Path of a daughter

Chapters

Path of a monster [1]: Entropy always wins
Path of a monster [2]: Daddy issues
Path of a monster [3]: Nightmare hatchling
Path of a monster [4]: Canterlot is still there. Weird.
Path of a monster [5]: PR-disaster lings
Path of a monster [6]: Family moment
Path of a monster [7]: New arrangement
Path of a monster [8]: Friends in High Scores
Path of a monster [9]: Good/Bad company
Path of a monster [10]: Escalation
Path of a monster [11]: It's paranoia only when they aren't coming for you.
Path of a monster [12]: Backdoor access
Path of a monster [13]: Split up

Path of a monster [1]: Entropy always wins

The throne room of the Castle of The Night is near-pitch black. A millennium before that, it used to be the original seat of power of old Equestria where two alicorn sisters ruled over the united species of ponies. Twenty years ago, it was an abandoned ruin known as the Castle of Two Sisters. Everything changed with the return of a banished alicorn going by the name Luna, sister to the ruler of Equestria at the time. Unfortunately, what truly returned was only a hollow shell possessed by the god of destruction and entropy. Whatever little personality and willpower was left of Luna was destroyed shortly after, and the entity now called Nightmare Moon started her campaign of domination and later destruction.

However, now’s no time for history. There will be no more history. The planets have stopped rotating, the stars have faded, the universe has gone silent, the avatar of entropy won, all because of what happened on an otherwise unremarkable ball in near-endless space called Equus.

Yet, as said earlier, the throne room isn’t entirely dark and silent. A flickering oval of black and purple flames is hanging in the air, slowly swirling around and there are twenty black equine figures standing in front of it, all emaciated to a level seemingly incompatible with life, ribs visible through rubbery, thin, chitinous carapace with only the faintest dark blue tint stretched over the bones. Now’s no time for biology and pondering how a species with both an exoskeleton and an endoskeleton came to be either. Their legs are shaking with exhaustion and fear while watching the oval with hollow, blue eyes, and breathing the thin air that’s still remaining on this dead piece of rock.

The final figure is a unicorn mare slumped on the marble floor. Her horn has been cut off, her mane and tail are gone, chunks of her flesh and both her eyes have withered away, revealing smooth bones and eye sockets, yet she is smiling as she’s gripping a rotten and torn purple, pointy wizard’s hat decorated with faded stars, the same pattern that’s on the tattered remains of a cloak on her back. She’s not breathing at all until she needs to in order to speak.

“It’s already a miracle that you’ve managed to make this portal-” she lets out a whispering wheeze, easily audible in the complete silence of the dead world broken only by the shallow breathing of the twenty others, “-even with the help of somepony as great and powerful as myself, so stop staring and go through,” the mare chuckles, “Unless you want to keep me company until the air runs out or you starve. I know a joke or two, I used to be a travelling performer.”

The female leader of the equines standing directly in front of the dark portal and pointing her horn at it is taller than the others and, unlike them, possesses a blue mane and a tail, both matted with dirt, sweat, and some kind of green goo. With the outside frozen over, hygiene has been on the bottom of the survivors’ list.

“Come with us,” she leans towards the visibly undead unicorn, her voice low and caring,“You’ve done so much to help and you’ll have about the same chance of survival as we will.”

“Tempting, if only to punt your father in the nuts for not killing me like he promised to when I helped him escape this wretched dimension, but no. We’ve all done too much and seen much worse. What I want is peace, and I hope you’re better at keeping your word than he was.”

“I don’t know if I can break Nightmare Moon’s curse-”

“I do,” the unicorn drags herself forward and a hint of desperation creeps into her voice, “We’ve been over this. You reverse-engineered this dimension portal spell just from my instructions and the trace of magic that coward left behind while escaping almost two decades ago. Your energy manipulation instinct may even be better than his, so surely you can unravel a god’s curse preventing me from dying. Come on, give it a shot! If you don't, I'll find a way to haunt you, little Queen,” her joking demeanor returns and she grins a half-fleshy, half-skeletal grin.

The Queen smiles back, faces the remaining nineteen members of her kind, and speaks out:

“Most of you have been with me since the beginning twenty long years ago-”

Shadows jump as the portal flickers and crackles. The Queen’s kin shoot the hole in the fabric of reality a glance as worried as their weary eyes can still muster.

“Less talking, more jumping into the unstable dimension hole that’s as likely to blend you as it is to lead them towards you father,” comments the undead unicorn.

“Right,” the Queen nods, nervously facing the portal again, “Who wants to go through, now’s the time. I must go last to keep the gate open.”

None of the others hesitate, all walking one by one through with number 3 being the first. The lack of agonized screams caused by shoving their faces into a surge of barely stabilized magic emboldens everyone going in after 3.

Once alone with the blue unicorn, the Queen concentrates on the magic that’s preventing the undead from finally finding peace. The closest simile to unraveling the powerful curse is untangling a particularly twisted knot.

The portal flickers again, and the Queen hesitates, her eyes darting towards it.

The more time she spends here, the lower the chance of her successfully leaving. One one hoof, the rotting undead that used to be Nightmare Moon’s archmage Trixie is responsible for most of the horrors over the past two decades which led to this moment and the death of the universe, all done out of insecurity and deep-seated hunger for power and respect. If there’s someone who would deserve remaining locked here until even time ceased to exist, it would be her. On the other hoof, by twisting the genetic material of the Queen’s father Trixie helped Nightmare Moon create the Queen and her kin - the army responsible for purging life from the planet.

The moment of hesitation passes.

Thread by thread, second after second, the Queen destroys the spell binding Trixie who, as her strength fades and her body begins to turn into dust, only lets out a barely audible whisper:

“Thank… you… for…” she only mouths ‘not leaving me’.

The Queen smiles.

“I promised.”

With those final words, the Queen steps through the collapsing portal, leaving the dead universe behind.

Path of a monster [2]: Daddy issues

The throne room of the Castle of Two Sisters has been rebuilt into a war room with a large, round table in front of the throne currently showing a holographic projection of the Equestrian campaign. Griffon forces have taken the eastern coastline from Manehattan all the way to Maretime Bay, while Nightmare Moon’s forces have successfully cut off central Equestria from the southern port cities through which the states of northern Zebrica have been sending help ever since a full-scale war broke out.

The throne room is empty with the exception of Nightmare Moon observing the map, the Queen and two more of her kin, Nightmare Moon’s bat pony General Grim Sky, and the griffon Commander Arius responsible for relaying communication and the synchronization of operations between Nightmare Moon and the griffon Generals.

“We are stuck pushing north but we’ve recently lost numerous patrols along the southern edge, specifically near the Everfree Forest and the Badlands,” says Nightmare Moon, conjuring a glowing pointer and first aiming it at a wide, open farmlands south of Canterlot before encircling the southeastern front, “As far as we know, there’s nothing in those areas that shouldn’t threaten an organized military unit. Arius, we need the Manehattan force to pressure Celestia’s army for the next month, give or take, so that we can withdraw some forces from the Canterlot line and push deeper into the suspicious areas to the south.”

Arius, deep in thought, circles around the table to see from Nightmare Moon’s point of view. When he’s just in front of her, he rises on his hind legs, turns sharply, and plunges a talon directly into the alicorn’s eye and…

… out through the back of her skull?

A burst of green flame envelops the griffon, revealing a creature curiously similar to the queen’s kin - a sleek, equine mare covered in black carapace instead of a coat, with glowing, teal, iris-less eyes, showing the fangs in her mouth as she smiles. A long and sharp, black spike is protruding from her hoof rammed through Nightmare Moon’s head.

“Queen Chrysalis’ sends her regards and condolences,” the unknown mare chuckles, “The changeling hive will-”

*CRACK!*

Blue, telekinetic glow envelops her and jerks her to the side so violently that the spike growing from her foreleg snaps off. Never ceasing to smile through the whole ordeal, Nightmare Moon pulls the biological weapon still covered in blood and brain matter out of her head and examines it with her healthy eye.

“A spy. That explains why our offensives were so uncoordinated with those of the griffons’ recently,” she looks at Grim Sky as if the strange enemy was just a minor inconvenience, “Send a missive to the griffons that Arius is dead and has been replaced by a changeling assassin. If the changelings have entered the war, they should also scour their own ranks for infiltrators. We’ll be tracking down their base.”

To the Queen, she adds:

“Rake through her mind and figure out where exactly the changeling hive is. Don’t bother being gentle. In case it wasn’t clear from the recent events, I’m suspecting the Everfree or the Badlands,” the alicorn tosses the assassin towards the Queen so hard she bounces off of the marble with a loud crack scattering shards of chitin everywhere. Rubbing her impaled eye as it quickly regenerates, she muses, “Note to self - remember to capture an ophthalmologist in the next raid, I don’t think I could pull off glasses.”

Stumped by the alicorn’s resilience bordering on immortality, the Queen nods towards the twitching and bleeding changeling before turning away and leaving for the dungeons. Her two companions grab the assassin and drag her away in tow.

***

Nightmare changelings, nightmares for short, that’s what she called us. Nightmare Moon wasn’t smart or creative, with her kind of power she never needed to be. Yet, we could never fully shapeshift into someone else, only transform parts of ourselves.

With a gasp, the Queen gets pulled out of the memory by cold biting her all over her paper-thin, drained carapace, into the world of rushing wind, loud, mechanical thudding and, most importantly - gravity.

War-honed reflexes kick in despite starvation and exhaustion, and the Queen braces herself for the impact following her brief drop and saving herself from having the wind knocked out of her. She doesn’t know what the hard thing she just slammed into is, but there’s some give to the material, so she gathers her remaining power, grows an ice-pick like spike out of her hoof, and rams it against the surface. It goes through, stopping the roaring wind from blowing her off of the moving thing she fell onto when the portal spell spat her out. Finally having a second to think and breathe, she looks around.

I’m on the roof of something fast and loud.

The fraction of a second to take in the blurry, white scenery rushing past whizzes by as a black figure of her kin flies over her like a rag doll, bouncing off of the roof. The Queen doesn’t wait for anything, drags herself onto all fours, turns around, slides along the metal, frosted-over roof, and uses the leverage of her hooked hoof to jump onto the next of the moving roofs across which the helpless nightmare’s body is currently rolling.

Changeling memories operate on the principle of a hive mind. With the last twenty survivors of a species instinctively sharing and storing knowledge as a collective, most of what they’ve learned over their lifetime is gone. Finally, however, the Queen’s mind comes up with a concept:

A train. We dropped onto the roof of a train.

Ice cracks and shatters when she lands on the next car and slips, the shards cutting her soft carapace and spraying her face. She doesn’t stop herself, instead using her speed and momentum to slide towards the barely conscious nightmare weakly grasping for anything to stop it from moving. Only once she’s within reach, she stabs her hoof into the roof again and grabs the exhausted equine. Their hive links are so weak they can’t communicate, and only up this close the Queen can recognize the mental signature of rank 7 pushing past the brink of death.

The Queen looks across the train. Thankfully, while it’s freezing cold, it’s not snowing, so she can see eighteen other shapes lying spread eagle, scattered across the ten cars of the train, all watching her.

Desperate times require desperate measures.

I’m not losing more of you.

To never lose a war of attrition behind enemy lines, Nightmare Moon’s twisted changelings feed on fear instead of love, and one tool to allow them to do so consistently is their access to sleep magic.

The Queen transforms her hook-hoof into a clawed one and raises it while biting her fangs into the ice covering the roof to slow her immediate slide. Agony followed by numbness quickly spikes through her muzzle as she makes a series of claw signals meaning:

“Split up, use sleep spell, feed, non-lethal unless it’s life or death. Extract back here.”

She doesn’t wait for confirmations and casts a sleeping spell of her own on the car underneath her. If she’s lucky, it’ll last a couple minutes. Her vision swims from the effort and her raised foreleg fails her. Sliding to the back of the car along with 7, the Queen herself has no idea where she’s getting the strength to keep going. Somehow -it’s all a blur now- in a semi-delirious state, she manages to drag 7 down to the space between the cars and then into the open section of the car itself, barely conscious enough to figure out the mysterious inner workings of a handle.

Door to the left. Rattle but don’t open.

Rattle again. They don’t swing open but slide to the side.

A room. A window on the other side with a table underneath. Useless.

Four ponies, two on a padded bench lining the room’s left and right wall each. Finally.

The Queen pulls 7 inside, closes the door behind them, and limps over to the closest sleeper, her eyes closing on their own. Thankfully, her feeding instinct takes over as she struggles to even breathe, much less stand. The pony whimpers and shudders in their sleep as the Queen’s power induces a terrifying dream in them, and slowly, painfully slowly, their fear begins to flow and nourish her.

As soon as she starts feeling her limbs again and can breathe more than just ragged, shallow breaths, she also starts sharing the regained energy with 7, stabilizing the near-dead nightmare over the course of two minutes.

The door slams open and two muscular earth pony stallions rush inside, immediately tackling the Queen. She knocks one out with a perfectly aimed blow to his temple, but the other one gets her into a leg lock. If her carapace wasn’t skin-thin, it would be the stupidest decision possible. Now, though, she can feel his foreleg tightening around her neck and doesn’t have the strength to grow a spike to stab him or anything else anymore.

She stops resisting entirely when the next figure rushes into the coupe. It’s a unicorn stallion with bright blue eyes, sandy blond mane, and bronze-colored changeling carapace instead of a coat. He freezes when he sees her, his eyes bulge, and his jaw drops.

He recognizes her.

Despite the Queen seeing him what was for her almost twenty years ago in his cell in the Castle of Two Sisters before he managed to escape, he looks almost just like he did then. The magical portal must have taken the nightmares through dimensions to a fixed point in time. His reaction only cements the idea that it was a much shorter time for him than for her.

With a raspy, exhausted voice, barely more than a whisper, the Queen says:

“Hi… dad?”

Path of a monster [3]: Nightmare hatchling

Casting light into the night from braziers and torches emitting blue flames, the highest spire of the Castle of Two Sisters towers over the tallest trees of the Everfree forest. Even as just a ruin, the castle is equally majestic as it is sinister. Despite its nightmarish and eerie outer appearance, what’s happening inside the castle’s bowels is much worse.

There are countless hidden and deathly silent rooms in the maze-like underground, yet one doesn’t count among those. This room is square, with a hollowed-out, circular area in its center with only one exit consisting of a shattered set of stairs which gives it the feeling of either a giant jacuzzi or an arena. The latter is more likely, as there are ragged and terrified ponies wearing shackles on their forelegs huddled together in the middle. The reason why is simple - pony-sized eggs belonging to gods-know-what are lining the wall of the pit and seem to pulsate as if ready to hatch. Three wiry, yet strong-looking, bat-winged ponies are standing each by three of the four sides of the room, all wearing dark purple helmets and chest plates and armed with spears and spiked, combat horseshoes. The main reason why the scared prisoners, which the ponies clearly are, aren’t trying to escape or fight, however, is the final figure watching them - a black, female alicorn wearing a smooth, light blue helmet and royal regalia adorned with the symbol of a moon standing by the room’s entrance.

Staring with superiority at the group of trembling ponies, the dark alicorn’s horn lights up with faded, red aura, and she traces a magical symbol in the air as if carving it directly into the bleeding flesh of reality. The symbol pulses, and one of the catatonic ponies tenses up as they start choking, pawing at their neck while their eyes roll backwards. The other prisoners shuffle away as much as their chains allow and one mare downright screams when her back touches one of the large eggs surrounding the inner edge of the pool.

When the suffocating pony stops making noise, the alicorn flicks her horn, and the pony’s body twists one final time like a rag being wrung out with a series of sickening crunches of a skeleton losing battle against such devastating telekinesis. As if expecting something, the alicorn’s gaze shifts and lingers on the eggs, but nothing happens and she tosses the pulverized corpse at one of the still responsive victims - a stallion who yelps, heaves as if he was about to throw up, and starts sobbing when nothing comes out. Whatever the grim show was supposed to cause didn’t happen.

The crimson sigil pulses again and more prisoners whimper this time, looking at each other to see who’s the next victim. This time, it’s a red-coated, earth pony stallion, not catatonic, and muscular from hard work, his physique untouched by starvation in contrast to most others. He must be from the most recent kidnapping haul. Unfortunately for him, it looks like his musculature only serves as a challenge for the sadistically grinning alicorn because she skips the choking step and starts twisting his body despite him grunting in resistance. His grunts turn into screams once the first rib snaps like the crack of a whip, yet the alicorn doesn’t speed up despite the pony losing control of his body out of sheer agony. In fact, she seems to slow down, and the dim glow of her horn violently twists the heads of every prisoner towards the gruesome spectacle, prying their eyes open for good measure.

“Monster!” screeches a ragged, orange mare, whose healthy build hints at her being from the same recent raid as the stallion, while the others whimper.

The alicorn’s smile only grows as her telekinetic grip turns everyone’s heads again, this time towards the brave, stupid, or simply hopeless victim.

“There is so much untapped hatred and pain in you,” says the alicorn in a tone smooth like butter as she her horn glows again, this time not with the previously shown dark magic but with the pale glow of full moon, “I see, this one is your brother,” she laughs and the visible red glow cast by the evil rune hanging in the air around the red stallion’s chest tightens.

“Ya gotta fight her, Big Mac!” the orange mare calls out a desperate yet the most useless supportive platitude she can.

“Y-Yup!” grunts Mac.

“Oh, he is,” the alicorn lets out a single, short laugh, after which the room goes silent with the exception of the stallion’s grunting and the whimpering and heavy breathing of other prisoners. To the prisoners’ surprise, the alicorn’s telekinesis lifts the red stallion out of the pit and sets him in front of the alicorn. Only when Big Mac is on all fours again, the telekinetic glow surrounding him dissipates. The alicorn measures him, clearly impressed, “You are strong, even for an earth pony.”

“Yup,” grunts Mac, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

“It would be such a waste to simply sacrifice you in order to awaken my new tools, wouldn’t it?” grinning, she glances at the large eggs.

“Yup.”

“You’ll do much better as an addition to my Nightguards.”

“Nope. Nope. Nooope,” Big Mac shakes his head before the pain of his crushed torso warns him that he should stop moving.

“Maybe I’ll transform you into some behemoth monstrosity to use against my enemies then.”

“Nnnn-nope!”

“Tsch! Indecisive,” the alicorn shakes her head, “Nightguards it is,” she looks him in the eyes while her own turn into pools of white glow. Moments later, Big Mac collapses on the floor. Before anypony can do anything, he rises again, blankly staring at the alicorn who simply states, “I am Nightmare Moon, I am the night, and now you serve me.”

The stallion takes a deep breath and replies:

“My brothers and sisters, warriors of the night! We stand at a crossroads. The weak sun may offer false hope, but we know the truth. Nightmare Moon is our queen, the embodiment of true power! Her eternal night blankets us in a glorious darkness, a time for dreams and shadows.”

“Uh- oh- I- well-” Nightmare Moon blinks and leans back in surprise. Unperturbed, Big Mac continues:

“Let our enemies tremble! Let them fear the moon's cold gaze, for it is a reflection of Nightmare Moon's will. We, her loyal subjects, swear our unwavering devotion. We fight for her dominion, for the night shall reign supreme!”

“SHUT UP! Go back to your normal speech or something,” Nightmare Moon glares at him.

“Yup,” Big Mac nods.

“You’re still under my control,” she adds.

“Yup.”

“Perfect.”

The orange mare charges towards the edge of the arena, aiming to use the eggs to climb out even with her shackled legs. Everyone screams, some trying to stop her in fear of more punishment and some encouraging her. The glowing, blood-red sigil still hanging in the air pulses again, letting out an invisible shockwave that stops the mare in her tracks, leaving her shaking and straining against some invisible force mid-pounce. Her muscles bulge, she growls, and with the snapping of reshaping bones her muzzle sharpens and teeth sharpen, molars lengthening into fangs. She suddenly roars, the tears on her cheeks hissing out as her eyes burn out from the inside with sickly green and yellow fire. Witnessing the transformation, the other ponies squeeze themselves against the eggs lining the pool’s edge, now more terrified of one of them than whatever might the eggs contain.

