Transparency: Q. Mint Jewelip

Recon wasn't exactly sure what had happened after the sky broke, but she did know that the twilight pre-dawn light had given way to a bright afternoon without the sun moving an inch.

There had been a cracking sound, the shell tingling screech of battle cries, and then green fire everywhere as drones seemed to rain from the sky. The Royal Guard had responded quickly, though ineffectively, to the attack, launching themselves into the defense of their citizens with a zeal she had thought reserved for the queens. And yet, it had been for naught.

Within moments, they had been overrun. The black drones swarming in such number and with such single minded focus that for every drone neutralized, a dozen guards had been captured. For every changeling loss, a score or more of the ponies had been stunned, gooped, and immobilized.

And while the fighting had taken a few minutes to come to a close, there had been very little in the way of idleness from the drones. Even those who had shown up after the initial strike had shown some form of planning in their actions: securing structures, moving captives, putting out fires, or simply routing what little resistance remained of the Canterlot population.

Recon had, of course, sent Relay to find Sleep and ensure her safety... the little messenger departing with the same zeal as always. So much so, in fact, that she careened out of their hiding place, plowed into an invader, snapped its carapace and kicked it to the ground without slowing down.

Recon had blinked a few times in shock. She had known Relay was a fast and determined little bug but, to see her callously, almost mindlessly, murder another changeling, even from another hive, had been disconcerting.

Then again, each changeling was bred for a purpose... and Sleep had apparently wanted to insure that information was not intercepted.

Even so, Recon's assessment of the little pink filly had suddenly shifted from "creepy little numbskull" to something more along the lines of "sociopathic mail-carrier"... an adjustment with no small number of frightful implications.

So, while she had been considering just how dedicated the 'idiots' she normally worked with might actually be, the three black drones that tumbled through her window and onto the floor in a blaze of green fire managed to catch her somewhat unaware.

And somewhere after that, she had blacked out... probably from an ambushing assassin or lucky shot from a skilled sniper who had tagged her as a high priority threat.

...

And most certainly not because she had tripped over her telescope and cracked her head on the windowsill.

-~oOo~-

Deep Thought's mind was ablaze as his Queen rifled through his thoughts with little concern for his personal feelings. Granted, those feelings were mostly her own, but it still felt vaguely like an intrusion. Seconds ticked by, highlighted only by the momentary flashes of understanding that faded nearly as quickly while his queen flitted her full attention between her more intelligent drones.

Yes, being part of a hive mind was amazingly efficient... he really couldn't understand how ponies could even keep from running into one another without knowing where everyone else was... but there were moments where he deeply desired at least a slight amount of separation.

Deep felt his body relax as he blinked his eyes, noting as he did that many others nearby were doing likewise. Sleep was looking skyward, a pinched frown on her lips as she, no doubt, processed the collected memories of a few dozen drones.

Mem was going to have a headache shortly... he could almost taste the drone's frustration now.

"Deep Thought. Stop dreaming and start plotting an open assault on the castle. If Chrysalis got in, then we need to take Recon back before she finds her."

It was a few moments before Sleep Dep blinked, her disguise flaring back into existence, "oooooooooh. Nevermind. That pink thing was probably her losing. Well... this should be more interesting then."

Deep could only groan as he knew how much of a headache he and Mem were about to share.

-~oOo~-

Undercover. Always undercover.

You can't get love without a bit of reflection and you can't steal a nation without a heap of deception.

"Da~dah da~dah da~da~dah~DAAAAAA!"

A pegasus mare strolling down the street promptly sidestepped the light blue colt as he continued to skip and jerk as he trotted along, occasionally muttering or belting out a nearly passable song. Watching the young colt for just a moment, she turned up her nose and quickly trotted off. No sense in being seen with the rabble.

Which, incidentally, was perfectly fine with Knob, who continued making up his own theme music as he 'stealthily' infiltrated Canterlot's business district.

A young colt 'dancing' through the city was nothing particularly unusual; despite the somewhat superior attitudes that many of the elite put on, no one could deny the simple joys of youth. So, when a colt or filly happened to break into impromptu musical numbers, the tendency was to either avoid them completely or, much more frequently than most public images could survive, join in.

As it was, the colt has assembled a small troupe of 4 other youngsters, one Guard, and two shopkeepers who seemed to instinctively know the right choreography or lyric at any given moment. If not for Knob's personal knowledge that not a single one of the group was actually a changeling, he would have assumed it from how well coordinated they were.

Ponies were strange like that. Easily startled, easily tricked, independent thought and personality, and yet still capable of spontaneous musical dance numbers.

Deep down Knob knew his part of the plan was vital but, prancing through the city while singing and twitching randomly seemed a bizarre infiltration tactic to him. Yet, Sleep Dep had been very clear in her instructions.

This was important.

This was vital.

This had to be perfect.

So when a guard stepped forward to block his path, Knob stopped dead, looked up at the white coated, golden plated form of the unicorn who stared down at him with thinly concealed mirth, and grinned broadly.

"HI! I'm here to overthrow your feeble government and ensure a smooth transition into the new era!"

The guard, to his credit, did not fall over laughing. He did, however, choke back a laugh that caused his eyes to blink... allowing Knob the split second he needed to leap up, spin around in a glorious burst of silver flames, and kick the clueless guard with the force of a full grown stallion.... directly in the horn, sending him to the fuzzy realm of dreams.

And, as Knob landed, he took in the unintended side effect of his perfectly executed takedown: the Guard's helmet had just so happened to have popped off.

Oh, and there may have been some panic from the ponies caught in the musical number.

-~oOo~-