Chapter 16: I Can Change, Can You? - Part 2

As the human departed, I sighed to myself and relaxed a bit. However, the tension lingered, a by-product of what felt like a marathon therapy session with Alex, the human.

I had profound respect for the bipedal creature. Moreover, my research on the bipedal creature brought back exciting stories and facts about Alex and his species.

I proceeded to trot out and down the long, narrow corridor toward the intersection at the end. Finally, I took a right and returned to my living quarters within the Hive. Along the way, I reminisced about the human and what his adventurous mind held.

He has such an intuitive mindset that seeks thrills and excitement while doing his best to remain calm and collected under pressure, I thought.

“That reminds me,” I asked myself softly. “Whatever happened to that book series I was reading?”

I made it to my room and immediately closed the door behind me. The room was well-organized, a characteristic it shared pretty nicely with me. My bed was neatly made on the left, the blanket tucked in, and the pillows were sitting near the headrest.

The rug underneath was without wrinkles and laid out all my homework assignments and projects currently assigned to the students while on academic leave.

Speaking of which, that term. ‘Academic leave.’ It didn’t sit right with me this entire time.

Why did they refer to the human’s escape and search as the sole reason for the term ‘academic leave’ to be handed down to every student at the School of Friendship? I asked my curious mind. To my knowledge, they didn’t do it at any other schools in Equestria.

I buried the thought away and looked to the bookshelf, or bookshelves, on the right side of my room. Since I absolutely loved reading and writing, there was no doubt they overflowed with a cavalcade of titles and works from many authors.

The bottom shelves held onto a thesaurus, encyclopedias, and dozens of history books for myself to go through when I was entirely out of things to do.

The middle of the three bookcases was filled with novels and books that could help me distract myself for days. They ranged in all types of genres and were neatly organized. The dividers in-between each genre were sandwiched nicely and tightly.

However, my eyes wandered to what was atop the shelving. Journals and small books about personal stories and events were the topics, and I had them assorted by the author's names. The genres ranged from adventure to tragedy, slice of life, and drama-inducing thrillers.

But, of all the series in my personal library, one seemed to stick out like a rose thorn.

I flew up and picked up the book from its holding on the edge of the bookcase. Then, flying down and lying on my bed, I relaxed into the cushioning as I looked at the hardcover.

‘Music To My Ears, by Alexander Walkerson.’ I placed my hoof over the cover and opened it. Flipping through the pages, I found the bookmark I put amid chapter three of the four-chapter-long book.

It was only 56 pages long, but the short stories within its pages made the series nearly span fourteen books. This one, in particular, was book 2, one I had put aside since the incidental day over a month ago.

No matter, I thought. I have nothing else important to do, nor a changeling to bother me.

I started to read where I last left off:

‘This was one of the lowest points in my life.

Losing an individual that had meant so much to me while I had the same sickness. I had no one else to talk to face-to-face since I was quarantined. My family couldn’t do anything to help me except give me pain medication and leave dinner at the door.

But for the three-week-long recovery, I stayed isolated within those dark walls.

I was alone there.

Cold.

Scared.

Shut out from the joys of life.

The worrisome thoughts polluted my aching mind, desperately trying to rid them from my brain.

And then, I remembered those words that reignited my passion and love for music.

Trust yourself, Alex.

Those people were right. Talent wasn’t something you could teach to a kid.

Talent is pure, raw, and innocent in the beginning.

My instincts would initially tell me to just leave it at that. To let talent alone carry me through life to my end goals.

It was the most playful, innocent, and stupidest way to think.

After I cleared protocols and returned to the university, the switch immediately flipped, and my personal obsession with practicing hard fully took over my brain.

It plunged a deadly dagger into me, releasing an unhealthy, toxic substance of adrenaline to sate my want and desire for nothing short of perfection.

That’s where I began to fall.

It was a downfall similar to what Anon went through.

Anon's self-obsessed ways were disgustingly similar to my poisonous obsession. One that latched onto my being and held on desperately.

It didn’t want to let go.