That is their mistake.

Of course they can’t know it, but the alicorn can see their fear as a cloud of mist swirling and growing around them, and that mist is now finally being absorbed by the eggs. She smiles and flicks her horn. The transforming mare roars again, all traces of equinity gone from her voice and leaving only a beast full of hatred, and more noises of shattering bones and tearing muscles come from her legs. Her skin and coat there bulges, and what looks like hard bark rips through from her knees down, forming clawed gauntlets around all four legs. The finished abominable mix of pony and a timberwolf finally breaks the chain holding her forelegs together as well as the invisible bonds of magic and looks around, hungrily licking her lips, just as the eggs start to crack. With a flash of the alicorn’s horn, all shackles binding the pony prisoners vanish as well.

One terrified prisoner inspired by the orange mare immediately tries to use the egg to climb out of the pool, their leg breaking the shell and falling on the floor. Their fall strips a part of the shell and reveals the emaciated-looking equine creature within, which walls out, briefly twitching before going still. More and more eggs crack, now on their own, and the creatures inside awaken. They look like ponies, starved, coat-less, and covered instead in black, skin-imitating armor. Some are taller, some bulkier, some are even foal-sized, but all have razor-sharp teeth and fangs.

Without any signal, the guards stationed around the pool throw their weapons into it at random, both spears and spiked horseshoes, before jumping in as well, unarmed but still wearing their armors.

“Finally!” the alicorn lets out a sadistic chuckle and announces, “Only the last ten of you will walk out of here alive. Yes, that goes for you, ponies, as well. Aren’t I such a merciful ruler? Now pick up the right tool and KILL!”

With a telekinetic shove, she sends Big Mac flying into the pit again. The glowing glyph pulses again and sears the order into the minds of the monsters and the newly created lycanthrope as well, awakening the former and fully releasing the latter.

The free-for-all begins.

***

As the confused and hungry nightmare changeling who would later claim the title of the Queen takes a crushing blow to the face from a desperate and terrified earth pony, she wakes up with a gasp and raises her head, immediately fully aware of her surroundings.

Nothing has changed since she passed out moments after the ponies who captured them gathered everyone in one car and set up guards. The soft thudding of the train’s wheels is still there, the nineteen mind links that respond to her instinctive mental ping are there again, showing that her king have grown a little stronger, her father is still there, telekinetically writing something into a small book, and an armed pony alerted by her movement is watching her with narrowed eyes.

We’re all alive. Everyone managed to feed a little before they got caught and, since they didn’t resist much they didn’t waste energy on fighting. We’re hungry but not dying of starvation anymore.

There’s nothing left to do but to rest and recover.

The Queen lays her head down on the carpet again, closes her eyes, and lets the slow breathing of 1 and 2 pressed against her from both sides lull her back to sleep.

Path of a monster [4]: Canterlot is still there. Weird.

An armed pony opens the train door for the Queen, revealing a group of soldiers wearing gold-foiled Royal Guard armors already fanned out with their spears held tight. However, after three days of constant sleep on the train that turned out to be some kind of a military transport, the Queen is calm and collected enough to sense that worry emanating from the guards which is creating an invigorating ambience for the fear-eating Nightmares.

“Move along, please!” says a grey, eye-patch wearing earth pony in his forties keeping an eye on the Queen personally. While he isn’t bearing any official insignia, every single armed pony on the train has been obeying everything he said during the trip.

“Easy, Solid Steel,” says the Queen’s father, pushing through the soldiers crowding the open section of the train car, “Seeing a bunch of goons just itching to poke those spears into somepony can’t be comfortable,” as he passes the Queen, he smiles at her, “Don’t worry. If they want to have a go, they’ll have to go through me first, and I know enough about the Royal Guard to recognize recruits with only a couple months under their belt,” he steps outside, making the guards back off and fan out wider, takes a deep breath of the cold, mountain air in the earliest grasp of winter, and says, “Never thought I’d see this place again, never thought I’d miss it.”

The nervous guards who grip their spears tighter the second the Queen’s gaze slides over them aren’t what’s making her stand still…

***

The Canterlot mountain is riddled from top to deep underground with tunnels from old mining operations, but not only that. Despite what the tourists are told, ancient magic helps hold up only the castle itself. The rest of the upper city is supported by enormous pillars underneath it, buried at an angle into the mountainside and, most importantly, building-sized hooks made of reinforced and magically treated concrete inside the mountain itself lining the inner radius of the city. These enormous constructions are normally accessible to the inspectors via the sewer system. However, a sufficiently sneaky and insane pony could mine into the secret areas through some of the unstable, old tunnels, risking a cave-in way before doing any damage to the infrastructure.

The three dozen Nightmares who survived the mining operations and the infiltration have finally finished setting up plastic explosives provided by their griffon allies, and report to the Queen via their mind links.

We’re ready.

“Set off the timers in thirty seconds and retreat into a safe distance. I’ll report it in,” the Queen mentally broadcasts her orders before turning a vial fastened to one of the charges around. Supposedly, this chemical reaction is a timer which will set the bomb off, which will in turn start a chain reaction detonating all the others she set up over the holding hook.

Thankfully, the mental communication isn’t obstructed either by the solid material around her nor the immensely powerful shield protecting both Upper and Lower Canterlot from Nightmare Moon’s armies. The only problem is the distance, but with how much fear there is everywhere in and around the besieged city, the Queen is in no danger of running out of power.

“3378, report to General Grim Sky that we’re setting off the charges in twenty,” she sends the message out.

“Remain within safe distance with the spare charges just in case something doesn’t work out,” 3379 relays Grim Sky’s answer.

The Queen flees back into the tunnels, counting:

1… 2…

10… 11…

12-

Her changeling instinct shuts her hearing off just as the first hints of a shockwave of pressurized air reach her, and her experience with surviving explosive spells of unicorn wizards makes her dive for the floor.

The rumbling and tearing of concrete and solid rock as if the entire world was being violently ripped in half paralyzes the Queen, and only the sight of the floor and ceiling starting to crumble under her drags her out of the shell shock for long enough to scuttle deeper into the mountain in pure panic, trembling, crying, and bleeding from every orifice with every cough forced by the inhaling in the resulting cloud of grime and dust. Something internal caused by the shockwave, likely. The worst part, though, is the sudden absence of almost all mind links she was directly connected to for the operation.

No, the worst part is the sudden gust of wind when the crumbling stops and the Queen can see everything from the clear sky, the golden magic shield surrounding the twin cities, the Nightmare Moon’s armies outside of it, and the rubble of the upper city tumbling down the side of the mountain directly on the defenders and the refugee camps surrounding Lower Canterlot.

As the tiny ponies below recover from the blast, they start trying to escape through the protective barrier and quickly realize it’s not going to happen. Some flee along the edge, some begin fruitlessly bashing their hooves against it, some just start praying. Unicorns responsible for keeping the barrier up try to end the spell and collapse from the magical feedback of such a monumental collective undertaking stopping so suddenly. None of it matters, though, as the avalanche of masonry eventually lands and paints the golden shield, which was supposed to protect them and instead became their prison, with raised clouds of grey dust and red mist.

Darkness falls as the moon eclipses the sun and the shield finally fades because there’s almost no one left to keep it going, and Nightmare Moon’s army charges the few remaining defenders of Canterlot crawling out of the mix of rubble and fleshy paste left behind by their friends and families to fight their final fight.

The Queen doesn’t join the fight, sitting at the open edge of the tunnel and hugging her knees. Three out of thirty-six Nightmares made it out.

Did the griffons really underestimate the power and timers of their explosives, or did they try to double-cross us?

***

She doesn’t let a single emotion show, and follows her father onto the platform, decidedly paying no mind to the Royal Guards slightly lowering the tips of their spears. The upper Canterlot train station is a simple, two-track affair full of decorative pillars supporting a metal and crystal roof above. The station in the lower city was massive in comparison, serving both for cargo and passengers, while the ponies occupying this one are almost all unicorns who have clearly never seen hard work, and ones wearing exceedingly expensive-looking clothes on top of that.

“It’s strange to see Canterlot so full of life,” she says, looking directly up through the ceiling, enjoying the fear-laced cold air rushing through her nose and down to her lungs as if it was a draught of water after a hot day, this time represented by the stuffy air of the train, “It’s the first time in my life that I can see the sun, and the first time in months that there isn’t overcast gloom or complete darkness, dad. Not including our landing on the train.”

“Blazing Light, just call me Blazing, Blaze, anything like that,” the unicorn’s voice immediately turns nervous, “I’ve been thinking about our situation and I realized that, since the portal seems to have sent you to a specific point in time roughly a day from where and when I landed and you’re twenty, I’m about five years older than you. I’m as far from dad material as one can get- what is, umm, she doing? I’m not used to mares sniffing me, or doing anything other than yelling ‘get away, creep!’,” he steps away when he notices a Nightmare stretching her neck towards his blond mane with her head tilted sideways in curiosity.

“5 is from one of my many clutches. She didn’t mean to startle you, she’s just curious about her grandfather,” replies the Queen.

“Stars above, I’m a grandfather too?” Blazing rolls his eyes.

“Way more than that,” says the Queen, “Any time any of the army deployment needed bolstering, they captured enemy combatants and used some of us to hatch reinforcements in days. Since we were split between all combat fronts, not even I have any idea who is from which generation aside from the firstborn and my own clutches.”

This seems to calm Blazing down a little, and he lets 5 approach and put her head on the back of his neck.

“Leave the family reunions for later,” orders Solid Steel in a friendly but firm tone once all the Nightmares have been herded out of the train by the soldiers.

As the escort of soldiers and guards surrounds Blazing Light and the Nightmares, the bronze unicorn-changeling hybrid gets going, and the Queen follows.

“What’s going to happen now?” she asks as they enter the white, open streets of Upper Canterlot and feel the cold wind on their faces.

“That depends,” Blazing shrugs, “I’m returning from successfully saving a second version of The Crystal Empire from an evil warlock king -that’s where the train was taking us from- and I’ve never met this dimension’s Celestia before, but I doubt she’ll be insanely evil or anything, so I’m expecting a looot of questions all both of us. Speaking of which - how come you’re the only one talking? Is it a Queen thing?”

“I think so,” the Queen nods, “They can talk, but opening the portal to this dimension was… costly. Thousands of us sacrificed whatever little of their energy was left in their bodies so that I could cast the spell, but I had no idea how badly that would damage our hive mind and how much knowledge we would lose. I could barely remember what a train was when the portal spat us out here, and I can talk because I was personally doing it a lot while discussing strategy at the war room, relaying orders to non-Nightmares, or giving reports. Even that-” she points to a cart passing by, “I can sense that most of us can’t recall the word ‘cart’. It’s going to take us some time to recover, but once we are strong enough to use our mind links consistently to share information again, we’ll be re-learning a lot of things we once knew.”

“Hey,” Blazing smiles at her, “If you need a place to rest and recover, Equestria is the best. Aside from the occasional world-ending threat passing through. Once you get used to those, it’s all lush forests, great views, and fresh air. Unfortunately,” he raises on the tips of his hooves to see over the tall guards around the group, “It looks like right now the ponies think we belong to the bad guys category. It’ll pass.”

“Everyone is staring, and I can sense a lot of fear,” the Queen raises her head as well. With her, the Nightmares, and Blazing being fairly short, the members of their military escort are like a tall wall of solid muscle and steel around them.

“Can’t blame them,” says Solid Steel, leading the group, “The invasion happened only over half a year ago.”

“What invasion?” the Queen shoots her father a puzzled look, “The one you saved this place from, or…?”

“Riiight, you’re from that far back in time and Chrysalis’ invasion didn’t happen in your reality,” Blazing shakes his head, “Bet they’d trade a night spent in changeling cocoons for what happened to them instead.”

“We lost a lot of good ponies,” says Solid Steel darkly, “No matter, from what we know we assume the vast majority of changelings died, and they won’t be a problem in any perceivable future, but the mental scars remain,” the grey earth pony shakes his head, “Nevermind. What I’m trying to say is that it would make things a lot easier on the general public if you and your kin, as changelings, could transform into ponies.”

“We can’t do that,” the Queen shakes her head. That’s a lie, albeit only a technical one.

“Huh?” Solid Steel shoots her a surprised look. So does Blazing, immediately sensing that something about the Queen’s statement was way too careful.

“We can transform parts of our bodies, mostly for a specific use in combat. We can harden our carapaces or grow spikes and blades, but we can’t just observe a creature and fully transform into it like changelings can. We weren’t made to be infiltrators, Nightmare Moon made us to be weapons.”

“Hmmm,” Solid Steel rubs his chin, clearly not persuaded. Blazing, however, comes to the Queen’s aid by saying:

“That might be my fault. Nightmare Moon didn’t make Nightmare changelings out of real changelings. She made them using me, and I’m kind of a weird hybrid due to whatever spell Chrysalis used on me. That’s why you can use unicorn magic while changelings in general can’t,” Blazing suddenly laughs, “Easy way to confirm that - how do you guys feel about flying?”

“We can fly, but it’s generally very uncomfortable,” says the Queen.

Blazing sighs, his legs starting to wobble at even the thought of height.

“Yep, they’re mine…”

Path of a monster [5]: PR-disaster lings

The beauty of the Canterlot castle’s throne room with its high ceiling, white pillars decorated with patterns of amethyst and gold, and stained glass windows depicting heroic deeds of the past matters none to the Nightmare changelings. For the first time since entering this world, all but four of them are hesitating, lowered in a fight or flight stance with eyes peeled and legs bent, and this time it feels to their armed escort that flight is the preferred action. Even the Queen’s breathing quickens slightly as she lays her eyes on the tall, white alicorn sitting on the throne. Gritting her teeth, however, she straightens up, looks at 2 and 3 by her sides while shadowed by 1 directly behind her, and sends a simple mental message:

“We killed her once. We’ve dealt with worse since.”

***

Blazing rays of sunlight so intense they scorch deep grooves into the ground evaporate the siege machinery standing within the range of lower Canterlot, Nightmare changelings, and all mortal soldiers alike. The ranks of Nightmare Moon’s army sieging Canterlot break, soldiers screaming and fleeing in panic as they boil inside their metal armors. For the first time since Nightmare Moon’s campaign started, the sun has risen, and the furious white demi-goddess with mane and tail burning like an orange conflagration is floating above the lower city, supported by ranks of unicorn wizards. Even with Nightmare Moon casting every protective spell at her disposal, conjuring shields of pure interstellar darkness, and the fledgling Queen as well as the ranks of Nightmare changelings using their inborn and yet untrained magic resistance to soften the blows of Celestia’s divine power, the attacking army is forced to retreat, suffering devastating losses. Assaulting Canterlot with an army of drafted civilians, brainwashed slaves, some loyalists, and a horde of Nightmare changelings, who barely saw a real fight aside from overwhelming a small city here and there with raw numbers, a mere year after Nightmare Moon’s rise proved a terrible plan.

However, even with her flesh scorched and chitinous carapace boiling off of her under one of the solar beams, the Queen survived and, over a decade filled with fighting real soldiers and magic users later, the Nightmares would get their rematch.

***

“I have received your message, Solid Steel,” says Celestia, still casually sitting on the throne while the Nightmares led by the Queen and Blazing approach and the soldiers spread around, “Doppelganger saviors and interdimensional visitors, oh my,” she smiles a careful but friendly smile aimed at the Queen, “I admit I would like to hear your side of things before I decide what to do with you.”

“Can we trust her?” whispers the Queen towards Blazing.

“Hurtful…” comments Celestia without her smile leaving her face.

“You can trust her to give you a chance to prove yourselves. I already saved Equestria, so it’s your turn to show who you really are. No pressure,” replies Blazing after a brief thought which the Queen deciphers as:

That’s not a ‘yes, you can trust her’. He leans towards yes but has his doubts. Does he have a bad experience with his version of Celestia too?

“I understand,” says the Queen out loud, “Your Highness, I could be here forever, summarizing the details of our twenty years of existence, but the short version is that we are weapons created by Nightmare Moon from our father’s essence-” she nods sideways to Blazing, “-after she trapped him during his dimensional jumping. We had no idea what we even were until we were sent to eradicate real changelings. From what I understand, we have incomplete shapeshifting abilities which specialize in combat enhancements and some resistance to magic,” the Queen undersells their shapeshifting and completely lies about the extent of her magic ’resistance’. After all, if this Celestia proves hostile, the Nightmares are going to need an ace up their sleeve, “We were enslaved by Nightmare Moon’s magic after each of us hatched and became a major part of her army. Over the course of two decades, we entirely wiped all life from this planet - fauna, flora, aerial, underground, all of it. When the planet became a dead rock, Nightmare Moon left us to die of starvation. With the last bit of help from a unicorn wizard whom Nightmare Moon betrayed, we managed to make a portal which would follow our father and landed here,” the Queen, again, heavily downplays the abilities of the Nightmare changelings.

“That’s quite the story,” Celestia remains calm, only raising an eyebrow, “but I would be a pretty hypocritical ruler if I didn’t give you the same chance to redeem yourself that I gave to my sister.”

“Oh, right,” Blazing scratches his head nervously, “Long story short, this world’s Luna was saved from becoming Nightmare Moon for good, so expect to see that familiar face around.”

“WHAT?!” the Queen growls.

“Calm yourself,” Celestia raises her voice slightly, narrowing her eyes at the Queen, “Were I not one to give her a chance, what makes you think I would give one to you? Luna is my sister and she has beaten the corruption, that’s all that needs to be said. If you want to be given a chance, you will have to give a chance in return. What do you say?”

The Queen takes a deep breath.

“All we know is war. When we weren’t on deployments, we usually slept but we will do our best to fit in. We want…” she pauses, “We want…” she looks at Blazing, “I don’t know what we want. I don’t know what is there to want. We always only got orders. All I know is that we want something else.”

To her surprise, Celestia finally stands up from the throne, walks over to the Queen, and offers her hoof, which the Queen hesitantly shakes.

“I know how scary it is to start a completely new life, but also how necessary it may be. It might surprise you, but you’d be far from the first ex-foe to build a better future here,” Celestia gives the Queen a courteous bow.

“You know,” a black-coated bat pony mare with red eyes and a mane of the same color whom the Queen has seen accompanying her father multiple times raises her hoof, “Running around calling yourselves Nightmare changelings can’t be great for PR if you need to eat love, unless you run into some really weird freaks,” she adds, wincing, “And since you’re not exactly changelings and Nightmare Moon has been dealt with in these parts, how about a rebrand? Oh, and Blazing?”

“Yes, Chokey?” Blazing looks at her while she shoots him a mischievous smirk.

“You told me the Queen here doesn’t have a name. Since the others go by numbers like changelings, how about you name her?”

***

“Guiding Light, the Queen of the dreamlings,” mutters Guiding to herself as she’s lying on her back inside a cell in the Canterlot castle dungeons.

The dreamlings were assured that locking them up was just a temporary measure until the powers that be figured out what exactly to do next, and the large, conjoined cells were the only place where the dreamlings could comfortably be together while still easy to keep an eye on.

7 shifts in his sleep. Like everyone else, when there’s nothing to do, he’s conserving energy and recovering. The problem is that he took going through the portal the hardest, and is losing energy much faster than the others.

Reeeally wish we had something like a doctor, but all we ever had to do to recover was feed and rest. Now, feeding could land us in serious trouble.

Guiding didn’t tell Celestia how dreamlings feed, so the ponies in general assume they eat love just like normal changelings. Blazing knows, of course, but he hasn’t told anypony.

