That was so much fun! I'm glad I got to do a fitting swan song for my trusty 'sweet and lovable filly' act. It's a good thing my body caught up with my real age, because in the real world that gambit is about as dead as it can be. My victory over the alicorn princesses, followed swiftly by our failure at the final battle, was world news. According to Pacific even school foals are being taught about the 'worst pony ever', so even if I still looked ten years old I wouldn't be able to pull off that con again.

Yes I'm bitter. Changelings have been kidnapping ponies for centuries - at least! - sticking us in pods and impersonating us so they can steal our love. They do all that and forgiveness was as simple as shapeshifting into some brighter colours and blaming Chrysalis for everything. Ponies are just total suckers for the 'we're actually good now' act: well ok, a big dose of propaganda from Celestia helped. Luna was probably salivating over the idea of changeling spies working for her instead of Chrysalis.

I didn't impersonate anypony! I just gave them the filly they wanted, the helpful little toady who ran errands and packed lunches for Twilight and her lackeys. Apparently that's some heinous unforgivable crime (to go with all my other crimes). What I'm trying to say is, if I'm supposed to be a duplicitous fraud, Ocellus is just as bad. She pretends to be some kind of shy adorkable pacifist book bug, but that's just an act. I've seen her turn into a slavering bug-monster the size of a steam engine, and she's surprisingly strong willed. It was a real effort to break her sense of normality and start screwing with physics in the dream.

Luckily Pacific realised what I was doing and took over holding that gravity effect in place, which let me focus on forcing Ocellus to take my old form. Blocking all her attempts to change back was a strain, but it was totally worth it to see her utterly lose it. Of course she woke up, so now we're back in a bedroom in Starlight's crystal castle. Despite the fact she'd graduated and should've moved on to bigger things, Ocellus is hanging around as a 'teaching assistant' at the School of Friendship. Somehow she must've convinced Smolder to stay as well, because we found the stinky orange dragoness snoring in the other bed.

So now the little blue bug mare is screaming her head off - for about a second before Pacific Dream uses his time manipulation to freeze the changeling in place. Smolder just snorts a little flash of flame - I wonder how many blankets she's set fire to by now - and turns over, but my hippogriff companion freezes her too for good measure. I can't help laughing with glee, smug at how I'd pulled off a dream invasion worthy of Princess Luna on my first try. As usual the alicorns pretend that it's some impossibly difficult magic that you need centuries to master, but that's just to dissuade anypony else from trying. Though... I have to admit, I couldn't have done it without Pacific. Not yet at least.

"She's terrified," Pacific Dream says, frowning as he inspects the motionless form of Ocellus. "I trust that treatment was warranted?"

My mouth curls into a cruel grin. "Trust me, she had it coming," I say. "She's basically the changeling version of Twilight Sparkle. Miss goodie-four-shoes who knows everything and can do no wrong. She didn't have to struggle and scheme and pretend to become popular: she just got five perfect friends hoofed over to her on her first day."

Pacific doesn't seem convinced. I probably shouldn't care, but... I want him to approve. "Look, if we'd broken it off right after your Thorax impersonation, she'd have remembered. Ocellus might've gone to the real Thorax, or Starlight, and said something about rebels trying to steal the Obscuras. This way all she'll remember is that she had a nightmare about Cozy Glow. No doubt guilt for never giving me a chance to reform." I smile sweetly, tilting my head just enough to make my copper curls bounce.

The bird-stallion is unreadable for a moment. Then he steps closer and gives me a quick squeeze with his wing. "Good point. That did go quite smoothly. Your projection of Ponyville was immaculate in its detail, and creating an inverted duplicate when she tried to fly away was inspired."

Pacific knows all the right things to say to me. I snuggle under his feathers for a moment, then pull away. "Come on: let's plunder Starlight's personal library on the way out." I slip out of the room into the corridor; it still feels weird to be walking everywhere, but my wings are so huge now that flying indoors is tricky at best. It's ok though: the carpets are plush and muffle our hoofsteps, and with my new much longer legs I'm not struggling to keep up with anyone.