It wanted me.

It needed me.

And at that moment in time?

I needed it.’

“Ocellus!”

========================================<>========================================

My mind snapped out of the world from the book as I looked up in haste. At the doorway was Prince Thorax, panting and staring back at me.

huff! “There you are!” pant! “I was so worried something had happened to you,” he said, sighing in relief.

“Why would you? I’m perfectly safe here,” I replied with certainty.

“Well, we may have had an intruder within the Hive,” Thorax said, revealing a ripped article of clothing in his hoof. It was blood-stained and without its once vibrant color.

“Well, what does that have to do wi-”

“It was outside the old throne room, and it was found on a thorny rock within the hole somecreature had created,” he said, his eyes widening more. “Your trace was found near it, but this one on this, whatever it is, is unknown.”

“Oh, I know,” I said without thought, knowing I would eventually have to out myself.

“You know?” Thorax inquired, squinting his eyes at me now. “What are you hiding fro-”

“Mr. Alex was in the old throne room, so I pulled him aside and had a FRIENDLY chat with him.” My attitude relaxed while my eyes returned to the book I had in front of me.

“WHAAAT?!” he exclaimed in shock, his forehead beading sweat down. “H-H-HOWW?!”

“I had a feeling he was around,” I shrugged, going back to the book. “He just felt stressed, and I decided to help him and make him feel comfortable with all this going on.”

“B-B-But, h-he’s DANGERO-”

“Eh, not really,” I nonchalantly shot back. Thorax’s expression went into overdrive as he stomped his hoof down. I sensed he was still nervous, but now was no time for cowardice, he was telling his mind.

“You stay in here until I-no, WE, come back!” Prince Thorax snapped at me, finally departing the room. The door slowly closed, shutting me in with a resonating click!

“Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere,” I waved my hoof dismissively, returning my gaze to the human’s retelling of a memory. “I’ll be here for the remainder of the day reading.”

Let’s just hope Faust can protect you, Mr. Alex, I mused, a small smile forming. Because something has been bothering me lately with this book.

I need to understand what you meant when writing this story.

========================================<>========================================

“PHAARYYYNX!!” I called out in desperation, entering the main throne room. “We have a problem!”

Pharynx appeared out of an adjacent corridor. “Big problem?” my brother asked hastily.

I nodded my head in return as I got up from the throne.

“Come on,” Pharynx inquired. “Tell me, what’s this problem?”

I hurriedly trotted ahead as my brother, and I made our way toward the main entrance of the Hive. “Big problem,” I gasped, my breathing picking up. “The human was already spotted here.”

“REALLY?!” Pharynx exclaimed ferociously. “But, ho-”

“That’s beside the point,” I shook my head, dismissing any further questioning. “We have to find the fugitive, and fast! If any creature loses sight of him again….”

“It's back to square one,” Pharynx concluded. He scrunched his face up, the rage seeping from him. “If I see him, oooo, I will take him down for good!”

“Let’s try not to completely decimate the human, Pharynx,” I said worriedly. “The Crown is considering him to be brought back to Canterlot alive, and aggravating Canterlot’s royalty is not something we want to do.”

“Do not fret, Prince Thorax,” he said reassuringly, “we will find him. And by the way. Don’t be so afraid of The Crown.”

“B-B-Bu-”

“Trust me,” Pharynx said, starting to slow his trot. The tall entrance doors to the Hive loomed overhead. “The Crown asked every other nation to help capture Alex because they are too busy or too lazy to do it themselves.” He shook his head and sighed. “If they wanted this over with, they would’ve already destroyed half of Equestria to finish him off.”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” I said, my eyes widening as that final sentence was finally processed. “Wait, what do you mean by that?”

“Dude, come on,” he lazily said, stepping away. “Every member of The Crown is immortal. Commander Shifting commands an entire army, while Princess Luna controls the darn moon. The Emperor is an all-powerful hippogriff that can wield historically deadly weapons and use any type of ancient magic. And Princess Celestia?” Pharynx asked, waving his hoof out toward me.

