this.

"How far exactly is this little settlement of yours?" one of the guards asked. He seemed to be the leader, a Captain, if Moth was judging the insignias on his armor correctly.

"Only a little ways more," Moth answered. "When we start to see the torches, we'll be close."

Sure enough, just as Moth had said, torches began to appear along the walls of the cave that now seemed to be growing wider and wider as they moved along, down, into the depths of the hive. The most interesting thing about these torches though was not the torches themselves, which were made from magically charged fire crystals instead of traditional sticks and an open flame. The most interesting thing, to Twilight at least, was the way they were positioned. When the light from one torch began to grow faint toward the very edge of it's source, another torch was not placed. Instead, a new torch was placed several meters down beyond the edge of the light so that the small spheres that they produced would only overlap slightly, allowing for more area to be covered with less torches.

As Twilight took note of these torches, she couldn't help but wonder if this arrangement was chosen for the sake of efficiency or if there was a shortage on fire crystals that forced this to be done. Even still, why use fire crystals and not just regular torches? They would have been just as effective, or did they not have enough personnel to insure that a torch would stay lit? She was pulled from these thoughts as they came across what appeared to be a wall of some sort.

The wall was mostly made from stone, mostly large pieces of rubble that had been glued together with what was no doubt the same green changeling goo that they had seen on their way in. It sloped up just slightly instead of standing exactly vertical. At the very top of the stone structure stood another layer to the wall. It was made from a dark gray and black wood. Wood? That couldn't be right could it? Where would changelings be getting wood from? There weren't any trees in the mountains.

Although this may have confused her escorts, Twilight knew exactly where changelings would get wood. It was during one of their little study sessions that Switchback had told Twilight a story about trees that used to grow in the frozen north, long before the time of Equestria. They had eventually died off on the surface because of the windigos, but thanks to the changelings and powerful magic that helped the trees adapt to subterranean conditions, the trees lived on within the hive. Some of the roots of the old trees, which twisted their way through the mountains were often used for construction purposes. Twilight made a mental note to write the story down in full when she returned to her castle in a few days, or weeks.

When the party got close enough to the wall, Moth suddenly stopped, bringing everyone to a halt. He quickly whistled a tune, loud enough to echo through the cave. This was accompanied by three clicks that no one could figure out how to produce in the same way, with the exception of Switchback of course.

All was quiet for a moment. Not a single sound was made, until a small gate in the wall was opened to grant the group access to the settlement, but instead of them entering, something else exited. Five or six other changelings, all outfitted in blue armor that barely matched, each seeming as if it had been cobbled together from the remains of an armory, walked out from the gate. Each carried a weapon, whether it be a sword, spear, or halberd, each was armed and ready for a fight.

The royal guards all prepared themselves for anything as they all began to realize that the clicks Moth had produced were in fact code for something. It was code alright, and they were about to find out just what it meant.

"I got a bad feeling about this," August said as he observed the armored changelings.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up," Jackpot whispered in irritation to the pegasus.

"We're being flanked," Talisman pointed out. "Two on each side." Sure enough, he was right. Four more changelings had come out of seemingly nowhere, bringing the grand total of contacts to ten. They were now all out numbered, and if a fight were to break out it would all come down to their training. The soldiers surrounding them did not seem to be aggressive nor hostile though, only cautious. Talisman could already recognize their formation as one of a more defensive type rather than offense.

"We have visitors, sir," Moth said to one of the changeling soldiers who's armor seemed to be a little more ornate than that of the other changelings around them. "One of them is even an alicorn. She claims to be here on a peace mission."

The changeling's leader raised what could only be described as an eyebrow. "A peace mission?" he asked, looking directly at Twilight, unimpressed. "I take it that you want to talk to the queen then. Well? It is true?" he asked after Twilight did not respond.

Twilight tried to shake herself from her nervousness, but was unsuccessful. She had gone over what she would say to the queen at least a hundred times in her head and even thought about a few scenarios like this, but now it was happening. She was being put to the test not at the risk of receiving a bad grade, but at the risk of being run through with a spear. She gulped as she found her bearings.

"Yes, it is true," Twilight finally replied. "My name is Princess Twilight Sparkle. I am acting as a diplomat on the behalf of Equestria. We wish to forge a peace between our nations and help to aide the hive in rebuilding." She wasn't sure if that sounded official enough, but she seemed to have the changelings' attention. "I am currently on my way to your hive's capital in order to begin peace talks. The guards you see here are but an escort, and Switchback here is acting as a guide. We mean you nor your soldiers any harm."

"So you wish to speak to the queen?"

"Yes, that is correct," Twilight confirmed.

The changeling commander smiled and then began to chuckle a little before he was actually laughing. All of his soldiers joined in. Gradually, the cave became filled with the sound of laughter.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha," Twilight joined in with a nervous laugh, beads of sweat forming as she watched all the soldiers find amusement in her task.

"You know," the changeling commander began, "after everything that happened, what with the failed invasion that our dear and dead former queen attempted, I never actually expected that it would be Equestria coming and begging at our door." He thought for a moment before giving out a few of the clicks that Moth, who had joined his comrades moments earlier, displayed when they had first reached the wall.

Any weapons that had been drawn were now lowered as the changelings all obeyed the commands of their commander. "We will allow you to pass through," he told Twilight.

"Really?" Twilight asked more than a little surprised.

"Yes, of course," the commander replied, "but know this, if you try anything or give the slightest hint that you are going to try anything, we will not hesitate to kill you."

Twilight gulped again. "We understand."

"Do you?" the commander questioned. "Princess, we are not savages. At any moment, I could have ordered my soldiers to attack you, but I did not. You see, we do not wish to engage in any kind of violence. We are simply defending our home, the only home some of us will ever have. So if you truly care for the fate of the changeling hive as you supposedly claim, seeing as you offer aid, and not just the desires of your own country, then you will do as I say while within our town. Is that understood as well?"

"Yes, thank you very much," Twilight responded almost a little too eagerly. "I give you my word that we will not cause any trouble."

The changeling commander smiled his casual and for some reason unnerving smile again. "Yes of course, your word," he said, almost rolling his eyes. "Please follow me." He turned and was followed by two of his soldiers as they entered the gate. The rest formed around the group of ponies, encasing them in a tight bubble where they could be kept in check.

"Good work, Princess," Rampart told Twilight as they started to follow the changelings into the town. "I knew you had it in you."

"Thanks," Twilight said. "I didn't think I was going to go that smoothly to be honest."

As the now much larger group entered the town, the first thing they were "welcomed" by was what seemed to be a much more relaxed atmosphere. After making it through the initial perimeter and about thirty yards of extra buffering between the wall and town, the first thing to be noticed was the sheer size of the place. The cave opened up into a massive cavern, one that was filled with all kinds of wonders. Twilight couldn't help but be amazed at the things that she had never seen before.

For starters, there were massive tree roots that grew from the ground, ran along the cavern wall, and all the way to the ceiling. Each had to be at least two ponies wide. They were accompanied by large waterfalls that created small lakes at the edge of the cavern. There were even living trees. None of them seemed to have leaves though, but despite their dark grey and almost lifeless appearances, they bared fruits that no pony had ever seen before. Twilight remembered hearing about fruit that changelings grew to help produce body fluids, but seeing them in person was a whole new thing.

Sure enough, there was also a ton of the green changeling goo that had come to represent their species. It was on the walls, the floor, the ceiling, everywhere. The homes that the changelings had created for themselves were not that different from what was common in a pony town such as Ponyville. Of course, the architectural style was completely different, but they were still easily identified as homes. The buildings themselves were made from stone and wood and seemed to resemble a cross between a Gothic and Nordic style.

There were many intricate carvings in the walls and on the buildings, displaying their own style and changeling culture. As entrancing and amazing as these were, especially to Twilight, although everypony was absolutely captivated by the town, this was not the most interesting thing. High above a large market in the center of the town, there was a massive yellow object hanging where all the roots that grew through the cavern met. It was a sun.

Okay, it was sort of a sun. More a makeshift imitation of one. It cast light out above the entire town. The cavern was clear as daylight because of it. It looked a lot like a big sack of honey, a giant, radiant, golden sack of honey.

"What is that?" Twilight asked in astonishment. Everypony seemed to share her curiosity as they all looked to Switchback for an answer.

"It's actually a lot of things," Switchback began to explain. "You know those glowing mushrooms you see in really dark areas, like in the Everfree forest and most caves? There's a lot different types of fungus like that in it. There's also some magically charged crystals. I'm not exactly sure what the magic or science behind it is, but I know it gets its yellow color from tree sap and it can be stimulated with magic to create day and night cycles."

"Fascinating!" Twilight said excitedly, completely forgetting that she was surrounded by not the friendliest of individuals for a mere moment.

"You know," August began as he stared at the makeshift sun, "ever since I found out that the hive was underground, I've wondered how you guys stand not seeing the sky. I never expected something so grand."

"Grand?" Switchback questioned.

"Yeah," August confirmed. "You guys manufacture your own suns. That's pretty cool."

"I think it's freaky if you ask me," Jackpot said as he looked at the object with slight disdain.

"How so?" August asked.

"I don't know," Jackpot replied. "Just look at it. I feel like at any moment it's going to come to life and try to eat me."

The group looked up at the strange object for another moment. It's outer lining twisted and convulsed ever so slightly as the bright fluids within swirled around, no doubt from the large amounts of energy inside. It churned like one's stomach would, or like a giant germ trying to digest another.

Talisman frowned. "I think I'm with Jackpot on this one," he said. "I don't think I would want to live with that thing hovering above my head twenty four seven."

"I think it's kind of poetic," Brisk chimed, catching everypony's attention and reminding them that he was actually there. He could tell by the looks he was getting from his fellow guards that no one really understood, so he took the liberty to explain. "Think about all the stuff we saw back when we first got here. Now think about this. It's like a light in the dark, a beacon of hope."

"Whatever floats your boat Brisk," Jackpot said. "I still thinks it's kind of creepy."

Before the conversation could continue any further, one of the blue armored changelings interrupted. "Switchback, right?" he asked casually, not really caring about being rude. They had all been whispering more or less so it would have been hard for anyone to tell if there was a conversation in the first place.

"Um, yes," Switchback answered nervously. He was now more than a little worried about what was going on. "That's me."

"Come with me," the changeling ordered. "The commander would like to speak with you."

Switchback looked to Twilight and the others. They merely shrugged, with the exception of Rampart. "Don't worry ambassador," he said. "I'm sure nothing bad will come of it."

