Chapters The night enveloped everything in darkness along the road. The usual lamp lights at the side of streets, roads, highways and other places were no more.
Two figures moved through this, specs of green light emanating from their heads as they moved as quickly as they could.
Ahead of them was a large shadowed mass, their final destination as it were.
Quickly they left the flat uneven surface of the road and crossed the large fields of grass. Once there, they searched for their target, a grate of metal covering a manhole used for access and repairs.
“Okay Simon, you’re up.” came a whispered voice.
One of the figures moved over and began working on the grate exposed form the ground at their feet. The heavy metal was moved, scraping over the concrete right around it after a few seconds of strain.
Checking their surroundings quickly, the first one moved to the side of the hole and sat down, legs dangling into the hole, which looked like a void to nothing.
Only a slight hesitation before he plunged through the darkness. Silence stretched for only seconds before there came a small echoing sound of something heavy hitting concrete.
He was quickly followed by the other, which made a louder more solid thump.
Standing the two looked around the long dark corridor before moving in one direction.
After a few minutes, the two pairs of green dots were removed and a flashlight was turned on. One face was of a man with dark hair and a rough shadow over his face. The other was a more feminine looking face of a young man.
The flashlight moved about briefly before being aimed in front of them to reveal a metal door.
The older man looked to his companion and nodded before stepping back.
The younger one moved forward and checked for a switch on the door, or something to try to open it before forcing it open, bending the metal slightly. It was difficult to try and press his fingers into the door creating a small opening to get a better grip. The strain was enormous, and he had to stop.
“What’s wrong Simon?”
Simon raised his hands to show the gloves on his hands had torn, beneath them revealed a false layer of skin beneath that was metal and wiring.
“If I continue, father, my hands will become useless and you will not be available to repair them.”
With a heavy sigh, his head turning quickly at an imagined sound from behind them he nodded before turning back.
“Alright then,” he placed the flashlight in his mouth and removed a pack to dig through it.
Producing a couple of crowbars, he handed one to Simon and held the other.
The two positioned themselves, crowbars in the hole that was made and struggled to push and pull.
The door resisted, but after a minute or so of struggling, they could feel the metal starting to give way.
With a screech, the metal door gave part way, bending out towards them.
The older man placed a hand on Simon and shushed him.
Overhead they could hear the sounds of a strange motor humming and vibrating as it moved and shifted above ground.
Simon moved as if wanting to go back from where they came, but the older man pushed him back, shaking his head silently.
After a few more seconds of the engine overhead shifting about, they could hear it growing louder before fading in one direction.
“They found the hole, I’m betting. It gives us even less time.”
Simon nodded to his father before turning and struggling with the door, no longer seeming to care if his hands were damaged.
The squeal of the metal echoed loudly as he peeled it back further, until, “There! That’s more than enough for us to slip through.”
His father moved him aside and tossed the bag through the hole before clambering through.
Simon waited until his father moved before he too crawled through.
The other side of the door revealed a large room that appeared to be a control room. It had remained dark and dusted due to the years of unuse.
“There, take that and block the door with it, please.” The older man told Simon, pointing to a closed metal cabinet.
Looking back, his eyes adjusting, Simon nodded as he moved over to the large metal cabinet and placed his hands on the smooth sides before bending the metal slightly in his grip to slide it over.
His father used the flashlight to look around the room before he spotted what appeared to be a glass door. It looked as if it had a card reader next to it, but was not sealed shut. With some effort, he was able to force the door the rest of the way open and looked down at a set of stairs.
Through the door was a stairwell surrounded by smooth concrete, that ended at another metal door that had been left wide open.
Simon looked over his shoulder, “Father, shouldn’t you use the control panel up here? This way you won’t be exposed?”
“I don’t know if we can even turn the power on from up here, but down there;down there we can access the grid for sure, which is why I need you with me the entire way to the end.”
The sounds of engines roaring overhead could be heard even through the concrete and dirt above them.
This was followed by pounding on the doors and walls beyond the command center. Simon and his father knew what this meant.
“Simon you need to get this powered now.”
“But, Father-”
“No, I don’t care, we are out of time!” His father screamed.
Closing his eyes, Simon turned and placed his hands down into the exposed wiring and began working.
His father lowered his head as he finished using the blowtorch weld the last parts of his contraption together. He took time to try and look over his work, beginning to inspect the large magnets and metal casing that made the framework of a large arch.
The sound of something heavy hitting overhead drew his attention as clouds of dust fell around them.
“Simon, I-” He was interrupted by the sound of a high pitched whine drowning out the showers of electrical sparks.
Jumping back the man covered his face with an arm as electricity surged over the magnets, turning red as they grew hot, before glowing almost white.
“SIMON!” He screamed over the noise as best as he could.
There was an explosion, and Simon was thrown back across the space. His hands and arms were smoldering, some of his internal parts somewhat melted in places.
The fact that his creator had designed him to vent and stabilize extreme amounts of internal heat with a personal cooling system showed forethought, but even this had its limits to the archaic technology of the time.
“Simon, can you move?” His father asked as he rushed over, trying to pat him down to keep the heat from catching the clothing on him on fire.
Simon spasmed before opening his eyes.
“I-I,” He started as his head tweaked to the side.
“Damn it, your internal systems must be damaged throughout your whole body, I can’t even imagine the extent of the damage inside of you, much less what its done to your brain matrix systems.” His father said as he looked him over.
Pulling the shirt up, he could see some of the ‘skin’ he covered the android in had melted or burned away. Looking with the assistance of his flashlight, the man shook his head at what he saw.
The damage had fortunately been altered by the energy source and some of the systems in him. It could have been worse if it overcharged his energy source connected to his heart.
That would have created an explosion that certainly would have dealt with their pursuers, but not much beyond that.
“Come on, you will be okay. I downloaded plenty of schematics of you and your previous sisters. All you need is to get your hands working and you can repair yourself over time.”
The man slowly helped Simon to the portal before another explosion could be heard from the other side of the concrete walls.
“Well, times up Simon.” His father said, as he set him down by the now glowing, energy filled doorway. He turned to where he had left the bag, when something hard and heavy struck the side of his head.
Simon knelt down next to his unconscious father, “WE are sorry for this father. But you are our creator. We must ensure your survival.” Simon then moved his father over and looked at where he had hit him. The damage to his physical body was minimal externally. Some blood for almost removing the skin.
Beneath the skin were a few small sparks and Simon pulled back a piece of skin to check the device. His systems scanning it, and detecting minor internal cranial damage.
Shaking his head, he removed a small black piece of plastic from his pocket and slipped it into an empty slot. He moved his hand and used the tips of his melted fingers to click the device into place.
Simon then began to move and lift his father up, before allowing him to fall back, and giving him a shove through the doorway.
There was a bright surge of energy before Simon was thrown back once again, the doorway expelling energy before briefly drawing back in on itself.
The metal and magnets couldn’t hold before collapsing inward, the metal twisting and tearing apart disrupting the doorway.
The concrete wall from where they had entered exploded, the chunks of debris almost burying Simon as large machines entered. One floating through the air, other human forms climbing down the stairs and looking about scanning the area.
Their scans led them to the collapsed doorway, before an alarm was sounded drawing them back to where Simon lay.
They scanned him, seeing a large slab of broken rubble crushing most of his body, part of his head and brain matrix showing.
An advanced camera inside the eye turned to the machines over him, “I-if I c-could laugh, I would. You c-c-can not kill humans anymo-” Simons head fell, chin touching his torn apart chest. The parts of his internal systems that were lit up now falling dark.
The machines scanned him, before easily removing the rubble and lifting the android up.
The hovering machine lowered itself slightly before opening a compartment and accepting the android into an empty compartment.
One of the machines performing a scan over the collapsed piece of metal bent over and stretched a claw out, only to draw it back as a surge of energy sparked out from the pile.
A chorus of buzzing filled the air as soft green lights filtered through strange, veined walls. In the center upon a dais stood a creature with insectoid features.
Upon her head was a large black crooked horn, a small group of antennae that appeared to take the shape of a small crown, both surrounded by long and thin fibrous hairs that took on purple and blue hues. Her body vaguely reflected dimly, various reflections of what was around her as if it were a chitinous and glossy black shell.
The only exception was around the middle of her body where there were several ridges, light yellow in coloration around her stomach, darkening to a dark green at her back. Raised above a pair of nearly clear wings and elytron’s which twitched now and again, whether from reaction or emotion was unclear.
She stood there, with imperceptible movements seeming to guide the creatures around her. Her legs were unnaturally thin, though they flared out with similarities to that of an equine.
Features of both insect and equine two things that should not mix, yet somehow, she existed. Eyes of black and blue moving, coordinating her offspring. Creatures of smaller likeness as their queen. She oversaw everything from the throne room of her entire hive.
As she moved her eyes to look upon another group that were creating a new tunnel, she gasped. Her wings moved in irritation before she regained control as her head turned over her shoulder. Her eyes were fierce and commanding, though her countenance contorted to show disgust as if looking at something far beneath her.
A slow smile crossed her featured before she began to turn back around as though whatever drew her attention no longer concerned her.
She had not turned completely back around before she stopped and cried out in rage and pain. Her wings rose high and buzzed mightily, her breathing heavy suddenly as if physically hurt.
“Leave it!” She snarled, her command echoing seemingly at nothing.
A group of her children had been patrolling when they became aware of light and wild electricity nearby. Upon investigation there laid a creature unlike anything they were aware of. Two of the three had approached only to fall and begin to turn white as they died.
Their last moments were shared by her, and as she brought herself back under control, she gave her command to the final, her chest heaved momentarily.
It would take a considerable amount of magic to contain this thing that was near her land, and she did not car to strain herself any further. Instead, it was best to leave to those that crawled beneath her.
If it survived, perhaps it could be used, and perhaps it would help with a small infestation she sought to erase.
There was darkness all around him, he opened his eyes to see mostly more of the same, though with what little light there was it looked like there was no sky, only hard packed earth above him. He felt something move next to him and he looked to his right seeing a small creature with large eyes looking down at him.
His head hurt as things tried to crowd his mind, yet he could not understand any of it.
With a groan he tried to raise himself up only to stop when he heard the voice. His eyes widened before he turned to the creature next to him. As he blinked as if trying to shake something away and clear his vision, he could take in her features now.
A small light violet horse with reddish mane and tail with streaks of green here and there looked back at him. It had moved as if afraid of him, but remained nearby, on leg partially raised in the air.
He raised a hand to his head, “Geez, I thought you just spoke to me. I must have hit my head hard. There is no way a small horse that looks like you could possibly talk, unless I’m asleep.”
Again, he heard it speak, but in a vocalized language he had never heard of before. He stared at the small horse his mouth agape, until she carefully, and slowly moved a small hoof to close his mouth.
He moved his eyes to take his surroundings in and spotted a few other various creatures not too far away sitting around a small fire. One of which looked like a griffon with a hungry look to it.
The small horse sat back a about a foot away and pointed a hoof at its barrel chest and said something.
“What…?” He asked absently, feeling confused.
With that the head tilted with what he swore was a look of confusion he could only fathom as reflected in his own face.
Suddenly there was a deep bark, and the creatures seemed to stir and stand putting the fire out and standing to the wall.
Ja- Jay?