"What did you have in mind?" Pacific asks. "Details of more ancient artefacts we might acquire? Powerful forbidden spells that will lay Twilight low? Grimoires of forgotten beasts that might aid us?" His tone is playful, but encouraging - like we're foals sneaking out of school to go on our first big adventure.

"All of the above!" I giggle, caught up in his mood. "As many as we can carry! Better in our hooves than Starlight's, right?" I hesitate for a moment, wondering if I should reveal the truth. It's technically showing weakness, but it would be worse if Pacific finds out later - say, in the middle of a fight. "Buuuut.... if I'm honest, top priority is basic horn-work. You know, Spellcasting 101 stuff. Don't get me wrong, I know a ton about runes, rituals, the underpinnings of magic, but, uh, not so much about actually casting spells."

One of Pacific's feathery eyebrows shoots up. "Did you not duel the Element of Magic to a standstill in the Canterlot throne room? You fired a coherent mana beam at me yesterday, and I understand that alone is a deceptively advanced working."

I wince at the reminder of my impulsive sparring session. "Oh sure but see, that was Grogar's magic. You know, from the Bewitching Bell. It came with a with a ton of knowledge built in: like, I just had to imagine what I wanted to do, and it was like I'd already spent years learning the right spells." Incredibly convenient, as if Grogar had actually planned for somepony to find his bell and take up his mantle, or at least get revenge on whoever defeated him. And unfortunately gone forever, after a triple-harmony-laser ripped it out of us and dispersed every particle of that magic across Equus.

"Qi-lin magic isn't like that. It's just raw power." That isn't exactly true. Since I transformed I'm getting strange flashes of... something. Images of tiered stone cities full of kirin. Sudden compulsions to find the other fire-unicorns and make sure they are performing the rituals correctly (what rituals? I have no idea). Strong opinions on strange philosophical concepts that dissolve into nothing when I try to make sense of them. I don't know how to explain it to Pacific, so I don't mention it.

"Sure, I remember a few things from when I was an alicorn, but... look I'm a quick learner, ok? If freaking Cadence can learn to cast Celestia-tier spells, I sure can. Just give me a few moons." I can't say I'm happy about the window of vulnerability, but this new magic feels better at least. Like a real part of me, warm and alive, not something cold and alien that's been grafted on. I can just imagine all the snooty unicorns saying that I only accomplished what I did last time because I was piggybacking on Grogar's vast knowledge. They won't be able to say that after I'm done with Twilight.

I'd been in this castle a few times when I was still Twilight's assistant, back when she was still living in Ponyville. I know the layout, so we're already at the library. There's a glimmer of light visible through the translucent crystal of the door, and I tense up. I wouldn't be surprised if Starlight Glimmer is up late, working on a spell. Do I really want a confrontation? I bite my lip, thinking it over... then I feel Pacific's claw on my shoulder.

"Somegriff might be in there? I'll accelerate us," the stallion says confidently. "I imagine this will feel a little weird, but trust me, it's perfectly safe." His beak opens in what's probably meant to be a reassuring smile.

"'A-Accelerate'?" I stammer. "Golly, um... you mean speed us up? Like when you took me down at the temple?" My memory's a little fuzzy on this - at Twilight's school I speed-read every book about magic artefacts I could get my hooves on, and I can't remember all of it - but as far as I remember the Clock of Chronorius had two major functions, which could be used in either direction. On the battlefield the minotaur king used it to freeze his enemies while accelerating his own warriors to unstoppable speeds. If you believe the griffons, he also used it to keep his favoured nobles in their prime while prematurely aging any rebellious slaves into pathetic bags of bones. Maybe I can convince Pacific to give the element bearers an early retirement.

The hippogriff closes his eyes - I'm expecting a dramatic flash of magic, but there's just a loud whirr from inside him. Once again I'm reminded that he's really a clockwork automaton, underneath what seems like real feathers and fur; he's so lifelike that it's easy to forget. Suddenly I feel like I'm underwater, or... more like that the air around me turned into a thick soup, and the carpet underhoof is made of treacle. My vision's affected too: it blurs when I move my head, and there are coloured fringes around the windows. "Woah. You weren't kidding."

