Fear the old blood

For the next few weeks, every day I had the chance I would go out into those accursed woods and search, seeing if he had arrived yet, to no avail. But As I searched, things got more Mysterious in the castle. Servants would disappear and reappear, forgetting memories, and even completely change personalities. What even stranger to me was the smell.

Over this period of time, the castle began to smell strange. What was weirder was that I was the only one to notice. I assume this is because of my heightened senses due to my beast-hood, which raises even more questions. Why was this scent so powerful, yet no one could detect it, except for me? And why did so many of the staff and guards reek of this odor? Slowly, the number of staff that had the scent grew, and less and less staff were willing to speak to me. Even some of those who I had befriended before began to act as if they didn’t know me.

Something is amiss, and I will find out what. The first stop on my investigation was the servants quarters. When I arrived, I was expecting them to be full of the night staff, sleeping the day away. But what I found was a total lack of creatures. Even the mice were silent. Unnerved, I moved to my second stop, the guard training grounds. Normally, there would be guards everywhere, either keeping in shape, practicing their skills or just socializing. Yet, today there was almost no one there. I asked some of the guards, and they were wondering as well. I had to speak to the princesses.

It took me a while to find Celestia, but when I did, I remained quiet. She was having a conversation with her niece, but something was off. Cadence now reeked of the odor as well. She seemed strangely aggressive, as if someone had just made a passive aggressive comment about her that she overheard. I knew now that whatever was happening, even the princesses could be affected,l. I decided to speak with them, but to steer clear of mentioning the what was happening, as to not draw any suspicion that I was on to this mystery.

“Good evening Celestia, and good evening Cadence. How are you both doing today?”
“Thats princess cadence to you.”
“Now that’s no way to talk to Laurence, even if you are stressed out.” “Oh? Is everything ok princess?”
“Oh, nothing. It’s just my wedding. It’s not like a princess getting married is a big deal or anything.”
“Cadence, don’t be so rude. He was just wondering if you were ok.”
“Oh no, it’s fine Celestia. I know how stressful weddings are. Trust me, when I was a vicar, I had to deal with a few weddings, and I know how stressful it is for both the bride, and the groom. Congratulations, by the way.”

“Anyways, I just wished to check up on you two. I have some things I need to do, so I will see you both later.”
As I began to walk away, I looked back, and noticed that Cadence’s pupils turned green for the slightest second. Something sinister was happening, and whether it is possession of or replacing ponies, I will stop it. I just hope I can save those affected, unlike in Yharnam.

A few more days go by, with no leads to follow. However, I discovered that Twilight and her friends were invited to the wedding. If anyone could help me solve this, it would be Twilight. Apparently, though, discord and Fluttershy were not coming, with Fluttershy being too nervous, and discord, quote” not wanting to spoil the fun.” With that, I had all the confirmation I needed that something was going on, and knew that I had to ramp up my search.

Before they arrived, however, a letter was discovered, planted directly on the throne. A warning, that something would happen during the wedding. To ensure nothing goes wrong, guard patrols were upped and Shining Armor powered a shield spell to surround the city. However, this was most likely a ruse, to spread their forces too thin and to weaken the best shield mage in the guard. If only Ludwig were here by now, I wouldn’t be as worried that the ponies were falling for the trap.

As the train containing Twilight and her friends arrived, we greeted them at the station. Everyone went their separate ways to help prepare. I, however, decided to continue my investigation. I first noticed that almost every guard had the scent on them. The first clue that something big was about to happen. The next strange occurrence was the complete lack of ambience. No ponies chattering while preparing, no clattering of dishes, and most eerily, no hoof steps. It was as if the castle was completely empty.

For a while, I discovered nothing else. Until I stepped in something. I sighed, thinking the janitor forgot to clean up a spill, and looked down, only to freeze. I had stepped in a strange green goo. As I leaned down to inspect it, I noticed how fast it was drying. It had been placed recently. I quickly look up, expecting an ambush to drop from the sealing, only for nothing to happen. Now on edge, I continued my search, well into the night. As I came near the rehearsal, I heard a commotion. It seems that Twilight was suspicious as well. What bothered me though, was that none of her friends believed her. What they did next, broke my heart: they practically disowned her. Even Celestia, someone that Twilight had looked up to.

I quietly slink into the corner, so no one leaving could notice me, before slipping into the room where Twilight still was. She was hysterical, sobbing uncontrollably. As I approach her, she suddenly jerks up and notices me.
“L- Laurence! What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to console a friend that needs it.”
“why? Don’t you know what I tried to do?”
“Yes. You raised a valid point as to why the bride was not who she said she was, and they ignored the evidence.”
“Wait… you believe me?”