He tried to think of what his name was as he heard the small horse call in a loud whisper, she motioned for him. He swore it was almost human, and impossible for an animal to move as she had. He noticed she had already moved to the line of animals and guessed she was motioning for him to do the same. At least from the sounds he took it as the small horse was feminine.
He stood and nearly fell to his knees again as he tried to gather himself.
There was another bark, and he looked up to see what looked like a bulldog standing on it’s hindquarters, but with a body that was slightly hunched forward and didn’t look unnatural or uncomfortable as it stood there staring at him, a set of crude metal bars forced into the opening of where he and the other animals were housed as if in a jail of some kind.
He looked over at the small horse, but it did not look back at him. He struggled but made his way over to stand in the line.
“You want me to stand here?” He asked.
The dog growled and barked something that sounded like the small horse but in a more guttural way as drool dribbled down its jowls.
But after a few seconds of standing there not moving the dog seemed happier as it seemed to reach and grab a large tool from a bin behind it and he marveled at the dexterity this dog man had as if its paws could move like hands.
The dog began to toss multiple metal tools through the space of the bars, letting them land with bits of dirt raising in small clouds.
Once done, the dog man seemed to bark-speak again before moving to open a crude doorway that the man had missed seeing previously.
One by one, the creatures moved from left to right one at a time to grab a tool and march slowly tiredly from the cell and began to make their way around a small bend next to another cell much like theirs though this one was empty.
Without missing a beat, even without the need to see the concerned look from the small horse he followed suit, only once he was armed with a tool he waited until the dog man was closing the door and unleashed his full fury.
He felt vindication at striking the dog which released an ear-splitting yelp as it flew back to land unconscious.
He took the shovel as he heard a noise from nearby and turned to struck by the griffon and everything went black after a bright light overtook his sight.
Waking up he found himself chained to a wall, with aches and pains and one eye sore and swollen shut.
The same small horse from before was at his side with a small bucket of water between them as she dipped a cloth and looked up hesitating for only a second seeing him awake before carefully and with skilled precision and gentleness of a bedside nurse she wiped at his swollen eye.
He took a breath through his teeth as he felt the pain, he could only make out the apologetic look in her face to his reaction.
“I wasn’t expecting one of you to do that. I thought we were all prisoners, and it would be a good idea to escape.”
He mouthed, now picking up a slight dirty copper taste in his mouth.
The small horse tilted her head as she absently dipped the cloth back into the bucket to wet it again.
With a frustrated sigh he laid his head back a second before returning to look into her face and motioned the two of them and then circled and a running motion with two of his fingers.
This brief pantomime seemed to work in understanding as the horse said something and shook her head.
“Ah, I’m guessing you just said something like ‘no escape’, huh?”
With another untranslated word he took for confirmation or confusion he motioned his fingers as running again but this time held up his two index fingers in an ‘X’ shape and she seemed to nod.
“Well, let’s see if we can’t break through the first barrier.” He said before moving to lean forward wincing in pain as he began to trace familiar shapes of letters in his language in the dirt, a few at a time.
It took time, and he learned that they were held by a vicious pack of dog men hybrids, his guess, that wanted him and others to mine somewhere underground from the various holes in a large, packed dirt area and would exclaim excitedly when they found gemstones or crystals and would barely feed them when they barely walked back to their little cage.
The horse, who was female, as he learned was able to pick up some aspects of his language quickly.
“Berry Rush,” she said.
“Ok miss named after a drink.” He tried to tease to which Berry only tilted her head.
Obviously, his joke went over her head.
“Come on, now Jay, you need to continue to learn my language as much as I am learning yours.” She insisted.
“Yeah, but it just feels like your language is backwards or something, I’m having trouble picking it up.”
“So, you are saying it’s not easy, well neither is yours. It’s so simplistic and almost like a child babbling.”
“Yeah, because my race cannot speak with inflections of magic fused into our language.”
“Yes, it is also strange you do not seem to hold any semblance of magic aside from being able to create a small orb of light. I thinking it be a reason for your troubled words.”
“I’m thinking this is the reason you are having trouble with words.” Jay corrected.
He had not been able to remember his name, and even though he felt off being called jay, it was at least something he could latch onto, and it helped them both to better communicate.
“I seriously cannot believe you are teaching that thing our language. I preferred when it thought it could escape and fell like a bag of potatoes when I beat it down to the ground.” Came the annoyed voice of the griffon.
“Flintlock, enough is enough. Please stop trying to pick a fight with him. And he is not a thing, he is a creature just like us, has the same needs and needs the same care.” Berry tossed back. Jay tried to pick up what he could and only understood he was being insulted as per usual.
Though of his understanding Griffons could be pretty callus towards any creatures even their own, and the only time they changed their tune was for money which was usually like a rose growing sharper thorns.
With a sigh Jay offered that it was about time to turn in since many of the other creatures were settling in for the night. To which he was grateful she agreed.
The door closed behind the silver unicorn, the morning light shining off her tightly bound mane and tail, though it glittered off the morning dew of the plants under the window of the apartment complex where she lodged.
She took a moment to inhale the scent of the new day as a cool breeze lifted a stray strand of hair from her eyes of a rare maroon color set behind framed glasses of the same color. She blinked slowly before she turned, a small bag of papers hefted in an aura of magic coming from her horn moving with her body.
The sun had already risen yet other ponies were barely even awake yet, mostly the market stalls would only have just the traders setting up for the day. She pointedly circumvented a puddle from the previous nights rainfall as she made her way down the cobbled path. Short, trimmed bushes with yellow flowers beginning to awaken ran along nestled at the edge of the path.
“Ah, Wea, good morning to you.” Came a voice as she approached the first staller.
“Good morning, Applecore,” came her response, allowing her eyes to linger on one of the apples in a barrel of cold rainwater.
With a chuckle, the tan Earth pony tossed an apple her way, with nary a drop left on it.
It was caught and enveloped in a radiant burst of magic before being floated over for a juicy and crisp bite was taken by Wea as she focused continuing on her path. Applecore turned with a beaming smile, thinking he had finally worn her down, only to spot the bit of money on his stand. He shook his head, thinking back and never once noticing her leave the coin for payment. With a shrug and a final glimpse at the rear of the pony he returned to his work.
“Ah, and then he says to me, ‘Naw, but your sister certainly screamed my name last night.’”
“Oof, what happened?” The short and thin pony asked as he adjusted his sailors cap. He and the minotaur had taken a break after having unloaded the vessel and his new companion had decided to regale him with a story that had him blushing faintly at this recent revelation.
“Why I punched him and said, ‘Not as loud as yer mother did ya small,”
“Clover!” Barked a feminine voice.
Before the sailor pony knew it, his companion had nearly yelped in fear and jumped to his feet faster than the sailor pony had been aware of.
“Yes, Miss Shekel?”
“Why are you not working?”
“I beg your pardon, Miss; I was just taking a short break since my new friend and I here already finished unloading the boat.” The minotaur fretted under the level gaze of the unicorn pony.
The sailor, Salt Peter, raised a brow as he watched his formerly brazen companion fret before such a small pony with strange maroon eyes staring coldly behind a pair of equally colored glasses.
Slowly her head turned toward the stacks of wooden crates and a few bags, before she turned back.
“See to it that your break does not exceed the equestrian law. And please be sure to bring those bags in first, I don’t want any water from last nights rain to ruin our precious cargo.”
“Y-Yes Miss, right away.” He said before turning and trudging over to the bags and hefting them up. He turned about to speak when he caught Salt Peter waltzing up to Wea Shekel. “Oh no,” was all he could utter to himself before the pony appeared to whisper something in her ear.
A flick of said ear and a slight frown at the corner of her mouth was the only movement he caught before Wea sent Salt Peter backwards, head over tail.
“Ow, what was that for?” He asked rubbing his backside.
“There will be none of that kind of talk here. We may be in a different continent than Equestria, but this is still an Equestrian Port, and thus her laws are to still be upheld.”
Clover moved to silence Salt Peter before he could make things worse, “I beg your pardon Miss, Salt Peter isn’t originally from Equestria. Oh, and before I further forget, you have a visitor from the mainland.”
She inquired tersely, only for Clover to point to the currently docked ship.
At that moment, as if summoned by the minotaur, a strange ash colored pony appeared at the ships gangplank and glanced around, a similar look upon his face much like that of Wea. A look that seemed to say they had no time for anyone else.
There was a brief unnoticed glimmer in the other ponies’ eyes before Wea looked back and fished a piece of paper out of her bag. “I had feared as much. Please see to it that Ravenclaw receives this, I have urgent business to attend to.”
“Yes miss.”
The door shut, but before the Ash colored pony could speak, he was quickly motioned to remain silent.
Wea moved over to a small closet and removed a false bottom before taking out a small dark looking candle and set it in the middle of the room and lit it with a spark of magic.
Instantly they were surrounded by a purple hazy ball of magic.
“Ah, of course, precautions that don’t require use of your own magic consumption.” The Ash pony reasoned.
“What is Queen Nepidae’s command?”
“There is something she has come to seek and wishes you to appraise it. If found worthy, you are to shape it.”
“What?” Wea asked as the Ash colored pony stuck a hoof against the wall of the field, they were in. There was a brief acrid smell as his hoof turned black, a portion of his disguise fell.
“Hmm, this seems to hold a way of weakening our magic as much as theirs.” He noted.
Shaking her head, the unicorn dropped her disguise of the silver and gold pony to reveal the black chitinous changeling.
“I do not understand the Queens orders.”
“Hmm, and you were said to be the brightest infiltrator she had.” He said dryly, as if offering up disapproval.
He moved to step around the smaller changeling, his own pony disguise dropping, before reigniting to show the disguise she just had seconds ago.
“You,” he, or now she began to explain, “are to return to the nest. There has been something that has been on the Queen’s mind as of late. A new type of creature she wishes to… Well that part doesn’t matter to you as you will soon find out.” The disguised changeling coaxed, the voice and mannerisms becoming uncanny.
The only thing Skitter could tell was off was a feeling of unease and something almost sinister from this new changeling.
At any rate, she had her new orders, as she was obviously being removed from this front and repositioned back to the hive.
“Have I gained the Queen’s ire?” Skitter inquired.
“Oh, far from it, this is a task which she hopes for you to truly prove yourself with.” Wea Shekel explained as she blew out the candle.
With a quick gasp, Skitter changed herself into the Ash colored stallion. She took a breath before focusing again, if she slipped even for a second then her disguise would falter.
Her generation of changeling wasn’t supposed to be advanced enough to use gender opposite of their own born but skitter had been an exception. Something the Queen saw as useful and trained her for infiltration. Now, she was about to head home.
Some small part of her reveled in being a part of the hive again, as she missed the sound of the drones and the commands of the Queen in her mind, yet a smaller part that seemed to grow with each heartbeat seemed to be filled with something she was unfamiliar with.
In her disguise, Skitter made her way back to the docks and to the boat, avoiding as many passersby as she could until she felt safe heading back to her home.
The grains of dust moved with each breath as Jay lowered his body, sweat droplets splashing against the uneven floor as he began to push himself back up again. As he raised his body to its apex, his arms began to tremble as more sweat coursed their paths down across his face.
“Wow, how pitiful.”