Switchback nervously followed the other changeling passed a few of the other soldiers ahead and a spectating crowd that was accumulating as time went by. The commander was leading the group from a little ways up. He wasn't really sure when, but their new escort had doubled somewhere along the way and there were now many more soldiers present. It took a moment for him to reach the front where the commander of the small army was walking.

"Um, you wanted to see me, right?" Switchback asked nervously.

"Calm down," the commander said. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just wanted to know more about you. Who are you exactly, really? Why help these ponies?" Before he gave Switchback time to answer, his eyes widened and he looked back at him. "You're one of the queen's scouts aren't you? She sent you to bring the ponies here."

"No," Switchback said, holding his head low to the ground in despair. "I'm just a run-away. I left the hive with a group of about fifty a few years ago, before the invasion. It was around the time that Chrysalis began doing all those terrible things."

"I see," the commander indicated. He now understood what was going on. Switchback had at one point asked the Equestrian government to aide the hive, but because of the invasion, it had taken longer than originally intended. Just now was his wish being fulfilled. "And where are the other fifty?" he asked. "Surely more have tried to find help for the hive."

Switchback looked away from the commander as he tried to collect his thoughts and figure out the right words to say. "The rest are..." he swallowed harshly as he brought himself to speak of what had happened. "They're the husks near the cave entrance." He blinked several times, fighting back the tear that had built up in his eye. "Chrysalis's soldiers... killed them all. I was the only survivor."

The commander's expression softened and one could almost see sympathy in his eyes. "Oh," he simply said. "I am so sorry. That sounds..."

Switchback nodded. "It took me some time to even find a pony settlement to blend into. I was so emotionally messed up by the time I got there that it took me forever to gain enough trust to try and ask any pony to help me. Just when I had worked up the courage to do it though..."

"The invasion," the commander said, finishing Switchback's sentence.

Switchback just nodded.

Everything went quiet between the two for a moment, until the commander finally broke the silence. "Weaver."

"What?" Switchback asked in confusion.

"Weaver," the commander said again. "That is my name, just thought you should know it since we're having a civil conversation."

Switchback didn't really know what to say to this. Sure it was nice that Weaver was willing to tell his name and that they were now on terms that allowed them to speak without hostility, but Switchback didn't really care to tell anymore about himself. The fact that Weaver was asking questions about him in particular made him a little uncomfortable for some reason.

"So why return then?" Weaver asked suddenly.

The question caught Switchback off guard. It wasn't a hard question though, he knew the answer, but stayed quiet for a moment as he tried to find the right words.

"The hive beyond our little settlement here is an absolute mess," Weaver continued, "and you seem to be on good terms with the ponies. So why return? You could easily live out your life among them and Equestria wouldn't have to use its own resources to help us, but yet you come back, risking life and limb. Why?"

"I have to," Switchback answered. "I might have been free from all this, but the hive is still my home. I have to do what I can for it."

"I see," Weaver replied. "So little of those remaining within the Husklands display the selflessness that you do."

Switchback didn't acknowledge this. Selflessness Weaver had called it. Was it really selfless what he was doing? He had not told him the full truth about how he also sought redemption. Was redemption a truly selfless act? Was he doing this for the right reasons? Should he really be the one to be here?

No matter what he did, Switchback could not get the clustering haze from his mind. The more and more he thought about what he was doing, the more he tried to come to terms with how he had failed in the past, the more nothing made sense to him. He really could have gone for some company with Pinkie Pie. She always knew exactly what to say to make all your worries go away.

Suddenly, they changed direction as they began walking away from the exit that had just come into sight. "Where are we going?" Switchback asked in confusion. "The exit is over that way." He pointed to the large gate that several more blue armored changelings stood guarding.

"That is only one of the many exits," Weaver pointed out. "There is another that leads to a much more favorable route."

Switchback stopped walking for a moment. Something about Weaver's sudden generosity struck him for some reason. He didn't know why, but this small act of kindness made him feel as if there was really hope for a better future, like everything was going to be okay. He just had to search for it in the right places.

Little did Switchback realize at that moment, everything was not going to be okay. There was still a long road ahead of them and things were only going to get harder as they went along.

It didn't take long for the group to reach the other gate. They had gone through a few mostly empty streets and a market where even more of a crowd had amassed to see their town's new attraction. After getting through the crowds of what had to be at least one hundred changelings they reached the gate.

"Greetings Commander," one of changeling soldiers said as he hopped down from some scaffolding that lined the wall that had been constructed to close off this section of the cave. "I see you've brought us a little snack," he said with a sinister grin that gave everypony the chills. His left eye, which permanently squinted thanks to a large crack in the chitin on his face only served to strengthen this effect. He licked his lips with his long, blue, forked tongue as if he were starving, simultaneously eyeing down Twilight with his one good eye.

"No," Weaver said sternly. "These ponies are allowed to pass through."

"What?" the creepy changeling questioned in a shocked tone.

"This one has a message for Queen Cicadia," Weaver said pointing to Switchback, "and this one," he pointed to Twilight, "is an alicorn. So unless you want to either upset the Queen or step into a war with Equestria, I suggest you get to your post and open the door."

The changeling sighed before turning around and heading to a large lever that controlled the gate.

The wall and gate here was much different than it had been where the ponies entered. This wall was made completely from stone and ran all the way to the ceiling. Large wooden scaffolding ran up and down along the wall, obviously there for maintenance reasons. The gate itself, was much more of a gate and more of a large stone door that swung open slowly on it's massive hinges.

"It's time for you to leave, ponies," Weaver announced.

"Of course," Twilight said. "We wouldn't want to overstay our welcome. Thank you very much for allowing us to pass through."

"Yes, you are welcome," Weaver replied. "Just do me one favor Princess. Assuming that you are able to make it to the capital and back to your Equestria, be sure to mention us when making your plans for whatever it is you're doing. It may not look like it, but we could use help here."

"Absolutely," Twilight said. "Thank you again."

Weaver merely nodded as the ponies began to step through the door one by one. "So long ponies," he said before motioning for the large stone door to be closed. "May we meet again."

Switchback looked back as the large door closed with a noticeable thud noise. The sound of large deadbolts being locked in place could be heard only a few moments later and then the whole cave went quiet. The group was then alone again. There were no other changelings, no soldiers, no citizens looking on in aw. It was just them.

"Well, that went well," August pointed out optimistically. "I mean, we didn't get run through with spears, so I'd say this is a little victory."

"I don't think they really cared about us," Talisman countered. "I think they just wanted us out."

"Agreed," Jackpot said. "The sooner they got us out, the sooner we aren't their problem and the sooner we aren't their problem the sooner we can go get ourselves killed in these husklands I keep hearing about. At least, that's what they're probably hoping for."

"Whatever their motives, it doesn't really matter now," Rampart said. "We're through and we can now get on our way. Shall we?"

"Yes, Captain," Twilight answered. "That would be preferable."

"Alright then."

The group carried on, deeper into the cave which was lit with the familiar light of the fire crystal torches. Each shined brightly, giving them all more than enough light to see. They would continue to guide their way for only a short time. Soon, it would get very dark within the caves, and they would have to rely on their magic spells and wit to survive the darkness.

As they came across the end of the light, Talisman ran over to the side of the cave and grabbed the very last torch that was mounted to the wall. "I figure we might as well use this," he said. "It's not like their going to miss one torch. Besides, I'd rather not use all my flares unless it's an emergency."

With that, all light spells were ignited and the party headed back into the darkness of the caves. They were now heading back into the unknown. It was time to see if their relatively good luck would hold up, or if it would be extinguished by the trials that lied ahead.

Author's Note

So I finally figured out a good way to chase that goddamn writer's block away. I've started acting out almost every scene that I write. And I mean literally acting them out. Sure I probably look like a madman when I pace around my room whispering to myself and mimicking the emotions of my characters, but it works. I'm not entirely sure why I whisper though. I guess it's just one of those weird things.

Anyways, in this chapter I wanted to illustrate that the hive wasn't just a dark depressing series of caves that so many works of changeling fan art seem to display. There is some life in them, which we'll see more of in later chapters. I wanted to show that even though the hive is entirely underground, it still has some vibrancy to it. I also thought it would be good to do a little world building to make the hive more interesting. It was only a few paragraphs that I did this in, but I feel like I did a good job of getting to the point without dragging things out longer than they needed to be. Also, keep an eye on Chaser because he might have some fun parts coming up. Maybe... not entirely sure.

The next few chapters of this are going to focus mostly on Twilight, Switchback, and all their escorts. I should really come up with a name for that group. I think I'll refer to them as the party. Chapter's relating to Crawlway's medical condition and Shining Armor's problem will probably be sprinkled throughout. I may even say to hell with it and put those in their own little side story. Probably not though. Don't think I've forgotten about Fluttershy or the Apples either. I have a dastardly plan for them.

So yeah, enough of my constant blabbering. Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed, and stay awesome.

Chapter 10: Frigid

The capital city of the hive was truly a sight to behold. Not only was it the largest concentration of changelings within the mountains, but it was located in the deepest and largest cavern. The subterranean city was almost completely built into the connection of a massive stalagmite and stalactite like structure. This was known as the Spire.

The royal palace, the very heart of the city was located at the center of the Spire, a place very few were permitted access to before Queen Cicadia had taken the thrown as her sister's successor. Now though, it was populated by many soldiers and civilians, each doing a job to make sure the fading city could last another day.

Surrounding the Spire were stalagmites that grew out from the ground, each challenging the tallest structures built by the ponies who dwelled on the surface. Each of these was mirrored by stalactites of the same scale. It was within and attached to that the changelings built their homes, businesses, and other buildings.

Around everything, was a wall. It was actually more like five walls, each being about thirty yards apart in order to form different lines of defense and buffer zones into which any defender would be able to retreat and regroup in the case of an overwhelming attack. The walls were very tall as well as numerous. They easily stood fifty feet tall with watch towers of even greater height. Despite their aw inducing size, the walls were ancient and crumbling in many places. They had been built thousands of years ago in order to protect the city during long forgotten struggles.

Switchback was describing this location to the party as they walked on through the caves, pausing to point them in which direction to go every so often when they came across intersections before continuing. He had only ever been to the capital city once before in order to deliver a message back when things truly began to get bad for the changelings. It was at that time that he had met others who planned to leave the hive and joined in. It was also during that time that he had met one of the best friends he had ever had, although he left this detail out. It was best to keep that off the mind at the time.