She turns her head towards the cell’s bars. Two Royal Guards are in view, but she can sense the emotions of two more behind the wall. They’re all nervous, which is enough fear for the sleeping dreamlings to remain stable, but 7 won’t last. The problem is that casting a sleep spell and evoking nightmares in the guards will take time and if somepony else comes to check, the dreamlings will be in trouble.

The guards are bound to change shifts. I have to wait until night, and then even if they fall asleep it won’t implicate us.

In order to make sure 7’s situation doesn’t get worse, she rolls over to him, puts her horn to his forehead, and transfers most of her energy to him.

I can last until the shift changes, and there’s enough magic everywhere around I can drain to cast a sleep spell.

Guiding smirks.

That alarm spell they secretly put on this cell feels especially tasty.

Path of a monster [6]: Family moment

It’s night three inside the Canterlot castle’s twin cells. With the exception of two of them on watch, the dreamlings are asleep and so are, like every night since they’ve been put into protective custody, the four Royal Guards crumpled on the floor of the long hallway outside their cell only barely lit by crystal torches spaced alternating between the walls and far from each other. The awake two are responsible for feeding on the fear of the dreaming guards and sharing the energy with the rest as well as for using the hive mind to alert everyone in case of anything unusual happening. For tonight, the duty falls on 2 and 19 and, for the first time, something happens in the very early morning.

19, being the smallest of the dreamlings, peeks its head through the bars when it hears the door leading out of the dungeons click. 2 immediately cancels the sleeping spell and stops keeping the royal guards locked within bad dreams. Their shifting and occasionally quickened breathing stops even before the door opens fully and Blazing Light is let inside by the two more guards on watch outside of the dungeon. As the bronze-carapaced unicorn approaches, 2 wakes the Guiding Light up, switches places with her, curls up on the floor, and closes her eyes. With Blazing within reach, 19 waves its foreleg through the bars at him.

“Good to see you a bit more alive, little guy,” Blazing hesitantly shakes 19’s hoof, unsure if he’s making some kind of a faux pas. 19 smiles and backs off, “Actually, all of you are looking a lot healthier,” he nudges the closest floor guard, who just grunts in response, with his hoof, “Am I correct in assuming this is your doing, guys?”

“Yes, it is,” Guiding nods, sitting down by the bars, “The Princess is giving us a chance, be it a very small one so far, and I’m afraid that if the ponies learn about how we feed they’ll see us for the monsters that we are.”

Blazing sits down by her side, pats her hoof, and blinks in surprise when Guiding grabs his foreleg with both of her own and just holds it. It takes a moment before he returns to the topic at hoof:

“Yeah, I was thinking about that a lot while doing all the housework for Chokey in return for her letting me stay at her place -hero or not, I’m still basically a hobo in this world- and I’m wondering if you really can only eat fear or if whatever magic Nightmare Moon and Trixie used to create you only forged a facade you can still break.”

“Do you mean that we might be able to eat fear but also love like normal changelings?” Guiding shoots him a stunned look, “That almost sounds too good to be true.”

“Maybe it is. I know very little about magic other than that I’m somewhat resistant to it,” Blazing shrugs, “buuut since you have my magic resistance, you don’t like flying, and your transformation ability is scuffed too, it might be possible that you’re kind of a weird mix of unicorn and changeling attributes with some of them less and some more prominent instead of just missing some entirely. For example - I can now eat both love and hayburgers. Which one is better depends on the burgers,” he chuckles, “I don’t know how you see emotions. For me, the love I can sense looks like a red sun around somepony’s heart, and maybe if you get close to a good source of it, some suppressed instinct might worm its way out. I’m rambling, aren’t I?”

“I don’t think you are. It’s not a crazy idea,” Guiding shakes her head, still semi-consciously playing with Blazing’s hoof, ”Plus, it would give us a reason to ask to be let out of here. Don’t get me wrong - I understand why we’re being kept here and I don’t mind, but I’d like to start learning about what’s out there so that I can figure out what’s next for us.”

“I get that, I never really thought there would be something out there for me,” Blazing breathes out, “You know… when I went on my adventure I wasn’t intending to return and, in my world I- I didn’t.”

“Is that where you started jumping through dimensions?” Guiding’s ears perk up. She never got the chance to talk to him in her world, and even the thing about his jumping through dimensions using an extremely unique spell she learned much later from archmage Trixie.

“Sort of,” he blushes, “Celestia’s ass! I haven’t said a word and I already feel like an idiot,” he takes a deep breath, “Alright, here goes the quick version - I accidentally got involved in a big scheme caused by the alicorn of Lust called Scream who hated Celestia for imprisoning her lover, Void, the alicorn of Death, in Tartarus. Supposedly, it’s impossible to get in and out of Tartarus unless you get Celestia’s permission because she’s the keeper. How does that work? Don’t ask me,” he waves his free foreleg in the air, “Scream’s plan was to psychologically torture Celestia from the shadows until old Sunny would be desperate enough to free Void in return for Scream, who would reveal herself, to stop. Supposedly, she had her hoof even in Luna turning into Nightmare Moon a millennium ago, at least that’s what Void told me.”

“So you stopped her then? That’s why you’re the hero?”

“Well, yes and no. Scream grew impatient and concocted a spell that would kill a target and let Void possess them. It was supposed to get Luna but I was her bodyguard at the time and it hit me. My resistance to magic stopped the spell from killing me, though the headaches made me wish it did, and Void couldn’t possess an alicorn’s body and got locked into mine. The funny part was that he had about as much of an idea what was going on as I did, and he turned out to be a really cool guy. Together, in the Crystal Empire, we stopped Scream’s latest attempt to make Celestia’s life hell by resurrecting some old king and giving him power of the Crystal Heart. When he was mid-fusing with it I snuck in and destroyed the Crystal Heart. Everything blew up, including me. I died.”

“And yet, we’re here, talking,” Guiding raises an eyebrow.

“Well, you see, without Void seeing through Scream’s scheme, I would have accidentally helped her at the critical moment because she played me too. I… I don’t know what you think about me but I’m not some great person, even when I say the hero thing I say it as a joke, I’m just a guy who got lucky after screwing up everything else in his life. I even decided to help Scream after asking Chokey out and her rejecting me. I wasn’t intending to ever survive.”

“And yet, we’re here, talking,” Guiding repeats her words.

“Void saved me, gave me a temporary body, and taught me a dimension-jumping spell that was too difficult for me to cast, and it was made only for me. In every dimension I passed through I had to find a unicorn wizard to cast it for me. Sometimes it was easy, sometimes not. I jumped for over 2 years, I think, replaying the same few days over and over-” his voice goes hollow and he has to pause to steady his quickening breathing, “-until I ended up here a couple of weeks ago. I managed to play things just right to end up in the Crystal Empire in the same situation as before, only with the knowledge of what to do so that the old king would die but the Crystal Heart wouldn’t blow up and kill everypony again. Day two after that, you dropped on the train that was taking everypony home,” he pauses, “The dimension jumping spell was locked to a specific point in time and should only work for me, that’s why I believed you immediately when you said I was your dad. I have no idea how you reconstructed the damn thing, but it’s clear you’re much better than me at, well, everything. You saved your kind, I can barely take care of myself. Your willpower must be legendary if you survived Nightmare Moon’s rule and you never turned into what she needed-” he taps on his temple, “-in here. I barely have the will to get out of the bed, and I mostly do that because I need money for food and a roof. What I’m trying to say is that I’m proud of you for already being… so much more than I ever will.”

“You saved the world. Twice, apparently,” objects Guiding. As if trying to cheer Blazing up, 19 who has been listening in silence, sticks its head through the bars again and puts it into the unicorn’s lap.

“Being in the right place at the right time is luck, Guiding. I, for the first time in my life, didn’t just fold up. You made your opportunity, that means so much more,” he lets out a heavy sigh, “I should go. I’m on the Nightguard schedule again, so I’m exhausted from the swapped day and night.”

“Stay a little longer, please,” Guiding grips Blazing’s hoof she’s been playing with all this time harder. Giving her a brief surprised look before just leaning against the bars, he says:

“Alright.”

They sit in silence for a while, until they both sense a surge of magic. Blazing jumps to his hooves, and so does Guiding and the immediately awoken dreamlings.

A gleaming, white hole appears in the ceiling and shoots out four bat ponies at a dangerous pace. Finally, the portal spits out a changeling drone, which is for some unknown reason wearing the dark purple, Nightguard armor as well, that safely lands on the pony pile.

“I feel dizzy…” the drone’s eyes blink one after the other before the Nightguards recover and knock it off as they jump up, unsteady but with bloodthirsty expressions.

“Careful, we don’t know what we’re dealing… with…” a bat pony stallion in charge barks orders before he notices Blazing and drifts off with a stare of pure confusion, “Castle dungeons? Blazing- the new one?”

“Hi, Sharp- the old one! Let me guess,” Blazing rolls his eyes and his quick recovery tells Guiding that the situation bears little to no danger, “Luna felt ponies nearby having sudden repeating nightmares since the dreamlings arrived and sent you to investigate while she’s stopping them in the dream realm. Your portal was supposed to land you on your hooves, but the magic distortion Guiding and I caused made your trip a little bumpy.”

“I think I’m gonna goop myself…” mutters the Nightguard changeling drone while fixing its helmet. Guiding can sense the drone’s mind link, so she concentrates and tries to access its mind. It’s different from a dreamling one, but familiar enough so that she should be able to pull out some information about why a changeling drone is with a squad of bat ponies.

Could it be the ex-foe who made a better life here that Celestia mentioned?

“You never cease to amaze me, Blazing,” says the bat pony referred to as Sharp in a friendly but questioning tone.

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t just pull that guess out of my plot,” replies Blazing dryly.

“Mister Sharp!” peeps the drone while pointing at Guiding, “I think that lady is trying to do something to my head.”

“Cease immediately!” barks out a mare standing by the drone’s side with sudden fury.

“Guiding, stop whatever you’re doing,” Blazing frowns at her which makes her lower her head and back off.

“It’s gone,” reports the drone, “I think she’s pretty bad at it- sorry,” the drone apologizes nervously rubs its head as everyone, pony and dreamling alike, looks at it, “It’s just that if any high rank back in the hive tried it I wouldn’t have even noticed.”

“No way to keep your feeding secret anymore, I guess,” Blazing looks at Guiding, “Luna is the guardian of pony dreams and you can see that she and her best Nightguards take that job seriously.”

Guiding briefly explains the dreamlings’ feeding on fear and using sleep and nightmares inducing magic outside of a warzone. When she’s finished, Blazing says:

“It’s clear that keeping them here is pointless unless you want to test the resilience of royal guard recruits. How about we ask Luna or someone to toss a prisoner or two to the dreamlings from time to time, maybe in return for a shorter sentence-” he casually suggests a crime against equinity, “-and start working on the idea that they might still be changeling enough to feed on love?”

The drone suddenly perks up:

“GASP!-”

“Did it just say ‘gasp’?” Guiding blinks.

“Don’t go there,” muttering from the corner of his mouth, Blazing shakes his head immediately.

“-LOVE? I GOT PLUSHIES FULL OF THAT STUFF! I CAN SHARE! EEEEEEEEEE! NEW FRIENDS!”

Author's Note

Pacing, my worst enemy.

Path of a monster [7]: New arrangement

Early mornings are rough for everyone, and Princess Celestia, currently being rushed into the throne room by the Royal Secretary Raven Inkwell with her normally flowing mane now motionless, frazzled, and sticking to her head with sweat, is no different. Telekinetically holding a full kettle of water and coffee that’s reaching boiling point thanks to her magic, she enters through a small door behind the throne, head hung low, eyes barely open, frowning, and sighing when she sees the dreamlings sitting huddled on the floor with Blazing and Guiding Light in the front. They’re surrounded by four Nightguard bat ponies and one technically Nightguard changeling drone, inasmuch twenty-one individuals can be ‘‘surrounded’ by five. Two more Royal Guards are standing by the main door of the throne room, gripping their spears and clearly on edge, but since the identity of dreamlings and the extent of their power isn’t general knowledge they haven’t called for backup.

“What is it this time?” Celestia breathes out, the white robe hastily tied by her barrel with a sash that she’s wearing slipping as the sash loosens.

“Your Highness,” the Nightguard to whom Blazing referred as Sharp and whom Guiding presumes to be the leader, opens with, “Princess Luna sent us to a new and intense source of nightmares-”

Blazing Light silently looks sideways and nudges his daughter, whispering:

“Hiding it didn’t work, time to come clean and see how things play out. Buuut stick only to the questions, just to be safe.”

Guiding nods.

Share only what’s necessary. Understood.

With that, Blazing stands up and clears his throat. Contrary to the Royal Guards who lower their spears into a charging position, the Nightguards only look at him and Sharp pauses his report.

“Sharp, no need to have Raven take down your memoir. Long story short, Your Highness, you locked the dreamlings up without any chance to feed and, luckily for them in this particular case,they don’t eat love but fear-” he hears the Royal Guards gasp, and Celestia’s eyes open wide, “Yes, yes, I get that it sounds bad, but you try and make living weapons able to indefinitely sustain themselves behind enemy lines without any supplies, and we’ll see how many war crimes you roll into one. The point is - none of that is their fault and I have a working theory, or more working wishful thinking, that they might be able to feed both on love and on normal food like I do. With some practice, that is, and I wouldn’t start them off in the Royal Guard kitchen. The question is - what are we- well, you going to do in the meantime?”

“Is that accurate?” Celestia looks Guiding in the eyes, and finds herself an equal in that staring contest.

“The part about us feeding on fear is, Your Highness. However, while I admire my father’s optimism-” for some reason, several of the Nightguards quietly snort, suppressing a chuckle, “-I have no idea whether we’ll be able to sustain ourselves on other emotions or pony food.”

“Hmm,” the kettle floating next to Celestia’s head starts quietly whistling, “It’s certainly worth a try. However, it’s likely to take time and our knowledge of changeling anatomy is woefully limited. How long do you think you can last without feeding?”

“Over the three days in captivity, we’ve recovered to a reasonable degree. We should be able to go on for a week or two depending on activity,” Guiding takes Blazing’s advice to heart again and undersells the estimate, “Even so, it will be harsh.”

“We’ve dealt with worse things in a shorter time frame,” Celestia forces a reassuring smile which feels like she means it and is only marred by her sudden, rough awakening, “And while keeping you under lock and key could be easier both for me and maybe even less tiring for you, it would get us nowhere in figuring out your feeding options,” she glances at the black-maned, cream-colored and bespectacled earth pony mare with a notepad by her side, “Raven, the dreamlings will be allowed to move around the castle grounds freely and in the city with an escort,” she looks at Guiding again, “Those terms are non-negotiable, Your Majesty. Any breach by any of you will be considered a hostile act towards us. It’s both for oversight and protection, yours and that of my ponies. The tempers are still high after the changeling invasion, and I doubt anypony will bother trying to figure out the difference between you and Queen Chrysalis’ hive. in fact, if I were you I wouldn’t leave the castle grounds, but I’m aware that the more you can experience the better.”

“I understand,” Guiding nods, “Will there be anyone we can ask for clarification if we’re not sure what’s acceptable?”

“Raven here will answer your questions or direct you to somepony if I’m not available,” Celestia glances at her assistant, “Your father knows a good deal about the castle’s inner workings, so he can be a guide if he can keep his sass in check-” she shoots Blazing a look to which he replies be whistling innocently, “Commander Sharp Biscuit of the Nightguard can also help if need be and if his duties allow.”

The leading bat pony gives Celestia a courteous bow.

Finally, the kettle of coffee starts emanating enough heat for the air to start warping around it, and the Princess gives it a longing look before putting the spout to her mouth and downing the entire thing in one go.

“Raven, let’s sort out the assignments for today,” she says in a friendly, refreshed tone of someone finally somewhat awake, “Commander Sharp Biscuit, take our guests to the waiting room, please. Raven will be with you in a moment.”

Sharp nods, turns to Guiding, and simply says:

“Follow me, Your Majesty.”

***

The dreamlings’ new accommodation is the two-room guest suite on the bottom floor of the castle that’s the furthest away from the public areas. Despite its lavish comfort, twenty pony-sized occupants are still a serious overcrowding problem, not even counting the one current guest in Blazing who is nervously sitting on the bed with Guiding while the other dreamlings are either lying on the carpet or poking around in the other rooms. Since they have very little idea about what most things around them are, the poking is often literal.

Other than their curiosity, the mood in the suite isn’t great, because the deal regarding the dreamlings’ newly given freedom of movement came with a caveat - the majority of dreamlings will be split into pairs and sent out to various places of Equestria, with an escort of course, to learn about the world. Celestia wanted the dreamling to guard ratio to be 1:1, but Guiding flatly refused due to the problems that diluting the hive mind knowledge even further would cause in the short term. After all, the exhaustion and deaths of tens of thousands over the past month before they jumped through the portal left the dreamlings in a state where not all of them can even communicate effectively or recognize most common objects.

“This is not a good deal,” says a dreamling mare once everyone gets settled. She sounds calm but Blazing can hear it in her voice that she’s controlling herself.

“Yeah, this is the move of someone who wants to split us up so that we’re easier to take out,” agrees a different one in an openly aggressive tone.

“Any ideas other than to flee and prey on ponies until we’re discovered and either wiped out, forced to flee, or worse - fight and win?” Guiding looks around the room, eyes narrowed.

“May I?” Blazing raises his hoof. Everyone looks at him which makes him withdraw, “Uhh, I don’t think you’re entirely wrong-” he points at the aggressive one.

“That’s 3,” comments Guiding.

“-3, in your assessment, but you arrived under seriously unlucky circumstances, and you’re just going to have to take it up the tailpipe for a while until you prove yourselves. Think of it this way - you are a potential danger to Celestia’s sister who only recently returned from her banishment and is still adjusting, you are a living reminder of what Nightmare Moon was capable of, and she’s still giving you a chance which she, frankly, doesn’t need to.”

“She has no idea what we’re really capable of-” growls 3 but stops mid-sentence when the mare who originally opened the discussion shoots her a sideways glare.

“Probably,” admits Blazing, shrugging, “Neither do I and I know how powerful your Nightmare Moon was. If you wiped out your world, you must have killed other alicorns too, or at least supported her while she did so, but that only proves my point - if Celestia believes that you may be dangerous but still way within her ability to handle, whether it’s true or not, she doesn’t need to split you up to get rid of you. That means that her real goal is to integrate you into the society and gain allies in case there’s more trouble in Equestria which, to be honest, is bound to happen eventually. This place is a disaster magnet.”

“Thank you,” says Guiding Light and smiles a weary smile at her kin, “I want you to be on your guard, but also open to new experiences. Besides, half of us will be staying here in Canterlot, only in different parts of the city. I remember some of the other areas where you’re supposed to be going and only Manehattan, Las Pegasus, and the Crystal Empire are considerably out of reach. That’s also why I want you, 2, as well as 3 and 4 to go there.”

“Queen, you can’t be-” 3 objects and is shut up again by another narrow-eyed glance from the same mare, which makes Blazing curious.

“Who are you, Miss?” he asks and, to his surprise, the mare seems even more taken aback by his interest than he is unsteady at talking to an unknown mare. With only Guiding, as the Queen, having mane, tail, and normal eyes, it’s tough to make out any major differences between the dreamlings past a general mare/stallion shape.

“I’m rank 1,” she replies, “I’m a firstborn like the Queen. That means I’m your direct daughter as well,” she adds when Blazing glances at Guiding for confirmation, “So is 2,” she nods to another dreamling silently lounging on the carpet and watching the ceiling.

“3, 4, and 5,” Guiding adds, pointing at three others, “Are from my direct clutches. Everyone else is just whoever survived the end times. It was impossible to keep track of bloodlines when we were being spawned all over the world. Not that it matters,” she shrugs in the end.