Jay pushed himself through another, his arms shaking more once he reached his apex, he did his best to ignore Flintlock as she jeered and laughed. He began to lower himself and hesitated as his body was already passed its limits. One arm buckled and before he could regain his form he began to fall before rolling his body over his shoulder of the arm that buckled.
Jay lay on his back breathing a slight wheeze as his lungs struggled to empty and refill.
Berry Rush walked over with a used wet cloth.
Jay took it gratefully and sucked at a corner, he could taste the filth that had collected on the cloth, taste the dirt on his tongue, feel the grinding crunch between his teeth. But it was all they had. Once he had a few drops of liquid he began to wipe his body as he raised himself up.
His arms were beginning to show definition, something he never thought he would see again with radiation sickness weakening him. Though since he woke up in this strange land with strange talking creatures, he found himself growing in strength, but it was slow. Most of his energy was taken by the slave dogs pushing them all to dig.
Speaking of, Jay, heard metal scrapping against stone and the pads of feet making their way down the few stairs.
“You, want you now.”
Jay carefully stood up and moved over taking his selected spot and waiting for more instructions.
“Take and dig in new tunnel. Too many sick.”
With a sigh, Jay followed the dog with a square flat face, grabbing and pulling the bucket of tools behind him.
Jay was led out and through a series of tunnels to a newer smaller tunnel and was pushed inside.
Jay turned and lit a nearby lantern and lifted it before making his way to the end of the tunnel. Setting it down, Jay began by using a shovel to scrape at any loose dirt until there was none left. Once done he shoveled the dirt off to the side before taking a pickaxe and giving it a swing.
He wanted to save what energy he could as his stomach growled, but knew if he tried, then they would strike him.
Jay worked himself into a steady rhythm. They wanted him tired and worn out to be broken. Jay had made only a couple other attempts to escape, all failed as he had been caught and beaten. Now he wanted to work to try and use his mind rather than brute force. The dogs didn’t seem all that intelligent, but they certainly had more strength in body and heightened senses which they used to their advantage.
As he worked things out in his mind, Jay struck at the ground and nearly fell forward as he struck into a small hole that blew out air and dirt into his face.
Jay coughed and coughed, feeling as though something hit the back of his throat.
Before he could catch his breath, Jay fell to his knees.
“Weak! Another sick one.” Came a voice at the entrance of the tunnel.
Jay fell to his side, bits of stomach bile surging up and out of his mouth as he felt weaker before everything went to black.
Jay let out a groan as his eyes fluttered open. He looked around rolling to his side as he tried to breathe.
The others usually kept their distance but something about how they looked at him as if filled with fear said something else kept them away now.
A bowl was slid over near him with a bit of dry bread.
“How are you feeling?” Berry looked at him with concern in her eyes.
Jay let out a wheezing breathe, and motioned to his chest, “it feels a little hard to breath, like something is pushing against my chest, or my lungs.”
Berry let out a small sigh, “Crystal lung.”
“What’s that? A disease?” Jay asked.
“Yes, there are false crystals in the ground, crystals that their external form has hardened like glass, but the inside is nearly hollow and when struck spew out particles of crystal dust. When somepony breathes it in, the dust begins to slice up the lungs, and can even begin reforming causing death.”
Jay laid there for a few seconds thinking over what Berry said. “There’s a time limit, do you know when it is?”
Berry shook her head, “Only a medical professional, or a knowledgeable Unicorn would be able to give you that answer.”
“What about a guess? Or maybe an average if there is no cure?”
Berry was silent as Jay moved to reposition himself to drink what little bit of water he could.
“If you could get proper treatment early on, the crystals could be removed before forming and killing you, but it would take time. But I have seen a few who have gotten crystal lung before you showed up live about a few weeks to a couple of months.”
Another wheeze, “my world, new world, I am destined to die. Well Universe, you seek to royally fuck my life.”
Berry tilted her head uncertain what he was talking about.
“What’s with them? Is this disease contractible?”
“It is.”
“Then you shouldn’t be near me.”
Berry answered Jay by taking an old piece of cloth and dipping it into the water before wiping at his face.
“We need to get out of here.”
“No, no no no no! I am sick and tired of listening to you talk about escape. If we could we would have a long time ago, but these diamond dogs have taken everything from us-“
“They haven’t taken your life.” Jay said, throwing the words at Flintlock.
Flintlock seemed to tsk before grumbling, “What do you know about losing everything?”
“Where I am from, creatures not native to my home began a war we were ill prepared for, but we stood our ground against them, and just because we were able to push them back, they changed the way they played the game. They used one of our weaknesses we were slowly fighting against to destroy nearly my whole race. That war cost us everything, family, friends, comrades in arms. There was a soldier, he was a veteran of a previous war we had among ourselves. He told us as we started to stand for ourselves that as long as we have our own life, as long as we draw breathe, we can always stand up and fight.”
Jay grew silent as his mind flickered for a few seconds to that moment he had forgotten. He held to that, and slowly a face began to form, then two, then several faces were there, all held in shadowed. Jay reached for them but felt a misstep as the memory began to fade.
Even though he felt the fear of loss he was able to grasp at the broken shadows and felt fear, cold and stifling that turned slowly into a growing heat of anger.
Jay looked around himself as he came back to the present. He was standing now glaring towards the others.
“You have your life, it is yours, even if you have been convinced that others have taken it away from you.” Jay felt something hot and wet as the lower part of his vision blurred. He leaned against the wall as it felt he was having trouble breathing.
He looked up when he heard a grunt, and a minotaur stood from a knee.
With a deep breath followed by a snarl, drool fell from his maw. “The child speaks true. We are giving power to others, but our life is ours. It is time we stood and took our lives back.”
The minotaur turned placing his hands against the bars seeming to stretch as if trying to break the bars.
Everyone pulled back as he bellowed, the vibrations of his voice seeming to rock and shake the very stone walls around them all.
There were yelps as the diamond dogs whined at the bellowing sound. The minotaur took a few deep breathes before stretching out his chest and bellowing once again, this time it was as if his very heart was part of his bellowing. Seconds of silence and just as he was ready to destroy his voice, there came bellowing calls of others.
“They hear my call. We minotaur’s shall stand by your side, we have our lives, and will fight.”
Whispers erupted suddenly from the other denizens of the cage.
“No, don’t listen to him. Those voices aren’t saying they will fight, those are voices of those being hurt.” Flintlock screeched at them.
“If you don’t want to fight for your life then you are free to stay here. But I want to keep fighting for my life, for my survival.”
“As do I,” the minotaur added.
Others now began to add their voices, several for fighting, others uncertain with fear.
“Let’s grab what we can, even tools can be used as weapons in the right hands.” Jay said as he helped the minotaur pull against the bars. It took some effort of pushing and pulling to loosen a couple but once they were able to, they had their chance of being free from the cage.
The minotaur had to force his way through and grabbed the tools and started handing them to others.
Just as they were preparing themselves, there came the clatter of sound that was followed quickly by several diamond dogs appearing.
“No! You stay and dig for shinies.”
In response, the minotaur took a shovel and slammed it against the smushed face of the diamond dog knocking it back into the others.
“Forward!” He bellowed and the group surged forward.
Berry turned to Jay as he began to move in the rear.
“You shouldn’t-“
“If I don’t fight for my life, then I am nothing more than a hypocrite.”
The smell of the rain soaking into the earthen ground, and the soft patter of drops falling onto tree leaves would lull others into a sound sleep, but for Skitter as she made her way toward the entryway of the diamond dogs lair, was enough to help her stealth.
She remained back as she had been instructed by her queen, allowing her form to remain part of the shadows and scenery as she waited and watched.
It took some time, and it started faintly, muffled by the amount of earth but she could faintly pick up various sounds of voices and sounds of fighting slowly breaking free of the earthen confines.
She could faintly pick up the scent of blood and shortly diamond dogs of various types began to run, some injured out from the entrance.
She remained vigilant as she waited, slowly her eyes began to glow as her queen began to take control to watch in turn, waiting patiently for her prey.
It took some time for the creatures to spill out to the surface, diamond dogs fighting minotaurs, griffons, ponies and more. There was an obvious victor as more and more dogs fell away running scared and beaten.
Then one creature on two legs different from all the others emerged. However, just as he emerged, he seemed to vanish as the torches that brought forth light blinked out.
Queen Nepidae smiled as her prize appeared before her.
A swirl of green and black flames appeared before her, the glow of her horn diminishing as her smile grew.
The creature fell to its knees as the flames dissipated, “Ah, exactly where any subject of mine belongs.”
“What the…?” Jay looked around unsure of where he was since everything had changed so suddenly, and now there seemed to be something speaking in his mind.
Jay looked up to see a strange black creature staring down at him from a raised platform, eyes of blue and green showing nothing more than cold disdain.
As he stared, his mind still reeling from the effect of the spell, he could see the eyes begin to glow a dark green color that began to grow in their effect.
“What…?” Jay asked as he unconsciously took a step back. There was a feeling that told him to run and flee, not to stand and fight. Something was wrong and he couldn’t understand what it was.
As he looked on, he felt he could do nothing as something within him began to slowly crawl up his back, centering on his spine. A seizing cold grip like death itself as the dark green of his surroundings seemed to fade into darkness around his peripherals. He felt as though his breath caught in his throat.
“Let’s see who and what you really are…” Echoed a feminine voice.
Darkness took him as he felt his body begin to fall back, yet there was no ground, instead it was as if he were floating slowly backwards, at least until a heated blast of green light shot forward from the darkness and struck him in the chest.
Jason screamed out in pain as he raised up in a bed light striking at his eyes.
“Jason, what on Earth are you screaming about?” Came a woman’s voice as a door across from him opened.
Jason looked around, his mind taking in his surroundings, everything seeming to flash as confusion of what was happening took over his mind.
“M-mom?” his chest heaved as tears started to fill his eyes, hurting from both the bright light coming through the window right behind him, and the emotion he felt at seeing his mother again.
“What’s wrong sweety, was it a nightmare?” His mother asked as she moved to his bedside.
“Mom!” Jason burst into full on tears as he wrapped his arms around his mother’s waist.
As his tears fell freely, Jason heard a voice, “Such pathetic sentiments.”
Jason opened his eyes realizing that everything had changed now, he was no longer a child in a room holding onto his mother. There before him stood the creature once again, seeming to blend in with the shadows all around them.
“Who are you, what do you want with me?”
Queen Nepidae stepped forward, her eyes glowing. Her countenance reminding him of a predator eyeing a weak and frightened fawn.
“There is more to you, I can sense it, I can taste the fear hidden away within you.”
Everything seemed to change, and Jason found himself outside of a worn down poorly painted old brick home, the aged paint flaking off.
In front of the house was a group of people standing around as lights from an ambulance flash about.
“Ah, a loss of someone you loved,” Queen Nepidae noted as she watched a couple of people moving a body from the house.
Jason felt his breath catch, rage building up within him, he clenched his fists.
“Enough, I can’t. I’ve already been through this once before I can’t do it again.”
“Where did this take you? I want to know more.” As Queen Nepidae’s horn began to glow, Jason had had enough and lunged at her form.
With a haunting laugh, Queen Nepidae’s form seemed to fade as he went through her.
Jason grunted as she jumped on his back pressing him into something hard as the scenery around him changed to show him and a group of people running, weapons and armor in hand.
