Sexy Ghost Pony Adventure

It had been a day of festivity: Equestria was celebrating the new friends it had made, and the allies they had found in some of the Changelings. Not all of them, of course: humiliated and angry, Chrysalis had taken her most loyal followers and left, vanishing into the wasteland, either unable to accept the loss of her power or unwilling to change her ways.

But Thorax had proven himself to be a good king, and a good leader. He had been a strong figurehead for the rest of the Changelings to rally around, and find a new way to live, and he had finished, in many ways, what Marina had started: he had helped the Changelings change. Literally and metaphorically, since he had both changed their culture and helped them grow from their starved, husk-like states into something... more.

Thorax had been inspired by many things, and one of those had been Marina: the way she had confronted Queen Chrysalis even when all hope seemed lost, how she had promised there was another way and struggled to help both the ponies and her own people. And most of all, he had been inspired by seeing for himself how pony and exiled Changeling had struggled to protect each other, even in the face of certain defeat.

He had helped them find peace. He had helped unite ponies and Changelings and given a new meaning to their struggle. Today had been about celebrating that, although Thorax had really wanted them to cheer on the Changelings and the ponies who had helped inspire him and his leadership, not himself.

Thorax himself, a handsome, tall Changeling who, like many other reformed Changelings, had become sleeker, stronger, more individual in his evolution, was wandering through the party, greeting ponies and dignitaries, sharing smiles and laughs. He kept trying to make his way towards a certain mare who had isolated herself near the doors leading out to the balcony, but it seemed like there was always someone to meet, always more politics to play.

He didn't know how people could do this all day with smiles on their faces.

But it helped seeing how happy, excited everypony was. And it made him feel so proud, so good, to see Changelings and ponies interacting as equals, as friends.

Still, he very much wanted to try and thank the person who had helped him understand all that. And he felt awful, because while he had gained so much, she had lost something truly precious to her.

He skirted away from the party again, but this time he was sidelined by an earth pony mare: he didn't recognize her immediately in her long dress and with her mane pulled back, Thorax smiling awkwardly as he extended a hoof and said: “It's nice to meet, you, I'm-”

“Yes, we met when you were interviewed.” the mare said, and Thorax blinked in surprise before his smile became a little uneasy as a unicorn huffed up beside her, grumbling about the large suitcase she was carrying with telekinesis. The sight of the white mare helped stir Thorax's memories, however: yes, there had been a gray earth pony on the Luciferin council, named- “I am Octavia, if you don't remember. This is Vinyl Scratch. Have you spoken to Marina yet?”

“Oh, no, I was just going there-” Thorax started, but he was cut off by Octavia clucking her tongue, and Vinyl glared at her even as she hurried to Thorax's other side, the two mares forming a barrier around the Changeling and leading him briskly through the crowd.

“You know, I wish you wouldn't order me around like that.” Vinyl muttered. “Also, this party sucks. Why is Marina even here? She should be anywhere but here.”

“She should, but you know she won't. And you should do what I ask, then, and I won't have to tell you.” Octavia retorted, as Thorax awkwardly looked away: ponies were so strange to him. They argued and grumbled even as they projected love at each other; they had such intense emotions, and all of it got mixed together in ways that should have been impossible, as if they were programmed to be paradoxes.

“So you know her well?” Thorax asked, although of course he already knew the answer to that question: not just from what he'd overheard here and there, but the emotions he felt emanating from her. It just seemed like a good way to start a conversation.

Octavia only gave him a look, however, before she instead said: “Be gentle with her. She is having a very difficult time right now: I'm sure Changelings of all people should be able to understand the seriousness of a broken heart.”

“Yes, I do.” Thorax hesitated a moment as they pushed through the crowd, before he added quickly: “And thank you, too. I've wanted to talk to her all night. But... my new duties, I suppose.”

“Well, if you don't mind a bit of advice, the first thing you should learn is to balance those duties with your own personal obligations. A king cannot hope to care for his people if he cannot care for himself, and those around him.” Octavia instructed, and Thorax gave a small smile before the mare said in a softer voice: “I am sure she will appreciate it.”