"I don't see how you keep track of how to get around this place," August commented. "Everything looks the same. There's no land marks or signs to help distinguish anything. How do you remember the way back?"

"This was the way I came when I was leaving the hive," Switchback answered. "I started at the capital when I first decided to leave so from there I was able to remember where to go."

"That's impressive," Talisman complimented, "that you'd be able to remember the way after so much time."

"Before I left, I was a messenger," Switchback explained. "It was nothing special though. I wasn't a royal courier or anything. I just delivered messages between towns. Remembering routes kind of became a special skill of mine, but so much has changed since I did that. Last time I was here, that town wasn't even there. It was just a empty cavern."

"I take it that it was much safer to travel back then," Talisman said.

"For a time it was," Switchback confirmed. "The tunnels between towns were much better lit and there was actually quite a bit of traffic, but after the famine began the roads began to get dangerous and I quickly found myself going out less and less. I guess I got out before thing really hit the fan." "No, I got out right as everything hit the fan." he thought to himself, not feeling any less guilty with each step that he took. He should have done this sooner. He wondered how many had died because he got distracted.

"I take it that they didn't just let you walk out," Jackpot chimed in, extracting a glare from Talisman as he did.

"W-what makes you say that?" Switchback asked, sounding a little nervous.

"Oh come on, Switchback, don't play dumb," Jackpot challenged casually, trying not to make his advances too intimidating. "You can tell us. We're here to help you remember?"

"I left the hive with a few others," Switchback answered, lying. "One day I just took off with a few others, but after leaving, I was the only one who kept going. I guess the others didn't really believe that there was hope. That or they lost it too soon to stick to our plan."

"What plan would that be?" August asked, now genuinely curious. Little did he know that he had just thrown a wrench in Jackpot's own plans by injecting himself into the conversation.

"Get out of the hive, find a pony town, and make some friends. That part shouldn't have been too hard," Switchback explained. "I mean, we're changelings after all. Blending in is what we do. From there we would build up trust until we felt that it was safe to reveal ourselves. Now that I'm looking back at it, I wonder if we should have just caused some minor trouble, gotten captured, and then begged for help. Would've gotten your attention must faster."

"I can see why you didn't," Rampart said. "That would have been risky. There's no telling what could have happened to you if you rushed in without being careful like that."

"Yeah," Switchback agreed. "We didn't even know if you guys knew we existed or how you would react to something that could take the form of a pony." He sighed, knowing that he had been so close to accomplishing what he wanted at one point. "I was almost able to do it too, but then the hive invaded, and well... you know the rest."

"You cant blame yourself, Switchback," Twilight assured him. "You had every reason to be scared after what happened in Canterlot."

"I know," Switchback said sorrowfully, hanging his head low. He smiled for a second. "It's funny. If it hadn't been for Pinkie Pie, I probably would have gone insane."

Twilight smiled as she too remembered the first time she had met the crazy party pony. "Yeah, she has that effect on people. If it wasn't for her, I probably would have never stayed in Ponyville and ended up as a social recluse somewhere in Canterlot."

Of all the individuals present at that time, only Switchback had ever heard Twilight's story of how she had first come to Ponyville and made all of her friends. Seeing as they were almost completely surrounded by darkness, and none of them were entirely sure if they had entered the husklands yet, none of the guards cared to ask Twilight to elaborate on her point about Pinkie Pie, instead focusing on keeping their guard up.

"What do you mean?" Scratch that, August cared.

"Well," Twilight began," when I first came to Ponyville I didn't really care about making friends, but she threw me a big welcome party. I didn't really make an effort to enjoy the party and I kind of behaved like a jerk though," she admitted. "Her positive energy really helped be bond with my other friends on our way to stop Nightmare Moon."

The group suddenly stopped as Rampart gave a signal for everypony to stop and keep quiet.

"What is it Cap?" Talisman whispered to Rampart.

"There," Rampart responded while pointing ahead of the group, further into the darkness.

About fifty feet out stood a silhouetted figure. The figure appeared to be admiring as small floating light. It was faint and glowed a golden color, comparable to that of a lightning bug. The figure walked slowly around it, only being visible by the light that was cast on it.

"Looks like I'm up again?" Switchback asked. The only reply he received was a nod from Rampart. He quickly headed out toward the figure. It's shape easily gave it away as a changeling. As Switchback got closer, the features of the other changeling came into clear view.

The figure was indeed a changeling, a little smaller than most, but the truly weird trait he possessed was his color. Instead of the dark and smooth black shell that all changelings had, this one was a more grey color. It was flaky and seemed to be shedding much like a snake shed its skin. No, exactly like a snake shed it skin. There were small, little shreds of thin translucent flakes falling to the floor with every step that the changeling took. Changelings did not do this. How could this one be shedding? That's not supposed to be possible.

He must have heard Switchback walking because his attention was quickly diverted to his fellow changeling. He looked on at the cautious Switchback through grey tented eyes that flickered with the standard blue color every few seconds like a broken neon sign.

All of this almost startled Switchback who only continued to notice more abnormalities as time passed. One of these included what appeared to be a deep wound on the side of his neck, where dried blood was visibly plastered to his shell.

"Um, hi," Switchback tried, doing his best to sound friendly.

The other, very odd changeling, who also seemed somewhat malnourished, responded to this with a few slow steps forward. He opened his mouth as if to begin speaking, but no voice ever came. He just stood there with his mouth hanging open, tilting his head sideways before closing his mouth and sitting down where he was. He proceeded to scratch himself behind the ear like a dog would, causing a greater shower of flakes.

As he returned his rear hoof down to the ground, it was noticed that a great deal of blood had accumulated upon it. It became apparent that this was a result of his scratching when blood began to drip from behind his ear.

"Uh... are you okay?" Switchback asked nervously.

The other changeling only stared curiously at Switchback for a few moments before circling him, eyeing him down with even more curiosity. Eventually, the changeling just sat down again in front of Switchback again and just watched him. Switchback wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but after several long minutes, the rest of the group was called out of hiding.

The strange changeling seemed to take great interest in the other ponies, especially their shiny reflective armor. He even rubbed his hoof up against the helmet that sat atop Jackpot's head. He didn't take to kindly to this, drawing his sword instinctively. "Back off!" Jackpot shouted, scaring the changeling away where he coward behind Switchback.

"I don't think he meant anything by it Jackpot. Calm down," Talisman said.

"You can't be too careful around these things," Jackpot scolded as he put his sword away.

August just rolled his eyes before trying to approach the changeling. "It's alright, we're not going to hurt you."

"Something seems off about him," Twilight pointed out. "I mean look at him. Is this what happens to changelings when they begin to starve?"

"I've never seen anything like this," Switchback answered. "If so, I can understand all his physical differences, but his behavior is just..." He couldn't really find the word. The changeling didn't talk, he didn't seem to be making any indications that he was trying to communicate. He just wandered, curiously admiring them. "It's like he's broken or something.

Rampart took a few steps toward the changeling, trying to get him to stand still so he could bandage his wound. "Here, let me help you. You're wounded."

The changeling took a few steps back as Rampart advanced, but stopped and calmed himself as he felt Rampart cleaning away the blue, sticky blood away with a canteen of water and a towel from his pack.

"Are you sure you want to waste all that, Cap?" Jackpot asked. "Even if you do patch him up, he's obviously not in a state favorable to his survival. Just sayin'."

"Wow, JJ," August said. "That's harsh."

"Survival is harsh," Jackpot responded. "Survival of the fittest and all that jazz. My point is, we cant go helping out every stranger in need. We were sent here for a very specific task, and it would be foolish to deviate from that. Also, don't call me JJ."

"We're not deviating from the plan," Rampart insured as he applied a layer of gauze to the changeling's neck wound. "I have a spare canteen and plenty of bandages to go around, plus the ones that we are each carrying. Don't forget that we made sure to be more than prepared for this as far as supplies go."

Jackpot rolled his eyes. "I still don't like this. What if he's baiting a trap."

"That's a bit far fetched," Talisman pointed out. "Nothing about this screams trap. Just look at the guy. He's helpless."

"How do we know that he's not carrying some contagious disease?" Jackpot challenged.

The changeling raised an eyebrow, the first real sign of some kind of communication. It was if he was offended for being called diseased.

"Changelings actually have a pretty strong resistance to disease," Switchback countered. "It's kind of just like one of those adaptation kind of things. You know, like you said. Survival of the fittest."

Jackpot sighed, defeated. Looks like the little coward really did have some wit. Still, he couldn't get over the weird feeling that he got around this changeling. Something about him just rubbed him the wrong way.

Rampart finished bandaging the changeling, before stuffing what remained of his stockpile of supplies back in his pack. The changeling took a few seconds to feel the new, soft material adorning his neck. He smiled happily, showing off the sharp teeth other than his already protruding fangs. What he did next, caught everypony off guard. He licked Rampart, much like puppy licks someone he is glad to see.

"Aww," Twilight said, even though she was a little creeped out by what the changeling had just done. "He's like a puppy. A um... really sketchy and kind of depressing puppy."

Rampart glared at the changeling disapprovingly as he wiped the slobber from his face before walking off. "Come on, everyone. We need to keep moving." All the others began following him, each walking passed the changeling who just stood there and stared at the group of ponies with further curiosity.

"Um, good luck," Brisk said as he passed, "I guess."

The changeling just kept watching the group, kept watching as they walked away, further down into the hive. He looked back over his shoulder in the direction that lead out of the dark and eerie caves. Then he looked back at the group that had helped him. His eyes lit up into a soft blue color before he found himself taking steps toward the ponies.

Apple Jack opened her eyes slowly, only about halfway before pain assaulted her head and she was forced to close her aching eyelids. Her head throbbed with pain and her muscles were tight. Every joint screamed in a way that she had never quite experienced and she felt as if her body was being torn apart from the inside. It was also cold. Dear Celestia is was cold. It was absolutely freezing!

Ice crystals hung from her body, accompanied by long sickles of ice that would fall upward when she tried to move on occasion. It was the seemingly inverted gravity, mixed with the dizziness and all around nausea that she was feeling that made it apparent to her that she was hanging upside down. The blood that covered her neck and slowly leaked from a deep bite there was mostly frozen, probably being the only thing that prevented her from bleeding out.