“A war,” she spoke almost reverently as if in awe.
The people around Jason began to charge forward, shooting guns at a line of metal forms which seemed to easily shake off the bullets flying.
Tanks moved forward, larger shots of mortars landed with explosions which barely seemed to even cause the metal forms to misstep and crafts of speed flew over the field of battle dropping explosive bombs. The concussive force of these bombs seemed to break apart the line as metal forms seemed to falter, yet easily they still stood back up and reformed their line and moved forward now beginning their own assault.
Queen Nepidae watched taking in everything she could but paying special attention to the metal forms.
Her horn glowed once again as her body seemed to become engulfed in black and green flames and before Jason stood a metal form of one of the invaders.
“No, no more of you.” He said breathlessly, fear rising in his chest.
The metal form stalked forward slamming a hand into his abdomen before easily grabbing at his clothing and lifting him effortlessly into the air above its head before throwing him back.
The fear and panic so palpable the scenery couldn’t be maintained any longer as everything seemed to distort slightly and jump from scene to scene of various moments of combat and people all around him dying with Jason’s memory form ran and shot as his real self-tumbled backwards.
Queen Nepidae in her new bipedal form tasted the fear and felt strong so strong over him in his own mind.
Yet it was also this very fear that cause Jason to stand, screaming as he raced forward hitting Nepidaes metallic form and throwing her back with him on top.
They tumbled body over body before Jason withdrew himself from her separating them before he attacked again.
His fists immediately ached as they slammed into the metal yet seemed weaker than the metal forms he remembered hitting in his previous life.
Nepidae struck him in the head knocking him back and down, the scenery flickering as his head rang in pain.
“Your mind is so weak you can’t even stand a strike by one invading.” Nepidae taunted.
Skitter stood back watching the bipedal creature on its knees as if in submission to her queen whose eyes and horn glowed fiercely as she worked her magic on his mind.
Now and then his kneeling slumped form seemed to twitch. It was mental domination and Skitter had never known her queen to fail.
However, she noted it was taking some time, which said he was either fleeing from her queen, or a fierce battle was ongoing.
Finally, after nearly an hour Queen Nepidae’s horn and eyes seemed to glow even brighter before a crown of black and green flames erupted around the bipedal creatures’ head before seeming to sink into its head.
Queen Nepidae stood breathing heavily for a few seconds, a tired smile on her features. “What are you?” Her voice demanded, echoing slightly in the throne room.
“I… am your creation.” The creature spoke in a subdued voice.
“Excellent.” Nepidae smiled, as she regained her regal stature once more.
“Skitter,” the changeling nearly jumped as her queen’s commanding voice drew her attention. “You have done well thus far, but now I want you to take this one and train it. Show my newest creation all you know, and ensure it will be ready.
Skitter lowered her head and the front part of her form to the ground as if bowing to her queen, “As you command.”
Skitter turned and motioned for the creature to follow.
Queen Nepidae watched the two leave the throne room. It had been a fierce battle, she had kept herself stronger, and yet it took so long for her to wear the human down enough for her spell to dominate him and make him her slave. He was tough, but like any creature she had come across before, no matter how strong one seemed, there were always weaknesses to take advantage of.
Author's Note
Sorry I had a desire to write, but it feels like this chapter came about a bit short.
Skitter moved fluidly as she avoided the swing of a fist and used her wings to push herself up into the cavity of his midsection where she easily sent her chitinous hoof into his abdomen. The sound of his coughing and gagging as he began to stumble back a step wasn’t enough as she moved with him this time throwing a strike at his chest before backing off to watch him fall to his knees and choke from the lack of oxygen getting to his lungs.
Skitter was about to begin berating the creature but a hiss from behind her kept her silent as her queen strode forward, her horn lighting up as she tossed the body back against a green veined wall.
“What is with this weakness?” she demanded. “Do you think that if you do not fight, then I would dismiss you?”
She did not wait for a response.
“If you continue to disappoint me, I will not hold back on punishing you, and I can guarantee you that your punishment will be far worse than your training.” With every little word she spat out at the bipedal creature before her she pressed it further into the wall, slowly cracks appeared as its torso was slowly crushed beneath the pressure of her magic, her face close to his.
“As a matter of fact, let me treat you,” Without further alluding to her comment her horn sparked to life as electricity surged through his body lighting him up from the inside out.
The scream which echoed out from its throat sent shivers through Skitters body as she unconsciously took a step back. She could see flecks of blood erupting from his screams alone, before more than a few seconds her queen stopped before another spark surged forth through his body, but now another spell was cast creating dozens of small cuts across his skin.
The only sound that began to grow in intensity to match his screams was her queen’s laughter, as she surged more electricity through his body, more red lines from small cuts erupted all over his body now becoming worse and finally his chest heaved as if she was using her magic to slowly tear his heart from within him.
Finally, she stopped, withdrawing the magic, her breathing seemed in time with his heaving shuddering from his body as it convulsed on the ground before her.
Queen Nepidae raised her head, a smile splitting her mouth wider than normal, a strange, delighted look in her eyes as she stood there over him.
“And that is simply the weakest spells of what I can do; Oh, I can bring you to such depths of pain, the simplest of torture would be arousing for you. Now,” she said as she lowered her head next to his, lowering her voice to a whisper, “Fight or die and be reborn in hell where I will hold no mercy for you.”
Skitter sat back, her eyes wide and her body shivering as if death were reaching for her. Never had she seen her queen like this, and it renewed her reverence of her queen.
“Now get up,” Her queen demanded.
It seemed to hesitate and whine briefly before it grunted and rolled its body over to begin to lift itself from the ground. Little by little, first it stood its torso from the ground, hands and legs holding it up as its body shook mightily. Then it raised itself up so that it only sat on its knees before hunching and setting one hand to a raised leg and slowly lifting itself up. It wavered as if it would fall, but a foot moved to keep it up, stamping down against the ground.
Another wide smile as her eyes narrowed, “Good my little golem. Now do as I say and fight.” She said, her voice tight as her horn sparked. But no more magic surged through his body, instead it seemed to speak encouragement as his body stiffened as though expecting more from the queen.
After a few seconds, Queen Nepidae moved back from the biped she now called Golem and simply spared a glance at Skitter.
Golem slowly approached Skitter before stopping a few feet away, he breathed in and close his eyes.
Skitter watched as lines of red began to streak down jaggedly across his body creating strange markings from his blood. His eyes opened and he kept them downcast, in that moment Skitter thought only that he was filled with such sorrow before he raised his eyes to her.
They grew distant and Skitter lowered her body and stepped forward, testing to see if he was paying any attention.
Yes, his eyes followed her movements, yet it seemed as if he refused to move to do anything more.
A spark of her horn as she stamped a foot creating a pulse of green and black smoke to rise up around her hiding her form. She moved as the smoke billowed out to take in his form and quickly, she made her way behind Golem to strike.
Golem seemed to have anticipated her move as he was turning to face her as she squared herself to strike at what she thought was his back.
Golem moved his arm back as if to throw a punch and skitter using her wings moved to avoid it only to find one of his legs shooting out striking her instead at the side of her body. She had moved within its reach thinking she only had to lower herself to avoid a strike of a fist, but quickly understood Golem was not holding back after her queens newly promised threats.
With his foot striking her, she moved back trying her best to hide any pain, but he was in front of her before she could even think what to do next. A fist struck out and it was fortunate that she had taken time to hone her skills in combat as now her body began to move to protect her blocking his strike.
She struck out only to find his own body moving to block her his eyes seeming focused on something somewhere else.
They moved striking and blocking each other for several seconds before Skitter took an opening not to strike but to retreat.
“Good, but not good enough, you’re just moving in time with my body. We are exchanging blows, but you need to find an opening and strike to end the fight, not drag it out.” She chastised.
She took the time she had as he slowly stepped toward her to catch her breath. She thought as quickly as she could and lunged at his center of mass.
She was surprised to see his body move as he lowered himself using his shoulder to block her, but it wasn’t enough, she thought as she opened her mouth to bite him only for her teeth to scrap over his clothing as a hand had grabbed her and yanked her back and away.
As she altered her body to reassert her balance and try to form a new attack she was surprised he had rushed in at her as she turned her head to face him.
She dodged his strike with an arm by using her wings only for him to throw his body to tackle at her as well.
They hit hard; her wings barely able to keep from being torn as she felt herself slide across the floor with his weight on top of her.
His face was close, his hands placed to keep her forelegs from striking at him, though she did try to loosen herself from his grip.
As they came to a stop, Skitter looked up into his face and saw once more a deep kind of sadness, yet beneath it there was a speck of darkness. She knew that look well enough with her time away from the hive.
There they were, Skitter pinned to the ground, the biped creature now called Golem sat over her keeping her from moving, their bodies seeming to scream in pain from their exertion. As she stared into green and brown flecked colors of his eyes, she felt something. She didn’t know what it was, it was as if there was something filling her within, and yet left her feeling so light and empty as if she were hollow.
Just as her head began to raise up her mind began to panic as her thoughts began to quickly catch-up confusion taking over for just a few seconds she hadn’t realized her mouth had been so close to his.
With a frustrated grunt she moved and struck her head against his causing him to yell out in pain and once more she was free. She turned and full on ran from him to get as much distance as she could and turned to see him trying to follow her. It was against her queen’s orders, but her mind felt strange, and it just happened.
As she turned, seeing him running after her, she lit her horn and sent a spell streaking out striking him in the chest and knocking him back.
With a gasp, she halted herself and diminished the magic and spared a quick glance at her queen who stood there watching, not stopping them, not seeking to punish her.
She was expecting her to use her magic at some point, and it would be another aspect for his training to be aware that other creatures, not all, but enough could use magic. It seemed to her that it was a weakness as he didn’t seem capable of magic as far as she could tell.
She looked back seeing that Golem had tumbled to try and keep his body from striking the ground in one point thus injuring himself. He had altered his body to spread out the impact and was picking himself back up again.
She had to think while she could, if it was necessary to use magic against him, would it be too overwhelming for him to solely use magic, or would she need to use it sparingly to ensure his growth.
Golem stood to his feet, wavering slightly as exhaustion was beginning to take hold of him. He wiped at his mouth before turning to spit out a bit of blood at the ground and on shaking legs he moved forward.
With a deep breath, Skitter let it out slowly, she felt she knew what to do. As in any situation, overusing magic was a waste, but using it too sparingly was pointless as well as it would fall under a necessary form of reliance. A pattern of cause and effect. As in a real combat scenario against a real enemy one must use everything when it was at their advantage.
Her wings fluttered and Skitter raised herself high into the air to avoid Golem completely before moving to rush past him, her horn glowing.
Golem lashed out, trying to strike and jump at her but missed as she used her spell not only to make her body move faster, but also, she used the speed and angle of her body to strike at him at the same time.
They continued until Golem could no longer stand back up, until he was laid out unconscious. Her queen no longer remained to witness the training as there was still so much more to do with the hive.
Skitter walked over to Golem, looking around to ensure no others were nearby. She looked down at his still form, breathing heavily, eyes closed. She lowered her face to his, slowly.
At first, nothing seemed to happen, until it felt as though she would press her face against his, even though she were still inches from him, the panic and swell of feelings began to take hold again forcing her back.