"You're now moving at almost two hundred times normal speed," Pacific says. His voice is really weird: warped and crackly like I'm listening to a worn-out gramophone.

I force myself to stay calm. This isn't so bad really, and my mind is churning with new possibilities. Two hundred times faster! Nopony will see us coming - or even realise we were there, if we're careful. I wonder how much noise we're making - if I move too fast will I make a sonic boom? This has so many applications: if Pacific can keep this up I can pack a year of studying magic into a weekend! My excitement is dampened as I try to use my magic: my horn lights, but I can't get a grip on the door. I reach out with my hoof: the latch is incredibly stiff, and the door itself seems to be stuck.

Pacific chuckles - at least I think it's a laugh, the distorted sound makes it hard to be sure. He reaches out with his claw and casually pushes the door open. I guess he's applying the time dilation effect to objects he wants to move. I wonder if there's a unicorn spell for this? Probably not, because if there was Celestia and Luna would know it and would've used it when I fought them in the throne rom. There are spells that make pegasi fly faster - common enough that all serious sporting events have magic detectors - and I know Starlight and Twilight both messed with time travel, but-

My train of thought is interrupted as I catch sight of her: a light purple unicorn mare, lounging in a padded chair with a thick tome on her lap, next to a desk with a lamp and a pile of books and notes. For a little while, Starlight Glimmer had been my role model. When I found out how she'd taken over a whole village, stolen their cutie marks for her own use, imprisoned Twilight and her friends and began a campaign to conquer Equestria... wow. Then when her revenge plan failed, she'd manipulated Twilight into not only giving her a full pardon, but making her a trusted confidant! She'd learn every secret Twilight had, and use it to destroy the princesses from the inside!

I'd even dropped a few subtle hints that I was willing to ally with her to overthrow the princesses - until I managed to eavesdrop on her private conversations with the travelling showpony. Grudgingly, I realised that Starlight had actually fallen for the whole 'friendship and harmony' thing. She still got the honour of being the first pony to hear about my true plans - when I trapped her in the centre of my magic-draining vortex.

I trot up to the unicorn, taking a closer look. Starlight looks older than I remember, with deep creases around her eyes. I guess she's in charge of the school now, huh? She hasn't looked up from her book yet, but if we stay here she'll notice us buzzing around after a few minutes. "Can you freeze her?" I ask Pacific.

He nods, spreading his wings and staring at Starlight for a moment. There's another whirring sound: the coloured fringes disappear from my vision but Starlight is still motionless, stuck staring at her book. "How long will she stay like that?" I ask.

"Indefinitely, as long as I'm here, but the stasis on Ocellus and Smolder will wear off in an hour or so," Pacific confirms - his voice sounds normal and the air has stopped resisting me, so I guess we're back in real time.

"Perfect." I smirk, trotting up behind Starlight Glimmer. Tactically speaking I should probably take this opportunity to do something unpleasant to her - like snap her horn so she can't use her ridiculously overpowered magic - but I can't bring myself to. Starlight was more Chrysalis's enemy than mine, and of all the 'friendship' crew, she's the one most likely to see the light and join my cause. I'll have to break down her relationship with the princess first, but it will be incredibly satisfying to undo Twilight's brainwashing and rekindle Starlight's revolutionary fervour. Just so long as she doesn't try and rebel against me.

Anyway, I trot past her and brush against Pacific Dream. I almost say 'best minion ever!', but he probably doesn't want to be called a minion, so instead I grin and say: "Where were you all my life? You're more helpful than Tirek and Chrysalis combined!"

The stallion dips his head in an adorably birdy show of embarrassment. "Your wish is my command. Though I fear you damn me with faint praise, for I can't imagine they were dependable allies."

"You can say that again!" I chuckle: my partner in crime is so easy to tease. "Come on, let's get those books. You take those shelves, I'll take this side."

We spend fifteen minutes or so looting Starlight's library. I'm soon levitating a whole mass of books behind me as we slip out of the castle and flap up into the night sky. Hornwork primers, casting techniques and a whole bunch of more advanced stuff. Pacific has some reading material too: history and geography, as far as I could tell.