“And who’s that?” Blazing points at a dreamling that’s smaller than the others and who, to him, looks completely androgynous. Unlike even the more curious dreamlings, this one is openly rummaging in a chest of clothes while sitting inside it. When it sees Blazing point, it nervously smiles and waves at him with a piece of skirt stuck to its hoof.

“That’s 19,” says Guiding, “If you don’t mind, I’d like to keep the topic of 19 for after we’re more familiar in this world.”

“Fine by me. I was just curious,” Blazing shrugs and yawns, “Geez, I guess the adrenaline from being ambushed by a bunch of Nightguards is finally wearing off. I should get back to Chokey’s place for a good night’s sleep.”

“You can stay here,” offers Guiding.

“No,” Blazing chuckles, “I’m way too nervous around all of you already for reasons I don’t want to get into right now. I’ll be back tomorrow and, now that you can go outside, I’ll show you where I live.”

He tenses up when Guiding pulls him into a hug and his breathing quickens. All the dreamlings can sense his fear, but something about its flavor tells them it’s not tied to their identity as such. When she’s about to pull away, he finally wraps his forelegs around her as well.

“Sorry, I’m not… good with ponies,” is all he mutters before letting go and sliding off of the bed as the other dreamlings clear out a path towards the exit.

Outside, he finds the off-duty Nightguard changeling drone patiently waiting with four pony plush toys - two on its back, one under its foreleg, and one in its mouth.

“They’re all yours, 65536,” he yawns again, “Good luck! I hope the love-eating experiment works immediately and we’re all good.”

“Mmphmmh mhmmmm mhmh!” the drone salutes, poking itself in the eye with the held plushie. Thankfully, changeling eyes are covered by a tough membrane, so it's harmless.

“Whatever that was supposed to mean, you too,” Blazing heads off and 65536 lets itself inside.

Path of a monster [8]: Friends in High Scores

As Guiding Light keeps grinning to herself while taking care to show a significant amount of her sharp teeth, her hoofsteps echo through the near-empty halls of the dim corridors of the castle during the late evening hours. She’s wandering aimlessly but not without a goal, and shooting a slow and examining glance at any openly nervous servants or guards straining to keep their cool, while at the same time doing absolutely nothing that could be interpreted as hostile, at least by her limited knowledge of pony behavior. She could move in complete silence even on the stone floor and, eventually, she might opt do so just to unnerve any staff further, but for now she simply moves in the way of a hunting predator, the smooth plates of her carapace sliding over themselves like the best-fitting, full-body armor of a master craftspony. Unlike changelings whose both warrior and infiltrator forms always lean towards a heavily sensual and sexualized shapes, for obvious reasons, Guiding, while still skinny from long-term starvation, is starting again to resemble the wiry and sinewy look of a practical warrior.

She’s on the hunt, and everyone who sees her can immediately feel it in their bones as their genetic memory immediately conjures up fear of fangs and claws in the dark from the times when prehistoric ponies still lived in caves. And yet, she does nothing directly threatening, even going out of her way to step to the side whenever a servant rushes past. It’s shocking how easy it is to elicit fear just by existing, and Guiding is putting on an impressive show.

Whatever happened during the changeling invasion that dad talked about, it left a serious mark on everyone. Our resemblance to changelings might make it more difficult to fit into society but, for the time being, it seems it’s making it possible to feed without attracting direct attention. The ponies will eventually get used to us and that avenue of feeding will close, but at the same time that’ll make it easier to finally make friends here.

Just like Guiding inside the castle, 1 is doing the same outside on the castle grounds, while most of the other dreamlings are walking in pairs around the city with their chaperones, disguised by clothing that’s not overly suspicious thanks to the beginning winter. They are all Guiding’s kin as well as subjects, so in her mind it’s up to her to secure food and give them time to re-learn things and experience as much of the safe world as possible before the terms of the new deal with Celestia have them leave the city. The final group remaining inside the castle are attending a reading, writing, and counting lesson.

We used to know all that. We intercepted and read enemy orders, we decoded the secret ones using ciphers we tortured out of enemies, we wrote reports of hostile forces, and now most of us can barely put sentences together in our heads, much less put them down on paper. That’s just more of a reason for me to focus on the food, since only I and our top ranks can at least talk properly. We’ll have to absorb all we can via the hive mind and catch up on the rest of our studies in person later.

While the Royal Guards patrolling or standing watch on the lower floors of the castle are an easy source of food, the Nightguards guarding the top two floors are clearly a mentally stronger lot. Whether it’s different training, more experience, or something related to serving under the command of Nighmar- Princess Luna-

Guiding involuntarily growls to herself.

-they’re wary of her but not as afraid. As she’s passing a door with the plaque reading “Nightguard Commander, knock before entering”, a brown-maned, grey-coated bat pony mare with amber eyes even waves at her to draw her attention. The Queen recognizes her from the ambush in the dungeons - she was the one who got angry when Guiding tried to access 65536’s mind. Her ‘on the hunt’ demeanor changes immediately and she straightens up, tilting her head quizzically. The mare puts a hoof to her mouth, points to the closed glass door leading onto a balcony across the hall from the office, and whispers:

“You have to see this, Your Majesty!”

Matching the mare’s behavior, Guiding’s previously loud hoofsteps go completely silent as she carefully walks over to the balcony window and peeks through. In the light of a single crystal torch on the outer wall just above the door, 65536 and 19 are lying on the floor, their eyes locked on a picture book to which the former is pointing with one hoof while talking and wildly gesticulating with the other. 19, on the other hoof, is just slowly mouthing words. Either of the two has a pony plushie on their back, 19 one of Princess Celestia and 65536 one -Guiding briefly scowls- suspiciously resembling Nightmare Moon, which must be Princess Luna.

Plush toys full of love, is that what 65536 said? Well, at least ‘19’ will be alright.

Guiding decides against tapping into 19’s mind or interrupting the two in any way, and sneaks away back to the bat mare.

“I wasn’t informed. 19 is supposed to be attending a lesson with the others,” comments Guiding quietly.

“Please, don’t be mad,” the mare keeps whispering, “65536 offered itself as a tutor for this evening, your 19 was feeling experimental, and the Commander signed off on it. They’re only doing the final reading part of the lesson.”

“I’m not angry, I just need to know where everyone is,” restates Guiding, “We’re in an unknown territory and surrounded by extremely tentative allies. If one of us doesn’t stick to a schedule, I must know why.”

“I’m sorry,” the mare offers an apologetic smile, “All of you act detached-” she suddenly waves her hoof defensively, “-and I’m not blaming you or anything, so when I saw one of you warming up to 65536 I had to take the chance. To be completely honest, I thought one of the others attending the lesson would do that hive link thing and inform you.”

“We’re not allowed to feed, and mind links are an energy sink we can’t afford right now,” explains Guiding.

They know more about us than I thought or, more likely, about the changeling part of us.

“Oh,” the mare pauses, “Sorry, that didn’t occur to me,” she shakes her head, “My name is Gloom. I’m the- one of the Nightguards who are responsible for taking care of 65536. The little drone is so adorable that it always has more than enough love to eat.”

“Is that why 65536 is accepted here even though it used to be an enemy?”

Gloom winces.

“A lot of things happened in the days after the invasion that proved that while drones may be changelings, they were as much victims of their Queen as we were. I know it’s just words to you, but I’m not at liberty to go into detail. 65536 earned our trust, that’s all,” she shrugs, “There’s no reason why you couldn’t do the same.”

“Feeding on love and feeding on fear are incomparable,” Guiding shakes her head, “My only hope is that my father is correct and it’s possible for us to eat love as well… somehow.”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Gloom smirks when Guiding raises an eyebrow, “We in the Nightguard know that fear is a useful component of keeping the peace. Our reputation as a species has been steadily improving since Luna’s return, but I can go into any public library and find books that talk about us as vampires,” she shows a single sharp fang, “We know how it feels to be outcasts and our Princess knows how it feels to have next to no allies in this world and be regarded as a monster. There will always be fear for you to eat, and it just might be the fear criminals feel of being brought to justice. Just some food for thought in case that love thing doesn’t work out, hmm?”

“Intriguing idea,” Guiding lets out a heavy sigh, “However, the last thing I want for my kind is to be used as weapons again, whether for good or not. I’ll keep that in mind, though, just in case, as you say, the love thing doesn’t work out.”

“Glad to be of help,” Gloom does a curtsy, a gesture Guiding doesn’t know but which is close enough to bowing she can guess it relates to her Queen status. Unsure how to proceed in a social situation, Guiding decides to be at least partially open:

“Thank you again for showing me that,” she nods towards the balcony, “I’m not used to just chatting, so thank you for a chance to do that as well. I still need to finish my exploration, though.”

“Oh?” Gloom is briefly taken aback by Guiding’s decidedly non-royal behavior before waving it off dismissively, “No worries. I didn’t mean to interrupt your business for long, Your Majesty.”

“And…” Guiding nods and carefully adds, “If you want to, feel free to talk to 19 whenever it has free time. It will be more difficult to get close with the others, but I don’t doubt they’ll appreciate a kind word too.”

“I can’t help wondering, is 19 your version of a drone?” asks Gloom when Guiding resumes her prowling.

“We are all just dreamlings, Miss Gloom,” is all Guiding whispers back, “We were all the same kind of slaves and fodder.”

***

Thanks to the information wrung out of the changeling assassin’s mind, the changeling hive has been discovered. Even under the eternal gloom, thanks to the Badlands being a dry, flat plain the dreamlings have been spotted by changeling guards and the exploratory force of several hundred are now facing a black sea of tens of thousands changelings. Despite the ridiculous numbers advantage, the air is so heavy with fear that dreamlings don’t doubt for a second that they won’t be bested in the war of attrition. In the back of their minds, they briefly feel changeling infiltrators trying to break into their heads and fail immediately, stopped by the dreamlings’ steel will supported by Nightmare Moon’s enslavement spell burned into each one of them immediately after hatching and before their ‘magic resistance’ instinct fully developed.

Without a word, the black tide charges, and Guiding finds herself momentarily stunned by a sudden wave of terrified crying and screaming. The front lines are small changelings, barely reaching Guiding’s barrel, all wide-eyed and mentally controlled by the sadistically smiling lines of higher-ranked changelings using the drones as fodder.

They’re more scared of what’s behind them than of us.

The soft crunch as she kicks the first attacking drone away and its carapace caves in like paper, as if there was no love reinforcing it, will haunt Guiding forever.

In the back stands a changeling as tall as Nightmare Moon herself, watching the battlefield with a victorious smile. Guiding knows she will never hate anyone more than Nightmare Moon, but as the terrified, weeping, and screeching wave of drones hits the dreamling ranks with sheer weight of numbers, Chrysalis comes damn close.

The drones don’t even try to fight, they just flail their forelegs wildly in an attempt to hit anything with their green-glowing hooves. Guiding learns her lesson as the first drone whose strike she carelessly blocks instead of dodging disintegrates the shin of her foreleg without any resistance, and she stumbles on the sudden stump, spikes of pain shooting up through her body. Thanks to the energy provided by terrified drones, she regenerates almost instantly after taking flight for a couple seconds before diving back down with a shockwave that sends the surrounding attackers to the ground.

For the first time in Nightmare Moon’s campaign, Guiding Light fully identifies with the monstrous alicorn’s orders and lets loose. She jumps to the air again, her fly-like wings transform into griffon ones and, with a powerful buffet that blasts the drones trying to fly up as well back onto the ground, she erupts through the air into the ranks of the real enemy, completely alone.

Everything beyond that is a blur.

Ranked changelings get torn to shreds, armored carapaces crack with one blow and shatter with the second, both coming within milliseconds. Top ranks of the hive, Chrysalis’ bodyguards finally feel like the drones they sent to die, laughing, as the changeling Queen orders them to stop what simply can’t be stopped. Numbers don’t help, as even the best coordinated changelings simply get in the way of each other when faced with someone much faster than they are.

A serrated tentacle grows out of Guiding’s back, perfectly tracing a hole in her ambusher’s neck plate and decapitating them in a flash. The rank 3 of the hive is being used by Guiding’s now prehensile and armored tail like a flail, impaled through his eye socket, out of his skull, and wrapped around his neck. Rank 2 gets their head bitten off. Rank 1 is an infiltrator and, as such, mostly helpless as all her mental tricks do nothing to the avatar of bladed death chasing the Queen through the hive’s tunnels.

Fueling herself with fear and empowered by the magic emanating from Nightmare Moon’s enslavement brand inside her, Guiding blasts through the hive’s strongest defenses entirely on her own…

…all to either wipe that smug grin off of Chrysalis’ face, or carve it into her decapitated head forever.

Chrysalis reflexively flees into her throne room and towards her throne - a massive structure made of unknown black stone that nullifies magic, basically an upwards-widening wall full of variously-sized holes with the seat on top.

Guiding catches her just as she’s about to fly up, grabs her by the neck, and rams her face through a hole that’s just a little smaller, shearing Chrysalis’ carapace along with her mane and a horn off of her head. Finally, with a scream of pain and fury, she puts the claws of both of her forelegs together, and smashes down on the back of Chrysalis’ neck, severing both her exoskeleton, flesh, and endoskeleton with a single blow and the sweetest of well-deserved cracks.

Changelings start fleeing as one, at least the ones who survive the sudden emptiness inside their minds caused by the Queen’s death. It would take years to finally wipe out everyone, but the dreamlings decimate whoever they can immediately reach. When Guiding leaves the hive, she finds a sea of confused drones just sitting or lying there, seemingly unsure what’s going on or even where they are. Spurred by her charge, the dreamlings must have rushed through the drones towards the real targets. It only took a couple minutes, but there’s no changeling hive anymore, no resistance, only fleeing victims.

Guiding looks at the nearest drone who just looks back at her, awaiting either orders or death.

Nightmare Moon’s brand in the back of her mind blazes.

KILL THEM ALL!

“N-No…” Guiding croaks, but her foreleg moves on its own, severing the drone’s neck in one blow.

It blinks.

One more time.

Finally, its glassy eyes stay open.

The drone next to it doesn’t try to flee or beg for its life. It just looks up at Guiding with teal, teary eyes, and the Queen sees her own reflection - the reflection of someone with no control over what happens next.

The worst part? Killing the second one is easier.

“No… no no no no…”

KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!

The third one gives the sobbing dreamling Queen a smile followed by a look of surprised relief as it realizes how easy the coming quick death is compared to what the hive’s changeling did to the drones on a daily basis.

Guiding manages to stop herself before executing the next one, but the magical brand demands blood.

EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE MUST DIE!

Even she can’t resist. The magic is too deep. She can feel its tendrils running from her spine all the way to her hooves. She can’t disobey, she exists to kill-

“‘s okay…” the drone below her quietly breathes out, snapping Guiding out of it, her foreleg raised to kill, “Do it.”

“W-What?” is all she manages to croak.

“I know that look. You don’t wanna do something but if you don’t, you and all your buddies will be tossed into the Crusher or worse - some higher rank will make you hurt them, right?” the drone smiles, “We know how it goes. Do it. It’s better than slowly starving or… droneball. We’re the ball, you know?”

Guiding’s eyes roll to the back of her skull as everything goes red.

KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!

KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL-

Something inside her mouth cracks.

Several teeth fall out.

The drone waits, patiently.

In a completely calm tone that surprises even herself, Guiding says:

“No.”

Nightmare Moon’s spell isn’t broken, it just is no longer enough to tame her.

“Everyone, stop what you’re do-” she tries to order through her mind link.

KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!

Guiding reels from the mental backlash. The other dreamlings aren’t strong enough. There’s only one thing she can do now.

She grabs the drone and puts it on her back while ordering:

“Kill the small ones quickly and as painlessly as possible.”

“You, drone, what’s your rank?”

“I- I’m 9999,” the drone peeps.

“You’re now one of us. No one will notice. No one cares. Can you grow bigger?”

“I- I don’t have l- love.”

“Do you dissolve your dead for energy like we do?”

“Y- Yes, the high ranks m- made us eat p- pieces-”

Guiding turns around to face the hive with a nasty grin.

“Which piece of your Queen do you want?”

9999’s jaw drops.

***

They were so small…

Guiding bites her lip hard enough to draw blood and to return to here and now. Heavily breathing and with her legs shaking, she can’t recall making her way back to the guest wing of the castle. The massacre of changelings was the first step on a journey that would take fifteen more years. A journey not to victory, but at least to freedom.

No matter what happens to the rest of us, 65536 is proof that ‘19’ can build a new life here, and there’s not a single one of us who deserves it more.

Author's Note

I'm, waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too drunk.
And not the bad kind of drunk.
Have a chapter. There won't be one next Monday, but whatever.
Alternate reality 9999 would be the first drone to live for 3(?) years. Just to show how bad 9999's loss really was and that 36658 and 10k were both completely correct.
I didn't proofread this one...

Path of a monster [9]: Good/Bad company

Only a singular crystal torch above the door of the dreamling suite is bathing the main room in soft, blue light, illuminating Guiding Light and 1 lying side-by-side on a queen-size bed, both absorbed in a book.

“Pa-ra-lyzed,” Guiding reads out a word and closes her eyes. She knows the word, she can read the word, she knows that she knows the word, yet her memory fails to come up with its meaning on the spot. After a couple seconds, she shakes her head and looks at her companion who is writing the word in the air from memory with a claw, “1?”

“It’s that… that condition when you can’t move, I think,” replies 1. Guiding looks up in frustration and scowls. The fragmented hive mind seems to work much better when she’s talking about something or listening to someone, but understanding the written word is much more difficult, likely because most interactions between dreamlings were based on their mind links, and talking was for everyone else. Still, reading and writing shouldn’t be this difficult, even most mid-ranked dreamlings wrote a report here and there and read orders and mission briefings, “You’re distracted,” adds 1, “And it’s not just hunger.”

“The two of us put together are barely able to progress through a book,” Guiding puts her face into her claws. Hooves are great for movement, but the manipulation ability of claws wins in every other situation, “In a couple of days, we’ll be scattered all over Equestria. I’m worried for everyone.”

1 chuckles and pats Guiding’s shoulder.

“You may be the most powerful of us, but we can take care of ourselves. It’s nothing new - just another paired assignment behind enemy lines.”

To her own surprise, that point of view does wonders to calm Guiding down.

“You’re right. I got so overwhelmed by losing so many before we escaped the old world that the idea of losing any more of us-” she chuckles, “-paralyzed me. None of us are strangers to danger-”

As if on cue, the walls shake, the open door to the bathroom rattles, and the porcelain tableware useful both for decoration and snacks on a shelf with a glass pane in the front clinks. Even before the strange tremor ends, 1 is already opening the suite door for Guiding who bursts into the castle corridor.

Faint plumes of acrid smoke are coming from the cracks around the door of the next suite, accompanied by heavy coughing and stuff falling on the ground that’s easy to hear in the silence of the late evening castle. Whatever is going on can’t be natural or desired, so Guiding doesn’t wait and slams her foreleg through the wood around the lock before ripping it out entirely and kicking the door in with her other foreleg. Her nose immediately stings and she starts coughing when black cloud hanging inside pours into the hallway. As she lowers her head to the floor to take in a deep breath through her mouth, she notices an equine shape on the floor. Darting into the suite immediately, Guiding drags the equine out where 1 has already opened a window in both directions of the hall to stop the smoke from spreading.

What’s a zebra doing here? Nevermind! What now? We’ve never done any field medicine.

Fortunately, once moved under the window, the zebra mare recovers on her own and takes in a lungful of air before bursting into a coughing fit. Neither of the dreamlings have any idea what to do to help, but there’s still one unanswered question, and Guiding leans down to her and grabs her by the shoulders.

“Is there anyone else inside?” she asks in a slow, firm voice.

The zebra shakes her head which sends her into a new but thankfully weaker coughing fit. With nothing to do but wait, Guiding observes the zebra. She’s young, likely in her late teens, and slim like a twig. Her mixed pink and grey mane is short just like her tail, and when she finally opens her teary eyes, Guiding can see they’re pink as well. Overall, an uncommon color scheme for a zebra but nothing with pointing out, and yet… something feels off about her, but Guiding can’t put a hoof on what.