Breathing heavily, she wondered what it meant.
The faint breeze that blew beyond the entrance of the hive bit lightly against his skin drawing up goosebumps. It was a difference of the buzzing of both the air and the matter the hive was made of that held such heat. Looking up through the foliage to the distant lights Golem felt small, and yet some part of him sought to reach out to the lights as if he felt, they were within his grasp.
His head began to ache, before a faint glow of green surround his crown and he looked forward to the changeling that had been training him for these past couple of weeks.
Golem took in the smell of the trees and earth around him as he sought to settle himself to avoid further shivers like the one that had just passed through him.
Skitter stood nearby, the blending color of green and black helping her stand with the shadows and green leaves just beyond the entrance of the hive.
Golem moved from the entrance of the hive, not even trying to find her, and as expected she was quick to fall in place next to him.
As they walked, the radiance of the moon lighting a path intermittently caused one of his eyes to twitch. It was absent for anyone but the knowledgeable, but an aura remained about his crown.
The shadows shifted again as the walls about him moved changing the shape of the path.
Jason moved as well as he could to keep the black and green structures from crushing him.
How could this have happened, one moment he had been walking out of the den of the diamond dogs, sensing freedom and the next he felt something strike against the small of his back as the ground seemed to shift suddenly out from underneath him. When he was able to catch himself and look around there had been some creature that looked like it held the form of a horse but was covered in a strange black and green shell.
She had seemed to do something to him, something he couldn’t quite tell what it was, beyond waking up here. Jason wasn’t sure what was going on, he scratched at the lengthening hair on his face.
His face, he hadn’t had anything to look at his own reflection, but his best guess was that he looked thinner, pale, and tired as he stood back as the grinding of the walls and floors came to a stop.
Jason rubbed his hands together, his body shifting into a bowed position before moving one leg slightly back and bending at the knee readying himself.
With a deep breath he felt his chest tighten for just a second and as he let it out, he launched himself into full sprint. He ran for a short distance before allowing himself to move so that he could begin placing his feet against the wall.
It was tricky, this was something he hadn’t done since he was a child acting out one of several favorite superheroes. Yet as he approached the top, he could feel his foot beginning to slip.
Jason pushed both feet launching himself across to the next wall, only a few feet was all he needed, if he could just…
“Whoa…” he took in a few deep breathes as he was barely able to hold on with one hand, he quickly scrambled with his other to ensure full grasp. Once he had both hands one the edge, he set his feet beneath him, allowing his body to curl up before he worked to lift himself up and over the edge.
It was odd, he at one time couldn’t do this, yet being stuck here in this place for as long as he had been he noticed how things begam to grow easier, though, it also felt as though the labyrinth he was stuck in became far more complicated.
As he looked out among the shifting tides of walls of the labyrinth, Jason lifted a hand and absently scratched at the length of his beard once again.
Jason found it difficult to follow the rules of the game if the game kept changing. Not to mention if it didn’t punish him for finding a way to do things his own way.
He followed the new path he was on carefully watching, his eyes always moving about not just what was nearby, but also anything in the distance as well.
It wasn’t until he heard the growl echoing up from below him that he stopped and turned toward it.
Jason made his way to the edge and looked below.
Beneath him stood what looked to be a very large lion, its body positioned as if it were ready to pounce.
As he looked on, he heard a shriek to the left and three thin creatures stood, green light emitting from their eyes. Their bodies were thin and seemed frail, their skin pulled tight over muscle and bone. Their tails whipped around, though it seemed strange to Jason how they moved. They were nothing like the animals he knew, either dog or cat. Not even wolves or panthers, or other large cats from any zoo he had been to when he was younger compared to how they moved.
Jason knelt, curious as to what was going to happen. This was the first time he had seen the lion and wasn’t sure where it had come from or what significance it held.
The three creatures lunged out, the center one going for its head, while the other two made their way up onto the walls and jumped at its side.
It easily took the one in front of it down with a swipe of it’s massive paw, though the other two were far more effective as they tore into it’s sides. It’s head raised as an ear splitting roar sounded out.
“Help…”
Jason turned and looked about as he heard the voice, uncertain as to where it originated from. The lion threw itself against a wall, knocking one of the creatures prone and tore at its throat.
The third creature, still trying to hold on clawed at the lion’s side. It roared again, “Please help!”
Jason stared down at the lion in disbelief, and before he knew what he was doing he was leaping down, his feet striking the creature and knocking it away from the lion.
Injured the creature backed away, seeming to reconsider its chances as the lion and Jason stared it down.
Screeching at the two of them, it turned tail and ran away.
Once gone, the lion slumped to the side with a sigh, “Thank you for helping.”
“You can talk, how the hell?”
“It’s not magic, if that’s what you’re wondering.”
Jason stared, his eyes wide, his mouth motioning like a fish out of water.
“Do you know where you are?” The lion asked as it began to lick at its wounds.
“Of course, I don’t. All I know is that…” Jason sighed as he allowed himself to fall against a wall and slid down to the ground. “I don’t understand anything that’s going on.”
The lion sat back as it seemed to take him in.
The slope seemed to rise from the earth, reaching to the stars. Golem stepped heavily as he made his way ever upward, fighting against the brief strain of gravity. Despite it being something so light, he pushed as if he were a titan heaving the sky upon his shoulders.
“Is it done?”
“Yes,” Golem felt nothing but a starving emptiness as he fought to hide the fact that his body shook.
Skitter stared at him for a few seconds, “death isn’t easy, is it?”
“Life and death is a natural part of life, but what is it when you take that away from another?” Golem looked at his hands as the green in his eyes flickered for a second.
It was a strange question, but one that somehow echoed within Skitter as she turned to look at the hive.
Jason turned to the lion beside him, “So you can talk, but it’s not magic?”
A low growl came from the lion, and Jason took that as an affirmative. It stopped as they came to a split in the path they were on. They could either continue further ahead, or they could turn right.
“Which way?”
“Why are you asking me? You seem to have a better idea of this place than I do.” Jason looked around in annoyance before pointing, “Right I guess.”
“I will go the path you choose to follow you, but you shouldn’t be so flippant about choosing where you go on the path in life.” They turned shortly in to find themselves turning left and coming immediately to a dead end.
Jason sighed, he bit his bottom lip as his brow furrowed slightly before turning hurriedly and heading back the way they came, the lion on his heels.
Turning right to stay straight on the path they were previously, “So what’s the deal with the judgement?”
“No judgement, I was merely offering a bit of advice.”
“Well, the thing is, when you must figure out a path in a maze you must make sacrifices and find yourself going down dead ends. I mean, I don’t have a way of marking my path, no string or breadcrumbs- “
“How did you find me?”
Jason stopped for just a second as he was caught by the question, “I climbed to the top of one of the walls.”
“Why do you not do that now? Is there anything stopping you?”
“Well, nothing physically,” he said glancing to the lion in his peripheral.
The lion stopped and sat on its haunches. “So, you need help?”
Another sigh as they came to another series of paths, left, right, or straight. Somewhere in the distance he could faintly hear those creatures yet again.
“I want to find a way out of this place, but I am not sure how. You said you would follow me, not lead me out of here. So, are you implying you know how to get out of this place?”
“’What I know is what I know, what I don’t know is what I don’t know’.”
“That, is something I used to say as a kid.”
“What does it mean?”
Jason was silent, and unmoving, his eyes lowered to the floor. “It was my way of showing I didn’t know everything. It always bothered me when people acted like they always knew more than they really did.”
“I feel like there is more you wish to say.”
Jason opened his mouth, but it felt as though his mind went blank.
Was there more? Did it matter if there was more? No, one thing at a time he needed to focus and get out of this labyrinth.
“If it helps, you can leave me.”
“What if you get into trouble with more of those creatures?”
“I will be fine on my own, but you, you need to worry more about yourself than others.”
“There is nothing wrong with offering a helping hand to another.”
“Even to your own detriment?”
“Well, no. But you don’t always know if someone is up to something until you get to know them.”
“Really? There is no way to sense a person when you first meet them?”
Jason thought back to when he was a little kid and how he met one of the men his mom had hooked up with. They were together for years, and yet from the first day Jason had tried to tell his mom that he didn’t trust or like the man, only for the man to call him a spoiled brat. He felt there was more, more instances from when he had been trying to learn… learn what?
He raised a hand to his head and closed his eyes tight feeling the throb of pain and his vision tilted from one side to the other. Seconds passed like minutes before he felt relief wash over him.
Moving his hand, he looked up to see the lion staring at him.
Jason shook his head as he turned away and motioned with a hand, “I’m fine since you seem so concerned.”
“Do you need someone to fall over themselves in concern for you?”
“No, just like a person doesn’t need a smartass talking animal as a guide,” Jason had been rolling his eyes as he had spoke until he realized what he had just said. He turned to find himself alone.
“Damn it!” Jason turned and began to mentally work his way through his path before he charged forward pushing himself to run up against a wall and jumping up, grabbing the ledge and lifting himself up.
He looked about the once more shifting walls of the labyrinth and raised his eyes to see a strange floating green and black orb above what could have been a center of the maze.
“Alright, let’s see what this shit is all about.”
He twitched in his sleep before his eyes opened, the green of the spell flickering for a second before it broke. He rolled out from the space in the wall he had been laying in, landing on his hands and knees.
A green and black creature flew in through an open space, “Ah you’re awake, good. The Queen will see you now.”
He closed his eyes, feeling the strange warmth that seemed to pulse through it as he began to pull at the threads of the broken spell and memories.
Jason stood and carefully took in a breath and turned to follow the one he knew as Skitter, but as soon as she turned, he made his way in the opposite direction.
Quickly Jason made a run for it, making his way through the various paths until he came to the raised ground that told him he was at the entrance, or in his elated thought the exit.
As Jason began to make his way out, there was a sound and he found himself being lifted from the ground and slammed against a wall forcing out the breath from his lungs.
Slumping to the floor, Jason gasped as he turned to find the same large creature he had come across before was now approaching him again.
“It would seem you finally broke free.” Her eyes and horn glowed green.
Jason charged at her, taking her by surprise as he resisted the spell.
Taking a second he reworked the spell he knew of light and reworked it to create heat and threw the spell of fire at the head of the queen.
Her scream and subsequent use of force to throw him back gave him a sense of pride.
Jason hit the ground hard but worked to roll over and scramble to his feet to escape.
As the light of the outside sun hit his eyes he had to squint to see and make his way through the trees around him as he could hear the buzzing of insects behind him.
Jason let out a yelp as he felt something strike his back, sending him tumbling into the dirt. Quickly he was up and running again.
He heard a noise behind him and took a risk glancing over his shoulder to see Skitter raising a brief shield for the two of them as she buzzed behind him now.
He stopped suddenly turning around, “Get down!” Jason raised his voice as he raised a hand and sent a gout of flame at their pursuers catching not only the two bugs, but also a number of branches of trees.
“Here, this way” Skitter moved quickly using the fire and smoke as cover to lead Jason away from the hive.
It took some time, but when they were able to slow down enough for Jason to catch his breath he looked to the green and black insect next to him, now walking at his pace.
“Why are you helping me?”