I'm on edge as we pass over the outskirts of Ponyville: if anypony spots us I guess Pacific can just 'accelerate' us again, but flying in that condition's got to be a nightmare. I don't see any pegasi, but who knows if there are thestrals lurking out there somewhere. This is exactly why I needed those books: I know there are tons of different scanning spells, but before I had a horn there was no point learning them.

"Cozy, can I ask you something?" Pacific's voice comes out of the darkness: he's flying a few wingspans to my right. "About your cutie mark."

"My cutie mark?" A few ponies had asked, back at the School of Friendship, because that inevitably came up when you spent months making small-talk between lessons. I'd told them it was for placing first in the Fillydelphia chess championship, junior league. "What about it?"

"I understand that they exist on a spectrum between wholly literal and highly symbolic," Pacific says. He must've read that in a book, because non-ponies don't have them. Except for zebras. Sort of. "You mentioned that you received yours for playing an actual game of chess, suggesting that it is a literal mark," the hippogriff continues. "But your talents, and your passions, extend far beyond chess. If your special talent is strategy, why a rook? Why not a chessboard, or something more abstract?"

I'm quiet for a moment as I think that over. If the students at Twilight's school are any indication, other species seem to think ponies are all obsessed with our cutie marks and eager to explain their deep meanings to strangers. Which kinda makes sense if they're taking pony literature 101, because hack writers love to use them for quick characterisation, like 'the tall blue unicorn with the torch cutie mark burst into the room, and I knew the game was up'. And sure, some ponies do get completely obsessed with them - see 'Cutie Mark Crusaders'. Not me though: I like my cutie mark, but I never thought much about its symbolism.

Pacific Dream is probably asking because he thinks I'll enjoy talking about it, and... I admit, it's better than flying in silence. "Cutie marks are more flexible than most ponies realise," I say, "especially if you get yours early. Like, uh... Blueblood?" Maybe not the best example, but I remember reading an interview where the stuck-up stallion rambled on about his mark for a whole page. "A unicorn who got his mark for exploring, like really exploring: sailing a boat into unchartered waters. But he's a noble, so he repurposed his mark for 'navigating the intricate currents of popular opinion' or some crap like that."

"Sure I got my mark for winning a chess game, but also for breaking the rules and sneaking out for a whole summer, and for charming Plum into spending his afternoons with me." Ok, maybe I was a bit passionate about this after all. "See, chess is a microcosm of life. You're either a winner or a loser, and you win by carefully considering your moves, making the right sacrifices, and manipulating your opponent into making the wrong ones. Keep them playing your game, keep them guessing at your true strategy, because if you let them figure it out, if you let them control the take control, you're toast."

"Why a rook? Because it's the best piece! Pawns and knights are for the opening. The queen is flashy, obvious: there to draw your opponent's attention, and sacrifice herself in an exchange or attack that leaves your enemy out of position. The rooks are the rulers of the endgame: sliding in to deliver the checkmate!"

"I see. Thank you Cozy - that makes sense," Pacific calls out. Once again, I feel like this - chatting with another pegasus as you fly along - is a basic pony experience that everpony else gets in spades but that I've been missing out on. Sure, there were other pegasi at Twilight's School, but none of them went flying with me (my wings may have been tiny, but I was still a good flyer). I mean, obviously Pacific's not a pegasus, but close enough right?

"One reporter wrote that it symbolised how you thought of everypony you met as disposable pawns. That strikes me as unfair, yet not without a grain of truth," Pacific muses. "As you say, sacrifice is sometimes the only way to win - any officer knows that. Though the sacrifice of sapient life should be a last resort."

"Unless they're about to betray you, or just a horrible monster who can't be controlled. Then sacrificing them is a win-win," I retort impulsively. That... probably didn't help my case. "But yeah most of the press are sycophants and they love to twist things in favour of the princess. Of course you don't give away pieces unless you have to - not even in actual chess, which is just practice for real life!"