“Yes. You see, I’ve had some suspicions myself. Lately, staff and guards have been going missing, and their personalities have done complete 180’s. Not only that, but the servants quarters and guards barracks have become barren. Some ponies also have this strange scent to them, that only I seem to notice. This includes Cadence. And finally, even though a wedding is about to happen, it has been eerily silent. Have you heard any conversations, or the hoof steps of people hurrying about?”
“Now that you mention it, it has been eerily quiet. What do you think happened?”

“I have two theories. One, a mass possession, and a potential demon outbreak will occur during the reception. The second, a group of shapeshifters have infiltrated the castle, and plan to take over during the wedding. That is why they sent the note, to spread thin the guards and weaken any chance of a proper defense due to Shining armor being exhausted.”
“So what do we do?”
“For now, we can do nothing, but try and investigate further. Be careful Twilight, and ensure that no one knows what you do. Not even the princess, as I suspect that she is being manipulated as well.”

She nods, and leaves the room, leaving me alone. I begin to ponder, before I hear a yelp, lightly muffled. I quickly and quietly go to investigate, only to find a Cadence has knocked Twilight out. I remain quiet, hoping to not be found long enough for me to follow them. As she picks Twilight up in her magic and take her away, I tail them at a distance. Eventually, Cadence takes her into a part of the castle I’ve been in once before: The crystal caves. Cadence sets her down, and Twilight begins to wake up. Cadence gloat about their victory a bit to a groggy twilight, before leaving, somehow failing to notice me. Why did they bring her down here? That’s when I notice the strange green cocoons adorning the wall.

I go up to one, and begin to observe it, when a movement inside the pod startled me. Inside the pod, is a pony. A guard, in fact. Slowly, the puzzle pieces begin to piece together. These black ponies have been kidnapping the staff and guards, replacing them. Whatever that scent is must be their way of distinguishing each other. By the time I look away, Twilight is gone. I know I should find her, but I need to ensure that nothing goes wrong at the wedding. I quickly slip out, and past the somehow oblivious guards before returning to my room. I go to sleep, praying to the great ones that Luna checks up on me tonight.

Another night, another nightmare, and thankfully, another rescue by Luna.
“Thank you again Luna. Before you leave, I need to speak with you.”
“Oh? Is everything alright?”
“ I know what the threat tomorrow is going to be.”
She raises her eyebrows, before asking how I know this. I tell her everything I found, and everything that twilight found, as well as my conclusion.”
“This is troubling indeed. It sounds as if it is the work of changelings.”
“What are they? And how do we stop them?”
“Changelings are parasitic shapeshifters, that feed off of the emotions of creatures. As for how to deal with them, normally you just need an army, but seeing how my sister’s guards are incompetent, it will once again fall to me and my night guard. We are glad that we decided to base our guard outside the castle. ”

“Good. Tomorrow morning, mobilize the guard. I will make sure the wedding is an… interesting one.”
“I will. Good luck, friend Laurence. Changelings are tricky adversaries, so be on guard at all times.”
“Don’t worry Luna, I have plenty of experience with two faced liars, as well as sudden transformations.”
And with that, I wake up to the sound of church bells.

As I get dressed into a garb that Rarity had custom made for me, I begin to reminisce. This robe is an almost perfect recreation of my vicar garb, but much more durable and comfortable. I must thank her later, after I reprimand her for how she treated Twilight. As I enter the halls of the royal chapel, I can’t help but draw comparisons to the grand cathedral. I sit down, and soon, many others do as well. Twilight is nowhere to be seen, and her friends look as if they couldn’t care less that they had hurt her so. I quickly bring my rage under control, before I start a fire, just as Celestia gets behind the pew.

The groom enters and gets into position, and everyone begins to quiet down. The flower girls quickly get into place, and soon, the bride appears. The ceremony goes well, and the vows seem a little off, but nothing of note happens, other than Shining armor looking exhausted. Then, Celestia says the line I was waiting for.
“Speak now or forever hold your piece.”
I quickly raise a claw, and begin to talk.
“ I have nothing against this union, I just have a few questions that just can’t wait.”

Celestia looks shocked as I speak up, while Cadence looks furious.
“ My first question, is about what if found in the crystal caverns. Strange green cocoons were stored within. Not only that, but I saw some pony being dragged off towards them, by you, princess cadence. Would you care to explain?”
Everyone looks shocked by the question, either from fury or confusion.
“My next question is about the staff and the guards. Lately their personalities have been changing, and have forgotten memories and ponies. And finally, how has no creature NOTICED HER MAGIC IS GREEN FOR FUCKS SAKE?!”

The “cadence” begins to shout at me, fury in her eyes.”HOW DARE YOU ACCUSE ME LIKE THIS ON MY SPECIAL DAY, YOU FREAK?!! ”
“This isn’t true… right Cadence?”
“OF COURSE IT ISN’T! Dont tell me you trust this… thing more than your own niece, right?” it looks as if she’s about to answer, before a voice rings out.
“I don’t know about the princess, but I trust him!”