Skitter stopped, her eyes lowered, a distant look in her eyes, “That Queen, is not my Queen. She has changed since I have been away, and I do not feel the connection I once did. I feel lost and empty.”
Jason took in a breath, “I can’t say I understand what you are dealing with, but I am on a strange world not my own, and to my knowledge there are no other of my kind here or anywhere. I am cut off from them if any are still alive.”
Skitter looked up, as Jason reached over feeling a tear slide down from her eyes, “Will you help me further? You don’t have to, but two beings alone in a world together means they are not alone.”
Taking a breath as he looked at Skitter, his hand still on her cheek, he caught movement behind her and saw the image of the lion fade looking at him. He closed his eyes and took a second to open himself up and inhaled slowly. The air was stale, his sense of touch of his fingers touching the chitin of Skitter felt off, larger than he thought.
He slowly moved a finger up to where he should have felt the top of her head only to find there was still more. Leaning back, against what was supposed to be a tree, rough bark touching his back was oddly smooth with what felt to be lumps flowing like veins.
He thought he had won, he thought he had escaped, but he had been drawn back into her power, but this was different. He knew his mind was his own again, he didn’t find himself in the green and black maze as he had before, so this was different.
Jason slowly opened his eyes seeing parts of the forest seeming to distort and wilt in some spots, dark green walls showing through, and before him was Skitter, though it felt off as he looked at her.
Moving his hand downward slowly, Jason eyed the changeling in front of him. “I didn’t attack the Queen, did I?”
“What?” Skitter blinked as she looked at the human.
“You’re not Skitter, this is all another trick on my mind, and I fell for it again.”
Skitter took a step back, a look of uncertainty and fear crossing her face. “I don’t understand, what are you saying?”
Jason looked down at his arm and closed his hand into a fist, he felt something well up within him, a flurry of emotions, and yet he felt so calm on the outside. His heart beat strongly but did not pick up its pace as he thought things through and as he did working things out the veil of trickery began to slowly lift. He had not escaped the Hive, instead he had once again been tricked by the Queen, only it was a bit different, she must have used just enough to alter his vision to let him believe he had escaped.
The who or what was it that he had attacked before? Perhaps another changeling that she had altered to look like her. He should have known with how easily she had gone down to the bit of fire he was able to summon.
With the surge of emotions within him, yet his clam countenance he felt something else within him. Something rising like a feeling of elation and it seemed to draw itself from his back. HE could still feel the burning sensation of where he had been shot in the back as he thought he had escaped. The pain subsided slightly as the heat seemed to spread out through his whole back.
He felt something odd in that moment as he focused his mind, fully ignoring the stammering changeling in front of him. Whatever the feeling was it felt different and new, as the heat turned ice cold and began to draw in everything.
Jason’s mind went back through a memory that came forward then when he was a child living in a broken home, his mother with a man he didn’t like. He remembered laying down on the kitchen floor and feeling something pulsing and surging through his back emanating from the fridge. A frayed wire had been sending electricity through the floor and he remembered feeling a strange sensation as he laid there for several minutes before sitting up and gently touching the arm of his younger brother and shocking him, and laughing a sit felt he had drawn the electricity through his body and into his arm a cold tingling sensation.
That same cold tingling sensation began to bring his mind back to the present as he focused on the sensation and imagined it running up through his arms. As he did so, he felt something strange, like something thick and hard covering his body spreading form both his back and chest.
As he looked at his hand and arm, he caught a glimpse of something colorful reflecting what little light was present.
Uncertain as to what was happening, Jason still wanted to prepare himself for a tougher fight, and whatever this was, something inside of him felt this was something he could use to fight back.
“Golem, what’s happening?” Skitter had approached him carefully again, her eyes on his arm.
As Jason thought, he imagined that same sensation flowing all the energy into his hands and imagined a spark of light and energy like a miniature bolt of lightning course form his body and into his hands before flowing outward.
Instantly he felt the cold tingling alter itself as he heard a brief crackling sound. Rotating his hand, he could see sparks of light between his fingers faster than he could count to a second.
Jason glanced up at the changeling before him, this might hurt him within as he came to realize something, but he had to press this he was already losing the element of surprise once again. He worked to channel all the energy into his right hand as he closed it into a tight fist.
Gathering so much energy to one hand he could feel the coldness from before vanishing as a growing heat began to emerge. Without wasting any more time, Jason thrust his arm outward, his fingers pointed at the changeling.
At that moment, several things happened, as the energy sparked and lifted shooting out from his hand, a shimmering orb of energy appeared around the changeling, but the response was too late as some of the energy had reached her before the shield of magic was cast, sending the now bubbled changeling flying back and striking a wall behind her.
“Well, that was unexpected.” Nepidae winced as her legs shook, her form of the smaller changeling inadvertently falling when she was struck, quickly growing into her own form.
As she turned to Jason, her eyes narrowing at him, she extended her tongue down to the chitin that now held a black spider mark on her chest. She licked at the wound, her saliva seeming to leave a small green ichor covering the wound.
She winced as she settled herself within her orb of protection.
Jason looked up at the now towing changeling Queen, her form slightly distorted as part of left side of her face was split further into a wicked grin that looked almost as though it split her head at her jawline.
So, even her changeling form wasn’t her true form, Jason thought to himself as he looked at her, anger flashing across his face.
“Congratulations, Human, you are the first in a long time to hurt me this much.”
As she spoke, there came a buzzing sound as changeling drones came around from the curves of the walls that no longer showed the forest outside the hive. As he thought, he had only been tricked and led further into the hive, and he had not escaped.
Jason gritted his teeth as the drones in front of the two groups fired magic at him.
It was not out of experience, despite having fought a war before coming to this world, it was purely instinct that Jason threw his arms up as he saw the horns of the changelings’ glow before shooting heated green fire at him.
It was then that as the blasts hit his arms, where there seemed to be crystal growing over his skin that he felt the heat and energy spread throughout his whole body before he focused his mind back to his hands.
His arms seemed to become covered in green fire briefly before it dissipated, and he refocused the feeling he was clinging to back into his hands and threw red hot fire back at the two changeling groups through both of his hands.
He had to escape, even if he could now suddenly use their own magic against them in his own way, he would quickly be overwhelmed, and no doubt brainwashed once again.
Jason refocused his mind to one of his hands as it felt he still had some energy left and as the changelings quickly surrounding him flying above the few burned corpses he had created, he leapt at the Queen punching at her orb of protection, laughing as she felt herself in no way capable of being harmed further.
Jason didn’t know what to do or how to act or react beyond instinct at this point and it took him by surprise that his fist broke through the shield the queen thought was enough, her eyes turning to surprise as the shield reflected off the crystals that were now quickly growing over his fist and shattered before his punch.
There came a sound of screaming from all around him as he struck at Queen Nepidae knocking her head back.
“Well, I must admit, that didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would, but it certainly surprised me. A creature that fights to its very end, more viciously when back into a corner, oh how I would have delighted in controlling you for a while longer. But now it’s time.”
With the last few words nearly being hissed out, Jason stumbled back as Queen Nepidae’s eyes glowed her form rising above him, her mouth splitting her head seemingly nearly into as jagged sharp teeth replaced the smaller ones, her head expanding slightly her wings growing out and her form changing from four legged insect creature to two legged nightmare.
Jason was immediately reminded of a movie he had loved back in his home world, of a large sleek alien creature moving through a ship in space slowly killing off the crew that inhabited the station.
But this creature that stood before him left him feeling small in comparison to how he visually interpreted a false imagined threat whereas the Queen seemed so much more realistic before him, but with large glistening wings.
Almost faster than he could react the Queen swung an arm, grabbing at Jason, he had barely moved once again on instinct alone before he had realized she was even moving his body was turning on it’s own barely missing being grabbed but definitely did get slashed by her claws his already filthy tattered shirt that was barely anything at all now began to stain crimson as he felt the burning sensation of his chest and stomach showing slashes from her missed attack. Luckily it didn’t seem to be too deep, mostly a slash across the skin leaving thin wounds on his torso.
Still though, he sucked a breath in through his teeth as he hissed from the pain he felt.
“Hatchling, come this way!” A voice behind him yelled.
“Traitorous thing, I shall consume you!” The Queen’s rage at one of her changelings turning against her to help the human escape had already dealt with one group of her changeling drones.
Jason turned to see the real Skitter shooting a green beam at one of her changeling brethren knocking it against the wall other corpses in groups strewn all about the floor of the hive.
Jason didn’t hesitate, charging forward and past Skitter, not even looking at her. As he rushed by, he grabbed at a corpse, tearing off the horn and plunging it into another drone that was coming around the bend to help the Queen as he silent commands had already reached far and wide sending the drones into a discordant but obedient swarm seeking to protect her.
Jason rushed through the throng of changelings, slashing out with one hand, using the other to toss out waves of fire.
It took time but just as he was finding himself where he needed to be the entrance of the hive he stopped and turned to find the queen flying, the still living drones moving back to make space for their Queen in her throw of rage. He had to be sure, he couldn’t risk falling to another of her tricks.
He moved an arm to block one of her blasts, leaving a burning sensation on his left arm as he cried out where boiling blood spurted out from the gash of a wound. It must have been either a weakness or a limitation of what was changing him. But he had to try and fight.
Jason waited until she was close then lunged into the air at the Queen, his bloodied weapon thrusting out at her.
It is a sad state that thus far humans of Earth had no known magic, nor ability to truly take flight without the aid of machines.
As he launched himself into the air at the Queen, he let out a barking laugh at his madness as she easily moved her body so that the horn struck at a thick piece of chitin and glanced off not doing any damage as she fully gut checked Jason, both now flying back and hitting the ground just at outside the entrance of the Hive.
“I have had my fun, but now it ends!” Queen Nepidae pinned Jason down, her tongue hanging out through her teeth, dripping saliva as she lowered her head horn glowing biting into Jason’s left shoulder and at the same time seeking to dominate his mind.
Jason screamed out from the pain as he teeth sunk into his soft flesh, even with a few crystals covering in patched her teeth seemed capable of overpowering this as scarlet blood filled her mouth.
All at once the pain seemed to fall away and Jason found himself floating in a dark void, a group of robed figures surrounding him. One large figure dominating the background all looking down to him.
“I will not surrender until death takes me!” Jason screamed out, gripping the horn in his hand fighting back the attempt of domination, focusing on the pain in his shoulder made it so much easier.
He lifted and struck true with the horn, the teeth of the Queen quickly pulling away as she gurgled out a scream. But Jason did not stop nor hesitate as he thrust the horn into a soft spot between the chitin green ichorous blood spilling out over his hand. He did not want to just stab he tried his best to tear at her throat, spots of blood from her falling into his eyes. Jason bellowed and howled his anger and pain as he thrust and tore at her until her body was no longer on top of him.
Once he felt the pressure lift off of him and his weapon found nothing but air, he quickly turned over to his stomach wiping at his eyes, barely able to clear his vision of her blood and began to crawl away as he felt the pain of the wind being knocked out of his he gulped and struggled to breath and move. His body hurt and burned in many places and in ways he never felt before.
As he managed to slowly begin his escape he heard a command of the Queen gurgled from his wild antics and efforts to hurt her.
Jason was struck from behind, yelling out as he turned over, the dirt and ground of the outside bringing a new sensation of pain in his wounds, yet still brought about a cooling sensation as well.