Thorax nodded as they finally breached that open space away from the brunt of the party, the three heading quickly across the floor towards the lone mare standing at the doors to the balcony. Marina looked up, the chocolate-colored unicorn smiling faintly at them but remaining silent otherwise, disheveled and hollow-eyed; Octavia could tell something was a little off about her transformation, but only Thorax recognized as fraying.

He softened as he gently tilted her head towards her, using his own magic to help neaten the 'wrinkles' out of Marina's own glammer as he greeted, courteous and almost careful: “Hello, Marina, it's nice to finally meet you.”

“Thorax.” Marina said after a moment, and then she gave another small smile as she looked at the half-empty glass floating in her telekinetic grip; how long had she been holding that drink?

Thorax carefully took the drink from her, and Marina barely seemed to notice it was gone, looking with brief surprise at the glass for a moment before she rubbed at her face and murmured: “Sorry. I don't think I'm... I just meant to stop in for a moment. Pinkie Pie and the others have been trying to cheer me up but I'm not... in a party mood.”

“I understand.” Thorax hesitated, and then he stepped forward and hugged her gently, and Marina blinked in surprise, but then trembled as her breath caught and she looked away for a moment, steadying herself before she gave a small nod as she managed to start breathing again.

He drew back, then smiled a little before he said: “I just want you to know that it means a lot to have you here, and... I wanted to thank you, for everything you've done for us. For the Changelings, I mean. I might be the figurehead, but you're the one who really started all this... I'll never forget your words. That Changelings can change.”

Marina gave him the faintest of smiles, studying him a little closer before she nodded briefly. Thorax nodded back: before he could say anything else, however, Octavia cleared her throat as she swept the suitcase out of the air, Vinyl blinking before the earth pony suggested pointedly: “Vinyl, perhaps you could be a dear and go with Thorax to get us something to drink. I'll join you in a moment.”

Vinyl scoffed, but then she nodded and gave Marina a small smile, reaching up to pat her on the shoulder before she turned around and bulled Thorax away before he could say anything else, hurrying him off. Octavia smiled herself a little over her shoulder as the two left, before she turned her eyes back to Marina and said quietly: “You've helped with a wonderful thing.”

Marina gave a small shrug, her gaze almost becoming vacant, and after a moment Octavia sighed before she shouldered the suitcase as she approached Marina, gently bumping into her as she encouraged: “Let's go outside for a moment.”

Marina allowed herself to be guided towards the balcony doors: she opened them out of habit, and the two slipped outside into the chill of the night air. Not that Marina really seemed to notice it: her eyes wandered without taking in the sights either near nor far, and she seemed... distant.

Octavia couldn't blame her. She didn't want to imagine what Marina was going through right now. But she also knew Marina and understood a little about what she needed right now, the earth pony clearing her throat before she set down the suitcase in front of her and opened it, saying quietly: “Here. With some help from the Changelings and a research grant from Princess Celestia, I've been able to make a little something for you. A prototype model that I hope will allow us to better help not just ponies, but our Changeling allies, too.”

Marina tilted her head, and then she frowned a little as she picked up what was clearly a prosthetic limb from the suitcase, studying it curiously. She tilted it back and forth in her magic grip, feeling something different about it: unlike her current limbs, she felt her energies being drawn into the artificial leg. It felt... warmer, in her grip, too, for lack of a better word... “What is this?”

“We don't have a name for it yet: I've been calling it composite, due to its nature.” Octavia answered, before she instructed gently: “Run your magic through it.”

Marina frowned, but having something to focus on brought a bit more of the life back to her, enough that she was able to start asking even as she did so: “What will that-”

The limb in her magic grip glowed for a moment before it changed in shape and consistency, Marina feeling a strange, phantom tingling through the metal, as if it had not only come alive, it had somehow joined with her. She flinched and dropped it, staring as the prosthetic clanged against the floor of the balcony, and in a blink the prosthetic changed back to its plainer steel form, leaving her mouthing wordlessly for a moment before she asked: “What just happened?”

Octavia smiled slightly as she picked up the limb, carefully brushing it off before she said quietly: “I've never been able to make prosthetic limbs for you that can do more than hold a glammer, and even that effect fades over time as the reflective paint wears out. And sharp eyes could always tell the difference, anyway: even if you can change the colors of the limbs, my prosthetic devices were never the precise imperfection of real flesh and bone.