Where was she? What had happened? Were those changelings that she and her brother had seen just before everything went black? That would have made things so much simpler, but she knew that that couldn't have been the case. Changelings didn't have claws. Whatever had come at here and Big Mac had had long sharp claws and teeth. Oh Celestia those teeth! Changelings had two long fangs and mildly sharp teeth which from Switchback she had learned were actually for getting through the hard shells of subterranean fruits that the changelings grew, but these... things. They were different. The fangs were absent and in their place was row after row of razor sharp teeth. They were like great white land sharks, except jet black.

AJ shook violently, not knowing if it was from her adrenaline and the shear amount of fear she was experiencing at the time or if it was just from how freakin cold she was. She looked around frantically, trying to get her bearings while also trying to prevent panic from setting in. She managed to stay calm and steady her breathing. With this it was much easier to get a grip of her situation.

She twisted and turned her body, fighting off the pain as she tried to figure out where in Equestria she was. As she did this, flakes of frost fell from her coat and landed on the floor below her. She couldn't really tell how high up she was because of the darkness, but it couldn't be that far down she figured. She hoped.

AJ was pretty well secured to the ceiling, but she knew she had to get her legs free if she was going to get anywhere, therefore she began twisting and turning with even more effort, doing her best to struggle against the dark green goo that locked her in place. With every twist she could feel herself becoming looser and looser until finally one of her rear hooves was mostly free. All she had to do was free the other and gravity would do the rest.

Thankfully, years of hard work on the farm had left her with enough strength to hoist herself up and push off the ceiling with all four of her hooves. The goo that trapped her stretched and buckled under the force before finally giving way.

AJ suddenly plummeted down, staying in the air frighteningly longer than expected, before finally she came down hard on the floor below her, landing on her back. There was a loud, terrifying crack as her body made contact with the stone and pain yet again rushed through her body. She tensed up, she wanted to scream in agony from the pain, but only found that the wind had been knocked from her lungs and she was now choking on whatever air she could grasp. She desperately tried to catch her breath but only continued to choke, until finally she gasped and coughed violently. Tears began to run down the side of her face from the pain.

Darkness pulled at the edges of her vision as she felt herself slipping from consciousness. She was dead. She just knew it. This was how she died. Alone, in pain, and in the dark. Worst of all, she was scared. It was a fear born of an uncertainty that she had not experienced in a long time. She was not only scared for herself, but for Big Mac and Fluttershy who were probably going through the same thing right now.

Despite how hard she raged and fought against it, AJ couldn't help but give into the darkness that grabbed at her. She was just too tired and weak. With one final breath, she closed her eyes as a deep and frigid sleep came over her. And just like that, she was out.

The air seemed only to grow warmer as the group of ponies advanced through the darkened tunnels. Thankfully for them, there was actual lighting where they currently walked, all in the form of glowing fungus and sometimes crystals that jutted out from the walls and ceiling like knives being pushed through from the outside.

The caves were still dark in most places, with long shadows being cast as they walked. They were not alone either. They were being followed.

"We're still being followed," Talisman pointed out to Rampart who was now taking point.

The group stopped yet again, each of them looking back. Standing there, about fifty yards away was the strange changeling that they had encountered only minutes ago. He stood there, not moving, only staring at them curiously, just as he had before. He only took a step forward when the ponies did, and never stepped back unless they did the same. He always remained at the same distance.

"Permission to handle this joker, Captain?" Jackpot asked, growing frustrated by the changeling's persistence.

"Negative," Rampart answered, much to Jackpot's dismay, before turning to the other changeling in the cave. "Switchback," he addressed, "what do you make of this?"

Switchback blinked, not entirely believing that he was actually being called upon for advice. I... uh." He stuttered on his words, not entirely sure what to say. This time, it was best to tell the truth though. "I don't know," he said. "He doesn't seem all that bad." He looked over at the strange figure before taking a few steps in his direction.

The other changeling did not move, only standing there. He tilted his head to the side as Switchback slowly made his advance. The changeling took a few hesitant steps forward, letting his hoof linger in the air at first, before letting it fall to the ground. Eventually, he had made his way all the way back to the group.

"I think he wants to come with us, maybe," August guessed.

"Absolutely not," Jackpot protested, only to be shot down by the look that Rampart was shooting him. It was not at all his decision to make and he would do well to remember this in the future.

"It would be your call Princess," Rampart said to Twilight.

"Well," she hesitated, not entirely sure how to handle this situation. On one hoof, it was dangerous to just let anyone from the hive follow them around. There was no telling what their intentions could be. For all they knew, he was some kind of spy for a group crazies that mugged ponies and changelings on the street. On the other hoof, this changeling was so much different than anything any of them had ever seen. He was strange, even to Switchback. What if he was just lost? What if he just needed help?

Twilight looked to Switchback who was still fixated on the other changeling with a worried look. "What do you think, Switchback?"

Switchback just stood there and stared at the other changeling. He stared right into his greyed out eyes that seemed to see nothing, until suddenly, his eyes flickered to a more natural light blue hue, as if they had been filled with life for a brief instant. This was a strange phenomenon that none of them quite understood yet, but had happened a few times since he had appeared.

Switchback's eyes widened and he looked at Twilight quickly. "I think we should help him," he said in a way that almost conveyed urgency.

Jackpot wanted to protest. He wanted to step in and end this madness. They couldn't just let another changeling into their group. He could be dangerous. Twilight had called him a puppy, but he was more of a stray dog, and it would only be a matter of time before he bit them. He wanted to do something, but knew their was no good in wasting his breath, so he remained silent.

"Are you sure about this?" Rampart asked. "There is an amount of risk taking this changeling with us."

"Yes Captain, I'm sure," Switchback answered, still staring into the now blue eyes of the other changeling, "and his name is Glosser," he added before the eyes that he was looking into flickered, like a dying lightbulb until once again they were a pale grey color.

Everypony looked at Switchback in a confused manner.

"Glosser?" August questioned.

Glosser smiled wide at the mention of his name.

"Wait a minute," Talisman began. "How do you know that all of a sudden?"

Switchback's own expression twisted into one of confusion, as if he had just woken from a strange dream. He looked around at the other ponies around him before finding his voice. "I... I don't know."

Author's Note

No, AJ isn't dead. We'll see more of her, Big Mac, and Fluttershy later. Right now, this is all you get though. Also, I think I've finally figured out how I want to connect the current events to the next major plot point. It just needs a little further refinement.

Apologies for the long wait. Life has been going on. I finally got a good job so that's awesome. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed reading this. Thanks for all the support and favorites. I'm really glad to see people like what I'm putting out.

Chapter 11: Fear

Yet another hour had passed. The ponies and changelings had been walking for hours and yet another was behind them now. They kept a steady pace, stopping only when absolutely necessary as Switchback guided the group through the twisting and winding caves. Intersection after intersection and cavern after cavern had presented themselves and Switchback always seemed to know exactly where they were going.

They had wandered through the caves for a great sum of time, as if traversing a great void of darkness. They had wondered if they had entered these Husklands that they seemed to here to much about, fully expecting it to be a gradual change from a normal system of caves to a hellish nightmare of a wasteland and despite all their preparations for the worst. They seemed more like a distant and illusive enigma.

"There should be a town up ahead," Switchback pointed out. "It'll be in the next cavern. It's called Floodwater, built on an old underground lake that floods every spring when the snow from the surface runs into cracks through the mountains. It collects here."

"Cool," August said. "Is the whole place built on a dock or something? I love coastal towns."

"Basically," Switchback answered. "The entire town was almost destroyed by a flood long before I was around. They had to move everything to a higher elevation to accommodate the new water levels that only got higher every year. A drainage canal was built a few years after I was born so the flooding stopped being a problem, but the town kept it's name all this time."

"Interesting," Twilight commented. "You sure seem to know a lot about this place. Did you ever live there?"

"No," Switchback answered, "but it was a frequent stop when I ran my courier routes. I kind of picked up the history over time. Learning the history of towns was kind of one of the things that made being a courier fun. I got to see the hive in it's entirety and learn interesting facts from its history, that was until the roads became too dangerous to travel."

"What did you do then?" August asked.

"I settled down in a small town called Runestone. It was known for its masonry work, but all the masons were put out of the job thanks to no one wanting to travel," Switchback explained. "It wasn't really my choice to stay there as much as it was just me not wanting to risk traveling at all, but the town was well defended and had a decent stockpile of food to last us longer than most. So I guess it was for the best that I ended up there."

"Wow, that's really lucky," August commented.

"Well, it wasn't easy by any means," Switchback pointed out. "After all communications with the capital hive were lost and the last of our couriers disappeared, we began to have trouble with other groups. We almost got into a feud with another town, but they all scattered after getting attacked by a band of raiders. Then our stocks went low and we ended up turning into scavengers just like everyone else. Even our crops didn't seem to want to grow."

"I thought you guys ate love," Brisk spoke up from the rear of the group. He had been walking with Glosser, keeping an eye on him for some time now.

"We mostly do, but some solid food is required from time to time," Switchback answered. "Without it, we'd shrivel up and die or something like that. I don't really know the science behind it."

Everypony looked over to Glosser, who was happily keeping pace with the ponies as if he had never been injured. He gazed back at the ponies, smiling widely now that they were paying attention to him.

"Do you think that's what's going on with Glosser?" Talisman questioned. "I mean, it sounds plausible. Maybe he hasn't been getting his vitamins."

Nopony really dwelled on the subject. Glosser's condition, at this point, had become more than an enigma to them. They didn't know why he was the way that he was. He just was. For them, that would have to be good enough. Still though, the little flakes of chitin, that looked like what would fall off a poorly tended onion, that fell from him every so often kind of freaked everypony out. He looked like a snake shedding its skin, except he would bleed in some spots, especially when decided to scratch himself.

The group walked on for a few more minutes, before the cave began to open up, until finally they found themselves in a much larger cavern that split off in multiple directions. A large ravine ran through the middle of the limestone floor, dividing it in two. A mass of darkened structures could be seen at the top of the ravine, some teetering on the very edge, threatening to fall into the darkness below.

Each of these structures was old and run down, more than likely having been built and abandoned more than five years ago, give or take. Their design was much different from what the group had encountered back in the small town that they had passed through initially. The structures in that town seemed as if they had been built from the ground up, where as these seemed as if they had been carved from already existing rock formations, and added onto with the limited wood available.

They all looked like they had once been lived in, but at the same time were void of any signs of life. There was something very haunting about the dark windows that no light seemed to be able to penetrate, despite any and all glass having been broken out a long time ago. The piercing black eyes looked on at the ponies and changelings as they passed by only meters away from the front door, taking note of them, remembering other beings who had dared to travel these caves. Fools.