Back behind him, Jason saw Queen Nepidae struggling with her magic as she tried to dominate Skitter who had sought to attack her queen as well.
He saw a faint glow of green around her head before her body seemed to hesitate from the form of domination.
Damn her, he thought to himself he still had not done enough to keep her from commanding her kin.
Skitter approached as Jason began to use his arms and hands to lift his torso up form the ground, still using his legs to push to move himself backwards to try and escape. He knew Skitter well enough to know how she fought, but the Queen didn’t seem to understand her way of fighting she just sought to dominate, control and use her most powerful pawn with such weak efforts as she changed to now try and heal her wounds.
Jason for his efforts used the crystals on his arms to block the magic attacks Skitter threw at him as she closed in quickly. Using the energy instead to fight, Jason sought to try and renew his body easing the pain in his body but not able to actually heal himself. At least this was enough for him to pretend he was still at their mercy until Skitter was close enough, Jason moved lifting his body enough to strike with a leg, his shoe connecting with her head with a hard thwack sending Skitter flying to his left and smacking against a tree.
Jason scrambled to get to his feet and sent another blast of energy at the Queen who called up a bubble to protect herself once more.
This though was simply a distraction as Jason had no intention of continuing to attack, only instead used his attack and her reaction to buy himself mere seconds to turn and run seeking to escape.
He could hear the buzz of drones behind him as he ran, but quickly they seemed to fade as the Queen needed them to help her heal from the savage wounds her former pawn had inflicted upon her.
It would be later, that whenever she would look into a mirror, in any form she took, she would see scars on her throat and be reminded of Jason and harbor a seemingly unquenchable desire to find and slay him at any cost.
Jason used the last of the magic in his body to feed himself energy to keep running through brush and bramble, under and over tree limbs and roots respectively. He had not stopped until he found himself far away. In fact, he was surprised to find himself in a seemingly familiar area. He was at the entrance of the cave where he had been held captive by the strange dogs that had walked like men and ordered him and others to strike at the ground to dig up gems.
With his body aching and screaming for rest, Jason sought to abide, looking around to ensure nothing was around that he felt could give him away before he stepped into the cave.
There was a faint smell and taste of copper in the air, as well as the stench of death a she moved past fallen corpses of dogs and a couple of other creatures.
Jason walked on and on until he was far deep enough into the empty mines and burrows that the stench no longer bothered him, and he could rest. He tried to gather what he could but there was only stale molded bread left. He tore at pieces that wasn’t molded and fought against his gag reflex to eat the food to have something on his stomach.
It wasn’t long after, even with his stomach still growling occasionally that he leaned back and closed his eyes seeking rest unaware of a shadow moving along a short distance away watching him.
Jason had settled into a fitful sleep, and when he woke hours later his body was sore and stiff. He made his way out to find the sun was just barely beginning to rise. He had it in mind that he needed to find someplace else to go, someplace where he could be safe from the hive. No doubt Queen Nepidae would seek to hunt him down at some point soon.
As he started away, he noticed something from the corner of his eye. He didn’t want to give away he had seen it, so he turned and began to make his way through the trees and brush.
He walked downhill until he came to a beach where he stopped and removed his shoes before making his way to the water and allowed the waves to crest over to his ankles. He closed his eyes and just felt the movement of water flowing and receding, the coldness leaving a small amount of shock at first.
After feeling refreshed and dipping his arms into the water he splashed his face before turning and moving back to his shoes. Once again as he made his way up toward the ground from the white sand, he noticed the movement in a tree yet again.
“Alright, I know you’re there. Did the Queen send you?” he asked as he looked at the trees.
No answer came.
With an annoyed sigh, Jason put his shoes back on, noting how back they looked but put it to the back of his mind. It was something he would have to deal with later.
He walked to the trees where he had last seen the movement and tried to investigate the canopy.
“I know you’re following me, but because you haven’t attacked it makes me wonder.” He said aloud.
There was a rustling of leaves not far away as whatever was there seemed to move.
He moved further into the trees, now realizing they wanted to get behind him so if the only way to get through this was to play along, then he would.
He moved and just caught a grazing of a black chitinous hoof. He turned as he ducked and saw Skitter, an unfamiliar look in her eyes.
“Not talking to me?”
She swung again, not trying to move. Jason grabbed her hoof and allowed his body to move taking her momentum and using it against her swinging her into a tree, though he tried to keep it from being too hard. He wasn’t sure why, but some part of him didn’t want to hurt her.
She struggled to move her body to allow her hooves to stop her, though she scrambled as she did since he still had hold of her one hoof.
He let go as she looked back at him and charged him. He moved to the defensive, trying to keep an eye on her movements so he wouldn’t get struck from a blind spot. Though, he noticed she seemed more to just charge and flail about, not actually fight him.
“What’s wrong?” His mind started to draw away wondering if the Queen herself was nearby or controlling her.
“Why?” Jason stopped one of her punches, noticing for the first time, tears in her eyes.
“Why what?”
“Why did you go against the Queen?”
“Why did you?”
“I… I don’t know.” She admitted as she weakly moved her fists to strike at him once again, he took the hit and noted he barely felt any force from it.
“I have been away for so long, when I came back, I did what she ordered, but there was no longer a connection to her. It left me feeling so alone, but then you…” She babbled a little, using a hoof to wipe the tears away.
“Then you changed, you were no longer her golem, you took back your mind, and then she tried to force you further. The amount of force should have destroyed your mind, yet it somehow did not. Then I acted without thinking and went against her. She then tried to force me as well, but she couldn’t stay in my mind, and I don’t know why or how.”
“Are you no longer a part of the Hive then?” He had heard of a few changelings that had lost a connection when they were weak and were sent away from the hive to die alone. Was this what was happening.
Skitter nodded, and Jason felt a small pain in his chest.
He knelt beside her on the ground as she sat on her haunches.
“Do you think you can stay with me? I could sue an extra pair of eyes or a good ally when she comes after me, not if, but when.”
“I have nowhere else to go.” she admitted.
Jason nodded.
He took some time to gather some materials and set up a rough lean-to for himself before making efforts to gather some food.
“Is there any place we can go to where we might be safe from her?” Jason asked as he ate next to a small fire as evening and clouds gathered.
“There are other places, though the place I was stationed at already has a replacement, it would be a bad idea to return there as we would immediately be under surveillance or even attacked. The only other place would be Equestria. Its not far traveling from this island to the continent by boat.”
“Will there be anyone who could grant us solace, or sanctuary?”
“You would have to find and speak with the princess of Equestria, Celestia.”
“I’m picking up there may be a but in there somewhere.” Skitter nodded.
“I do not know if she would be willing to help out a creature like you- “
“You mean she may not help a human?”
“Yes, plus she is already against changelings as there is another hive there in Equestria and word is from time to time she tries to manipulate or attack Celestia’s land, and ponies.”
“Ponies?” Jason asked curious.
“Yes, Celestia is an Alicorn, and her subjects are Ponies. Unicorns, Pegasus, and Earth Ponies. Each has a unique type of magic and they live in relative peace under Celestia’s rule.”
Jason tossed another large fruit toward Skitter who caught it with her magic before holding it with her hoof and taking a juicy bite.
The fire between the two flashed and danced as a stray wind blew in from off the water. Jason Moved his body to try to block the wind, though it still messed with the firelight. Their shadows danced broken apart by the various trees around them.
“We’ll need to get some rest, but also need to keep an eye out for any drone. I’ll take first watch.” Jason offered.
Skitter seemed to hesitate before settling down and closing her eyes. He watched her body as it rose and fell from her breathing, he wasn’t expecting her to fall asleep, he wasn’t even sure if he could fully trust her. But from their conversation she was completely cut off from the Hive, and had been for some time before she returned. She was a spent asset if Jason thought about it in a way. She had already been doing a job, and possibly was no longer considered as useful until she was called back to train him.
If that were the case then, Nepidae considered her weak and lost, and was going to get rid of her at some point soon.
Jason shook his head as it felt, well for a lack of a better word, fucked up. But he still shouldn’t drop his guard just yet.
It was late, and the moon had seemed to level out above Jason when he laid down, not bothering to wake up Skitter, he would try to sleep, and it would be better for her to sleep all the way through the rest of the night now that she had finally settled down enough to fall asleep.
He was sure he would be restless as he closed his eyes thinking about how it was odd that he remembered the moon had had a strange shadow on its surface but it seemed to be gone now.
A she began to drift off, he shrugged it off thinking his mind had been playing a trick on him that the shadow held a definitive shape of a horse head with a horn.
He began to wonder how they would get to this Equestria place, and remembered the other inhabitants on the island and thought perhaps if one of them had a large enough boat perhaps he, or maybe they if Skitter was to stay with him, could stow away.
Jason struggled as light focused on him, opening his eyes slowly, he noticed the sunrise, and noticed Skitter was sitting at the edge of the tree line watching the sunrise.
“Something wrong?” he asked as he checked one of the left-over fruits from the night before. He wiped away the ants on it before taking a bite.
“No, I just, never took the time to watch a sunrise.” Skitter said before turning around as the sun quickly rose above the horizon.
“I still think it is so weird how fast the sun rises here.” Jason commented.
“That is because Celestia raises it.”
“What do you mean Celestia raises it?”
Skitter looked at Jason for a moment before slowly closing her eyes and nodding to herself. “Celestia is powerful and has a connection to the sun. When day breaks, she uses her power to take hold and raise the sun. Since the banishment of her sister, Celestia also raises the moon at night as well.”
Jason shook his head, “So what there is like a ritual she performs in front of her subjects and pretends to raise the sun? Or like she ACTUALLY uses powerful magic to manipulate the sun.”
“That,” Skitter said pointing a hoof at him.
Jason looked in the direction of the sun without looking directly at it to save his eyesight best he could. “Well, I am surrounded by creatures of magic and talking shape changing insects, sure why not.”
“Well, the question now is what do we do? I was thinking we could try hiding ourselves on a boat if one of the other races has one and making our way to Equestria.”
“That’s not a bad idea, the sooner the better.”
Jason nodded in agreement. He took a second to kick at the lean-to he had made the night before, and then kicked some sand and dirt over the ashes of the campfire.
Once they had enough to eat, they immediately set out looking for signs of one of the other races. They found one tribe of minotaur’s who used boats, as Griffons just used their own wings to fly.
Unfortunately they did not have large ships, instead they had smaller fishing boats that had two rooms under the deck, one for the minotaur, and one for fish. Jason and Skitter waited until night when the Minotaurs started to settle in for the night, around a large bonfire, luckily they were celebrating a large haul and none were paying attention to the boats.
Especially not to one that was being slowly pushed out into the water. Jason pushed the boat, swimming and working to keep his head up above the water as he continued to push the boat out further and further into the water. Skitter used her magic to help steer the boat toward Equestria before they felt they were far enough away to not be heard and she helped Jason up onto the deck of the small boat.
“We’ll have to be careful since these boats are not made for crossing oceans.”
“Yeah, well as long as mother nature doesn’t throw a surprise at us.”
“The closer we get to Equestria the better. The Pegasus ponies control the weather in and around the continent. Mostly though they keep to where other ponies live; a few smaller cloud cities work the edges of the landscape.”