Just then, Twilight bursts in, with the real Cadence, as well as some very slimy castle staff. The Fake looks furious, before being engulfed in a green fire.”
You think you’re so clever, figuring me out. But it’s too late. My swarm is here, and soon, the shield will be taken down, allowing my children to feed. You lose!”
Just as she says this, the shield falls, and many black specks litter the horizon. Panic ensues, and many of the guards and staff are engulfed in green flames, as they turn into their true forms.

Celestia is finally shaken out of her shock, and challenges the queen, only to lose. The swarm has arrived, and it looks as if all hope is lost. That is, until a dark blue blur tackles an armored changeling, before throwing a spear impaling another on the wall. Multiple dark blurs dart across the sky, and begin to collide with the changelings, telling me all that I needed to know. Luna has finally arrived.
“Thou art wrong about it being too late. Laurence had warned us about you during the night, giving us enough time to get ready and mobilize our guard. You’ll find them to be a greater threat than our sister’s guards.”
Luna quickly grabbed her sister, and evacuated her along with the rest of those still within the chapel to safety. If the bug looked furious before, she looked feral now. She lunged at me, ready to tear out my throat, but I reacted just in time, and slash at her.

She teleports away before my slash hits her, and her horn begins to glow. Just then, about 30 armored changeling surround me. One makes a move, aiming to impale me with its spear, but I grab the spear, and pull him towards me, before bisecting him with my claws. As it attempts to scoop his intestines back into his upper half, the others look on at me with horror and fury. Two changelings attack next, one going low, and the other going high. I quickly jump up, barely dodging the second one, before punching my fist through the first one’s heart, killing it instantly, before kicking my hoof directly into and through the second one’s brain. After that, they all attack me at once.

The next few minutes were a blur to me. I remember impaling one with its own spear, and decapitating another with its Friends severed leg. I feel the slash of a blade upon my skin, doing almost nothing due to how thick beast hide truly is. I rip out another one’s stomach, before making a slight cut in it and throwing the acid filled bag at another, melting its face almost instantly. another one hits me with a fire spell, which does nothing except cause me to ignite. One spears me, piercing me deep, before I retaliate by ripping his foreleg off and beating him with it.

After that, three more attack me with their swords, this time thrusting instead of slicing, causing me great deals of pain. But it’s not like I notice, as I have fallen deep into my bestial nature, and began to embrace the bloodlust. In one swipe of my claws, I cripple two of them, and ignite the third one, causing it to run away, screaming in agony. A changeling with a battle axe Burt’s it deep in my shoulder, expecting it to be a debilitating wound. Instead, I pull it out, and split his head in two using it, before throwing it at one attempting to sneak up on me, burning itself deep in its heart.

As the fight goes on, I am wounded more and more. Three more spears pierce my hide, and another battle axe almost cleaves my already wounded arm off. One of them manages to gut me using their sword, before being engulfed by the lava that poured from the wound. But even as the injuries pile on, I continue to fight. Now though, I was slower, but had the ability to once again use my lava vomit. I proceed to spray another 5 with the molten rock, melting them instantly, before ripping another one if half, and unsung it’s body as a blunt object to smash into its allies. One by one, I fell the changelings, until only 4 were left. Before I could deal with them, however, I felt a sharp object pierce the back of my heart.

I fall over, somehow still alive, and slowly turn around to see what killed me.it was the fake cadence. The coward had used its soldiers to distract me, before attacking me when I had no chance to defend myself. She began to raise the blade she had stabbed me with, trying to lop off my head. But just before she could, a sudden wall of pink launched her away from the city, along with any of the remaining changelings. We had won.

As I lie there, dying, I hear the sound of several sets of hooves approaching me.
“Laurence, no!!”
I hear sobbing, but I can’t tell who it’s from.
“What did they do to you?!”
“You have done well Laurence. You saved many lives.”
“Thank you. You saved me. You saved all of us.”
I cough, blood and lava leaking out of my mouth.
I look over, seeing Twilight’s former friends and princess Celestia. Or at least I think it’s them, as my vision has begun to fade.

“I… I don’t think I am going to live. *cough cough* All of you, please… learn from this. Do not make the same mistakes again. You could lose everything… like I did. I didn’t listen to my master, and I lost my friends, my home, and my life. You didn’t listen to twilight, and you almost lost everything I once did. Please… learn from them. Listen to those you care about… even if it sounds ridiculous, at least hear them out…*cough cough cough* I am glad… to know… that this time… I die… for a purpose. I die… to protect… those I… care about.” As my vision fades, I see the serpentine form of the Draconequus come into view.