I huff with frustration: I'm not sure I'm getting my point across, so I try another line of attack. "You realise the princesses are totally hypocritical about this, right? Discord got the idea of trying to 'train' Twilight because he was trying to one-up Celestia. Be a better mentor than her. But chaos colt is a clumsy idiot compared to the sun princess. I recognise another chessmaster when I see one, and it's obvious she's been manipulating everpony for centuries! Not just ponies: all of our neighbours as well!"

"Don't you respect her for that?" Pacific asks. His tone is still supportive, like... he's not fighting me on this, but he's sort of pressuring me to be more consistent. "As I understand it your princess used skilful diplomacy to build up Equestria, keep her subjects safe, with many fewer wars and casualties than a purely military approach. Queen Novo is not averse to diplomacy, but she's... unfocused, and Celestia's accomplishments make her efforts look amateurish."

"Sure, but... it's so... so brittle! Like, did she really believe she's invincible? Before I was born, if we lost Celestia everypony would be running around like headless chickens and Equestria would fall apart! I guess now Twilight is backed up by the Bearers and the other alicorns, but one disaster could still wipe them all out! That's how Tirek and Chrysalis and me nearly won. If we'd only gone after Twilight immediately like I wanted to, instead of worrying about windigos or spending hours turning the catacombs into that silly jail..."

"Are you saying the Empire of Friendship will be built to survive without Cozy Glow?" Pacific interrupts.

"Yes!" I shout. "See: Celestia is a strong player, only an idiot could deny that, but she's playing with a massive advantage. Everypony is taught from birth to look up to her, and if her strategies go wrong she always has her special powers to fall back on. More magic than any unicorn, and control over the sun that can scorch whole nations."

"I never had any of that! All I had to work with was a pretty face and a clever brain, and I made it work anyway! Unlike Celestia, I don't have to be the strongest piece on the board, because I don't need a safety net. Put me in a cave with ancient warlocks and dark queens, even as a little filly, and I'll have them eating off of my hoof!" Wow, I guess that turned into a rant, huh?

"Quite so. Well said!" Pacific says, and he actually sounds.... proud of me? "As for your cutie mark, it can't mean that you see every creature as your minion. After all, rooks do their best work in pairs, wouldn't you say?"

I blink in astonishment. He likes my rant, and he's using a cheesy yet adorable chess metaphor to... what? We're already working together! If Pacific Dream doesn't want to be my minion, then why is he doing everything I ask for- oh no. Oh no. Suddenly I realise what's going on.

This whole thing was staged. Twilight condemning me to death, my rescue and depetrification: all a set up. Breaking into that kirin temple was way too easy. Pacific Dream is a construct, a sophisticated golem built by Twilight Sparkle. She's completely determined to reform me by any means necessary, because if I go to my grave as a 'villain' that means she's failed as a teacher. She knew none of her pathetic students could do it, so she custom-built a special somepony for me! Pacific must be designed to agree with everything I say, like... like how Fluttershy supposedly 'reformed' Discord. Well, it's not going to work!

"Oh sure!" I say sarcastically. "And when we finally catch up with Crazy Glue - oh did I mention that I'm an identical twin but we got sent to different orphanages so I'm hunting for my long-lost sister - I'm sure we'll get on famously! All of Equus will be at our mercy!"

Ok, no, that's ridiculous. Making a fake stallion out of magical artefacts sounds like something Twilight might try, but she's a horrible actor and I would've seen through her 'Cozy, I sentence you to death' speech. Even if she could pull that off, the Element of OCD would never risk giving me this much magic, or such a capable minion, or let me do what I just did to Ocellus. I guess Discord could fake all of this, maaaybe, but there's no way his attention span is long enough to 'reform' me like this. Besides, falling into the 'everything is a secret plot by Discord' paranoia is about as useful as worrying about whether this is all a super-realistic hallucination and I'm really still a statue.

Pacific Dream doesn't respond. We're close to the northern end of Ghastly Gorge now, gliding down towards the spot where Pacific parked his airship. Why do I keep saying stupid stuff to him? Pacific has been nothing but kind to me, and I don't mean the weak doormat sort of kindness Fluttershy embodies. I mean the sort that stitches up your wounds after the fight and then disposes of all the bodies for you without you even having to ask.