Her observation gets interrupted by a duo of Royal Guards rounding the nearest corner. They immediately rush in and point their spears on the duo of dreamlings near what to them is a barely conscious royal guest. Another pair gallop into the hallway and pincer the dreamlings from the other side.

“Step away from her!” orders one.

“What did you do?!” calls out the leader of the second group.

“It’s the new monsters,” Guiding hears a guard whisper and frowns.

Blazing’s words flash through her mind -you’re going to have to take it up the tailpipe for a while- and she takes a deep breath while 1 glances her way.

“We didn’t-”

The zebra gurgles loudly, interrupting her, and wildly waves one raised forelegs before trying to push herself up and failing until Guiding helps her sit up.

“They-” she hucks out a black spit and gasps for air, ”-pulled me out,” she points vaguely towards the door, “Experiment… gone wrong. I’ll clean that up,” finally pushing herself back on all fours, she looks into her suite and winces, “Oof. just give me a couple of hours.”

Almost disappointed, the guards raise their spears again and exchange a few words about sending cleaning staff with the zebra. After that, she runs back into the suite, upon which Guiding can hear clicking and humming of air, followed by the black cloud inside starting to slowly dissipate. Just as the Queen and 1 are about to return to their suite, the zebra rushes out again with a pair of saddlebags and shuts the door.

“Hey, guys- guests!” she trots over to them, “Ehh, sorry for the mess and thank you for helping me. My name is Gem, I’m a… trying to be an alchemist,” she raises her foreleg between the dreamlings to shake the hoof, or claw, of anyone willing to do so. When Guiding reciprocates, Gem continues, beaming, “It’s great to see more changelings trying to live among ponies.”

“We’ve been here only a couple days,” says Guiding.

“Sorry, I didn’t notice. I’m new here too and I don’t go outside that often,” Gem lowers her head apologetically.

“We moved to the guest suite only recently,” explains the Queen.

“Say,” Gem perks up, “Would you like to go for an evening out? I know a club where you might get some ambient love to eat. My treat.”

“We-” Guiding is about to politely refuse, but 1 clears her throat and interrupts her with:

“You could use both the experience and something to take your mind off our situation.”

“We still need to get an official escort. We’re not allowed to leave the castle grounds without one,” explains Guiding.

“No problem!” Gem waves her hoof, “I can take care of that. Let’s go see Miss Inkwell. If you want to go, that is.”

“I’ll take care of the others when they return,” 1 nods at Guiding.

“Alright, let’s see what this city is about,” the Queen nods.

“Yesss!” Gem punches the air so hard she stumbles.

***

Surrounded by muted music and the chaos of chatting ponies as Guiding and Gem sit on a pair of bar stools behind a counter of a lively club, Guiding finishes a quick summary of her origin and the events of recent days.

“Aww,” the young zebra sitting to Guiding’s right pouts into her drink.

If there’s something the Queen wasn’t expecting, it’s her story being disappointing. Gruesome? Yes. Off-putting? Yes. This? No.

“Were you expecting more?” she asks, “I didn’t want to go into exact details here in public,” she nods towards the bartender behind the counter.

“No no no,” Gem shakes her head and shoots the Queen a strangely sad smile, “I was just hoping to learn more about Queen Chrysalis’ hive-” she suddenly waves her forelegs defensively and almost spill her glass, “Not that you’re not interesting or, you know, terrifying,” she giggles.

“You don’t look or sound terrified,” comments Guiding in a factual tone that comes off as somewhat cold. She’s observant enough to have noticed ponies shooting her worried glances since the two arrived, even though most are occupied in groups, with partners, or simply by their drinks, yet she can’t sense any fear related to her from Gem, “That’s unique around here.”

“I have changeling friends who escaped the hive,” Gem smiles at her, “I know changelings have rarely had much say in what they’re doing. You may be the Queen, but your story didn’t sound as if you had much free will either. Besides, I live in the castle because I did something bad and I’m getting a chance just like you,” she shrugs, “I just don’t need a chaperone anymore, only to periodically check in with one of Princess Celestia’s paladins. On the other h- hoof, now that I’m not under what’s basically house arrest, Miss Inkwell has been gently nudging me towards looking for a place of my own. That’s one of the reasons I’m digging deeper into alchemy…” Gem laughs nervously, “It doesn’t always work, heh, as you saw for yourself. Speaking of - what’s your plan for the future?”

Guiding still doesn’t have an answer, so she takes a sip of some green, minty drink that Gem bought for her to give herself a moment to formulate an answer.

“It’s hard to imagine anything other than fighting or waiting for a new assignment,” she puts her glass down and waves her hoof around at the crowd, “but seeing what’s outside the castle walls is the first step. Thank you for giving me the opportunity.”

“Oh, well,” Gem blushes, “I’m sure anyo- anypony would escort you if you asked. You are allowed to leave, just with a chaperone.”

“True,” Guiding nods, “But you reached out yourself, that’s different,” before Gem can say something defensive again, Guiding returns to the original subject, “After twenty years of constant destruction, I’d like to build something. I’ll be happy if I don’t have to end lives and ruin futures anymore.”

“Same,” Gem pats Guiding’s foreleg, looks down into her drink, and says in a quiet tone barely audible over the ambience, “I know how it feels to kill a pony. I can still feel his hot blood in my mouth, in my nose-” her breathing quickens, “It was an accident -that’s what I keep telling myself but it’s hard to believe- and I never want to do anything like that again,” she shakes her head, gathering herself.

“Sometimes it’s inevitable-” Guiding shrugs.

“It’s never inevitable!” Gem growls suddenly.

“No,” Guiding’s tone, as always whenever she’s not talking to her dad, is firm and factual, “Take it from someone who spent their entire life fighting - sometimes there is no other way but to solve a problem permanently,” she raises her hoof to stop Gem’s next objection, “But I can agree with this - the instance of it being really necessary are rare. Sometimes you just can’t run.”

Gem takes a deep breath.

“No, you can always ‘not kill’. If you can’t run, paralysis potions exist, mind and memory control exist - you don’t need to end someone’s future, you need to change it. And to that, you don’t need to be strong enough, you need to be smart enough, I need to be smart enough,” Gem’s sudden thousand-yard stare ends with her whispering so quietly that only Guiding’s excellent hearing can make it out: “If I was smart enough, dad would still be around.”

Guiding doesn’t have the social experience to reach out and hug Gem or anything similar, so all she can do is say:

“I don’t think you’re wrong, I only think your view is incomplete, Gem. I don’t mind fighting, it’s the senseless destruction of futures, as you said, that bothers me. And if you’re strong enough to send the message that you’re not to be messed with, smart enough to know how to do so, and skilled enough to know when to stop to avoid killing, you’ll have the confidence to control any situation you find yourself in.”

“I…” Gem frowns. She can’t argue against what Guiding said but neither can she just accept it, “Can we change the topic, please? I don’t want to ruin this evening by getting stuck on something we can’t see eye to eye. How are you liking this place so far?” she looks around the bar and secretly points to ponies dancing and some kissing while doing so, “I took you here specifically because I know how difficult it is to feed in Canterlot for a changeling who can’t shapeshift.”

Unfortunately, that’s another area where Guiding is lost - despite Gem explaining on the way here that club ponies were more used to changelings and some might be interested and let her feed on their lust if Guiding played her cards right, the Queen’s feeding instinct just isn’t picking anything.

“How do you know so much about changelings anyway?” Guiding changes the subject because dreamling feeding is one thing she left out from telling Gem her story, which the zebra reads immediately.

“It’s that bad, eh? Well, you do come off pretty intimidating. Normally, since changeling citizens aren’t allowed to shapeshift unless their life is in danger, they usually at least enhance their physiques to be more-” Gem runs her forelegs over her body while tracing some more curvature in specific places, “-seductive. I’m not saying there aren’t ponies who would fall head over hooves for you, hol- hay no, they just aren’t the kind to approach first.”

“It’s not working for me, but thank you for trying.”

“That’s what friends are for,” Gem turns around on her stool and measures the crowd, “Hmm, where could we find somepony for-” she stops, noticing an earth pony stallion who splits off from an entering group and makes his way through the crowd towards them, “Maybe you will get lucky tonight.”

Guiding, having had the newcomers in view before Gem turned around, noticed them discreetly pointing and exchanging some words beforehoof. Something about it doesn’t sit well with her, but maybe she’s just paranoid.

“They could be here for you,” she comments.

“Sure. Zebras do have the exotic draw in Canterlot, but so do changelings,” Gem winks at her, “Let’s test that. I’ll pop into the bathroom for a minute and then see how things are going. If he’s here for you, I’ll find a quiet place to wait. If not, there’s enough of the night left for me to be your wingpony.”

As she slides from her stool, Guiding grabs her and whispers sharply:

“Wait, what do I do? What do I say?”

“Be nice, no talking about killing, hold hooves- claws. If you’re both interested, there are private rooms in the back. Ask the bartender! Don’t worry, I’ll be around,” Gem pats Guiding’s shoulder and quickly trots away.

When Gem vanishes from sight through a hallway in the back, the entering group goes that way as well. Guiding, though, can’t ponder the situation for long, because the earth pony stallion finally reaches her, sits down on the stool to Guiding’s left, and gestures first at the bartender, next at the drink menu written on a blackboard above the shelves with alcohol, and finally at himself and Guiding.

“What’s a muscle mommy like you doing in a place like this? Looking for somepony who would look good crushed between your thighs?” he smirks at Guiding who gives him a stare so deadpan it could murder a wok.

I AM a mother, I am muscular, and I am getting the feeling that his head would look good crushed-

No, Guiding! Be nice.

The bartender puts two drinks on the counter, one for the stallion and one for Guiding, who forces a smile before looking towards the hallway to where Gem went and pointing.

“I’m here with a friend who-”

Her ear twitches as she hears the faintest hiss from behind.

“-just ran off,” she faces the stallion again and, from the corner of her eye, notices that her drink, compared to his, is slightly more fizzy. He catches her looking and immediately starts talking again.

“Oh, the zebra? I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw the most exotic beauties at the bar together and I couldn’t help coming over,” he laughs, “I’m coming on too strong, aren’t I?” he takes a sip of his drink, prompting Guiding to do the same, which she does to buy herself time to think of an answer.

“All this is new to me, but it’s nice to meet someone who doesn’t see me as a monster,” she says after a while.

“I see,” he waves his hoof dismissively, “I’ve met a free changeling or two,” winking at Guiding, he takes another sip, and so does she, “and not just in clubs. Normal guys just like me. I know all the talk about them cocooning ponies is nonsense… unless they ask.”

“Ponies ask for that?” Guiding tilts her head, puzzled, and finishes her glass.

Shouldn’t Gem be back? Bathroom breaks don’t last this long, and I can’t see her watching from anywhere.

“Roleplay can be fun,” he smiles. For some reason, Guiding is starting to sense fear coming from him.

“I never thought of it that way,” she admits and resumes drinking her previous drink, the one that Gem ordered, “Huh, between these two, I think I prefer yours,” she taps both glasses.

Calm down, Guiding. Even if you have to return alone, there are witnesses who know you left with Gem. No one can use you being in the city on your own against your kind.

“Another one?” he suggests.

“I wouldn’t mind. We can hold hooves afterwards,” she smiles, “and maybe more. I heard there are private rooms in the back.”

“A mare after my own heart. Bartender?”

Guiding turns around on her stool again and looks up at the ceiling, ears perked and intently listening. When she hears the hissing again, she turns around, now alert enough to notice something almost instantly dissolving in her drink.

You have no idea.

Again, the second her eyes stop on her fresh glass, the stallion makes his move, this time in the form of taking her foreleg into his hooves and looking into her eyes.

“I’m just trying to get a head start on the hoof- claw holding.”

“Good thing you left me a free one,” Guiding makes a show of the claws of her right foreleg before taking a long draught and licking her lips, taking care to show off her tongue. That’s tempting or something, right? “I like this. The more I drink the ea-” she yawns, “-easier it is to drink- oops!” the glass almost gets knocked over by her waving foreleg, “Better to finish it off so that th- dis dosn’t happen agen,” smirking into her drink when she hears him let out a relieved sigh, she finishes the glass off.

The stallion lets go and asks:

“How about we get a head start on the rest of the night? Have you ever been in the private rooms here?”

“Nah, it’s my first time,” Guiding slides from her stool.

“Then let me show you,” he steadies her with his body when she takes a little too long step forward and leads her down the same hallway into which Gem went. Thankfully, with dreamlings being larger than changelings but still overall the same size as ponies including the Queen, it’s easy. At the end of the hallway, past the toilets, is a locked door guarded by a muscular earth pony bouncer who nods at the stallion escorting Guiding, unlocks the door, and lets the duo inside.

“We got them both!” he announces the second the door closes behind them and the lock clicks.

Inside a circular room is the suspicious group of ponies surrounding what looks like a barber’s chair with leather straps tightened around the legs of a familiar young zebra whose face is entirely covered by a wet cloth. Gem looks sideways and the cloth falls off of her face with a wet slap into a filled bucket underneath, revealing her bleeding muzzle and a black eye.

With the outside noise so well muted, there’s no way anyone could hear anything that’s going on in here, which suits Guiding just fine as she straightens up and asks in her usual matter-of-fact tone, completely devoid of any effect of alcohol or whatever the drug she drank two doses of was supposed to do:

“Roleplay, Gem?”

All the zebra is able to do is mouth “No”.

“YOU LED IT RIGHT HERE, YOU INCOMPETENT MORON!” yells one of the ponies before lowering his voice, “Good thing nopony will miss a bug whore.”

Guiding grins and bares her fangs. Finally, a comfortable situation.

Path of a monster [10]: Escalation

“The bug bitch is laughing at us!” the nearest earth pony’s face twists in anger.

“Whoever knocks the most teeth out of her gets to use her before we get rid of the body,” growls an earth pony in the back, who seems to be the leader.

“Deal,” says Guiding, who hasn’t moved an inch despite the pony who brought her turning around to tackle her.

Six ponies - four earth ponies scattered around, the one who led me here right on my left, one unicorn near Gem. Enclosed space - circular room, benches lining the walls, a raised stage in the center with Gem strapped to a torture chair. The ground is even, no tripping hazards. Weapons - heavy horseshoes all around, one knife, one pipe, potentially a metal folding chair or the bucket with Gem’s blood and teeth in it.

Alright, so the worst case scenario is one of them harming Gem. Hopefully, the unicorn will try to use magic instead of doing something physical. They tend to.

The left earth pony’s muzzle collides mid-charge with the immovable object that is Guiding’s foreleg, which clearly wasn’t there a fraction of a second before, throwing a casual bone-obliterating jab. The pain spiking from her hoof to her shoulder from the impact warns Guiding that she’s too hungry and thus too vulnerable to be so thoughtless, but the bleeding crater remaining from the pony’s face is just too satisfying.

She doesn’t take the second fastest goon head on as he jumps forward and tries to punch her. Instead, she ducks under the swing and sends him to the dream world with one quick uppercut that makes his neck crack. The third earth pony slows down to avoid his buddy’s falling body, giving Guiding time to rush to the center of the room while giving him a heavy kick with her hind leg as she passes by. This time it’s not a one-hit KO, but it still makes him back off.

The unicorn finally snaps out of the shock of three of his hefty companions failing to stop a visibly built and athletic mare but one still not looking like a brick house, and falls directly into Guiding’s trap when his horn lights up. With two targets easily downed, one disoriented, one on his way, and one still in shock, Guiding isn’t fighting for her life but more looking for dinner. When the unicorn lets his magic flow, she rips it out of him even without getting close which makes him collapse on the floor with an agonized screech, leaving her time to spin around to give a left hook to the fifth goon that sends him to the floor.

Two earth ponies who are seeing stars and the earth pony boss shaking in his pants.

Said earth pony boss picks hsi pipe up with his mouth, blinks, something creaks in his muzzle, and when he opens his eyes the pipe is gone, held by Guiding raised on her hind legs whose forehooves are now claws. He only hears a whistle as the pipe cleaves the air before everything goes black. A single flash of Guiding’s horn later, as she uses the stolen magic to cast a dreamling-specific version of a sleep spell, the two wounded earth ponies, one trying to unlock the door and one beating against it in panic with his hooves, collapse as well.

Nine seconds without enhancements. Not bad, far from perfect either.

The sleep spell laced with nightmares starts paying dividends two-fold. One, for the first time in months, Guiding can not just barely feed, but feast. And two, she’s feeding from every target in the room, which means she didn’t kill anyone by accident and they can be interrogated later if need be. With so much energy starting to flow directly into her after so long, she needs to steady herself when the pain of dozens of legs fallen asleep and now waking up rushes through her entire body.

Her eyes twitching and the feeling of needles stabbing her everything, Guiding forces herself to approach Gem who is just sitting in the chair and slowly breathing. Guiding’s hooves unfold into claws again, which make untying the young zebra a simple task. When she touches her neck while putting her ear to Gem’s mouth, Gem raises her foreleg and gently pushes the Queen away.

“I’m fine, just thinking,” she says quietly, trying to move her bruised mouth as little as possible.

“Do we have the time to be thinking?” asks Guiding, glancing towards the door.

“The only time I saw somepony move as quickly as you did, it was one of the top ranks of Queen Chrysalis’ hive. I think anypony who peeks in here will get the message.”

“I’m a barely tolerated guest in this world. It wouldn’t look good if my first night out ended with a massacre.”

“You have me as a witness, but I guess you’re right- ow!” Gem tries to get up and slumps back into the chair, “Just give me a couple minutes. Anypony outside will be expecting that I take some persuading, and if anypony in here wakes up I have some chemistry to deal with them.”

“Then how did you end up in this mess?”

Gem grits her teeth and this time manages to get out of the chair.

“I was expecting them to at least try to talk first. I must have crossed somepony a bit too influential,” the gears in her head resume turning as she shuffles over to the closest unconscious pony and starts looting his saddlebag. She catches Guiding watching her take a pouch of gold, and adds: “Don’t judge me, I just got beaten up and waterboarded.”

Guiding raises an eyebrow.

“Just observing. For example, one of the things I noticed is that you’re not missing a single tooth anymore,” she lets the sentence hang in the air when Gem gasps, freezes, and unconsciously runs her tongue along her mouth, “You know a lot about changeling feeding and you ‘saw’ a changeling move close to my speed, which is a level of skill I doubt anyone smart would reveal unless their life was in danger. Let me guess - you’re a changeling yourself?”

Like a deer in headlights, Gem slowly raises her foreleg, and a burst of green flames halfway to her knee reveals black carapace drizzled with silvery spots before turning back into a striped zebra leg.

“I’m sorry you got caught in whatever this is shaping up to be. I promise I was really just trying to help a fellow changeling get some love, I know how difficult it can be around here even if you are allowed to shapeshift,” Gem hasn’t resumed looting the ambushers yet, and is watching Guiding whose years of combat experience are telling her the ‘zebra’ is looking for a way out but the Queen is between her and the door, plus she’s clearly much faster and stronger.

Guiding sighs.

Perhaps it’s time for truth even from my side? Gem is both useful and a potential friend.

“Well, if we’re sharing secrets about each other, we’re less changelings from a different world and more weapons of annihilation and, as such, we wouldn’t exactly be effective if we fed on love, would we?” Guiding allows herself a bitter smirk, “We feed on fear, and our innate ability to use sleeping magic and evoke nightmares was built into us by the monster who made us. Only a couple ponies know this, and some are trying to figure out if we might be able to eat love as well, so far without any success. I accepted your offer to go out so that I could give it a shot myself,” looking around at the twitching and moaning ponies locked in their deserved bad dreams, she tries to lighten the mood, “The plan sort of worked.”