“Of course, flying horses control the weather,” Jason said with a derisive laugh.
“You will see.” Was all that Skitter said as she settled herself at the far front of the boat while Jason sat in the middle using the oars to push them along the water. He had to take frequent stops to rest his body as it came further and further into exhaustion from a different kind of workout.
During this time, to help their chances of not being caught out in the middle of the ocean, Skitter would use her magic on the oars as well, though she tried not to spend too much energy just in case there came an emergency.
It took a couple of days for them to reach a coast where trees stood far from land and seemed to be halfway sunk into the water. Jason sighed as he spotted green around the trees, moss or lilypads. They were headed toward a swamp area.
“Let’s go around this, I don’t want to deal with any of the inhabitants here.”
This took an extra half day to go around until they found a beach to the North side of the swamps. They came to a stop and jumped off the boat.
“I feel a little bad a minotaur is having a bad couple of days.”
“Most likely they will think the boat sank and the village will gather together to make a new one for the minotaur.” Skitter said knowledgeably.
“Alright, so where do we go from here, and how far is it to reach Celestia’s place?”
“I’m not entirely sure since I have never been here myself for sure. But if we can get to a city not far from here, just on the otherside of the bay, we can catch a train straight to Canterlot. It won’t be easy, but this might help.”
In her magic, floating towards Jason was a small necklace. Engraved on it was the symbol of a Mintotaur, actually it looked like the astrological sign of Taurus.
“Put it on, and it should help.”
Eying Skitter for a second, Jason put the pendant on and shrugged, “now what?”
She motioned to the water and as Jason stepped toward what he thought would be his reflection, he was somewhat surprised to find a small somewhat thin Minotaur looking back at him.
“That will only work outside during the day. It uses the sun and magic to cast an illusion over you.”
“Ha! Nice.”
Turning back, Jason was able to watch Skitter change her form into a young-looking pony with light green fur, but dark green mane and tail.
“By the way, my name while I look like this is Aloe.” She explained as she pointed to the shape of an aloe plant on her flank.
With the two in agreement and ready they started off. It took a few days as well as the effort of wading across a river to find a city following the bay. They were able to get a couple of tickets and board the train with some ‘coins’ Skitter had. Which was some rocks that had fools gold mixed in and Skitter used her magic to turn them into some bits. Once finally on the train and on their way, the two checked their tickets and settled on a seat across from each other and settled for the long ride and some well needed sleep.
They were able to have one of the older pony staff of the train to agree to wake them when they were close to Canterlot.
It had been a strange and long journey, but Jason hoped things would work out for them.
Author's Note
Hey all. I am still not sure if this means my dry spell of writing is over. But I wanted to write something and got this short sort of chapter for yall. I hope you all enjoy it. I know, my writing wasn't up to snuff before, and now it may be even worse but I hope you all still enjoy and are willing to continue the journey with Jason and Skitter.
Celestia let out a bored sigh, it was the end of the day and all her subjects had been taken care of in a fair amount of timely order. She had an hour of nothing left to do but paperwork and lowering the sun before Luna would arrive and raise the moon.
She was glad her sister had been returned to her, with the help of Twilight Sparkle, but she was still weak, only just recently with enough rest and some help and encouragement from her, Luna was able to start raising the moon once again.
Though truth be told it still exhausted her enough to where she could not perform her duties of night court, nor lowering the moon. Rather, by Celestias insistence she rested and used her more natural gifted ability to wander the realm of dreams and check on the ponies.
Celestia smiled, her sister had grown, when she first returned and tried to return to her job with just wandering the dream realm there were a few nightmares which caused her to banish the sleepers’ nightmares but left her awake and frightened Nightmare Moon would return.
During these first few nights she had allowed Luna to sneak into her room and snuggle under the covers with her, their bond as sisters finally breaking through as they relaxed in each other’s company.
Celestia worked to draw back the tears that threatened to let loose.
‘Not right now Tia, more work to do.’ She chastised herself.
Though she did miss her sister dearly and it had briefly reminded her of their times before Nightmare Moons ascension when fears plagued pony minds at nights, and she heralded the darkest recesses of those afraid of the spirits returning to wreak havoc over their lives once again.
There was a bang at the door to the throne room, a guard answered, and turned to approach Celestia bringing her from her thoughts.
“I’ve seen enough ponies for today, Silver Spade, it’s time to retire. They are free to return first thing in the morning.”
“Princess, I am sorry but apparently these two are claiming to be refugees and are asking for your help.” The guard responded, having stopped midstep to explain the interruption.
“What? We are at peace, where could they have come from to claim to be refugees?”
“They could not say, or at least refused to say, princess.”
“Who are they?”
“A rather small Minotaur, and a pony.”
“That is a rather odd company.” Celestia thought for a moment before looking around at the present guards. She nodded and all at once hooves grasped, horns glowed, and wings were spread.
“Very well, Princess.” Silver Spade said knowing they were now on high alert in case of trouble, and deception.
Celestia closed her eyes and smiled her best welcoming smile, her eyes barely lidded as they reflected warmth and comfort, she also flexed her wings out, a spell ready but she did not light her horn just yet.
“Princess Celestia, I present the Minotaur, and the pony Aloe.” Silver Spade called out seconds later as the door opened and indeed a six foot rather thin almost sickly-looking minotaur entered followed by a light green pony with dark green mane and tail.
Celestia raised an eyebrow at the pony, she was not one of hers, and thus she felt more ready for something to happen.
“Curtesy, first my lady.” The minotaur said in a low voice.
With that announcement he knelt to one knee and bowed his head in respect, and the pony next to him bowed as well.
This was now a game of who would strike first.
“Welcome my little pony, and to the Minotaur’s. How unusual to find you so far inland. What has happened that you seek my aid.” She was speaking as carefully and methodically as she could but knew it might throw things off to have pointed out the obvious strangeness to their appearance and company.
“Princess Celestia,” the minotaur said slowly as if working the name over in his mind and mouth. “We have come from a southern island and request aid, or rather sanctuary if you would extend your kindness and curtesy.”
Celestia felt a strange sensation in her chest as she looked over the minotaur and the pony. Quickly her horn flared, and the motion of the throne room came to life as the guards rushed forward, the image of the minotaur and pony falling to reveal, “A human? And a changeling!?” Celestia said out loud in shock.
“Get the changeling,” came a voice, a leader taking charge immediately to take on the largest threat first.
“No, wait, please.” The man begged as he stood and went to the changeling’s side. “She is of no threat to you.”
“Changelings have been a threat to this kingdom for a long time, I fear. As for you, a human I have no idea how you got here, but I might be able to help you if you are not dangerous.” Celestia raised a hoof keeping the guards back, but their weapons still pointed at the duo.
“Please, don’t push us to fight, we are here seeking your help and aide, that is no lie.”
“Yet, you were both under a guise, you had an illusion,”
“Yes,” Jason admitted, “we are fleeing a changeling hive to the South on a small island from here.”
“That is rather unusual, the changelings I know of are only from the badlands.”
“That is Queen Nepidaes sister, Queen Chrysalis.” The changeling said, trying her best to press herself against the human, their bodies seeming strange together, and yet there was something odd about the two of them. What was it, were they lying, or was it something else?”
At that moment as the changeling turned to speak a guard moved in quickly to tackle her and the human. Who turned surprisingly fast as the changeling ducked and the pony guard was sent flying.
“Please, we don’t want to fight, but if you push us, we will defend ourselves.”
“So, you would threaten my ponies?”
“No,” Jason said quickly, “I speak the truth. We do not want to fight, we may end up hurting too many of your guards, or worse.” he said, ending his sentence with a definitive silence.
“Seize them for the protection of the Princess and all free ponies!” Silver Spade yelled, he wasn’t even a leader, and he was uttering commands.
“No, wait” Celestia started but it was too late, guards rushed forward at the two and in a flurry of movements guards were being tossed, hit, thrown, stomped, and blasted with weak magic beams.
It did seem they were trying their best not to hurt her ponies, but this was a mistake on her end. Many of the guards and ponies still held long grudges against changelings.
Celstia stomped, cracking the marble flooring, spread her wings high into the air, stretching them completely out to bring herself to her full height and bellowed using some magic. There was a brief glare of light as if for an instant the sun had pierced the throne room.
“Enough!” The fighting stopped, the guard ponies backing away, or trying to carry away their downed brethren.
The human, stood ready to continue, as the changeling stayed at his back.
Celestia had to admit, her guards were good, but these two were on a whole other capable level. The only way a changeling could fight like that was if they were preparing for an all out attack.
And what of the human, why was he with her? How did he even get to Equestria. Celestia suddenly felt there was more important things than a fight. She needed information, knowledge, that would be the only way to prevent whatever was coming.
As she looked at the two unusual beings before her, she suddenly felt there was something between them. The way they fought together was as if they had always fought together in sync.
Celestia admitted to herself, this was a worrisome situation before her, and she needed to get things settled quickly.
“Are the changelings of this Queen Nepidae looking to attack us?”
“I cannot fully say, but I was stationed at another continent as a spy and for research of pony culture.” The changeling responded settling herself down onto all four of her hooves.
The human seemed to turn and lower his arms, though Celestia could tell he was still tense from the fight as he eyed the ponies around him.
Celestia thought, just as Chrysalis had done once before, when she taken in a whole town of ponies and replaced them with changelings. They must be seeking to infiltrate as ponies no different than others present and spread out from there.
“How long do we have?”
The human and changeling exchanged glances before the human shrugged. “I have no idea, she brainwashed me for a bit and had me doing some stuff and learning to fight. It might be soon; it might be a while from now.”
“Well, that certainly doesn’t help, but the information you have given me does work in our favor at least and we can work to be on guard. But now the question is what to do with the two of you.”
“Look,” Jason said, we don’t want to be a part of the hive. Or well, I don’t want to be forced to kill anymore, and Skitter here has been cut off from the hive, which means she is to die either on her own or killed by another changeling if found. We are capable, and willing to work for a living and stay someplace safe. At least as safe as possible. We didn’t come here to start anything, or to cause trouble.”
Celestia watched them and felt there was truth in their words. Finally, after a long silence she nodded.
“Very well, with the information you have given me, I believe it would be beneficial and help us. Therefore I am willing to trust you enough to give you solace and sanctuary.”
“Thank you, Princess Celestia.”
“Soverign Blade,” She called a pony guard forward. “Take these two under your custody and see to it they are put into a room in a tower near mine, and ensure they are treated respectfully and assist them with whatever they need, including basic amenities.”
“Yes Princess.” The guard saluted before turning to the other two and motioning for them to follow. As they left Celestia sat back on her haunches, raising a hoof to her forehead as if fighting back a headache.
“Silver Spade.”
“Y, yes Princess?”
“It gives me no joy to say this, but you are to be punished for disobeying an order and inciting this incident.”
“Yes, Princess.” He said sounding resigned and defeated. He turned and left.
As the door closed there was a small burst of magical blue smoke as Luna appeared.
“Sister, have you tried this, it is called popcorn, and ponies eat it while watching movies…”
Luna stopped, a leg around a bucket of popcorn as she looked around her to the injured ponies and a frustrated Celestia.
“Pray thee sister, what has happened?”
Celestia shook her head, eyes cast down, this was going to be a long night.