"Uh, just kidding," I say awkwardly. Maybe we can talk about him for a bit instead of me. "Um- You're pretty flexible yourself, you know? I mean, you don't have a cutie mark, but you can do some telepathy and neither of the artefacts you're made from were designed to do that." I bite my lip - maybe not the best way to put it, as the stallion seems uncomfortable with his artificial nature. I mean, assuming his emotions are real on some level and not just a clever imitation, which I've kind of been doing for the sake of my own sanity.

"The purpose of the Genesis Bird is to manifest whatever its owner desires," Pacific explains. "That inherently requires a telepathic connection. The ancient artificers took advantage of that to add a defense mechanism: if the user is not a hippogriff, the Bird was made to corrupt their mind, drive them mad in a frenzy of greed, or hedonism, or whatever other weakness it could find. It was intended to function against sphinxes, but it seems Sasamratu was wise enough to avoid our trap. The griffons recovered it before we could, and I understand later owners were not so fortunate."

"It is that telepathic connection I exploited to make contact with you, and the more malign aspect of it that we repurposed to invade the changeling hen's dreams."

So that's what made Rarity cover Ponyville in gaudy junk. Things are starting to make sense again. "See, that's what I mean! You're totally working to find new applications of your raw ability. Just like a pony who won't settle for a limited, literal intepretation of her cutie mark!" I pause a moment, wondering if I should say the next part out loud. "So the Bird wants to manifest whatever its owner desires? And the Genesis Bird is basically half of you now? Does that mean, um, that you want to give me whatever I desire? Am I your 'owner' now?"

We're nearly at ground level: Pacific flares his wings and dips under the rocky overhang, landing on the cliff next to the pearly hull of the Dauntless. He'd parked it under here to hide it from any thestrals, or insomniac pegasi, who might out for a flight. I land gracefully next to him; 'graceful' had never really been my thing before, but this new form makes it so easy.

The stallion frowns, before saying in a grave and serious tone: "Madam, you aren't even a hippogriff, so by all rights I should be trying to drive you insane." There's a solemn pause, then he winks and smiles at me. "On the other claw, you are without question the most adorable megalomaniac I've ever encountered, so I've decided to award you an honourary beak."

Pacific holds up one claw: in the darkness I just catch a glint of gold as the metal bird pops out of his back. In a flash of green light something appears in his talons. It's a prop beak made of silver, complete with swirling engravings and a braided cord to tie it to a pony's head - like an accessory for a hoity-toity Canterlot masquerade ball.

I've got to admit, he's pretty good at the deadpan thing. For a moment I'm really worried that he's angry with me, so when the metal beak appears I absolutely lose it, bursting out into peals of laughter. Tears are welling in my eyes as I dump the pile of books onto the ground and snatch the accessory from his grasp. He was probably just joking around, but I levitate it onto my muzzle and tie the string.

"Hi, I'm... uh... Coral Gleam!" I prance around a bit, spreading my wings and staring in feigned wonder at the surrounding cliffs, and say in my best impression of Silverstream's airhead voice: "Oh wow, is this a canyon? It's so dry and dusty! We never had anything like this in Seaquestria!"

Pacific Dream's beak drops open in a grin: he steps over and presses against me, his beak rubbing against my cheek. "Pleased to make your acquaintance, Miss Gleam... or may I call you Coral? If you've quite finished admiring the scenery, perhaps we should embark."

'Adorable megalomaniac': I love it. I light my horn again, levitating the pile of stolen books. Laughing together, the pair of us head through the hatch into the airship.

My instinct was to wait until the next night before raiding the changeling hive, but Pacific pointed out that the Changelings must have great night vision (since they live underground), so we'd be helping them more than us. So we decided to go in around noon, relying on his time warping to get in and out before anypony - anyling? anybug? If Ocellus ever explained changeling pronouns, I've forgotten - spots us.