“Ohhhh!” Gem finally resumes looting the ponies and adds with a renewed interest, “In that case, maybe I can help you with both?”

“I’m listening,” is all Guiding can say with her head starting to spin as she’s forcing her body to not just get used to the flow of energy, but now to start overloading itself. After all, the more she can, even temporarily, absorb, the more she’ll be able to give to the others back at the castle. It’s just going to hurt immensely, but that’s nothing new.

“I’ve been making my living selling rare alchemy reagents which I create using my shapeshifting skill. In a matter of weeks, I can turn my resin or parts of my carapace into reagents which are near-impossible to find and can cost a fortune,” she nods to the leader of the ponies lying toothless with his trusty pipe in a pool of blood and drool next to him, “It seems like I encroached on someone’s turf, because they wanted to know where I was getting a particular thing called silver rust. This isn’t the first time I’ve been asked suspicious questions about it by strangers, but it’s the first time it got this bad, so I doubt this is the last time they’ll target me despite the message thrashing everyone will send. It might even make them escalate, so you might get some more volunteers to feed from as well as my help in trying to get love or lust.”

“Where did you learn that level of transformation?” asks Guiding, clearly impressed by the first part and unbothered by the second, “Based on the few changelings I’ve met, I know that our own shapeshifting is basic at best.”

“That, I’m not allowed to tell you, sorry,” Gem shakes her head, “But I can teach you a thing or two.”

Good, you’re still keeping secrets, which means so can I.

“I don’t think that’ll work. We can’t even copy someone else, which is something that comes naturally to normal changelings. Just like the fear-eating, it’s something with our genetics-” she pauses, “Actually, I could be wrong about that. I’ll just need to check with our father. In return, I could teach you how to throw a punch.”

“No, no violence! I- I… just no.”

“I can also teach you how to dodge and, most importantly, take a punch. You know, the better you are at fighting, the easier it is to control the situation as well as your own strength and avoid unintended consequences,” the Queen looks meaningfully at the crumpled but alive ponies.

For a second, Gem looks not just in thought but as if she was actively listening to something before replying in a tone full of hesitation:

“I’ll… think about it.”

As Gem finishes going through the saddlebags and settling only on taking the ponies’ valuables, Guiding changes the topic:

“Why a zebra?”

“Hmm? That’s simple - the exotic value makes it shockingly easier to feed and, since I don’t know pony culture that well yet, it gives me cover in case I slip up. Plus, zebras are known for practicing alchemy, so that aligns perfectly with me,” Gem raises a small ring of keys and shakes it, “Finally! Ready to get out or do you need more time to drain them?”

“The more time I have the better. I’m trying to store as much as I can to share with the others back in the castle. We can’t exactly go around bringing nightmares to random ponies to feed on,” replies Guiding and watches Gem seemingly listen to something again.

“Riiight, the Queen’s body is primarily adapted to storing and efficient use of energy and only secondarily to be a warrior or an infiltrator.”

Guiding doesn’t comment on it.

There’s a world of difference between knowing a definition of something and understanding its meaning and consequences.

“If you know so much, explain to me one thing - a pony at the bar called me a muscular mother and wanted me to crush his head with my thighs,” she says instead and watches Gem blush, “I’m entirely capable of doing that and I’ve spawned many clutches over the years, but I’m wondering how he figured that out.”

“Do NOT literally crush anypony’s head with your thighs when they say that!” Gem blurts out, “NoI’mnotaprudestopsayingthat!”

Guiding just raises an eyebrow.

Is there a changeling she’s linked up with? Why didn’t they come to help? No matter, it just means that I can’t be called out for not sharing my side of everything. Secrets can be a double-edged sword.

“Gem, about our partnership - I can tell other dreamlings to be of assistance in case I’m not available. They need a chaperone to leave the castle just like me, and they can provide protection as well. With the exception of 19, that is. I would like it to spend its time with the changeling Nightguard.”

“That would be fantastic, Your Majesty- Guiding,” Gem openly smiles now, “I’ll, of course, show any of them around Canterlot as well as the club scene. Maybe they’ll get luckier with gaining love or lust or, if not, I’ll think of something solid to repay you with.”

A couple minutes of silent relaxation later, one of the ponies grunts and starts foaming at the mouth, which makes Guiding frown in disappointment, stand up, and fight off the bloated feeling coupled with an onset of dizziness.

“I’m ready to go. Feeding much more would be dangerous to them and, as I said, I don’t want my night out ending with a massacre.”

“Yes, uh, that wouldn’t be good!” Gem nods and walks over to the heavy door leading back to the club, “Say, there’s somepony who might shed some light on what happened today. Do you have the time to come along?”

“As long as I’m with someone, I wasn’t told there was a curfew.”

“Excellent!”

***

The trip on hoof down the mountain to lower Canterlot this late at night could be dangerous for a happy, young, and curvy zebra chatting incessantly about random topics relating to the city, but only if she wasn’t accommodate by her polar opposite in a muscular changeling Queen prowling next to her and staring intensely at anyone in the vicinity. The night and day duo eventually make their way to the mountainside district of the lower city and to a small, unremarkable, two story building like any other with empty shelves behind barred windows on the bottom floor and a sign above the door reading [Rare Remedies].

Gem looks up at the dark windows of the second floor and frowns.

“Mister Steaming Cauldron usually does his errands around noon and keeps the store open late when ponies come and buy stuff after work. He lives on the upper floor, so…”

“Got it,” Guiding nods. She can’t sense any alarm spell on the entrance, so she tries the handle which gives in despite the [closed] sign on the door.

“That’s not good,” comments Gem.

Guiding walks into the store, and a single sniff of the air brings with it a hint of blood and the stale air of early decay from the door in the back.

“Corpse. A couple hours old at most. Back room.”

Gem grits her teeth and sighs, which Guiding reads as that it was one of the possibilities Gem was expecting but hoping against.

“Go back outside.”

“Huh?” Guiding looks at the zebra.

“We’ll have to report this as soon as possible and I’m getting you out of the loop because we’re bound to get questioned and I am not the one who can only leave the castle with company,” Gem walks to the door of the back room, opens it, and immediately turns back with a crestfallen expression, “I’m sorry, Mister Cauldron. I thought occasionally selling a rare ingredient would be a stable source of bits, not that it would lead to this…”

“Were you and the alchemist close?” asks Guiding when Gem leaves the shop.

“Not overly. He took me under his wing when that court creep I was learning from turned a bit too grabby even for my tastes,” Gem looks away, “It was nice to have somepony who thought of me as a daughter again,” she wipes her eyes, “But that’s neither here nor there. So, here’s what we tell the guards - I invited you to the club, you didn’t manage to fee- to get any love, we left, I wanted to stop by a guy, you didn’t know why, we discovered him dead.”

“Ah, the technical truth.”

“The best kind of truth.”

Path of a monster [11]: It's paranoia only when they aren't coming for you.

The nighttime return trip took the duo first through the dark streets of the lower Canterlot dotted by groups returning home, casual drunks, and accompanied by bursts of laughter and enjoyment coming from various establishments lighting up the streets with the glow from their windows. Gem offered to stay the night at her adoptive parents’ house, but it was crucial for Guiding to return to her kind in order to feed them before she’d be forced to either fully absorb or release the energy she drained from the ambushers, so they took the highway winding around the mountain to the upper city, both enjoying the fresh air, the view of stars above as well as the little dots of light marking the countryside villages of Equestria, and the silence. The final leg of their “journey” took them through Upper Canterlot all the way back to the castle. For a duo of normal ponies, the trip could have been dangerous, especially with the limited guard presence growing thinner with passing time, but whatever few suspicious shadows dared take a peek at the two immediately received a glare from Guiding which clearly stated that darkness was no protection from becoming her prey.

It’s close to two o’clock in the morning when two unlucky Royal Guard unicorns on graveyard shift at the courtyard gate finally let Guiding and Gem back into the castle proper and the zebra yawns back at them. In contrast to the visibly sleepy unicorns and Gem, the open lawns on both sides of the road crossing the courtyard and connecting the main gate with the castle entrance host over two dozen active ponies- bat ponies split into groups that are either locked in mock combat or busy with physical exercises.

Well, with one strange exception - an amber-eyed, sinewy, grey-coated bat pony stallion watching two laughing changelings chase one another with a smile on his face.

Sharp Biscuit, the Nightguard Commander, was it?

Guiding taps Gem on her shoulder before briefly pointing at the peculiar spectacle, and they head that way. Gem yawns again, blinks away her semi-asleep state, and her brain starts analyzing what’s going on. 65536 is chasing the smallest of the dreamlings, who is barely a head taller than the drone but clearly way faster and more agile as well as visibly stronger.

“Hmm, 19 is keeping 65536 at bay while letting it remain close. Good control of the situation,” muses Guiding as they approach.

“That’s expected,” Gem shrugs, “65536 may be training with the Nightguards, but it’s still just a drone.”

“It’s a changeling. Changelings can adapt to anything and become anything if they survive long enough,” Guiding corrects her with a smile that makes Gem suspicious. So far, to her it seems the Queen has been careful with her words but what she did say was never an outright lie, so she decides to observe further.

“YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO FIGHT MEEEEE!” yells 65536 at 19 who is still fleeing across the lawn while laughing out loud and dodging instead of running whenever 65536 gets too close, usually making the drone miss and faceplant into the lawn.

“I WILL FIGHT YOU WHEN YOU CATCH ME!” 19 yells back, digs its forelegs into the ground, spins the rest of its body around, and jumps over 65536 this time.

Stopping at the edge of the changelings’ presumed playground slash training area, Guiding calls out:

“If you take a hit, 19, no food for you!”

“Your Majesty!” the dreamling freezes and frowns at the Queen which gives 65536 a chance to catch up and-

-stop mid-grab when it could easily tackle the dreamling.

“What?” Guiding tilts her head.

“It wouldn’t be fair if I caught 19 only because you surprised it and it didn’t get any food tonight, Your Magic Stick!” 65536 pouts at Guiding, hoof still outstretched.

Gem laughs and says quietly so that only Guiding can hear:

“If they ever update a picture dictionary, 65536’s photo will be next to the word ‘good’.”

“Let’s escalate a bit then!” Sharp joins in with a smile, “If you don’t catch the guy, 65536, no hugs for you tonight!”

“GASP!” says the drone.

“Did it just say ‘gasp’?” Guiding raises an eyebrow.

“Mister Sharp doesn’t mean it,” Gem whispers back, ignoring the comment.

“FOR THE HUGS!” yells 65536 and rushes at 19 who trips the drone up while making a pirouette around it as it tumbles on the ground.

“Of course I didn’t mean it, 19,” Guiding connects to the dreamling through their mind link, “Have fun, but don’t forget to sharpen your skills. Hungry?”

“I’m good,” responds 19, its voice a little distorted after so long of not using mind links due to the lack of energy, “You don’t need to feed me tonight, Your Majesty. It’s tricky eating love after so long, but everyone here loves 65536 and the drone itself is happier than any of us ever used to be and is practically glowing with it. If you and the others are able to eat love and just need some kind of a push to figure out how, this is the best place to learn.”

The Queen smiles as 65536 resumes chasing 19 darting around like a dog chasing its own tail, only interrupted by Gem a few moments later.

“We shared a lot of secrets tonight, didn’t we?” asks the zebra quietly.

“We shared some,” says Guiding noncommittally.

“You don’t need to say anything but… 19 is a changeling, an actual changeling drone. Not one of you.”

Guiding narrows her eyes.

“19 is a dreamling.”

Having been told the basic facts about ‘Nightmare changelings’ tonight, Gem understands what Guiding meant by what she just said, and doesn’t push the subject.

“So you do believe you’ll adapt to eating love?” she asks after a while.

“We aren’t changelings, but I’m afraid that my only option is to bet our future on the off chance of us being changelings enough,” Guiding changes the subject when Sharp Biscuit walks closer and it’s clear that 65536 is losing steam, “19, try getting him!” she nods sideways at Sharp.

“Wha-?” the bat pony dodges entirely on reflex and turns the tables by tripping up 19 who immediately obeys the Queen’s suggestion. Unlike 65536, though, 19 turns its fall into somersault which ends up with it back on all fours, ready, and facing Sharp who smiles.

“Good enough,” Guiding commends the 19.

“Thank you,” it replies.

Guiding walks over to 65536 who is staring at 19 facing off against Sharp with eyes wide and jaw dropped.

“This is how you do it - dodge, don’t run. If you’re slower, you’re losing sight of your enemy, and you have to be both faster and have more stamina to get away, as well as somewhere safe to run too. If you mindlessly flee, you’ll die.”

Gem nudges Guiding.

“Way to ruin the playful mood.”

The Queen takes in the situation and admits it with:

“My apologies.”

“T-that makes s-s-sense, Your M-magic Stick!” 65536 starts shaking as its awe towards 19 changes to fear under Guiding’s admittedly neutral stare.

“You don’t have to be scared of me. You’re in a safe place, surrounded by allies within reach, and I mean you no harm,” Guiding tries to lighten the mood.

Can the drone sense the emotional energy of the drained fear that I’m holding right now from this range or is it genuinely that afraid of me? It wasn't so bad the last time when we tried eating love from the plushie it brought, or even a couple moments ago.

65536 takes a deep breath to steady its nerves.

“You feel so different from the others now. 19 told me a bit more about you guys and I would be stupid not to be afraid. On top of that, I’m a drone. We’re naturally afraid of everything, and for a good reason. We’re small, weaker than most things, and delicious.”

Gem giggles as she hears the Queen genuinely caught by surprise ask:

“Delicious?”

“Why else would everything back in the hive try to eat us?” 65536 shrugs. Before Guiding can come up with a thousand valid reasons, the drone continues, “I’m scared whenever I go outside on patrol at night, but I can’t let that stop me, Your Magic Stick!”

“Call me Guiding Light or Guiding, please,” the Queen summons the warmest tone she can.

“Miss Guiding, then.”

To mirror her, Sharp nods respectfully at 19.

“That was an excellent, unserious attack. You’re good.”

“Can confirm!” 19 salutes.

“You also feel different from other dreamlings.”

“Can’t confirm!”

Sharp chuckles and pats 19’s head who at first shies away while glancing at Guiding and, when the Queen barely noticeably nods, it leans into the touch and only backs off when 65536 comes closer and says with admiration replacing fear again:

“You were so quick you surprised Mister Sharp, and you didn’t hesitate at all when Miss Magic Stick gave you an order. I wish I wasn’t just a drone…”

“You’re a changeling. You can do anything as long as you keep training and don’t give up. Trust me, I know,” 19 smiles, “Would you like to see me and Commander Sharp spar more seriously?”

“WOULD I?!” 65536’s eyes light up.

Guiding nods at Gem and next at the castle who nods back in understanding. The zebra is tired, and the Queen has a responsibility towards her kin.

***

As a change of pace, nine in the morning finds the dreamlings lazily strolling through the vast castle gardens, accompanied by their father. Guiding Light and 3 are by his sides, the others are trailing behind and watching the castle staff taking care of the hedges and decorative flower beds, 1 and 2 are in the back, “herding” the group, and 19 is running around, doing occasional somersaults and, in sharp contrast to other dreamlings, occasionally taking into the air for a brief flight.

“So, how are you adapting to a peaceful life?” asks Blazing Light, “Sharp told me you came home late at night. You know you can’t stay out past ten without your parents’ permission, young lady,” he shakes his hoof at her with a smirk.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know that was a requirement,” replies Guiding with complete seriousness, “I will make a note of it for next time.”

“No, it’s not. That was supposed to be a pretend dad joke,” Blazing sighs before chuckling darkly, “And it was about as good as I’m as a father,” he shakes his head, realizing that his usual intrusive thoughts are winning and ruining the casual mood, “Nevermind, don’t take me too seriously. I’m glad you’ve made a friend, and Gem is a good pony.”

“Do you know about her secret?” asks Guiding, probing Blazing but not wanting to state Gem’s real identity openly, “And if you don’t, I’m not telling.”

“I do,” the unicorn nods, “Princess Luna is responsible for interrogating any ponies of interest asking to live in Equestria, because her dream-walking ability also gives her a good sense of when somepony is lying. I was one of the ponies who were helping her in the wake of the changeling invasion of Canterlot,” he pauses, “I mean, I interrogated my reality’s Gem while this reality’s Blazing interrogated this Gem- let’s ignore all this dimensional nonsense now that we’re all here,” he shakes his head and returns to the point, “I grew up surrounded by pathological liars so I got pretty decent at recognizing the signs. Low class nobility, everypony hating each other and constantly judging every misstep, all the jazz,” he waves his hoof dismissively, “I thought about it, and it might have something to do with how limited your shapeshifting is - you know, the limitation that you can’t just pretend to be anypony at will. Same as how flying making you uncomfortable might be tied to my horrible vertigo,” he looks at 19 currently making circles above the group and happily going ‘wheeeeee!’, “With one weird exception, but I’m no geneticist.”

“Can’t you have been just a little more evil?” asks 3, showing her fangs in an attempt at a smile which only serves to make her look more terrifying, “Full shapeshifting would have made our lives a lot easier.”

“Trust me, if I could throw this body away and just transform into someone better looking, I would,” Blazing laughs, “Without the ability to do so, though, you know that the few friends you can make are the real ones, which brings us neatly back to Gem,” he looks at Guiding, “I wouldn’t say to trust her implicitly, because I can’t shake off the feeling that there’s more to her than I or Luna know, but I’m sure she won’t use you and leave you in trouble afterwards.”

“Should we take the bodyguard deal?” asks Guiding openly.

“I have no doubts that Gem is going to do all she can to help you with changing the way you feed,” Blazing shrugs, “I have no clue whether or not it will work out in the end but, in all practical honesty, the sooner you can get more connections which you can rely on other than me in this world, the better.”

“Speaking of,” 3 steps ahead of Blazing and Guiding and glares at the zebra who trots into view from behind a castle wall, notices them, and runs over, only stopping when 3 blocks her way.

“Uhh…” she nervously catches Blazing’s eye, “Mister Blazing? Guiding?”

“Back off, 3,” orders Guiding calmly but, to everyone’s surprise, the feral-looking dreamling mare takes only a single step back until Blazing himself says:

“Hi, Miss Gem,” he gives the zebra a courteous nod and 3 takes her place by his side again, “Guiding was just telling me she finally made a friend,” he smiles, “3 is still very protective in this new environment.”

“3, explain yourself,” Guiding flashes a mental order 3’s way.

“There is something wrong with her,” is the only thing 3 says.

“Do you not trust dad’s judgement?”

“I do, it’s just… something is wrong with her,” she repeats, “It’s making my carapace crawl.”

“I’ll be more careful. Now leave it.”

The mental exchange is over in a flash, yet from a brief twitch of Gem’s eyes from Guiding to 3 the Queen gets the feeling that Gem knows what just happened.

“I understand,” Gem smiles at Blazing and lowers her voice, “I’m still on edge around so many ponies too. Say, can I borrow Guiding for the day?”

“Sure, I’ll be leaving in twenty minutes for guard training anyway. Don’t forget to bring her back by ten, young lady, or she’s grounded.”

Blank stares all around.

“Another ‘father joke’?” asks 3.

“Ughhh…” Blazing moans, “The last one you’ve heard from me, I promise.”

“Ohhhh!” Gem suddenly beams, “That’s why Miss Fury started laughing when Mister Crest said the same thing with the exact same time to me a couple weeks ago. Heh, I didn’t get it that time either. It’s a protective dad thing, right?”

“Yes, and it’s twice as funny when overexplained,” Blazing facehoofs, “From now on, it’s only self-deprecating gallows humor for me. So, do you need Guiding right now or can you wait until I’m done walking the whole pack?”

“Hey!” 3 huffs indignantly at Blazing who grins back.

“I heard from Miss Choking that you are the one who’s into wearing a leash, Mister Blazing,” Gem winks at him.