As they passed, August stopped and looked out at one of the structures. It was a house no doubt, and he found himself wondering what its story was, who had lived in it. He looked on at the house, thinking of how sad it was that whoever had once lived there was now probably dead, or living like a rat.

As he concentrated on the house for a few more seconds, he began to be overcome by a strange chill in the air that had not been there a moment ago. His chest grew tight, making it hard to breath, and the hair on the back of his neck began to stand up straight. He began to feel a tingling sensation, like something was moving under his skin, skittering to and fro. Then suddenly and without warning, the house smiled at him.

August eyes watered at an alarming rate and he found himself being swept off his hooves and onto his flank, as if he had been pushed. He blinked rapidly, his head spinning and his heart racing. He looked around to see that the rest of the group was still walking on, leaving him alone. Alone. Alone. He didn't want to be alone. He would never be alone. He swore to the sun, moon, and anything in between that he would die before he was ever left alone.

He scampered to his hooves and raced after the others as fast as he could carry himself. When he had rejoined them, a warmth over took him. He felt safe and secure again, like this was where he should be. A hole in his very essence had been filled. He began to take deep breaths, drawing the attention of one of his fellow guards ponies.

Brisk looked over at August, who was visibly shaken by something. He was currently wiping his watered eyes, like dust or dirt had been blown into them. "You okay?" Brisk asked. He may have been more of the quiet type, but that didn't mean he ignored someone when they were obviously not alright.

"I'm fine," August answered quickly without snapping. "I uh... I think I'm just going to stay close from now on. I'd hate to get separated from you guys."

Brisk nodded, before shooting August a reassuring smile. He wasn't going to probe at the subject anymore. August was a good soldier and had been picked for this mission for a reason, he didn't need Brisk digging into him and stressing him out.

"Floodwater should be at the bottom of this ravine," Switchback pointed out as the group started down a trail that lead into the darkened crack in the ground. "It opens up into a larger cavern at the bottom. From there we can make our way to the next town."

"Sounds good," Rampart confirmed. "Is there anything we should know about before we head down?"

Switchback thought for a moment, looking over to where the ravine began its plummet into the earth. A long and winding set of stairs and scaffolding twisted and snaked its way down the side of the cliff faces. In many places the stairs did not even connect to each other, simply ending. A species that naturally had wings had little need for continuous stair cases.

"Off hoof," Switchback began, "there's nothing I can think of. I'm ready when you guys are."

Glosser smiled happily as he spread his wings, which looked less like wings and more like a pair of tattered and torn kites. It would seem that he was ready to fly, ready to be free of the restraint of the ground. He took a few steps forward, getting ready to take off before a hoof landed on his shoulder.

"I don't think that's such a good idea buddy," August advised. "I think you might just be a little too... um... broken, for something like that." This caused Glosser to frown tuck his wings back under his flaky shell.

"You sure it's a good idea to go down that way?" Jackpot questioned. "It doesn't exactly look like a safe way of getting down. If someone slips we may need a mop."

"Only option we have," Rampart answered. "We'll hoof it down the steps... slowly. Keep good spacing between you and the next pony to prevent strain on the supports. Pegasi can carry anyone limited to the ground across when we hit gaps."

Rampart took a few steps onto the first platform, seducing a series of creaks and squeaks from the rotting wooden structure. "Take it easy and watch where you step and we'll all make it to the bottom in one..." *CRACK!*

Suddenly and without warning, part of the platform that was connected to the edge of the cliff gave way, causing the entire platform to rapidly tilt to a forty five degree angle, right into the dark abyss below. Gravity took hold of Rampart as he lost his hoofing and he was dragged down to his demise. "Crap!" he yelled in that moment of shock.

Horror shot through the hearts and minds of Rampart's comrades as he slid down the angled surface and off the side, where a hoof rail should have been, but had more than likely eroded away long before their arrival.

"Captain!!!" Talisman shouted suddenly, shooting forward in a way that only a pegasus could with August right at his side. The two raced forward and down into the ravine to catch the pony that they had just watched fall to an impending doom.

Rampart held on for dear life at the edge of the platform, which was now giving way more and more with each second that passed. Talisman shouted just as his hooves finally slipped and he was swallowed whole by the forces of gravity for only a brief moment, before he found himself clambering onto something else. Something that hung from the platform with him. Something that smelled old and rotting. Something dead. A changeling was hanging from the platform by a rope round its neck, its head being snapped back into a hangman's fracture position.

"We gotcha, sir," August said as the two pegasi grabbed Rampart under his front legs and hoisted him up to safe ground.

When his hooves met the solid ground beneath him, Rampart sat back on his haunches. His mind spun and his adrenaline raced through his veins. He could feel his heart pounding away in his chest and a cold sweet rapidly building on his brow. He scampered away from the edge the cliff, lest he lose his hoofing again.

He took deep and rapid breaths only to find that he could not fill his lungs with oxygen. He couldn't breath. Why couldn't he breath?! Something was in the air. Something unnatural and unclean. Something unholy was grabbing him and trying to finish the job that the platform could not. He looked down at himself. He panicked and quickly undid the straps on his cuirass and ripped it from his body. He threw it to the ground along with whatever packs of supplies had been attached to it. This wasn't enough though. He was still too heavy. Gravity still weighed on him too much. He needed to be lighter. He would not be dragged back. He would not fall again. He threw his helmet off allowing his blue dyed mane to fall free, adding the piece of gear to a pile which was then joined by his shoes and sword.

Finally, he stopped and caught his breath, breathing in and out, in and out, in and out, each breath being longer than the last. He closed his eyes and cleared his head, allowing his composure to return.

"Are you alright?" Twilight asked him worriedly, putting a hoof on his shoulder. She had never seen a pony freak out in the manner that Rampart just did, even in such high stress situations.

Rampart looked to Twilight. She had a sincere look on her face, true concern gleaming in her eyes. Her eyes. Her eyes were beautiful and calming. Like a beacon calling the stallion back to his inner place of peace. Rampart let out one final exhalation. "Yes, I'm fine... I think. Just... nerves. That's all."

"Are you sure?" Talisman asked. "You wigged out pretty bad there, almost like you were having a panic attack or something."

"Yes, I'll be alright, but we are not going back down that way," Rampart announced. "The pegasi will carry us all down, one at a time. I wont risk losing anyone like this."

Everypony nodded in agreement. They didn't need another display like this. Everyone was already more or less on edge.

And so the decision was made and preparations began for the lengthy descent down the darkened chasm. Each of the guards had brought their own supply of survival rope along with them in their supply packs. It would now come in very useful for avoiding any fatal drops.

Rampart was naturally the first to finish tying his rope into several articulate knots in order to form a makeshift harness. As all the others finished their own and looked to lighten their loads, leaving behind things that could be retrieved by the pegasi after their descents, Rampart found himself wandering for a moment away from his pile of gear. He was naked, wearing only the dyes in his coat and mane, and a silver necklace with a small purple gem. The warm air of the caves embraced him, the darkness wrapping him in a strange and alien feeling. He looked over to the edge of the great abyss before him.

If there was one thing that Captain Rampart was not scared of, it was heights. He had been in high reaching watchtower after high reaching watchtower and walked atop the castle walls on patrol numerous times. He had flown in sky carriages and climbed high dangling ropes during training exercises. Practically half his life involved looking down from a high place, and yet while looking down right now, he was suddenly attacked by a sense of vertigo. His head spun with pain and his blood ran cold. Beads of sweat bled from his pores like facets and he found it hard to find his equilibrium. He quickly dashed back to the safety of solid ground, away from the edge. He would not die from a fall. He refused to come this far only for this to be his fate.

"So anything else we should know about this Floodwater place?" Talisman asked. "I'd hate to get there and be unprepared for whatever surprises it has in store for us."

"All I can think of at the moment is that it's kind of crowded," Switchback answered. "There's a lot of thin roads and narrow alleyways. The lake water should be settled at a low point this time of year. I doubt we'll have much trouble with it."

"What's the lighting situation?" Talisman continued. "Are we going to run into another one of those..." he hesitated, trying to find the correct way to phrase his thoughts. "...big sun looking things again?"

"No," Switchback answered simply. "I've only ever seen those in the inner hive. I'm surprised they were able to make one."

"Great," Jackpot said sarcastically. "Close quarters and complete darkness. Just what we need right now."

"Not entirely," Switchback contradicted. "There should be some crystals that provide light throughout most of the town. All we'll need to do is activate them when we come across a dormant one. Most should still be active though, assuming they haven't been looted."

"Fat chance that they haven't," Jackpot snorted.

"Are we ready to go then?" Twilight asked after carefully tucking away a small journal that she had only now gotten a chance to write in. She had not been able to write in the small brown book earlier, but now that they had stopped a for a little, she had gone to work filling it with all sorts of notes about her experience so far. It was less than pleasant.

"We're all set to make the descent, Princess," Rampart said. He was still not wearing any of his armor and was now only carrying his sword and a light set of saddlebags.

"Opting out of the standard issue, Captain?" Talisman asked. It was weird to see a superior out of uniform, especially during a mission like this.

Rampart looked back to the small pile of equipment that he had left strewn in a jumbled pile. It was all protective gear, serving little purpose other than to protect a wearer from what would be fatal blows. It was the best armor that Equestria could equip a soldier with and yet Rampart couldn't bring himself to wear it. He didn't want it anymore. He felt too free and unrestricted without it, like gravity would not try and claw at him again in the way it had before.

"Yeah," Rampart answered after a thought. "It was only slowing me down. I feel more comfortable without it."

Talisman just shrugged like it was no big deal and Jackpot didn't even make a sign that he had been listening or even cared. August looked back to the pile of equipment.

"It would be ashamed to leave all this behind," August pointed out. "It might be worth something to someone later on."

"What, you planning on retiring and opening a pawn shop down here?" Jackpot questioned.

"He's got a point," Talisman said. "I don't know about being worth anything, but it might not be a bad idea to rip out the enchanted strips and pocket them for later. Could come in handy."

"Enchanted strips?" Twilight asked at the mention.

"Small strips of enchanted fabric that are embedded into the interior lining of the armor," Brisk stated. "Helps mitigate force from heavier blows and prevent heat from building in the plating and burning the user in hotter climates. Older armor variants just worked the enchantments into the plating, but enchanted metal is harder to repair so they started making enchanted strips in the padding that can be swapped between armor sets and even repurposed for other uses. Much more efficient and versatile than the earlier designs."

