Today had been a good day.

You sat before a large round table made of crystal, in a room that was made of the same material. It wasn't quite clear why this place was made of crystal nor why it was built on the edge of a little farm town (especially since all the thatch-roofed houses didn't go further than two floors), but quite frankly you didn't care. All that matters was that it belongs to you now.

It now belonged to the hive.

You looked around the room: there were seven chairs surrounding the table all made of crystal. Six of them were occupied by creatures that looked like a cross between a pony and an insect-changelings.

And you were one of them.

A few hours ago, Queen Chrysalis had sent three different infiltration teams out to capture the princesses of Equestria. Your team had been sent to Ponyville to deal with Twilight Sparkle at her castle. The mission was a success and as a bonus, you managed to capture her friends and impersonate as them.

Shortly after the castle was seized, you set up a call with the queen to tell her that your mission was successful. To say she was pleased would've been an understatement. Now here you and the rest of your fellow infiltrators were, soaking in your victory.

"Man, this infiltration mission was easier than I thought."

"Tell me about it," Said a changeling sitting across from you. "Those puny ponies didn't stand a chance!"

"They didn't even put up a fight! It's like they've gotten softer since the last time our hive fought them." Another changeling added.

You looked at the back of your chair, noticing the image of a cloud with a multicolored lightning bolt jutting out of it and smirked.

"Yeah," You replied. "I still remember when that rainbow girl punched Joey in the crotch back in Canterlot." You winced a little at those last words.

"Speaking of Canterlot, I heard the infiltration teams there and at the Crystal Empire were having trouble capturing the Royals." The changeling sitting in Twilight's chair said. "Seems they doubled security since last time."

"Well they contacted us and said they got `em," The changeling next to you said. "So now we've got three pony princess places under our control!"

You and the others cheered triumphantly in response.

The changeling sitting in the chair with balloons on the back stood up, which caught your attention.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm just gonna see what else in in this freak-show of a palace since, y'know, we own the place now." He replied and buzzed out of the room.

He did have a point; now that the element bearers were taken care of this was technically your property. To keep it hidden from the Ponyville citizens, you and your team had disguised yourselves as the six mares to throw them off and it worked. Even that little purple dragon who was in here a few minutes ago was none the wiser.

Leaning back in the chair with your hooves behind your head you took a deep breath and sighed happily, a smile creeping its way onto your face as you began to sing.

"This day has just been perfect,
The kind of day the queen has dreamed since she was small.
We have conquered every town,
There's no resistance to be found,
Soon her majesty is gonna rule them all!"

The sound of clapping could be heard and you sat up, seeing the other four changelings applauding your short performance.

"Damn," One of them said. "Your singing is almost on par with the queen's."

"Well, when you hear her sing almost every time you're near her, it kinda rubs off on you."

The changeling in Twilight's chair nodded. "Still, there's no denying that the queen is the best Alto."

"And Tenor!"

"And Soprano!"

It was true, the queen did have the best singing voice. She also had a good normal voice too. Something that just made you feel...entranced every time you heard her speak.

Just then the door slammed open which interrupted your thoughts, and you looked over to your right to see the changeling who left earlier.

"Yo guys!" He shouted. "I was looking through that purple princess's kitchen, and look what I found next to the fridge!" He levitated a large wooden barrel with a spout on the top and set it on the floor. A picture of an apple was painted on the side of it.

One of the changelings pointed at the barrel. "Is that-"

"Apple-flavored booze? You're damn right it is!" He then levitated six mugs. "Now we can have a real victory party."

You now realized why this infiltrator decided to disguise himself as Pinkie Pie.

You and the other four changelings got up and grabbed a mug. Then, one by one, you each took turns filling them up with frothy hard cider. You sat back at the table, making sure each of you sat in the same chairs you were in earlier. Once everyone was sitting, you took a small sip from your mug.

Your eyes briefly went wide.

While your kind couldn't taste normal food or beverages, including alcohol, this cider was...different. You could actually taste it. It was if a lot of care and compassion went into brewing this delectable drink.

In other words, it tasted like liquid love.

Some of your comrades had also taken their own sips, and their reactions were the same as yours more or less.

"See? What did I tell ya?" The changeling in Pinkie's chair exclaimed. "Those ponies may be jerks, but they know how to make liquor that tastes like love."

"They sure do." Replied another changeling, taking another sip.

Seeing as you had a chance to speak, you decided to change the subject. "So...did you know that Mating Season is next week?"

"You're right, it is." Said the changeling in Twilight's chair. "We should discuss who our broodmates are gonna be."

"Eh, I'm a natural chick magnet, so I don't need to search for mates when the ladies see this handsome hunk." Said the changeling sitting in Pinkie's chair, who flexed his bicep and gave a smug grin.

If you had pupils you would be rolling them right now.

"Well, if she still wasn't a nymph, I would love to make Ocellus my mate. She looks pretty adorable." Said a changeling who was sitting in a chair that had three blue diamonds on it.

The changeling sitting in a chair with three apples on the back took a sip from his mug, then said, "Well, personally, I've had my eyes on Vexus for quite a while. She's perfect mating material for me."

"W-wait. You mean Swarmleader Vexus?" Asked the changeling in the chair with three butterflies. "But she's so...stern and hot-tempered."

"Yeah, but I gotta say her voice is smokin' hot-especially when she's off duty."

"What about you, Blue Eyes?" Asked the changeling in Pinkie's chair, who just finished taking another drink. "You got some drone you've been makin' goo-goo eyes with that ya wanna share with us?"