“Can control the sun,” I said, my head drooping.

“Exactly!” Pharynx replied, proceeding to the door’s handle to push it open. “She nearly dropped the entire sun on one pony just to protect that hippogriff, so don’t bother your mind with those thoughts.”

“Pharynx, it's not just that,” I replied softly under my breath. “I just didn’t appreciate how this situation was dealt with as a whole.” I looked at my brother, who peered at me from the corner of his eye.

sigh “Alright, fine. Tell me what happened at the trial, Thorax,” Pharynx inquired, planting his hoof on the door handle and holding it there.

========================================<>========================================

“Well, for starters, I think the evidence wasn’t cohesive and fully conclusive,” I stated confidently. “It seemed rather vague, and the prosecutor's explanations for the human’s decisions did not elaborate on the possible motives. And that’s another thing that bothered me: the motive.”

“Reasons for doing what he did,” Pharynx nodded as he opened the massive doors with a loud grunt!

“What was the main reason?” I asked rhetorically. “Alex, the human, didn’t just wake up one day and say to himself, ‘I should totally kill Anonymous just for fun.’ It doesn’t add up.” I rubbed my right hoof against my temple.

“Then there’s the weapons themselves and how witnesses claimed he combined the two axes to create one large ax to fight off Anonymous. Finally, the whole ‘he used magic’ thing was poorly supported, the prosecution using ‘he’s a mortal human whose species can’t use magic!’ as their only piece of evidence being unreasonable and unreliable.”

My brother looked out into the distance, scanning the horizon for something.

“For Faust’s sake, humans can’t even fly, Pharynx!” I scoffed. “How in Tartarus does he do i-”

grab!

“Sshh!” Pharynx put a hoof to cover my mouth. “Hold that thought, Thorax.”

“Mmmff!” I said in annoyance, pushing him away. “Pharynx! What was that for?”

“Dude!” my brother said, grabbing me. He pointed his hoof out toward the region of the Wandering Woods. “Would you look at who it is?”

I looked out into the distance, following his hoof’s direction. Sure enough, my eyes widened in shock, and my mind again started panicking. A lone figure was slowly making its way toward the distant forest.

A lone, rather tall figure.

A being walking on two legs.

growl

“Is that him?” Pharynx asked with a low growl.

gulp!

“Yea, that’s him, alright,” I whispered, my hind legs shaking in fear.

“He’s nearly at the forest’s edge,” Pharynx replied darkly.

“We have to warn Canterlot immedia-”

“No,” my brother said confidently, a smirk beginning to dawn on his face. “YOU yourself shall go and warn The Crown of the fugitive’s whereabouts.”

“Me?” I asked in shock, staring back at my brother. “Why me?”

“Because YOU are the appointed leader of the changelings,” Pharynx stated while wearing a deadpan expression, “and as your older brother, it is my job to remind you of your royal duties while simultaneously protecting you and the Hive from dangerous threats.”

“But what about you?” I asked, the realization hitting me too slowly from what my brother implied.

“I’m going to go and fight him,” Pharynx said, backing away from me.

“Wh-WHAT?! Are you crazy?” I snapped back, my face morphing into bewilderment. “You can’t be serious, Pharynx!”

“I am,” he replied back.

“You know he’s the most powerful and deadliest creature that anycreature has ever seen here in Equestria!” I looked at the ground in terror, thinking that my brother was devolving into lunacy with this course of action. “He coul-”

“Thorax,” Pharynx said slowly, grabbing my attention. I looked up and noticed he sported that same confident smile as before. “Trust me. Your bigger, older brother was born for this action and knows what he’s doing.”

It didn’t ease my mind that Pharynx, my own brother, believed he had a remote chance of taking down Alexander. He was a bipedal creature that could wield a dual-bladed ax and an assortment of powerups. He also was incredibly versatile in the arts of combat.

I shook my head, stomping my hoof into the ground. “N-NO!!” I adamantly barked back. “You are not to go out there and fight him!” Finally, I stepped in front of my brother and blocked his path.