"Wow. Leave it to the quiet one to know everything about armor enchantments," August applauded.

Rampart rummaged through his saddlebags for a moment and pulled out a few strips of fabric, which seemed to shimmer at the touch. "Way ahead of you already," he said before putting the strips back into storage. "Lets get down to this Floodwater. We can stop in a few hours afterwards and rest for the night."

Everypony nodded in confirmation.

Naturally, Glosser was the first into the air, zipping around with the slight buzz of his somehow operational wings. He faltered just slightly every few seconds but managed mostly to stay steady in air.

"Into the bowels," August said joking.

Then those who had them, spread their wings, and the descent began.

It really didn't take them that long to find their way to the bottom of the darkened ravine. One by one they each made their way into the abyss. Rampart, Brisk, and Jackpot were the only ones who didn't have wings, so they were the only ones who had to actually be carried. Brisk was the easy one. He was of a slim, but highly athletic build. August and Talisman carried him down with little effort. Jackpot was the second to go down. He took a bit more work. Being an earth pony, he had much more muscle, and was already big on his own merits. In basic, he had earned a bit of a reputation for being a heavy hitter and hard to take down when sparring.

Lastly was Rampart. He didn't give them much trouble. His body lied somewhere between Brisk and Jackpot, but the absence of his armor made him much easier to carry. The only thing unusual was that he shook nervously the entire time, his heart seemed to race, and he refused to open his eyes until he was on solid ground again.

Despite all of this, Rampart dismissed any inquiry on the matter, continuously suggesting that he was fine and that nothing was wrong. Both Talisman and August agreed that it would be best to keep an eye on him.

When they had all made it down, Talisman and August went back up to retrieve their saddle bags, before returning to the small bubble of light that the unicorns and changelings had created for them.

"Happy Hearth's Warming," August said as he landed, dropping his share of the load.

Talisman dropped the other half of their gear and put on his own saddle bags. "I'm ready to go when you are," he said.

Each of the ponies grabbed their gear, but before they could mount up and head out, Glosser eagerly dashed passed all of them and into the darkness. Before anyone could call out to him though, there was a loud splashing noise. Sure enough, Glosser jumped around happily in what appeared to be a knee high body of water that surrounded them on all side, with only a few high points not touched by the small ocean.

"I thought you said there was a drainage canal," Jackpot said sternly to Switchback.

"This cant be right," was his only reply. Switchback looked out into the water, where Glosser still played like a dog on a rainy day, jumping in and out of puddles. There shouldn't have been any water here, not yet at least.

"Maybe it got blocked?" August suggested.

"I wouldn't be surprised if there was another cave in," Talisman said. "Seems like the most likely cause."

It didn't really much matter what had caused the water level to rise in the way it had. That wasn't important right now. What was important was that they needed to get through this and to Floodwater, which at the moment was living up to its name. Rampart was the first to step out into the water, his hoofsteps being accompanied with sloshing noises as he moved. The rest followed right behind.

The water was dark and murky, not allowing anypony to even see their hooves that plunged into the shallow depths. Several waterlogged changeling bodies were now only noticeable as the floating masses of decaying flesh were disturbed, for the first time in who knows how long, by the new ripples in the water. A few husks had been deposited on pieces of raised ground, where they had dried up, but were now threatened to be washed away again by the small waves that the ponies had created.

Each member of the group stayed close, never daring to leave the small bubble of light that they had created for themselves. They appeared to be completely alone. Talisman though, couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched, like something dwelled just beneath the surface of the water, watching, waiting to burst up and snatch one of them before pulling them back down to their doom.

Talisman was consumed by an uneasy feeling. A chill ran down his spine and his chest grew tight, making it much harder to breath in the already hot and humid cave. He looked out into the dark, not knowing if the ripples he saw were from the group or something else lurking just outside his field of vision. He couldn't shake the feeling, no matter what he did. He felt as if they were being stalked by something much scarier than any nightmare he could ever envision and he was powerless to stop it.

Something was not right.

Author's Note

This chapter took way too fucking long and I am really sorry about that. I've really had a hard time getting my thoughts out in the proper way, but I'm finally done with this. Hope you guys like it.

Chapter 12: Waky Flaky

Glosser jumped around, playing in the water like a child. He splished and splashed in the puddles, flinging water to and fro as if it were a holiday that involved getting everything around one's self soaking wet.

Jackpot glared angrily at the changeling as he joyously jumped around in circles. "Someone should really get him to knock it off," he complained. "We're already out in the open and the last thing we need is this stupid thing attracting unwanted attention."

As if having heard Jackpot, Glosser suddenly stopped, coming down from the climax of a jump creating one last splash. His ear twitched and he turned around to face the group, glaring specifically at Jackpot in an unimpressed manner. He trotted around in a small circle for a moment, as if he were contemplating a plan of action against the pony. Suddenly stopping, he faced the group one more time and charged, heading straight into a sprint.

Jackpot's eyes widened. This was it, he thought to himself. This crazy little changeling had finally decided to turn on them and was now making its move. He had warned everypony, but none of them would listen and now it was up to him to save them. Quickly, he drew his sword and took a fighting stance, but instead of fending off an attack, Jackpot found himself being rushed by a torrent of water as Glosser jumped up and came back down with his legs extended in front of him to cause a large directional splash.

The wave splashed up into Jackpot's face and drenched his entire body, leaving him standing there dripping wet. After this Glosser simply cantered to the front of the group to take a position next to Twilight, only looking back to stick his tongue out to taunt.

August stifled a laugh, trying so hard not to lose it to the point of coughing. "Yeah, dude, I don't he likes being called stupid," he said with a grin.

"Not funny," Jackpot said angrily. If he had been any more angry, the water may have even begun to evaporate off him.

"No, it's funny alright," Talisman said from further up the line.

"I cant believe you guys are defending it," Jackpot said.

"Him," Switchback corrected, earning himself a dirty look from the already pissed off pony, causing him to retreat back to the other side of Twilight.

"You kind of deserved it," Talisman pointed out. "Just give the guy a chance. Sure, he's a little weird, but in kind of a charming way." This little comment in particular made Glosser smile.

"There is nothing charming about him," Jackpot said before sighing, "but fine, I'll give him a chance. One."

Glosser simply smiled, more than happy that the earth pony was willing to give him even that. His eyes flickered like a broken neon sign several times with the light blue color before finally staying lit up. "I appreciate the benefit of the doubt," said suddenly and casually.

Everypony is the group stopped and looked at him in shock. "Whoa, he can talk!" August said.

Glosser stopped suddenly as his eyes shot open wide in surprise. He sat on his haunches and looked down at his wet but still flaky forehooves. "What the... I can talk? Cool. Hi! My name's Glosser," he said excitedly to his pony companions. "Oh wait, I already told you that. At least, I told Switchback... I think. Yeah, not really sure how I did that."

Before Glosser could go on and say anything else, Twilight cut him short. At first the whole group had just gone quiet and looked at Twilight and Switchback like it was their responsibility to figure out just what in Celestia's warm sun was going on. And so Twilight spoke. "Glosser, hi," she said to catch his attention. "What's happened to you? Why are you like this?"

"What are talking about?" Glosser asked. "Nothing's happened, I think. Although, there are these times that I get really really itchy and feel like my chitin is trying to kill me. So I scratch and itch and contort my body and it feels really good when I rub up against sharp rocks or roll in broken glass."

"So, you don't remember what made you all..." Switchback paused as he tried to find the right word. "...flaky?"

"Nope, not a clue," Glosser answered without hesitation. "Although, sometimes I get these really weird flashes in my head. No idea what they are, but I always feel like they're familiar. It's the craziest thing. I'll just be walking along and suddenly, boom, images in my brain. It's almost like..." Suddenly, mid sentence, the blue in his eyes shot out like a light bulb breaking and returned the color back to the gloomy grey. His body stiffened and his jaw went slack, leaving him staring at the group, or more like through them. His eyes had no focus. He teetered, almost losing his balance on now shaky legs. Then as nothing had happened he regained his composure, stuck his tongue out slightly, and smiled as if everything was right in the world.

"Well, that's not normal at all," Talisman pointed out.

Everypony looked to Switchback, as if he had some clue as to what was happening. "He's fine," he said after a moment of thought. "He just got a little too excited is all."

Everyone just looked at him like he was crazy.

"And how do you know that?" Talisman asked.

"That's the second time he's done that," Brisk pointed out. "Definitely not a coincidence."

Switchback made a confused face, as if mystified by his own word. "Whoa," he just said. "How did I know that?"

Author's Note

Very short chapter this time. I'm going to try and have two decent sized chapters out before the end of this month to make up for the amount of inactivity on this story. Hope this entertains you heathens until then. 👍

Chapter 13: Bug Bite

Two long hours. That's how long the ponies had been trudging their way through the knee high water. It should have only taken them a single hour to make it to the town of Floodwater, according to Switchback at least, but unseen hazards below the water's surface and a slight increase in both depth and the current's intensity had caused the journey to take double that time. At one point, a patch of soft mud had stolen one of Jackpot's horse shoes. At another, the water had been neck deep, forcing the group to find an alternate path.

Now the group sat on the second floor of a small building within the town itself. When they had first come up on the town, the first noticeable thing about it was the lack of any kind of wall or defensive perimeter. The town was completely open to whoever or whatever decided to pay a visit. The layout was designed in tiers it had seemed, with each of the towns districts being divided onto a system of steppes. The entire cavern almost resembled a toilet bowl with one of its sides missing where a subterranean river no doubt flowed deeper into the caves.

The buildings themselves were all placed very close together, creating many narrow streets and alleys. Their design was very similar to the ones found in the earlier settlement. Stone base, with upper floors and roofs being made from that discolored wood. The greatest difference though was the quality of work here. The stone work was much cleaner, showing off an actual gothic style and much less of the wood suffered from some form of rot, which was a miracle all thing considered. There was very little lighting in this place as well. A single large vein of fire gems ran along the ceiling of the cavern, providing just enough light in most places for general shapes to be made out in the dark. Other than this, the Floodwater severely lacked any other form of lighting. It's greatest quality though, was how empty it was. It was a ghost town.

And so, the ponies sat in the building just within the town's borders. Each of them hunched over their own horse shoes with rags with which they used to dry them.

"I sure hope we don't all get trench hoof," August said with genuine worry in his voice.