“This was partly because of the expense of materials capable of liquidshift, a magical-metallurgic process that governs many golems, and because we lacked a proper power source that could both interact with you and hold the charge necessary to maintain cohesion in user-malleable limbs.” Octavia paused, licked her lips, then simplified: “We didn't have the parts, the technology, or the understanding to make all of that work.

“But the Changeling provided us materials that were designed to work with their transformation, and by reverse-engineering these and learning more about the power sources of the hive and other Changeling technologies, I was able to redesign these prosthetic limbs and implement a new system of convex cores that should help contain and relegate your energies as necessary.” Octavia smiled a little. “They're only a prototype: we're a long way from making this fully effective. But I wanted you to test these for me, Marina... and to have them, as a gesture of thanks, from myself and everyone else in Equestria, for all the help you've given us.”

Marina laughed faintly, lowering her eyes and nodding a little as she studied the limbs for a moment, before she said quietly: “I appreciate what you're trying to do. But it doesn't feel right. It seems I've always got all these friends and I get all these benefits, but... I lose, I hurt the people I care about most.”

Octavia softened, and then she looked down at the mechanical limb in her grip before she slipped it into the heavy suitcase next to its partner, saying gently: “You've given up more for us than I ever have for you, Marina. You've done more for Equestria than many ponies would be willing to do, and I include myself in that number. I admire you. But I don' t envy what you've been through, either, or what you've lost.

“All the same, you need to move on. If not for your own sake, then for hers.” Octavia said quietly, and Marina grimaced and looked away. The earth pony breathed through the guilt at the low blow she knew she had dealt, and looked up, forcing Marina to meet her eyes as she said in a gentler voice: “I know it's terribly hard. We all want to help you. But you need to help yourself, too. Why are you here, Marina?”

“I... I don't know.” Marina murmured, looking away as she took a shuddering breath. “It just felt like...”

“Like a responsibility. But it's not your responsibility. You need to be responsible for yourself now, first and foremost.” Octavia hesitated, then she stepped forwards and hugged her friend, saying softly: “Your old room will be waiting for you. Vinyl and I would love for you to stay with us for a little while, and I'd enjoy your help with testing these new limbs. Can you do that for me? Can you do that for yourself?”

Marina hesitated, and then she closed her eyes, buried her face in the comfort of Octavia's neck, and for a few minutes she just trembled and breathed.

Finally, she took a slow breath, and then she nodded once and whispered: “I miss her. I don't even know what I'm doing.”

“I know.” Octavia said quietly, as she gently smoothed out Marina's dress, and then she smiled and said quietly: “I'll give you a few minutes. When you're ready to leave, come find us. Neither Vinyl nor I are really much for this kind of party anyway.”

Marina gave the briefest of smiles in return, rubbing silently at her face and nodding once, but Octavia had already excused herself. Instead, the mare's eyes turned to the prosthetic limbs, gleaming in the suitcase.

She reached out and touched it, felt warmth. Were these made with heartstones? Was that why they were so warm? She didn't know. But they felt like they held more than just electric energy; like they had vibrancy, like they were waiting to accept a soul of their own.

Did a Changeling like her have a soul to share with these metal shells?

She didn't know some days.

Some days she felt like a monster. Like nothing more than a beast.

Other days... other days, in some ways, the harder days, she felt too alive, and she could swear that she heard Moonbeam talking to her, urging her on. The only reason she... she was still trying, that she was still here, and not lost, was because she thought... she thought she heard whispers from her beloved. She thought sometimes she felt... a presence in Moonbeam's home. A presence that simultaneously loved her, but wanted her out: not gone, but not isolated, either.

Madness. Maybe this was why Changelings weren't supposed to love.

Marina stroked over the beautiful metal, then she smiled faintly as she thought of Moonbeam, and for a moment, she thought the artificial limbs took on the faintest of blue. And for a moment, love flared through the hollow that had eaten her up, and she closed her eyes and breathed softly and wished, for the thousandth time, that all those whispers could be real.

But somewhere, deep inside her, a voice was already telling her that she didn't have to be alone, and she never would be again.