“Thorax?” my brother asked, shaking his head. “You realize the more we bicker with each other, and the more you continue to stand in my way, the farther he will go and get away.”

I stared at him with my mouth open, the fork in the road being clear for me. I sputtered for a reply but closed my mouth and thought to myself.

Two choices, Thorax, my mind told me. It’s time to make an important decision. You either allow your brother to proceed and give chase, potentially putting him in harm’s way while you deliver the message to The Crown.

My mind started to hurt from all of the thinking. Or you remain adamant and forbid Pharynx to proceed while potentially losing track of the human fugitive and risking future negotiations and trust between the changelings and the rest of Equestria.

“That’s absurd, Thorax,” my brother Pharynx nonchalantly said. I looked at him with surprise, the realization that changelings could read each other’s minds slowly coming back to my mind. “Besides, I said it many times, and I’ll repeat it.”

Pharynx proceeded to pull me in and give me a big hug. “Don’t worry, little bro. I’ll be fine.”

“Please, don’t do this,” I pleaded, a tear forming in my eye. “You cannot get wounded from this. You have to let him pass if he brings out that ax again. I can’t risk you dying, Pharynx.”

“I’m not going to die,” Pharynx said, pulling away from the embrace. “Once you deliver that letter, you’ll be able to help me fight and finish the human together. Just like old times?”

I nodded in silence. The warm memory of that one time we defeated a large maulwurf together resurfaced.

“Alright, Pharynx,” I admitted in defeat. “I trust you.”

“Good. Now go send that letter to Canterlot!” Pharynx exclaimed, his eager hunger for battle returning. “Meanwhile, I got myself a fugitive to hunt.”

His eager growl forced me to move out of his way as he leaped forward and flew through the sky. I watched him as he got farther and farther away, getting closer to the departing human.

Meanwhile, in frustration, I shook my head and closed the Hive's front doors. I raced back to my room to retrieve a parchment. This letter needed to be written and in a hurry.

I needed to hurry.

Time is of the essence, I told myself internally, and my brother’s life just might be at stake!

========================================<>========================================

Come ooonn. Hurry up, Alex.

Broooo, chhiiilllll….

“Are the kids back at it again?”

Yeah, both sides of my mind are back and bickering over my walking speed.

Righto, bucko, both sides said in unison.

sigh

As I exited the Changeling Hive through a hole in the side of the structure, I was now staring down a vast desert area leading southward. As I made contact and entered the sand dunes, my shoes started picking up the volatile substance.

The shoes I was currently wearing were worn out from the journey already. Having gone through a brutal fight and game of tag in the weather factory of Cloudsdale, flying through the skies over the North Luna Ocean, hiking through the snowy landscape of Hailberg, and into the sandy valleys outside the Changeling Hive and towards the Wandering Forest.

Speaking of which, the perimeter of the forest outline was becoming closer and closer as I got closer. The trees appeared to be towering overhead to where they almost eclipsed the lower outline of the setting sun.

Better hurry before they come after you, one side of my brain said to me.

Yeah. No telling how long it’ll be until we can’t find our way through the forest and they capture us, the other side chirped.

I groaned in frustration. “That’s why it is called the ‘Wandering Forest,’ dip,” I muttered. Sometimes my brain was downright re-

“WATCH IT!!”

Oh right. You’re still here with me.

You do need to watch your mouth on certain occasions, Alex, I thought to myself. Especially from past instances, I gotta learn from my mistakes and try to make amends.

“And start anew again?”

Maybe you’ll seee, the second side of my brain started to sing as it remembered that one song.

All the wrongs you did to meee, the first side melodically replied.

“Yeah, and start all over,” I sang quietly.

Who am I kidding, I thought, trying not to get over-zealous. It’s not worth it anymore. To keep running away from all my troubles and not facing them head-on? I shook my head in defeat, ridding the thought away from my head.

The sand was getting in between my feet and the inside of my shoe, bothering me to an extent. So I stopped for a moment and took off one of my shoes. Then, shaking out the sand, I looked at it with curiosity.