“I’M OUT! YOU CAN KEEP ALL OF THEM!” Blazing bolts ahead, blushing like a tomato, “DON’T FORGET TO FEED THEM. THEY HAVE NO ALLERGIES!”

“Waaaaaaaaait!” 19 flies by and lands on the back of Blazing who is still striding away.

“I’m watching you!” 3 growls at Gem, pointing her hoof from her eyes to the zebra’s, and trots away to follow Blazing as well.

“Your Majesty, I need to ask dad something.”

“Understood.”

Guiding looks back at the remaining dreamlings quietly observing the situation.

“Report to the guards for our daily duties as per our arrangement with the Princess.”

Without saying anything to Gem, the dreamlings scatter, leaving her and Guiding alone.

“So?” the Queen reveals her usual chatty disposition.

Gem looks from side to side to check if anyone can hear her, and still lowers her voice when she says:

“It’s about yesterday. I spent way too much time last night tossing and turning, but I think we might be able to figure out who’s going after me.”

“Sounds good.”

“Well…” Gem looks around again while rubbing her head nervously, “To do that, we kiiinda need to br- bend the law a little, enter an active crime investigation scene, and gain access to Mister Cauldron’s ledger,” before Guiding can object, Gem waves both forelegs in front of her face, “I know that sounds too risky for you guys’ current, uhh, political situation, but I think the same excuse we told the guards yesterday will work and won’t make you an accomplice if I hire you officially. That way, unless you’re caught red-hooved, you’ll be able to say I told you to wait for me out of sight. We can even stay in contact using a hive link-”

“No,” Guiding shoots her down in a flat tone that doesn’t allow disagreements.

“No, as in you guys can’t use it or-?”

“We can, but our minds are ours and ours alone.”

“That’s still fine!” Gem’s cheerful optimism wavers a little as she punches the air, “As for the payment - I know I promised to help you find a way to change your feeding habits, but that’s something too likely to become more of a long-term project. No, I can brew you a powerful love potion - short term only because we’re not trying to make anything illegal here. Uhh, on top of what we’ll already be doing if you help me, I mean.”

“Will forced love work?”

“For sure,” Gem lets out a breath of relief at Guiding at least considering her offer, “Changelings can eat tainted love no problem, just not for too long as the only source of food. The love potion is guaranteed to evoke a strong reaction. After that, it’s step two and the whole feeding thing.”

“Does that mean you won’t try to help us long-term?”

“Oh? Nonononono!” Gem shakes her head with vigor, “I just felt bad promising you something that might or might not work or which might take too long to be useful while possibly getting you in harm’s way. This way you’ll have the mercenary cover for our operation or operations, possible leniency if you get in trouble -you know, new to this world and desperately clinging to any offer that would help you avoid starving- and something solid as an immediate reward.”

Guiding briefly ponders trying to take a peek into Gem’s mind to confirm what Blazing said about the fake zebra, but in the light that she got detected by a drone on her first attempt, she decides against it. Mind tricks definitely aren’t a dreamling forte.

“Do I have to sign something?” she asks, taken aback at the mundanity of an unexpected obstacle, “We’re supposed to take reading and writing lessons and I’ve had other things to do recently.”

“Not a problem,” Gem shakes her head, “There’s bound to be a notary here in the castle, so we just need a short contract and their seal.”

***

A couple moments after only semi-voluntarily running away, Blazing stops grumbling to himself with:

“-ChokingyouCelestiadamnedblabbermouth!”

“Umm, Mister Blazing?” 19, still sitting on Blazing’s back and previously busy poking his bronze carapace, taps the unicorn’s head, “Or should I call you dad like the Queen?”

“I told my dad joke twice today and both times bombed harder than a drunk griffon artillery unit having to spend its ammo budget before the end of the fiscal year, so unless you’re really set on the father issue I’d prefer the former,” he grumbles, “What do you need?”

“You said you trained the guards, right? Do you train 65536 too?”

“Technically, I’m under the Nightguard but since I’m not a bat pony I do drill-sergeanting during the day most of the time. 65536 trains with Sharp Biscuit and his guys.”

“Oh,” 19 carefully floats back up into the air to avoid kicking itself off and bruising Blazing’s back, “I was hoping I could practice more seriously with it. It was telling me about its training and I think the Nightguards aren’t doing it correctly. I mean, not in a way that works for a drone.”

“Ask Sharp. He’s a reasonable pony and he’ll listen to you.”

“He’s kinda scary…” the dreamling looks around with its ears splayed back and neck retracted between its shoulders as if there was a chance of Sharp suddenly materializing behind it.

“He does have that aura, doesn’t he?” Blazing laughs, “Don’t worry. Sharp is one of the kindest ponies I know.”

“Really? Alright!” 19 cheers up, flies around Blazing, and blasts off towards the castle and the other leaving dreamlings.

“And what about you, 3?”

“Can I train with you?” she asks straight up.

“I thought you guys were trying to take a break from all the fighting.”

“The Queen is blinded by hope for a better future. I am not,” 3 says defiantly, as if daring Blazing to argue or call Guiding back.

Instead, she looks genuinely taken aback when Blazing nods, leans closer, and whispers:

“That makes two of us.”

Author's Note

Did I say that I'm happy for the few people reading my word salad before?
No matter, thanks for sticking around and reading stuff that at this point has nearly nothing to do with MLP.

Path of a monster [12]: Backdoor access

It took Guiding Light some time to recall writing down at least her name so that she could sign the official contract of her working as Gem’s bodyguard, but Gem was helping her every step of the way. Besides, the two had almost a whole day to spend before it would be safer to head off to scout out the scene of Steaming Cauldron’s murder in Lower Canterlot. It didn’t take the dreamling Queen that long to reliably sign her name, so a good portion of the time was spent by listening to the radio in Gem’s guest suite of the castle - no reason to waste the precious energy she gained from the bar ambush and split among her kin. With evening eventually creeping in, however, the changeling-turned-zebra and her now official dreamling bodyguard got on their way.

Now, after a roughly hour and a half long trek from the castle to the mountainside quarter of the lower city, the two are watching two Royal Guards taking a smoke break in front of Rare Remedies from the safe distance of an alley two blocks away and with the help of evening gloom. Unlike the Royal Guards whose glowing horns are making them easy to spot, Gem and Guiding are mere shadows squeezed between trash containers.

“Let’s go over the plan one final time. You’re going to stay here, so that in case anything goes wrong you can just say I dropped you off here and told you to stay, which is what I’m doing so it should be technically true enough to fool some truth detection spells. What I’m going to do is transform into a pigeon and get in through the chimney-”

“There’s an alarm spell around the upper floor,” Guiding interrupts Gem, “I’m guessing it’s not on the bottom one as well because of the patrols. I can turn it off, but not from this far.”

“You can wha- huh?!” Gem leans back, making Guiding realize she overshared and needs to hide what she can really do immediately.

“I can sense the spell from here. It’s a weak one, I think, and that’s why I should be able to turn it off for a moment at the right time,” Guiding downplays her previous statement. In reality, the two city block distance is the only factor limiting her from absolutely ruining the spell and anything or anypony responsible for it.

“Magic manipulation,” Gem nods, impressed, “From what I heard, only some old changeling Queens could do that. Didn’t you say you could just put ponies to sleep last time?”

“The sleep thing is something innate from Nightmare Moon that’s related to our feeding. This… is different and limited,” lies Guiding, “I shouldn’t have mentioned it in the first place, I just didn’t want you to fly in and get caught immediately,” Guiding isn’t great at reading ponies, that’s never been her job, but the way Gem briefly looks at her makes her think she sees through her lies immediately. However, dreamlings need all the advantages they can get, and the extent of their abilities must remain secret as long as possible. To deflect, she asks, “Hey, don’t you alchemists add magic to potions or something? It’s not just chemistry.”

“Oh they do, but that’s just to transform the material in a way that a chemical reaction wouldn’t. If you can make the material via a different process then you can skip the magic part-” Gem immediately launches into an excited lecture, proving that despite seeming like a social butterfly, she doesn’t really have a close friend to open to. She catches what she’s doing, blushes, and finishes with: “But that’s neither here nor there.”

To improve Gem’s mood and to avoid her thinking too hard about dreamling magic manipulation, Guiding suggests:

“I don’t mind learning something new that might be useful, I just don’t think now’s the time. When we return, maybe you can teach me how to brew something simple or narrate while you work?”

Gem’s eyes light up despite Guiding’s usual flat and non-committal tone of voice. When the Queen nods towards the Royal Guards patrolling Rare Remedies, Gem reminds herself why they’re here.

“Right, the ledger! So, if anything goes wrong and we have to split up we meet outside Rising Passions - remember the glowing pink sign with a lot of Xs and a pony wearing fishnets that we passed on the way here? That’s the place. Our story is that we wanted to shop there for some clothes to help you with feeding.”

“And that’s going to survive the potential truth detecting spell, how?” Guiding raises an eyebrow.

“Because we are going to stop there to buy you something sexy to wear,” Gem wiggles her own in response.

“That’s bound to go swimmingly…” comments the Queen, “The full story, then, is that I escorted you here, you told me to what? Wait a while and then visit the weird clothes shop?”

“Yep. You're the hired muscle who doesn’t need to know things. The less you get involved, the less dangerous it’ll be for your kind.”

“Good enough, I suppose,” Guiding shrugs and points to a street parallel with where they’re hiding but one block closer to the shop, “You turn into a bird and wait for me to move over to that alley. I’ll disrupt the spell when you jump into the chimney.”

“Got it, hold onto this for me,” Gem gives the Queen her saddlebag.

As Guiding walks out to the main street again, the mission begins.

Moments later, Gem vanishes behind a dumpster and an inconspicuous pigeon flies into the air, heading straight for the roof of Rare Remedies.

Why can’t any plan just… work?

There’s a Royal Guard pegasus lying on watch in the middle of the slightly sloping roof who is completely invisible from the street level.

“Miss One? Any ideas?”

“Just put him to sleep, girl.”

“I can’t! None of the pheromone tricks you taught me work outside!”

“I feel extremely personally insulted by that insinuation!”

“I mean that I can’t make them work outside! Much less as a stupid bird.”

“You’re a changeling. Even if your sweat glands don’t work, your insides do. Now focus and stop waking me up for no reason. You can’t handle it.”

Just this short exchange makes Gem’s temporary body heavy and her head spin. She misses a wingbeat, loses the air current helping her fly, and drops on the roof near the pegasus guard who looks around and crawls over with suspicion. Gem needs time, and the guard looking upwards for what could have caused a random bird to drop from the sky is good enough. When he looks down again, the pigeon is standing on its legs, staring right into his muzzle, and coughs out a sweet-smelling cloud. The guard gasps but any thoughts of his current situation evaporate from his mind with a second breath of the sweet air, leaving him staring dazedly at the sunset.

Pigeon Gem flies into the air again, makes a circle around the chimney to signal to Guiding, and dives into it.

Seeing the bird plummet down, Guiding concentrates on the alarm spell and drains the magic from it. The spell is placed on the outer layer of the building instead of on the entire area, clearly to make it less tiring to maintain, and Guiding’s idea is to have it flicker off for a moment as Gem gets in. However, as she focuses and pulls at the flow of magic, the spell vanishes entirely, accompanied by a yelp of pain.

Guiding definitely wasn’t expecting the spell to be so weak as to unravel immediately and cause a feedback shock to the caster maintaining it.

What sort of an amateur unicorn did they hire for this job?

Of course, that causes accelerated hoofsteps to move towards the voice and the rays from lit up horns or helmets flashing into dark places. She could stay here and pretend she’s just walking by, but if these guards know about the dreamling arrangement, questions about her chaperone are bound to ensue. With a quick look around for anypony in the street looking her way, she squeezes into a narrow path between two houses.

I really hope no one saw me. Magic manipulation is one thing, but we did tell the royals that we can’t shapeshift with the exception of small changes to our carapace in order to grow weapons and change our armor. Technically, maybe changing my carapace to reflect light in a way that makes me seem invisible would fall under that category.

The guard rushing to help asks what’s wrong just as a second one walks into view and sees nothing but a couple ponies walking home after a day of work. With nothing more to do than to wait for the Royal Guard to take his search for any unnatural cause of the failed spell by his companion elsewhere, the Queen gets ready to head off to the meeting point.

Inside Rare Remedies, Gem, back in her zebra form, has to stop herself from looking around in nostalgia. She spent time here before, studying and practicing with the old alchemist and, just like that, it’s all gone.

Again…

She had a mom and a dad before, as much as that’s relevant for changelings. Both d- gone due to an insane puritan paladin who snuffed out her old life in an instant.

“They’re out there somewhere, Eight would have gotten him out,” says an annoyed voice inside her head, “Now FOCUS!”

Gem collapses on the floor from her love reserves quickly running out, thankfully with enough presence of mind to slow herself down and fold instead of crashing and alerting the guards downstairs.

Move, you stupid, frail excuse of a body! Dad is holes-know-where because you were too weak to help him. Mister Cauldron is dead because you weren’t smart enough to keep a low enough profile. So at least STAND UP!

Her burst of anger works and, with her legs shaking, she gets back on all fours.

I should have been done already. I know where the stupid ledger is.

Moving several books on the bookshelf in the back aside reveals a safe. It’s not a combination-based one, and the keys to it are in the bottom drawer of the work desk by the window. She has no clue whether the Royal Guards already used a copy spell on the ledger and closed the safe afterwards, but she’ll need time to go through Steaming Cauldron’s business contacts in peace, so the thick book must go with her.

That’s not fitting through the chimney.

Her only option is to get out through the window and somehow close it by spinning a handle on the inside while hanging on the outer facade.

She carefully peeks out of the window, thankful for most Royal Guards announcing their presence with bright lights, tears out one of her hairs, and puts it into her mouth, transforming her saliva into a reinforcing agent based on changeling resin. That way, it’ll be strong enough but lose the reinforcement when she drains the love from the resin afterwards.

That’ll do.

She spins the long hair multiple times around the handle and thanks her luck when she sees a Royal Guard suddenly switch his patrol route to where Guiding should be for reasons unknown to her. She opens the window, looks around for anypony looking her way, finds no one looking up, and swings out of it, finding some support on a decorative wooden part of the facade. She closes the window and gradually pulls at the hair, watching the handle turn and close it from the inside until the hair slips out through a crack.

Unfortunately, she realizes that the effort needed to pull the reinforced hair was what was keeping her stable, and drops like a rock from the second floor right onto the cobblestones. The Royal Guard examining the area turns around when he hears the impact but, luckily, he’s now on the opposite side of the street and doesn’t have the angle to see the pavement that Gem is currently kissing. When he picks up his pace to return to patrolling the shop, still invisible Guiding concludes that there’s only one thing she can do for Gem, grabs the lid of a nearby trash can, and lobs it at the wall right behind the guard, giving him just enough time to see some weird reflection to explore as she disappears into the path between the houses and leads the guard on a brief chase before circling back to Rising Passions.

The rest is up to Gem.

***

Thankfully, the limping zebra finds her way to the shop shortly after, lets out a sigh of relief, and approaches Guiding who is staring at the ponnequins modelling clothes in the shop’s window with a mix of curiosity and amusement.

“Can’t you heal yourself?” asks the Queen quietly, not looking away from a red latex costume and wondering how one puts it on.

“I’m a bit low on love,” replies Gem, taking back her saddlebag from Guiding, “The whole operation was more taxing than I expected,” once the ledger is hidden from sight and the bag safely strapped to her side, Gem examines the piece Guiding is staring at, “Do you want that one?”

“I have no intention to parade around looking like a horny tomato,” Guiding shakes her head.

“Fine, we’ll find something with the same amount of horny but only half as much tomato, at most,” she beams when Guiding shoots her a glare, “Come inside, if only to get somewhere out of sight.”

They enter the dark, lavender-smelling interior lit only by pink lamps. The area is full of display pieces that are either on coat hangers or on more ponnequins, shelves of weirdly-shaped things which the Queen had never seen before are lining the walls, and there’s only one pony inside the whole shop - a chubby, grey-coated earth pony mare in her twenties with pitch-black mane whose worried eyes are now locked on Guiding. Gem waves at the mare who snaps out of it and waves back with a nervous smile.

“Do you know her?” asks Guiding.

“I shop here from time to time. It’s easier to change my body shape and buy real clothes instead of transforming entirely,” Gem says quietly, “Look around for something that you think you’d be comfortable wearing in a club or a more intimate setting. Don’t worry about the price.”

“I…” Guiding pauses, genuinely stumped, “I don’t really care as long as I can move in it. That red thing was stupidly restraining and would make me visible from Upper Canterlot. You’re the kind of changeling who deals in love and lust, you suggest something with maximal evocative value. When you need to figure out a carapace transformation that lets you punch through full plate armor and deflect solid projectiles, I’m your mare. Or possibly if you want to learn climbing,” she counters with a verbal jab.

“It’s something with my real body,” Gem sighs, “I’m a bit frail and uncoordinated. I think it has something to do with what was happening to my dad when he and mom hatched me.”

“You’re a changeling. We don’t suffer permanent conditions,” Guiding shakes her head, “You just need an activity that lets you adapt and enough time and energy. I suggest combat training.”

“Geez, you sound like Miss One,” Gem breathes out a whisper but out loud she says firmly, “I told you no.”

“Then try dancing. As a bonus, you can find a style that fits the curvy, seductive theme you’re going for.”

“I’ll think about it, but now we’re trying to solve your problem, not mine,” Gem changes the subject in a tone that doesn’t allow disagreement. With a fresh devilish smirk, she adds, “I’m not the best pony to say what would look good on your athletic figure, so I’m giving you a work order to go ask the nice girl at the counter what she thinks.”

“You can’t be serious…” says Guiding flatly.

“Think of it as a practice in social behavior,” Gem’s smirk turns into a smug smile, “Chop chop!”

“If we get thrown out, that’s on you,” grumbles the Queen and approaches the store clerk, both of them slightly more at ease when Gem walks over as well but remains quiet. Guiding clears her throat, “Hello, Miss. My ‘friend’ suggested this place as somewhere I can buy, um, intimate yet non-restraining clothes wearable in a club. It’s not my area of expertise so I’d like to know if you can think of an article of clothing fitting those specifications.”

“She’s not one of the changelings who attacked Canterlot. A totally unrelated group,” whispers Gem loudly.

“Umm, well, I-” the mare walks out from behind the counter, revealing that she’s wearing a not too tight corset coupled with a short, see-through skirt, “Are you looking to attract mares or stallions? From my experience, everyone looks at similar things but there are differences in details.”

Guiding glances sideways at Gem for help, but the zebra is entirely busy trying to keep her cool and not burst out laughing at the stiffness of the conversation.

“Umm, both are good, I think,” is the best Guiding can say, “The piece you’re wearing looks good and non-intrusive. The corset helps your curves and the black color draws my attention away from your barrel to the skirt, which you fill out more than well.”

The clerk blushes like a bottle of ketchup, Gem facehoofs and starts laughing so hard she sits down, and Guiding looks around for a secondary escape route.

“What? I was trying to be analytical!” she looks at Gem who raises her foreleg, pats Guiding’s side, and finally finds the strength to get up.

“And you wonder why she needs help,” Gem keeps smiling at the clerk, “Cream Roll, I know where your head is at the moment, but can you give us a professional’s insight? I don’t exactly fit the muscle mommy aesthetic so I’m not sure what enhances the right feel.”

Cream Roll, blushing even more at the comment, nods and begins circling around Guiding.

“Is it okay if I touch you, Miss?” she asks.

“Do as you please,” Guiding shrugs.

“Within limits!” adds Gem and winks at the mare, “If you’d like to see what you pick for her in action later, I’ll tell you when and where.”

“Mhm,” Cream Roll nods and prods Guiding’s carapace in a couple places, “I don’t think clothes can make any of this squish, so the best idea would be to brighten the dark coat- skin- armor in places we want to draw eye to. Pink fishnets come to mind and, I wonder, how comfortable are you with jewel plugs?”

