Summoning Ocellus

The portal opened on schedule, and the changeling swarm emerged – thousands upon thousands of brightly colored bug ponies, coating the land in multicolor resplendence and spitting goo to start building a temporary hive.

William, Danielle, and Flicker intercepted the others before they stepped through the portal.

“We’re staying,” William said. “Danielle and I are combat healers who know the enemy, and Flicker thinks she can learn some things from shapeshifting infiltration specialists.”

“Should we really split the party?” Keeper asked. “Do you want me to stay?”

Danielle shook her head. “We’ll have an army with us – we hope – and you’ll be going to a safe place to rest and forget all about this horrible little town.”

Thorax and Pharynx landed in front of them. Ocellus leapt forwards and hugged her king with joy in her heart. “You came! You came yourself!”

“Just for the initial incursion,” Thorax said. “Pharynx will be handling the invasion proper.”

“They won’t know what hit them,” Pharynx said. “Literally, if we do our jobs correctly. Do you have any patterns from this world we can copy?”

“Of course!“ Ocellus said. ”Is it time for a cuddle pile, then?”

“It’s not a –“ Pharynx started, then sighed. “Fine, it’s time for a cuddle pile.”

Ocellus passed on her best forms, through the preferred method of cuddling – the human male and female, and the troll. “I know it’s horrible and stinky but it regenerates slowly, which might be useful. I also learned a giant centipede and snake, and an ogre which is like a troll without regeneration, but these are the important ones.”

The changelings she’d taught spread out to teach others, while William and Danielle got them up to speed.

“Yeah, we’re staying,” William summarized. “They don’t have proper healers at all. They just cocoon wounded changelings until they get better on their own.”

Three unicorns in golden royal guard uniforms stepped through the portal, after the swarm was through. “Artillery Unicorn Volunteer Squad reporting for duty,” the mare in the lead said.

“Oh wow,” Ocellus said. “I’ve never even seen an artillery squad.”

“I’d be surprised if you had, and lived through it,” said a stallion in the back.

“Seriously, we were held in reserve during your invasion of Canterlot,” said the other mare. “It’s pretty harsh to have your enemy not only knowing your deployment plans but *writing* them for you.”

“What does an artillery squad do?” Tixi asked. “There’s only three of them and thousands and thousands of changelings.”

“Gigantic bubble shields and wide-area fireballs mostly,” the mare in charge said. “We can also teleport a few hundred troops. Unicorns are the most magically powerful race and we’re recruited from the most magically powerful unicorns.”

“They say it’s not an army without artillery,” the stallion said. “Just a bunch of dead ponies marching in the same direction.”

“They don’t really mesh with our normal operations, but we’ll want them if it comes to a pitched battle,” Pharynx said. “Or a magical battle. It sounds like this was a case of individual action on the part of a powerful wizard – I didn’t trust Smolder’s comments on the matter since it was just a dream to her, but Keeper filled me in. He also told me to burn Tutleback Ferry to the ground, but I’m going to ignore that.”

“So what are you going to do?” Ocellus asked.

“That’s classified,” Pharynx said. “Go on through the portal, Ocellus. You’ve given us what we need, and your friends are waiting for you.”

===

So three kobolds and a changeling walked through a portal. In typical Twilight fashion, the dangerous portal to an unknown world was set up in sight of Ponyville and the School of Friendship. A crowd of ponies and changelings – not everyling had been up to taking part in the swarm – were gathered around, Ocellus’ friends in front, earth ponies and unicorns behind them, and pegasai hovering overhead as they do.

“How are they flying?” Keeper asked, looking up at the pegasus ponies as Ocellus rushed to hug her friends.

“With wings?” Tixi replied, feeling no trepidation or confusion through the familiar link, which meant that this was all perfectly normal to her.

“Their wings are way too small,” Keeper said.

“The changelings’ are even smaller.”

“Yes, but they buzz,” Keeper said. “These are just lazily flapping.”

“Magic then, I guess,” Tixi said with a shrug.

“Welcome to Ponyville!” said a mare with brown fur and gray hair. “I’m Mayor Mare and as the ones who helped bring Ocellus back to us, everything is on the house. Feel free to take from the market stalls if you’re hungry, and we’ve got a house set up for you if you need to rest.”

Keeper sighed. “Now this is how heroes should be treated.”

“It’s morning for us, Mayor,” Ocellus called, “But we should probably get something to eat. Sugarcube Corner?” she asked her friends. “I’ve missed Sugarcube Corner like you couldn’t believe.”

“More that you missed Yona?” asked a giant yak.

“Yep!” Ocellus replied, grinning. “I missed Smolder the most, then Sugarcube Corner, then the rest of you.” She giggled under a hoof she lifted to her mouth. “Come on, let’s get some sickeningly sweet baked goods and convert my new friends, too.”

===

The next few days were idyllic. The ponies were fascinated by the kobolds, her friends were there, if perhaps a bit too clingy… Keeper made a trip into the supposedly dangerous Everfree forest to meet Zecora and compare alchemical notes, burning down some overly eager flora and fauna on the way. Everyone had the time of their life, except for Tixi.

“This is not an adventure,” she said. “And I’m worried about the tribe.”

“The tribe? Why?” Ocellus asked.

“Isn’t it obvious? The changelings are looking for an army to fight and there they are, hundreds of kobolds serving the evil wizard who killed you. I was sent away to avoid bringing trouble, but that’s exactly what I ended up doing anyway!” Tixi wrung her hands, worry flooding the link. “We need to at least warn them.”

“I… I can’t, Tixi,” Ocellus said. “That would be a straightforward case of treason. But you shouldn’t worry! At worst they’ll be knocked out and cocooned. Changelings always knew restraint, even when we were… overly pragmatic.”