“How long have I had these size 13 shoes for?” I asked myself, quietly putting it back on. The sand wasn’t wholly shaken out of it, but it was better than before.

Rinse and repeat for the second shoe.

With my shoes cleared of the intrusive debris, I peered down the path toward the jungle before me. The desert scenery was starting to shift from the desert scenery to a more luscious landscape, prompting me to stop and breathe a sigh of relief.

“Finally,” I groaned, rubbing my temples with my fingers. “God, it has been so long since I have had a good walk to calm my mind. Felt like years….”

“Probably was, considering you used to regularly walk your dog back on Earth.”

Bingo, my mind said in unison. Speaking of which, shouldn't we devise a plan of attack for this trek through the Wandering Forest?

I didn’t bother looking back at the amount of land I had traversed as I stood there for a while. It had been a long journey thus far, and any time I could spend catching my breath would be necessary for me to continue without stressing too much about other creatures potentially catching me and killing me.

“Oy vey,” I told myself silently.

Hey, we are busy up here! one side of my mind said frustratingly.

Why don’t you do something like map out the region for us? the second one said almost immediately. That way, we can find our way through this mess you put us in.

“One of these days,” I grumbled, “then you’ll be sorry….”

Okaayyy, got any threes?

Nope. Go fish!

“Mikey, analyze the surrounding region and process how long it would take to get through,” I spoke into the watch.

“Certainly, Alex. One moment. Scanning environment,” the robotic voice responded.

I held my arm up and looked at the watch while I waited. My thoughts kept thinking the same thing, going back to that one line Luna screamed out toward her sister outside the region of Hailberg.

Thy judgment shall come! the echo rattled within my brain.

It was something I had known too well. From every lie told to all the high school drama and the sorts. And now, being a teacher and having to teach generations of students, giving them the proper tools and amounts of knowledge to succeed?

It was scary for me.

I remember that day clearly when I first stepped into the band room. Since the recent band director retired, I was hired as the new teacher of the high school’s music program.

So, I was there to pick up the program from where they left off and revive it. The band wasn’t good for the last couple of years leading up to the director’s retirement. So, maybe having young blood in the music teacher’s position could hopefully shake up the program.

That was all it was: ‘hope.’

Hope for something different. Hope for me to change things there.

It was a surreal experience, with advanced academic planning and curriculum writing taking the life out of me for the months leading up to my first day.

“Scan complete. Two significant observations made,” the watch answered.

“Go on,” I said into the watch. “What are we taking into account tonight?”

“One: the Wandering Forest is considered the largest forest in the world of Equestria. Many creatures get lost within its jungled areas, and the wildlife found in this region is considered dangerous to traverse through without a proper map of the area,” the voice said monotonously. “Survivability is 24%.”

“That’s one excellent observation,” I replied sarcastically, the tension in my veins rising ever so higher. “What’s the other noteworthy one you have?”

“Two: watch out,” was its only response.

“Wha-”

fwoomp!

========================================<>========================================

I immediately rushed down the corridor and into the main throne room. Then, proceeding to the left of the throne and into an adjacent hall, I hastily galloped towards the end of it.

I took the last right at the end of the hall and ran down a flight of stairs before coming across a wooden door. Turning the handle to the right, I hastily flung the door open and entered.

The room itself resembled an office. Or a poorly organized office, at that. There was a massive clutter of papers, forms, and letters strewn across the ground on the left side of the room. Adjacent to it, on the right, was my bed and a couple of filing cabinets.

These didn’t really matter since the bookshelves lined the wall behind the desk. The desk itself was placed in the middle of the room on a small rug, displaying hundreds of books I had collected over the years. They weren’t organized in any specific order but were set for whenever I needed a reference during a meeting or to borrow one to Ocellus.

Speaking of which, I’ll need to address this situation with her sooner or later, I thought to myself with a slight groan. Seeing as she practically committed treason, it may be wise to discuss and explain to her why this is dire and concerning to me as the leader of the Hive.

roar!