“With what?”

Gem starts wheezing and running out of air while she laughs at Guiding’s more and more bewildered face as Cream’s explanation goes on.

“-and that’s an example of a small one,” the mare pulls out a box from behind the counter.

“Small?! What does a large one look like?” Guiding follows Cream’s pointing hoof, “No, now I know you’re making fun of me. That’s a traffic cone.”

“Hey, didn’t you say -wheeze- that changelings-” Gem keeps laughing.

“Don’t you dare…”

“-adapt to -wheeze- anything?”

Path of a monster [13]: Split up

It’s been several days since Guiding Light’s and Gem’s escapade at the crime scene.

So far, there have been no consequences, no suspicious questions, nor any secretly increased guard presence around the dreamlings hinting at somepony figuring out that they were involved. Unfortunately, that also goes for any progress. With Gem busy studying the murdered alchemist’s ledger for contacts, Guiding’s routine has been to finally regularly attend the tutoring sessions like all other dreamlings, prowl the castle grounds during the evenings or at night to feed on whatever little fear she could get, chat with her father whenever he stopped by, and sleep the rest of the time. With ponies getting used to the dreamlings’ presence, their avenue of feeding has been getting narrower and narrower, so there was no reason to waste energy when not necessary.

With one thriving exception, though, and that’s 19, whom Guiding can see play-fighting with 65536 as she‘s leading the ten dreamlings who are about to leave Canterlot to learn about the world in company of their personal pony chaperones as per the original deal with the Princesses.

“No distractions!” 19 sweeps 65536’s forelegs when the Nightguard drone glances at the procession of dreamlings, grabs it by the neck with claws that unfold from its hoof, and throws it over itself. 65536’s arc in the air lands it on its back in the soft grass, but the unexpected impact is still enough for it to start coughing when the wind gets knocked out of it. Seeing that, 19 drops its combat stance and offers a foreleg to help 65536 get back up, “Sorry, did I go too hard on you?”

Coughing and wheezing, 65536 rolls on its side and slowly pushes itself back on all fours.

“N-No!” it shakes its head, “It’s good. I need- I need this!” it gradually gets its breathing under control, “Everyone in the Nightguard is nice. I’m not complaining - they’re great ponies and I love them with all my heart, but…” 65536 takes a deep breath, “Well, I am complaining a little. I feel like they don’t take me seriously when we practice. I know I’m not good at all the guarding stuff, but I can’t get better if they treat me, kinda, like a mascot instead of one of them. At least you’re serious- I mean, you’re not or we wouldn’t have much of a practice but you’re trying,” the drone smiles, “And thank you for that.”

19 smiles.

“If you don’t stop challenging yourself, you don’t know how much you can grow. I didn’t have much of a choice when the Queen saved me, it was adapt or die. For you, in this peaceful world, it’s only about how far your willpower can push you,” 19 jumps from side to side like a boxer, “Another round?”

“You know it!” 65536 smiles back, grabbing the standard issue truncheon that it dropped before into its mouth.

Guiding smiles to herself when 65536 approaches 19 in a much more measured fashion than when she saw them chase each other for the first time and, despite that, eats dirt immediately after the first attack. She doesn’t have the time to watch the duo any further, because a group of Royal Guards approaches, accompanied by Blazing Light, Raven Inkwell, and Celestia herself.

“Your Majesty,” Celestia gives Guiding Light a courteous bow.

“Your Highness,” Guiding returns the gesture and shoots a sideways glare at 3 when she almost imperceptibly growls.

“Are you ready for the next chapter of your acclimation to our world?”

“Ready is a strong word, but I don’t suppose we have much of a choice…” Guiding stares Celestia in the eyes and, for the first time in ages, the Princess meets the gaze of someone who doesn’t look away or goes shaky in the slightest. Celestia is good enough at reading others to know that it’s not the bravado of somepony trying to hide their fear, nor is it the hollow look of somepony burnt out by endless tragedy. It’s the calculating look of a soldier measuring just another potential threat and planning countermeasures… countermeasures against the alicorn of the Sun, an eons old being surpassing Guiding in experience, skill and… power. So why is she the one with chills running down her spine?

A terrifying thought crosses Celestia’s mind.

Did she kill me in her world?

No, that’s impossible, Nightmare Moon must have dealt with alicorns one by one with dreamlings supporting her. I may have skipped my physical training for a century or two of peace, but there’s no way the few dreamlings are a real threat in a direct confrontation. Maybe I’m just misreading her, maybe the soldiering is just so ingrained in her that she simply can’t turn it off. After all, according to her story she hatched into an arena match and it never got better.

As a gesture of good will, Celestia shakes her head and smiles.

“We can postpone your kind’s departure if you’re really not feeling up to it. However, from what I understand, you aren’t any closer to changing your feeding habits than when you arrived despite the help of your new ‘zebra’ alchemist friend.”

“Sadly, no,” Guiding shakes her head and sighs, “That pressure is also one of the reasons why I’m agreeing to this despite being in the clear minority,” she looks at the dreamlings who are supposed to leave, “We are adaptable, whether we want it or not, and we are part changelings. My only hope is that our bodies will accept love, even if it might come to the worst case scenario when they have no other option,” she smirks at her kind, “But when have we not been in a sink or swim situation, right?”

“Thankfully, Equestria has a good postal service,” Blazing Light steps in and waves nervously at the dreamlings, “Part of your acclimation and practice will be writing me letters about what you’re doing, how things are going, and what new things you saw. If things get worse, or if you have a feeding breakthrough, send a letter and I’ll know in two days at worst. If you get into a situation where you’re sure you have no choice but to starve, don’t hesitate to tell your companion. They’ll be there for you to supply you with what you need,” he looks at the ponies behind him wearing Royal Guard badges without the armor, “And they only look scary.”

He smirks when two dreamlings snicker in response, knowing full well who the scary creatures around are. Still, the goal was to put the group at ease, if only a little, and he achieved that. With that, Raven unfolds a scroll and begins reading the guards’ names and locations where they’ll be stationed. In response, Guiding assigns a dreamling to each one, vaguely recalling some of the major places from her world. When she doesn’t know one, Raven helpfully offers a map and assures her that she’ll get a map with all current assignments.

Eventually, as Guiding watches the group leave via the main gate, she leans to Blazing’s ear and whispers:

“I’m terrified, dad.”

“Imagine how they’ll feel tomorrow when they wake up and sense no one else in their heads,” he replies.

“Wow, you SUCK at comforting.”

“Whenever I was worried, and that was a lot for my depressed plot, the only answer I ever got from my parents was that I had no real problems and to stop crying or they’d give me something to cry about. That’s the best I can do.”

***

Guiding Light performs her usual late evening prowl through the castle, trying to look all scary and such, but her heart isn’t really in it. It’ll take a week at least before the first dreamling letters arrive, she knows that, but her heartbeat quickens whenever she’s reminded that half of them are just… gone, left mostly to their own devices. On the other hoof, new places mean ponies unused to dreamling presence, so there’s a reasonable chance that they’re having an easier time feeding than she is, especially because she gave away almost all her own energy to the departed. Silent but not overly deadly as she is right now, she reaches the higher, dim and dark floors patrolled by the Nightguards, and overhears a squeaky voice that’s not angry, just disappointed:

“I’ve been with you for half a year, I’ve been taking all the law classes, doing physical training with you guys, and for the past couple days with 19 too!” Guiding recognizes 65536’s voice and hides behind a pillar while taking a peek at what’s going on. The drone is looking up at Gloom and Sharp Biscuit, and pouting, “Goop! I’ve been with Princess Luna on dreamscape adventures. Most Nightguards can’t do that. I can do a real Nightguard shift in the city.”

Gloom clears her throat.

“First, language! Second, and I mean this in the kindest way possible, you’re not threatening on your own, and threat is the most important thing when you get in trouble, because, first and foremost, you don’t want to get into a fight-”

“Gloom,” Sharp Biscuit’s calm voice doesn’t need to say anything further to stop the bat pony mare in her tracks, “65536, do you think we don’t know that you could beat up a random guy threatening an old lady somewhere?”

“Then why-?” the drone’s expression changes into pleading and its ears droop, making it clear that while it can try and argue with Gloom, whatever Sharp Biscuit says goes.

“But can you fight off three of them? Four? Can you break up a bar fight with just your voice? Your presence? Because bad ponies won’t hesitate to attack you, especially because you’re a changeling. You’re the opposite of a threat, you’re a target, and Nightguard armor only amplifies that. Ponies barely like even us due to Luna’s past, but they respect our work and the reputation we’ve built since Luna’s return. When Gloom, I, or stars forbid Bladehoof or Night Hunter walk into a bar fight, everypony in there knows immediately that if they try to do anything they’ll be the first with broken bones and the laughingstock of all their buddies. If you walk into a hostile room, you’re a trophy to brag about,” Sharp shakes his head, “I deny your request. No solo night shifts in the city, only in the castle or castle grounds. I’ll have Chokey move our shifts around so that you can patrol with more Nightguards than just the few of us who don't mind a more day-focused schedule.”

65536 whimpers.

“Don’t wibble at us, young changeling!” Gloom wiggles her hoof at the drone, “You’ll just make me and the Commander feel bad, but both you and I know he’s right.”

The drone huffs, sighs, and walks off in Guiding’s direction while mumbling to itself.

“Grumble grumble angry drone noises wait no I’m not angry just disappointed I know they’re scared but I’ll show them-”

It shoots the still hiding Queen a sideways glance while muttering its stream of consciousness non-stop, but doesn’t do anything else as it passes by. Guiding’s about to resume her prowl when Sharp Biscuit says:

“How do you feel about a stealthy overwatch on the castle roof tonight, Gloom?”

“I was about to go to sleep, got a morning shift tomorrow.”

“I’ll tell Chokey to give your shift to Pink Sunset and leave 65536’s tomorrow evening open as well. Word on the street is that 65536 may have been saving its bits to pay for a hardcover collectors’ collection of Power Ponies that went on sale a week ago, but it’s still a little short. Tomorrow sounds like a good time for you two to read at least through one issue together because there might be a certain package in my office I’m willing to part with, as long as you think of a funny story to tell 65536 about how it might find its way to our little drone. You’ll have enough time to think of one tonight.”

“I… I have no words, Commander.”

“The correct words are ‘Yes, Commander’, Gloom.”

With a salute, the mare heads off in the direction away from Guiding and Sharp watches her leave, which gives the Queen the option to slip out of her hiding spot and continue her prowl. When the Nightguard Commander turns back to return to his office, he notices Guiding from the corner of his eye and gives her a bow.

“Good evening, Your Majesty,” he says with a smile, “How are you?”

According to dad, this one is trustworthy.

“Hungry and worried,” admits Guiding quietly and Sharp sighs in sympathy.

“Never thought I’d say it, but you’d have it easier as an actual changeling. Have you thought about getting a job in some house of horrors?”

“No idea what that is, but I’m already working for Miss Gem as a bodyguard.”

“Ah,” Sharp smiles, “There’s somepony who earnestly tries to do her best despite her own heap of problems. You’ve found yourself a fair patron, Your Majesty. She can pay decent money too, from what I’ve heard.”

“So far, the results are one-sided, and money is the least of our issues. I’m hopeful she can provide us with a surefire way to generate love so that we can figure out if we can eat it.”

“Oh I’m sure she especially can brew a love potion, temporary only, of course,” he looks Guiding meaningfully in the eyes.

“Obviously,” Guiding nods, “Gem told me lasting potions like that were illegal, and if I wasn’t worried about my king starting off our life here with a crime, we’d be evoking enough fear to not need to switch to love. The illegality is secondary to me, however. We were slaves for too long to subject anypony else to long-term control, even for our sake.”

“Glad to hear it, Your Majesty. And how are things between Blazing and you? He’s a good pony, even though he’s not right in the head, but he’s been like that since the first time we met so I’m used to his darker moments.”

“You’re talking about a hero,” Guiding’s tone cools down.

“Yes, one I’ve seen grow over the past three years and one I know personally. If saving the world was the cure to mental illness, everypony would be doing it,” Sharp chuckles, “And your reaction told me all I needed to know. Blazing has always been extremely awkward with mares and I was worried it might be alienating even to his daughter who, honestly, needs him right now the most.”

“He visits, we talk, and sometimes he takes us to walk with him through upper Canterlot. Yesterday, we walked along the outer wall of the city and he told us about the towns visible from up here,” the corner of Guiding’s mouth curls up, “Unfortunately, with us hibernating most of the time, we can’t explore much even where we’re allowed to.”

“I was wondering why the only ones I’m regularly seeing around here are 19 and you,” Sharp nods, “Makes sense.”

Their conversation gets interrupted by a red-maned bat pony mare trotting up a flight of stairs and approaching them. Guiding recognizes her as Choking Darkness, her dad’s marefriend.

“Your Majesty. Sharp,” she gives a quick nod to both of them.

“Chokey,” Sharp nods back.

“Miss Darkness,” so does Guiding.

“Gloom just rushed over to have me change the patrol schedules for tomorrow, said it was your idea,” she pouts at the Commander, “Come on!”

“It’s for 65536,” says Sharp and Chokey’s expression softens, “And I’ve already made a draft of how this month’s shifts have to rotate to accommodate, so you’ll only have to translate it into the official paperwork. Give me a moment,” he walks into his office.

“I thought you’d be spending the evening with my dad since you’re one of the few bat ponies who regularly work during the day,” says Guiding.

“Not tonight,” she shakes her head, “Blazing’s been worried about something for the last couple days and it’s exhausting when he gets all gloomy.”

Guiding’s face remains decidedly neutral when she says:

“I’m barely aware of pony social norms, but isn’t that the time when he might need you the most?”

“I mean, yeah,” Choking admits hesitantly, “but I have my life too and your father isn’t exactly my Blazing with all that reality jumping shenanigans, right? Don’t get me wrong, he’s a lot more experienced, a bit older, and physically a clear upgrade despite the whole part-changeling thing, but I can’t be his crutch. I know him, he’ll get over whatever triggered his doom and gloom this time, and then I’ll be there with a warm hug and way more.”

Guiding suppresses the urge to gag. Then she suppresses the second urge to rip Choking’s wings off and throw her through the nearest stained glass window. Thankfully, before she can say anything ‘honest’ that might drive a wedge between herself and Blazing, Sharp Biscuit walks out with a sheet of paper and gives it to the bitch- to Choking who thanks him, says goodbye to Guiding-

“Bye, Your Majesty! I’d love to stay and chat, but I gotta process this and that’s going to be difficult already with a rave waiting for me.”

-and rushes off again.

“I must excuse myself as well, Your Majesty,” says Sharp, turning around, “This little shift-swapping maneuver cost me a couple hours, so I’m behind on my work as it is.”

“Wait, one thing,” Guiding reaches out to Sharp and lowers her foreleg again when he faces her again, “Call me Guiding Light, please. If there’s somepony here who deserves it then it’s you. Both my father and, based on what I often hear from 19, 65536 genuinely respect you,” Guiding pauses, “That’s all I wanted to say.”

“You’re doing the best you can for your kin, and I respect that as well,” Sharp bows and adds before closing the door, “Have a good ‘hunt’, Guiding. If I recall correctly, there are several new Royal Guard recruits serving the graveyard shift around the kitchens tonight, so you might want to check there.”

***

Two days later, Guiding Light is once again following Gem through the mountainside quarter, although this time through the Upper Canterlot one. From the less than grand buildings it’s clear that even here this part of the city belongs to normal ponies instead of the nobility. While the encroaching sunset is still bathing the parts of the city further away from the mountain in light, the mountain’s shade here is already heralding a progressing evening. The trip has been quiet, with Gem seemingly inside her head and Guiding watching every passing pony.

“We’re almost there. Just two blocks further along,” says the zebra.

“Not that I’m complaining, but when you hired me I was expecting to do this every evening.”

“I wanted to involve you as little as possible, both to not implicate you in case the guards somehow figured out our break-in and to avoid you wasting energy on trudging around the city. Besides, I had to do my alchemy at my adoptive parents’ place because somepony, and I’m not naming names, laundry staff, complained about my explosive experiment from the day we met despite you opening the windows immediately and me cleaning the whole guest suite on my own.”

“Still, potentially dangerous.”

“I polished off the Lower Canterlot contacts. Ponies in the lower city are way friendlier than up here.”

“And? Any progress in figuring out who’s after you?”

“Not really. I learned that lower city suppliers don’t deal with rare ingredients much, rather they deal in common resources that are for cooking up daily life necessities - soaps, industrial lubricants, minor healing balms and potions, and so on. Mister Cauldron must have been an exception,” Gem sighs, “How lucky was I that I ended up studying under him and not anypony else? Although if I knew more about industrial lubes you wouldn’t need to be so worried about the ‘traffic cone problem’.”

“I entirely refuse to believe that a pony would willingly fit that inside themself,” Guiding shudders, recalling the erotic shop.

“Ha haa!” Gem grins at her victoriously, “This neatly brings us to the lucky for you part, which is that I’ve managed to brew you a proper lust potion over the past week, and I’m sure Cream Roll -that was the clerk in Rising Passions- will eagerly demonstrate both for you. Though with the way she was looking at you while you were examining the insertables I was hoping even you would pick up on her interest.”

“I thought our agreement was about a love potion.”

“I’m still working on that one, don’t worry, but a powerful one takes time and ingredients I can’t readily make without spending love that I don’t have.”

“Are you having trouble feeding too?” Guiding gives Gem a thorough look and notices that the young zebra looks tired and a lot less bouncy.

“No, that’s not it,” Gem shakes her head, “I’m using up a lot and my body is less and less able to handle the throughput.”

“Can I punch someone to help somehow?”

“No,” Gem smiles again, “It’s complicated and I might tell you the full story eventually, but right now it’s my burden to bear and the main reason why things are taking a lot longer than they should.”

“I understand. The lust potion will suffice.”

“It will suffice for now,” Gem looks at the Queen sternly, “I will keep my word, don’t worry about that. The good part is that lust is easier to evoke in large quantities and our -at least my- instinct picks it up just as easily as love, maybe even more now.”

Gem nods towards the alchemy shop now across the street, tells Guiding to wait, and the bell above the door clinks as she enters. Through the display windows, the Queen can see Gem chat up the pegasus clerk behind the counter for a while before he beckons the zebra to follow him into the back room. Guiding immediately crosses the street as well and pretends to examine pieces of crystal on display. Several minutes pass, during which Guiding keeps telling herself that everything is okay and that Gem is just getting information and taking notes.

Eventually, however, the idea surfaces that while Gem checked up a whole bunch of suppliers in Lower Canterlot on her own she decided to bring Guiding along for this one. Her patience gone, she cracks open the door of the store just far enough to not trigger the bell, and puts her ear to the crack in hopes to at least hear muffled voices.

Nothing.

Alright, screw this!

She walks inside and immediately smells a smell that’s by now baked directly into her soul - blood. Without hesitation, she rushes to the back room, only to see a dead unicorn in a still spreading puddle of blood. There are no signs of a fight, no fleeing hoofsteps, no trace of anything other than…

Her magic sense identifies the recent use of a stasis spell. No, two stasis spells used at a different time.

It’s a set-up! The unicorn must have been killed earlier by someone and his body preserved in stasis while the pegasus took his place behind the counter. When Gem arrived, they stopped the spell and let the body bleed while they used a second stasis to ambush and nab Gem, plus the time of death based on the decay of the body will perfectly match our presence here.

Whoever it was, we walked right into their trap.

Author's Note

Oof, barely made it on time with this one. On an unrelated note, I'm still reading Exercise in Management and wondering how to bring the same kind of life and fun to what I'm writing these days. On the other hand, I got the the part with the old castle and the paladins *wibble*. I WAS SO MUCH BETTER! AAAAAAAH!