"I wouldn't give it too much thought," Twilight said as she picked mud out of her coat. "Prolonged exposure usually means more than just a few hours. Trench hoof is pretty unlikely right now."

"Oh good," August indicated. "That coming from you makes me feel a little better."

Again the room fell into silence as exhaustion had overtaken most members of the party. It was evening, no doubt. Rampart had been keeping time in his head and he was pretty sure it was around 8pm. Fortunately, bedrolls were already laid out, as it had been decided earlier that this would be their camp for the night. The only thing they really needed to worry about at this point was security, which was currently covered because Brisk was currently keeping watch on the balcony with Glosser, who hadn't spoken since they arrived. Food wasn't an issue either, thankfully. They had brought plenty of MREs and preserved and canned foods with them. As long as they didn't lose any of their saddle bags or emergency kits they would be fine.

Rampart looked around at the individuals around him. Talisman was sharing a can of peaches with Switchback, who thought they tasted a lot like some of the fruits his people grew. August was getting comfortable next to Twilight as she showed him a few of her journal entries. Jackpot sat happily eating an MRE. Brisk and Glosser sat together watching the rest of the groups backs as they quietly told each other of their cultures whenever Glosser's "condition" permitted it.

Despite everything that had happened, all the messed up things they had all seen, the atmosphere was light. There were smiles. Jokes and stories were exchanged. For just a moment, it felt as if everything was right in the world.

To an outside observer, they must have looked like quite a strange group. Five royal guards, one of which wasn't wearing any armor. Two changelings who were very different from each other in physical appearance. And lastly, an alicorn princess who didn't actually wear a crown.

Rampart laid down on his bedroll. Brisk had volunteered to take first watch, so it would be best if he could get at least a little sleep before his shift came. He closed his eyes and found himself drifting into a peaceful darkness.

"Do you guys thing the Cap' is going to be alright?" August asked the others when Rampart finally fell asleep.

"Of course, he'll be fine," Talisman answered dismissively. "He's the captain."

"Yeah, but... well, it's just that back there when we almost lost him..."

"You're just letting things get to you," Talisman said. "He had a near death experience. Sure, maybe he was a little shaken, but he's in charge for a reason. Celestia chose him for this assignment, so I'm confident that things will be fine. Right, Twilight?"

"Absolutely," Twilight answered. "Celestia has been my mentor ever since I was a little filly. There's no one in all of Equestria who I'd trust more than her to make these kinds of decisions."

"See?" Talisman said.

"Yeah, I guess you guys are right," August finally agreed. "It's just that something feels really wrong to me."

"Oh, you mean like the corpses floating around outside," Jackpot said, pointing to the window. "Yeah, those kinds of things tend to disturb ponies."

"I know, I know," August deflected. "It just feels like we're missing something. Like something other than what we're seeing is terribly wrong and we're supposed to be doing something, but aren't. Does that make any sense?"

"Makes sense to me," Twilight said. "It just sounds like stress."

"Hang in there, buddy," Talisman said. "We all feel it. We just got to stay focused, not lose our heads."

"I guess, you guys are right," August concluded.

"Damn right, we are," Jackpot said.

"Yep. Plus, we got peaches," August said, holding up a can of fruit. "Peaches make everything better."

Switchback smiled, only able to nod in agreement because he didn't want to talk with his mouth full.

"I propose a toast," August said as he opened up a can.

"A toast?" Jackpot questioned. "With peaches?"

"Sure, why not?"

"I think that's a great idea," Twilight responded as she grabbed a can of fruit with her magic and floated it across the room into her hooves.

"Alright then," August said, raising his can into the air. "To a successful mission."

"And not losing anymore horse shoes in the mud," Talisman chimed in at Jackpot's expense. It was met with merely an eye roll from the larger earth pony.

Twilight laughed a little at that last one, knowing full well that it wasn't the last time that something like that would probably happen. She raised her own can. "And to new friends in places we never thought we'd find them."

By the time morning came it was time to go. Breakfast was quick and packing didn't take long at all. The group couldn't really waste a lot of time. They still had a schedule to keep. Switchback had said that if they kept going at the rate that they were going, then they should make it to the capital in five more days. Everyone agreed it would be best if they made it there as soon as possible. It was funny just how vulnerable they all felt out in the open like this.

"Okay, Switchback. Which way now?" Rampart asked as they all walked through a higher tier of the streets in order to avoid the water in the lower city.

"The drainage canal leads to a region known as The Cistern. If it's flooding here then that's all going to be underwater this time of year. We need to find the high road towards Aphid. Once there, we can cut across some open caverns toward Chitown. Then it's a straight shoot to the capital hive."

"When you say 'open' what exactly do you mean?" Rampart asked.

"You know, big and empty," Switchback answered.

"Okay, then." Rampart waved the rest of the group on. "Let's get moving."

Before the group could even make it five feet, an arrow suddenly found it's mark in Glosser's flank, alarming everypony with a loud fwunk!!! sound as the arrowhead tore through chiton and flesh.

"Everypony down!" Talisman yelled, having seen the arrow fly just past the end of his snout.

Before Twilight and Switchback could even figure out what had just happened, they found themselves huddled in one of the surrounding building, having been literally picked up and carried there by their escorts.

"Came from the left," Talisman said, using a hoof held periscope to peek out the window.

While Talisman and Rampart triangulated the shooter's position, Jackpot sat next to Twilight and Switchback, making sure that they kept their heads down. August was just further to the left, trying to take a look at Glosser's wound.

Twilight was actually quite puzzled by Glosser right now. He was clearly injured. The arrow still stuck out perpendicular to his leg. Glosser himself though seemed relatively calm though. He didn't look at all like he was in pain. Instead, he just looked sad, like a puppy that had been abandoned on the side of the road or a young stallion who just got rejected by his high school crush.

Glosser's eyes suddenly lit up and he found his voice. "I actually can't feel this," he said. He poked at the shaft of the arrow with his hoof a few times to make sure it was actually there.

"You're about to though," August said as he grabbed the arrow down towards the wound. After instructing Glosser to take a deep breath and not to look, he yanked the arrow out as cleanly as possible.

This proved not to be challenging at all. Somehow the arrow hadn't actually gone in that far. Of course, there was some blood, quite a bit of it, but Glosser seemed entirely unaffected by his injury. After a quick patch job and some disinfectant, Glosser was back to walking like nothing had happened, at least would have been if they weren't currently taking cover from someone with a bow and arrow.

"He's definitely up there on the second floor," Talisman said, pointing to a three story building just across the street."

"Sir, I think I've got a flanking route," Brisk said as he crouched just next to the doorway.

Rampart didn't reply, but Brisk could clearly see the gears moving in his head. "Okay," he said. "We'll cover you. Talisman, go with him."

"Flash and hook?"

"Yeah," Rampart replied. Let's see what this guy has to say."

Without any further deliberation, Talisman and Brisk took their positions. Rampart pulled a small pouch from his saddle bags and emptied the contents. It was a collection of small marbles, but there didn't seem to be anything too special about them. Rampart began to make several motions with his hooves as if counting to three. With one final much more exaggerated motion the guards at the door shot off to the side.

Rampart suddenly popped up into the window. His horn lit up and the small marbles began to swirl around him in a circle of arcane energy. One by one each of the small marbles flew out at lightning speed toward the building where the shooter had perched. As marbles hit the building, they either lodged themselves in the stone or burst through the wood, sending fragments of broken rock and woodchips through the air in a small radius.

Through the chaos above, a single arrow managed to find its way out the window, but missed its target by several feet and shattered against the stone building. Clearly whoever was behind the attack had become disoriented and was a good thing too. Brisk and Talisman had managed to make their way to the roof of the attackers location from the neighboring building and were now ready to end it.

"Okay," Brisk said as his horn lit up and placed a large rune on the roof. "3, 2, 1." On this signal the rune flashed, turning the surface below it to ash and providing an entry point.

Suddenly, another arrow flew through the air up through the hole, but completely missed the two guards. Without further hesitation, they both stormed the room.

From the ground Twilight and Switchback observed this simple yet affective combat maneuver. As soon as the guards entered the room there was a bright flash. Only moments later a dark figure was flung through the window, sending shards of glass through the air. The changeling in question hit the ground with what sounded like an uncomfortable uhf!

As the rest of the group left the refuge of the small house, Talisman and Brisk jumped down from the second floor to secure their prisoner and collect the bow and quiver from his still body.

The changeling cursed at his current situation as he spit out a load of dirt that had made its way into his mouth upon his less than graceful crash landing. He moaned several times in pain. There was no doubt he would have quite the bruise later on.

"And that's why you don't jump through a window after being hit by a neutralizer spell," Talisman said. "Turns out there is actually some delay on the paralysis."

"Oh no," the changeling moaned. "You had to paralyze me!?! You couldn't just give me a quick death could you!?! Damnable ponies!" He buried his head into the ground as if trying to hide from the world.

"Stop being such a drama queen," Jackpot said. "It'll wear off in a few minutes."

The changeling perked his head up and sighed in relief, but not even a moment later did he begin to try and squirm away again despite the fact that he had no control of his limbs or wings.

"Now hold on," Rampart demanded. "What in Equestria did you hope to accomplish by shooting at us?"

"Piss off!" the changeling snarled back. "As soon as I can feel my legs again I'm going to kick all your asses, starting with you!" He made a threatening expression towards Brisk, who just stared back, completely unfazed by the threat.

"Sir, should I zap him?" Brisk asked, more than willing to give the changeling a little jolt to inspire cooperation. Pain compliance was not at all a foreign concept to any royal guard and he would be glad to use it if needed.

"That wont be necessary, Brisk," Twilight suddenly interjected. She then turned to the changeling lying on the ground, who just pouted and muttered curses to himself at this point. "So, what's your name?" she asked in a friendly tone. "Are you from around here?"

"Oh dang," August whispered. "Is this one of those crazy mind control tricks that alicorns do through the magic of friendsh-gah!" He was suddenly cut off as Talisman gave him an elbow in the ribs to get him to shut up.

"No," the changeling answered.

There was an awkward silence for a bit as Twilight thought about what she wanted to say. The changeling still just lied motionless.

"I understand why you don't like us," Twilight said "You see as outsiders. Intruders even."

"Pfft," the changeling mocked. "I really couldn't care less about you. As long as you stay out of my way we're cool. The last thing I needed was to get involved in whatever craziness brought you all down here."