I looked up as I picked up on the sound of a loud and ferocious roar. After it had subsided, I quickly retrieved a parchment on the desk and pulled the scroll out from within. Then, grabbing an ink pen, I dipped it into the inkwell and began to address the letter to The Crown in Canterlot:

‘To The Crown of Canterlot,

Greetings. This is Prince Thorax of the Changeling Hive.

I am sending this parchment to alert you of the sighting of the human fugitive, Alexander.

He was last spotted leaving the Hive to the south, and my brother, Pharynx, has gone out to attempt to stop him from further proceeding.

I did my best to try and stop Pharynx from possibly hurting himself in an altercation with a dangerous creature, but he insisted on doing so to protect the rest of the changelings and me.

If and when you do receive this, please come at once.

Hopefully, we can end this tonight for the good of Equestria while suffering no further casualties.

Signed with peace,

Prince Thorax’

========================================<>========================================

As I completed the letter with my signature, I rolled up the scroll and placed it back into the box. Closing it, I tapped the lid twice, which activated it. The dissipating particles slowly flew up and vanished into thin air, leaving no trace of the parchment.

I sat back and sighed in relief. Finished with that, I thought to myself slowly while closing my eyes. Now, let me collect my thoughts and keep calm.

I stood up and started to walk away from the desk, my eyes beginning to open back up. That’s when I spotted that small, cyan changeling again, who was currently standing in the doorway.

“Prince Thorax?” she asked me, her blue eyes staring at mine.

“Ocellus?” I responded, my eyes narrowing at the sight of her. “What do you need?”

“I don’t need to borrow a book. Rather, I have an observation I’d like to make,” Ocellus responded, tilting her head to the left. “Why do you appear to be so nervous?”

I nearly fell backward and onto the rug, my mind taken aback by her words. “N-Nervous?” I stuttered while retaining an awkward smile. “Wha-what do yo-wh-why would I be nervous?”

“Well, I believe it may have something to do with what I told you earlier about Al-”

“It has nothing to do with the human fugitive, nor should we discuss anything about him anymore,” I snapped back. The changeling took a step away from me, starting to tremble. I then rolled my eyes and brought a hoof to my face.

“I’m sorry, Prince Thorax,” Ocellus sadly stated, her eyes starting to water. “I didn-”

sigh “Th-That’s in the past, Ocellus,” I reassuringly replied. I proceeded to move to the younger changeling, wrapping a hoof around and hugging her. “We’ll talk about it later. But for now, I have an important assignment for you to complete.”

Ocellus’s ears perked up as she stared at me. “An assignment?” she inquired, her pupils dilating as she started to beam. “What kind of assignment? Trigonometry? Physics?”

“I need you to round up all the other changelings and move them to the ‘feeling’s forum’ room,” I said with a gentle smile. “We need every changeling to come together for now.”

“Really?” Ocellus said, her smile fading while her demeanor shifted to disappointment. “But, why now? Isn’t ther-”

“Ocellus,” I said, a hint of frustration coming to the forefront of my mind. “I-I need you to gather the rest of the changelings and stay within the forum room. Nothing else. Just…for my mental state, please do it.”

Ocellus stared back at me before slowly nodding her head. I unwrapped my hoof from around her and hurried her ahead toward the stairs. “Come on. There’s no time to lose. We have a task to accomplish.”

“Okay,” she said as she started to climb the staircase. “By the way, what exactly were you doing down here, Prince Thorax?”

I sighed to myself, my head shaking. “Oh, I just had some business to take care of.”

“What kind of business?” Ocellus asked hastily.

“Sending a message,” I ominously countered. Then, as I shut the door behind me, my mind attempted to calm itself.

Now then, my brain said as I took another deep breath, time to help Pharynx battle Alex.

“AAAAAUUUUH!!”

Author's Note

A story within a story? Oooo, the opportunities for "LORE!"

Part 3 comes out in about 9 hours, so stay tuned for that. Blood will spill...

-Harpy