“And they’ll probably try to catch the Wizard by surprise,” Ijj said, munching on a scone he’d saved from their last of many visits to the bakery. “They wouldn’t face down an army if they didn’t have to. Stealth and infiltration, right?”

“Still worried,” Tixi replied, huddling into a ball.

For her sake, the four of them headed for the portal to see what could be done.

“Sorry,” said the Pegasus managing the gate. “You’re all on the no-portal list, at least until the situation over there is resolved.”

“What is the situation over there, then?” Ocellus asked. “If we’re not allowed through you might as well tell us.”

“Well, I only know gossip,” said the black furred, blue haired pony that Ocellus knew as Thunderlane. “But apparently the first thing they did was retrieve some bones to heal a forest? I’m all in favor of healing forests. There was a bit of a pitched battle between the changelings that could fit in the cave and the boss, and the boss teleported away so they might be trouble later.”

“See? I needed to be there!” Tixi complained. “I’m the only one who knows the anti-teleport spell!”

“Turtleback Ferry and Black Arrow fortress have been conquered, peacefully. They impersonated the old leader of the Black Arrows, apparently, and paid off the Mayor.”

“That must have been expensive,” Keeper replied.

Thunderlane shrugged. “Diamonds are super-valuable there, and Equestria is swimming in them. Other than that, the swarm is still moving towards the city, but they haven’t reached it yet. Just a second,” he flipped his notebook to another page, and wrote down all their names. “Now that you know some ‘classified’ rumors, I have to put you on the super special do not allow through the portal for any reason list. Sorry, it’s procedure since they discovered that ponies can’t help but gossip.”

“So…” Ocellus asked. “What time do you get off work?”

===

It wasn’t that simple. Shift change was combined with the designated messenger changelings coming through the portal to report to Twilight and Thorax about the progress of the invasion, and there was always at least one pony on guard, with dozens of others walking around the base camp on this side, not especially alert but alert enough to notice someone trying to sneak through. There were also dreamlings searching ponies – and kobolds’ – dreams for possible saboteurs or traitors, which meant that Tixi got put on a third list where she wasn’t even allowed to approach the encampment.

“So we’re prisoners here,” Keeper summarized.

“Prisoners in an entire world,” Ocellus replied. “I’m sure we could find some adventure if we really wanted – the badlands where the changelings live have all kinds of nasty monsters. And the deep Everfree is pretty dangerous – there’s a reason it used to be known as the cursed forest from where no one ever returned.”

“Used to be?” Ijj asked. “What happened?”

“People finally noticed that farmers had been going into the outskirts for generations, and then the Elements of Harmony went right to the heart and emerged… well, they came back alive. Unscathed would be overstating the case.”

“No cursed forests please,” Tixi said. “One was enough.”

“It’s not *that* cursed,” Ocellus said. “The deer live there after all. They hate ponies but none of us are ponies, so we might be able to find them and visit.”

“Anywhere else?” Keeper asked.

“Let’s get a map,” Ocellus replied.

===

“So… this is Equestria, which is mostly safe except for world-ending problems.” She circled most of the northern section of the map, then another section further north. “Crystal Empire. Tourist trap.” She circled another, smaller northern area. “Kingdom of the Yaks. Friendly because I’m friends with Yona.” Another area to the east. “Griffonstone, where Gallus came from but refuses to talk about. Supposedly a real dump, but all the griffons I’ve met are rich, so who knows.” To the south. “Dragon lands. Legitimately dangerous because of all the lava and, well, dragons itching for a fight. Smolder’s home.” To the west, past the Everfree. “Badlands, my home, at least originally.” To the south, past the badlands. “Slaver cities. Really, really dangerous because they’ll just yank people off the street to enslave them, the more exotic the better, and you’re all pretty exotic.” To the east of that. “Hippogryph kingdom. Tourist trap, Silverstream’s home.” She paused. “It’s a really good tourist trap, though. They all have shards of their old giant magic pearl and can use them to turn you into aquatic forms if you want to try transformation. Not really my thing but you might enjoy it.”

“I’m seeing a lack of actual wilderness,” Keeper remarked.

“Most of the land is wilderness, even inside Equestria,” Ocellus responded. “The white-tail woods just next door are essentially wilderness. Just… not as many large, dangerous creatures as you’d see on Golarion. Ponies still disappear from time to time.”

“But it’s all claimed by one group or another,” Keeper said.

Ocellus laughed. “Sure. Claiming unclaimed land is free. Making it actually livable is the step where most ponies balk. Oh!” She circled part of the map far, far to the west. “The ‘undiscovered west’. Full of native pony tribes and their temples, which are like dungeons with traps and magical treasure at the end. Or maybe that’s only in stories, there’s a popular adventure series set there.”

“If ponies live there, why is it ‘undiscovered’?” Ijj asked.

“They don’t talk to anyone else?” Ocellus said. “I’m not an expert.”

“These are all distractions,” Keeper said. “Either we’re putting ourselves in danger for no reason or we’re exploring a tourist trap. We need to get Tixi back to Golarion.”

“If she goes, I have to go too,” Ocellus said, quietly. “I’m bound to her. And if I commit treason against my own people, I don’t know if I’ll ever be allowed back.”

“Then you just have to make sure they don’t realize it’s you,” Ijj said. “That’s your job, isn’t it?”

“We also have to do it today, or at least before we sleep,” Ocellus said. “The dreamlings are watching our thoughts when we sleep because we’re ponies of interest. I know how to guard against it, but you three…”

“Could you teach us?” Tixi asked.

Ocellus shook her head. “Not in one day. We have to do this now, or not at all.”