The Lost Changeling: Taken it Back

After monitoring the remaining eggs briefly in the nursery hive and keeping the warm temperature maintained, I enter the small nearby meeting hall. In the meeting hall awaits six changelings in the order from left to right: Carina, Brand, Cervix, Seta, Cilia, and Carve. I pause, letting the hole behind me fill itself, long enough for Carve to approach and head butt my right forehoof, only to return to her post at the roundtable. I resume approaching my post, sitting down afterwards.

“Greetings, my changelings. I have a feeling your curiosity has peaked now that I have gathered you into the meeting hall.”

All of the changelings nod.

“Baring Las Pegasus locals Rusty Flashlight and Pane Fall, Equestria as of right now has thought lowly of me ever since I first came to power. But now, I have the confidence that I can change their minds.”

Suddenly, snickering comes from all of my present subjects, except for Carve, who just glares at them, prompting them to stop.

“Changelings, please. I’m trying to listen to Chrysalis here.”

“Thank you, Carve. This meeting is no laughing matter. I need multiple backup plans if I am going to successfully build good terms with the ponies of Equestria. Do any of my top drones, including the stand-in queen, have any ideas for how to execute this mission?”

Carina rubs her right hoof on the roundtable.

“Maybe Carve can let them know. If ponies disown you like you say, it would be quite a bit of a problem for them if you were there. Besides, Carve has been living in Las Pegasus for five and a half years, so if she were to show up elsewhere in Equestria, those ponies would recognize her.”

“Good thinking, Carina. That will be of consideration. Carve, would you mind a visit to Ponyville?”

“Not at all. I’ve been there several times over the years. I’d let you know if anything went wrong though, like if ponies thought I was another changeling that was still pro-Chrysalis, which I highly doubt would happen.”

“Um, Carve?”

“Yes, Seta?”

“Why would you highly doubt they would think you were another pro-Chrysalis changeling? Ponies do get us mixed up sometimes.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll just ask the ponies if they remember Rusty Flashlight and Pane Fall. I would’ve gone with simply saying ‘Rolling Acres’, but the entire hive’s at least heard about that place now that I mentioned it in Correal’s calling.”

“Okay, so if that doesn’t work, then what would be the next plan?” I inquire.

“Um... uh, would it be... Las Pegasus vouching for you?”

Note to self: Save Brand’s plan for last after seeing the way he was rubbing his mane with his right hoof.

“Hmm. Anything else? Anyone?”

After a four second pause, Cervix leans inwardly.

“Well, if the ‘Carve going to Ponyville’ plan is unsuccessful somehow, it could be a good idea to build those good terms with the ponies there in disguise. They won’t know it’s you, unless you drop it.”

“But just so you know Cervix, it would have to be dropped at the right time. I would have to be exposed to one pony for an extended period of time. However, the good thing about extended exposure to one pony: they’ll know I’ve changed my ways. Even so though, I will have to leave the hive for at least forty eight hours to build good terms with Ponyville alone that way. It is a wildly slow process to do that for all of Equestria, but I suppose it can work. I will save that for when Carve achieves no success in building good terms for the changelings that are supposedly still loyal to me. So, what other plans can we figure out?”

Seta clicks her tongue a few times.

“Uh, maybe we can simply tell them the whole truth about what happened. Tell them everything, absolutely everything we can recall. If I have changed for the better, something I would want to prove, I would just stick with what I did to change and how I figured why I would’ve done that.”

“Well, it’s not too bad of an idea. What do you think Carve?”

“Well, Chrysalis, I like it. Based on my experience, many ponies can spread word to others. I know another idea, but for the sake of hearing outside ideas, let’s hear what Cilia is thinking of.”

“Agreed,” the rest of us say, except for Cilia.

Cilia shrugs.

“Okay. Well, I don’t know if it’ll do much, but I was thinking that if Carve is going to go to Ponyville, I should drop a note off of Rusty’s doorstep.”

“Yeah, I was originally going to visit here for the weekend with Carina. But I’m up to going to Ponyville if Chrysalis really wants me to. So, uh, do you?”

“Yes. We’ll start with Carina’s plan. She knows you the most out of the rest of my top drones. Then, if you come back with no success from telling the ponies about me, I’ll arrive in Ponyville in disguise the day after so that I can get the best results possible. If neither of those plans work, I’ll try a more honest route.”

“Uh, Chrysalis, what about mine?”

“Yours, Brand? Perhaps I can include that with the final backup plan if the latter goes awry. Rusty Flashlight and Pane Fall won’t be needed unless absolutely necessary. Carve, you say you know of another plan that I can unfold. What is it?”

“O-oh. I don’t think your top drones would find it worth hearing.”

“Really? Coming from the stand-in changeling queen? The go to I can count on to rule while I’m away?”

“Well, the plans you have already have increased the chances of building good terms with Ponyville. I have a reasonable doubt that we would ever need my plan.”

“Well, whatever it is, it will have to be used only as a last ditch effort. Are we all fine with that?”

All six nod at me.

“Good. The meeting is adjourned.”

;=;

I drop by Carve’s nestroom to see her simply pace around the room.

“Oh. Hi Chrysalis.”

“Greta Calev. I wanted to briefly discuss with you alone about your plan.”

“Yeah.”

“What was it that you had in mind in case all of the others’ plans fell through?”

“Please, will you keep it a secret unless the whole building good terms thing turns into an emergency?”

“Yes, Carve. Keeping this plan incognito is perfectly possible.”

“So, uh, do you remember what happened when I left to live with Rusty and Pane?”

“Not terribly much of it. I do remember though how you showed me Rolling Acres from your-”

“Perfect! So, you know what my plan is then?”

“To be honest, I have the idea of how you plan will unfold. Again, it won’t be used unless absolutely necessary. That is all I wanted to know for now. The plans should start to unfold when Carina leaves.”

“Why then, Chrysalis?”

“You wanted time to spend with Carina right?”

Carve nods.

“Good. The time she departs for Wisconsin is when I send Cilia to drop the note off at your place. Is there anything else before I go?”

“N-no. Thanks for talking with me.”

“No problem, Carve.”

And with that, I depart from Carve’s room over to my throne.