"Then why shoot at us?" Twilight asked in a tone that was not at all aggressive, an approach that was proving much more fruit bearing than the aggression that her escorts had initially gone with. "Surely you had a good reason."

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't," the changeling retorted. "You wouldn't understand."

Twilight just raised an eyebrow. "Really?" Twilight said in a way that seemed almost challenging to the changeling. "Maybe you just don't have a good reason."

"Oh, I have plenty of reason to shoot at that thing," the changeling nearly shouted. "I was never shooting at any of you," he regained control of a leg and managed to point at the ponies of the group. "I was shooting at that monster you have with you. You guys think you're all so nice and clever, don't you? Taking in a poor soul who looks like he's just a harmless cripple. I'll tell you right now, that thing is going to get you all killed."

Glosser made a sad face at the accusations against him, retreating just a little behind Switchback.

"That's right, hide behind your little friend you coward. You'll feel the blood lust soon enough."

"What exactly are you talking about?" Twilight asked cautiously. She was beginning to get an uneasy feeling.

"Oh, nothing really. Just the fact that you've let a monster into your group," the changeling answered. "That thing may look like a normal changeling with a bad chitin disease, but I assure you he is nothing less than a born killer. You see that bite mark on his neck that he's scratched at like five times in the last minute. Yeah, if you get bit like that, then you're freakin screwed. The second their venom is in your blood stream you're dead."

"Wait a minute," Twilight interrupted. "If he's dying, then how is he a monster? Is he a biological hazard? Is he contagious?"

"He's not dying." The changeling managed to make it to his hooves, causing each of the guards to visibly ready themselves for just about anything. "Oh relax!" the changeling yelled at the them. He dropped back to his haunches, leaning up against a barrel that had been discarded in the street years ago. "Like I said, he's not dying. If anything, he'll feel more alive than ever. Just give him a few days and he'll be sinking his teeth into one of your faces."

"Are you saying he's turning into a zombie?" August blurted out.

The changeling chuckled a little at the thought. "Yeah, I guess you could say that, but less slow and shuffling and more agile and ruthless. Like a vampire. You guys know what I'm talking about, right?"

"You mean a vampony?" Twilight corrected.

The changeling stared at Twilight for a second before sighing. "Right, I forgot that you guys did that. My point is that you're better off without him. Sooner or later he's going to snap and kill one of you."

Everypony looked at Glosser in horror, everyone except Switchback who just eyed him curiously. "But what if that doesn't happen? What if we can help him?"

Glosser gave Switchback a look that said 'thank you.'

"He's right," Twilight said. "If there is a way to help him then we should try our best to cure him."

"Excuse me? Cure him?" the changeling mocked. "Are you joking? The only place with any kind of resources that would allow for a cure is the capital hive and that place is locked down. Nobody gets in or out without the Queens consent."

"I guess it's a good thing we were headed that way to begin with," August pointed out.

"And it's the right thing to do." Twilight added.

"Yeah, whatever," the changeling scoffed. "I tried to do what I thought was right and look where it got me." He managed to stand. "Even if you do get to the capital, you'll have already had to put him down. I give him another two days at most before he starts eating you. But hey, no chitin off my back. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get going, so I'd appreciate it if you'd let me have my bow back." He held out a hoof, waiting for the ponies to give him back what was his.

Talisman just stood there with the bow and quiver in his hooves. "Yeah, I don't think that's going to happen."

The changeling frowned and sighed. "I cant believe I'm saying this, but may I please have my bow back? I kinda need it... and I promise not to shoot at any of you."

Talisman turned to Rampart, who gave him a motion to return the bow and quiver. Talisman handed them over and the changeling responded by placing back in their rightful spots on his back.

"Now, if there's nothing else," the changeling said as he began to back away from the group, "I'll be going." And with that he was gone, walking off down the road.

"Should we be worried?" August asked to anyone willing to answer.

"I wouldn't be," Jackpot answered. "He's looking out for himself. By the time we're gone it would be to much trouble for him to track us down. I know his type."

"In that case, we should get moving," Rampart indicated. "If Glosser is going to stand any chance then we need to be at the capital as soon as possible."

Everypony just nodded in agreement.

"Hey, guys," Glosser said in what was a bit of a sad tone as his eyes lit up again. "I really appreciate what you guys are doing for me."

"You're welcome," Twilight said.

"Yeah, dude," August joined. "You're one of us. We're not going to let anything happen to you."

Glosser smiled. The reassurance helped him to feel like everything was going to be alright. Then again, something told him not to get his hopes up. It was still a long road ahead.

Author's Note

Late. Late. Late. Fucking shit this is late! Yeah, remember when I said I had a load of time to do stuff? Something just had to come up and screw my schedule, didn't it? Then school started and I was not at all prepared.

Chapter 5: Departure

Chapter 5

Shining Armor stood at the castle landing pad uneasily. As he waited, he looked at his wrist several times only to realize that he didn't have a watch. He quickly began to wish that he did have one though, if only to give him a sense of time. The previous night, he had had nothing but bad feelings about this whole operation. No matter what he did he couldn't shake the feeling that this was all leading up to a major disaster. Perhaps he was just paranoid though. Celestia had after all approved of everything.

He looked to Cadence who also stood on the landing pad, only a few feet away from him. She too seemed worried, as if the weight of what was happening was finally setting in. Armor looked back to the large set of double doors that led back into the palace, then back to Cadence again. "What's taking them so long?" he asked to no one in particular with a sigh.

"I'm sure they're on their way," Cadence assured. "How are you feeling?"

Armor sighed again. "Tired," he answered. "I feel like no matter what I do, I just can't stop thinking about this going wrong."

"Are you still having those nightmares?"

Armor just nodded.

"Everything's going to be okay Shining, you'll see. Twilight has always done an amazing job with everything Celestia has tasked her with in the past. This will be no different." Cadence wished the last part was true or that she could at least convince herself that it was, but she too was worried.

The doors opened, catching the two ponies' attention. A small group of guards exited the palace followed by Twilight and Switchback. Two large gold chariots were already waiting for them on the landing pad, each being pulled by a team of pegasi. Captain Rampart gave a salute to Shining Armor who returned it respectfully.

"I trust that you will keep my sister safe?"

"Yes sir," Rampart replied. "I promise no harm will come to her."

"I'll hold you to that," Armor responded. "Good luck."

The two officers exchanged another salute before parting ways.

When all the guards had passed, it was Twilight's turn to talk to her brother now. "Don't worry Shining," Twilight assured him. "I'm in good hooves. This whole thing will be over and I'll be back before you know it."

"I know, just... just be careful, okay?"

"I will," Twilight said. There was a prolonged hug between them and Cadence as they all said their goodbyes.

"We believe in you, Twilight," Cadence said. "Just do what you do best."

"Calculus?" Twilight asked jokingly. The three shared a laugh. It was only a short moment, but it seemed to take some weight off of each of their shoulders. Unfortunately, it could not last longer. They were interrupted by Talisman who informed them that they needed to get going if they were to stay on schedule.

"Go get 'em," Armor said trying not to sound too worried and depart on a happy note. It didn't really work, but he knew that if anypony could do this, it was Twilight. He was very proud of her for that. It helped ease his worry.

Meanwhile, Switchback tried to sneak by the Captain of the Guard without being noticed. Short story shorter, it didn't work.

"Hold on a second Switchback," Armor called out.

Switchback froze. Crap! He had been seen. He wanted to run, wanted to hop into one of the chariots and yell for the pegasi to gun it, even though he easily could have flown away on his own. Speaking of bolting, why wasn't Switchback doing that right now? Why was he just standing there? Run you idiot, run!

Despite the voice in his head yelling at him to take off, Switchback turned to face Shining Armor. He gulped. It wasn't until now, when the two were face to face, that he realized just how tall Shining Armor was. "Uh... I-I'm an am-ambassador now. Y-you can't..."

"I'm sorry."

Switchback paused, his terror turning to confusion as he began to realize the words that had come from Shining Armor's mouth. He stared for a moment. "What?"

Shining sighed. "I haven't treated you fairly, I know this, and I'm sorry for it. Now I need you to do a favor for me. I need you to keep an eye on Twilight."

"What do you mean keep by 'keep an eye on her?'" Switchback asked, not entirely understanding the instructions. It's not like Twilight intended to do something devious. Why would he need to watch her?

"I want you to keep Twilight safe," Shining explained. "I know you'll have an escort, but I need somepony on a more personal level to make sure she doesn't take any unnecessary risks. Your her friend, so she'll listen to you more than she will some guards just doing a job. Promise me you'll keep her out of trouble."

Switchback couldn't believe Shining was asking for a favor, but knowing him, it made sense. Shining just cared about his sister. He couldn't blame him for asking this kind of favor.

How could Switchback even think about saying no? If he did, it would be like saying that he didn't care. After a moment of thought, he faced Shining Armor. "I promise."

Everypony loaded into the chariots as last and final goodbyes were exchanged. This was it, the moment that they had been waiting for. It had only been a day since the changeling situation had been discovered and here they were, already about to take off into the sunset, metaphorically of course. The sun had just risen and there was no reason for Celestia to lower it early.

Before the first chariot could leave the ground, Shining Armor ran to the one that his sister was now in. "I love you, Twilight," Shining said. "Be safe."

"I love you too, BBBFF," Twilight replied, "and I will, I promise." She shared one final goodbye hug with him before breaking.

Shining Armor looked over to Switchback, giving him a serious look and nodding, as if saying "Good luck."

The chariot left the ground, rising slowly at first and moving forward as the team of pegasi began take flight in unison as being of one mind and body. Shining Armor was left watching as the chariot took off into the sky. He had always been proud of Twilight for her accomplishments, and knew that she could always come on top against any foe, she had proven this time and time again. Now she was off to save the world again, but this time it felt different for Shining Armor. This time he felt like he was losing his little sister.

There was nothing he could do but stand in silence and watch the chariot grow smaller and smaller. This moment of silence though, allowed for a single voice to take over his mind.

Shining Armor froze as the familiar, barely feminine voice rang in his head. It was Chrysalis. She had come back from the dead one final time to speak to him, torment him, warn him.

"Now it begins."

Author's Note

A relatively short chapter. I've been playing a lot of the Division beta and World of Tanks as well as working on some other projects so I haven't work on this for a while. I figured this story was a bit passed due for an update though so I went ahead and wrote this. Pretty soon, I'll have nothing to do so this will probably get updated a bit more often in the coming month or two.