Truth be told, you did have a special changeling on your mind, but she wasn't a drone...or a swarmleader...or even an infiltrator. No, she was far more important than that. However, you didn't know if it was right to tell your fellow infiltrators about her because...well they might call you crazy. But at the same time, it didn't feel right to leave them hanging.

You had to think of a lie, and you had to make it believable.

"Umm...I...don't really have anybody on my mind just yet."

You silently gulped as you looked around the room; the other changelings were staring at you silently. You sure hoped they would fall for your dishonesty.

At last the changeling who was sitting in Twilight's chair broke the silence.

"Oh well, I'm sure you'll find a mate soon. After all, you do still have a week to pick one out." He took a drink from his mug and smiled.

You mentally sighed in relief; that was a close call.

You raised your mug in the air and said, "I propose a toast." Which prompted the others to raise their mugs too.

"To a successful infiltration mission, to taking control of Ponyville, Canterlot, and the Crystal Empire, and to making her majesty's dreams a reality. Here's to the hive!"

"TO THE HIVE!"

You all proceeded to drink the rest of your cider, savoring the love that went into its creation (no wonder that Rainbow Dash pony loved this stuff so much). As you finished your drink, you looked around the room and smiled.

This was going to be a fun party.

You awoke the next morning with a groan.

Your vision was blurry, and your head felt like it was sloshing around like punch in a fishbowl. Your memories of the night before were very...hazy to say the least. All you remember from yesterday was kidnapping Princess Twilight and her friends, toasting over your victory, getting a few more drinks of cider, and after that...well, you don't really know.

Once your vision became more clear, you sat up. The room was a mess: empty mugs were scattered everywhere, and puddles of cider and vomit stained the floors and walls. Whatever happened last night, it must've been pretty wild.

You looked around and saw that the other members of your squad were passed out as well. Some were lying on the floor just like you did, while others were sitting in their chairs with their heads down. One changeling was even sleeping on the table: legs curled up and he was cradling an empty mug like a teddy bear.

You sighed and shook your head.

Well, wouldn't be the first time changelings had a hangover.

Fortunately, it only took half an hour for all of you to recover from the events of last night. You all yawned and stretched your bodies, each joint in your exoskeletons making popping noises.

"Oh, man, that was one helluva party," The changeling who had found the cider barrel said. "If I find some more of that cider, we should throw an even bigger one! Y'know, for when the queen takes over the rest of Equestria!"

Before you could state your opinion, a voice interrupted you. It wasn't from one of the other changelings, no, this voice was coming from your head. You knew this meant one thing:

Someone was communicating via the hivemind.

All changelings who are part of one colony have access to the hivemind-a form of telepathic magic that allows them to send messages to one another in their subconscious. In non-changeling terms, it was very similar to a telegraph system or even a telephone line, except it could be used anywhere as long as the changelings were part of the same hive.

Drawing attention away from the others for a moment, you focused on who exactly was trying to contact you.

"All Chrysalis units, this is Swarmleader Pharynx. The hive has been breached! All infiltration squads return to the hive immediately! I repeat, the hive has been breached and we need backup!"

You looked back to your comrades and told them, "Bad news guys, Swarmleader Pharynx just said that the hive has been breached!"

"We're under attack?" Exclaimed one of the changelings. "Who could've slipped past the queen's security?"

"Must be one of Princess Twilight's other friends," Said another. "No doubt they're trying to set her and the others free."

"Well what're we just standin' around here for?!" Shouted a third. "Let's go show those brightly-colored jackasses what happens when they mess with the hive!" He slammed his front hooves together and snarled.

"Right. Let's move out!"

You lit up your horn and swung open the doors leading out to the castle halls. Almost at once, the others buzzed their wings and flew out, with you being the last to leave. Before you shut the doors you looked into the still-disheveled room one last time, then you flew out into the hallway.

The inside of the crystal castle was like a twisting maze of long halls and multiple doors, making it difficult to figure out which way your fellow troops went. You flew around corners and stopped at dead ends. Twice you wound up back at the doors you just closed. You began to grow nervous-where were you going to find the exit?

Screw it. You're going to make your own exit.

Spotting a window high up on the wall to your right, you charged up your horn and fired a big green energy orb at it. The colored glass shattered and revealed a hole big enough for you to fit through. Smiling, you flew out the hole and into the daylight.

The air felt a little cool, but it wasn't too bad, and there was hardly a cloud in the sky. In the distance you saw five black dots gradually growing smaller-your squad.

Quickly you flew after them, going as fast as your little insect wings would let you; If only you could copy the lightning fast speed of Rainbow Dash. Suddenly, you heard a voice speak to you through the hivemind. At first, you thought it was Pharynx again, but as you focused a little more it became clear that the voice was female and sounded frantic.

"...Turn back, you fools! That traitor has become too powerful, and one of the intruders has given him more allies. For the sake of all changelingkind...OH FU-"

The message suddenly cut off, and in the distance you saw a bright flash of white light followed by a muffled explosion. This, combined with the fact that you realized who the voice belonged to, made you gulp. Buzzing your wings faster, you tried to catch up with the other infiltrators.

All of a sudden, you felt something slam into the side of your body, causing you to fall out of the sky at an angle. You hit the ground, bounced, and rolled to your left side.

When you opened your eyes again, your vision was blurry, but you could make out a vaguely pony-shaped figure hovering over you. It was blue and yellow and had a light blue head. You also heard a voice that, despite being a bit faint, was most definitely male.

"That's what you get for kidnapping Rainbow, you oversized cockroach!"

You vision soon went black and the only thing you could hear was silence.

Author's Note

Here's the first chapter! Let me know if there's any mistakes or grammar errors that I glossed over.