That meant we had to leave the Dauntless well out of range of their patrols, out in the Badlands. Pacific Dream took us directly south from Ponyville, but on the way down our radio picked up something about a hippogriff cruiser making a patrol along the border north of Klugetown, which meant we had to circle around over San Palamino and approach the hive from the west. By the time we finally found a cave to park the ship in there was only an hour of daylight left.

Flying while 'accelerated' is just of much as a pain as I thought it would be, but Pacific eased me into it by starting with a weaker effect and speeding me up in steps. I struggle to find anything to compare it with: maybe if I was skiing, and I accidentally went onto a frozen lake? Like the air is both thicker than it should be and thinner at the same time. I can handle it as long as we're travelling in a straight line, but trying to do anything acrobatic would definitely end in a crash.

The changeling hive is easy to spot: actually it's impossible to miss, because it's a collection of huge blue and purple rock spires at the exact centre of a circular patch of greenery over a trot in diameter. It stands out among the desolate wastes of the surrounding badlands like a sore hoof. As we flap closer I catch sight of little coloured dots hovering over the spires: changelings. Pacific drops lower: skimming as close to the jagged ground as we dare as we approach the hive.

'Under the royal tower, on the western outcrop' Ocellus said; I'm pretty sure she means that dark green spire that's separated from the others. The time warping effect makes talking difficult at best: we're too far apart and moving too fast for me to ask Pacific Dream. He seems to agree though, because he's already heading for the green spire.

The cliffs forming the exterior of the changeling hive are dotted with tunnel entrances, and the queen's spire is no exception. We head into the largest opening and land: despite taking it as gently as I can I nearly trip over in the process. This super speed thing is cool, but it's really doing a number on my 'graceful kirin-alicorn princess' image. Or am I an alirin? Quilicorn? I shake my head: more important things to think about right now.

"Come on," I say firmly "Follow me!". The faster we move, the less chance of being spotted. I canter down the tunnel, quickly coming to an open area with several ledges and exits. A mustard-coloured changeling is fussing with a pile of jars, while a lilac one and a rose one are squash fruiting... making jam? Huh, not what I expected from a hive of pony-shaped insects. I ignore them and run into one of the lower tunnels.

The hive is absolutely full of twists and turns and we double back several times: Pacific's sense of direction seems better than mine as he keeps stopping me and saying that the tunnel I chose must lead back to a chamber we've already visited. We pass a few more changelings wandering around the hive, almost frozen from our perspective: one is hovering and her normally buzzing insect wings are barely moving, like each flap would take nearly a minute.

I'm beginning to get light headed: I hope it's from the time distortion and not some weirdo changeling magic. Finally we come to a tunnel with two serious-looking changelings outside. Their chitin is darker, they have three horns (though much smaller than Thorax's) and the carapace around their heads is thicker, making it look like they're wearing helmets. Definitely guards - although they're sitting next to a boulder and playing a card game, which I'm sure Chrysalis never would have allowed.

"This has gotta be it!" I say, making a beeline for the tunnel. It's pitch black: we're far too deep for daylight and even the glowing moss seems sparse in this part of the hive. Fortunately I came prepared: I create a light at the tip of my horn, making use of the first spell I'd learned from Starlight's books. Pacific gives me an approving nod as we make our way through the winding tunnel.

We emerge into a large cave, this one lit by magical lamps and stuff full of items. Racks and racks of spears, swords, bows, suits of armour - pony weapons and stuff that looks like griffon and minotaur gear as well. Not just weapons: there's tools, clothing, chests, stacks of paper that look like official documents of some kind... but no treasure, and nothing that looks magical. Though the circular carvings on the far wall look promising: there's a ring of complex carvings around an area of lighter stone in the middle-

Without warning the world around me lurches and I stumble as we drop back into real time. "Pacific?" I cry out as the light on the end of my horn goes out.

"That was not my intention!" the stallion says. He frowns as if he's concentrating, and there's a glimmer of light from the clock faces on his flanks, but nothing happens. "Something is blocking my temporal ability!"

My mind is racing. I try to levitate one of the suits of armour but my magic just dissipates into nothing. "Me too! There must be negavite nearby!" I was afraid of this: Chrysalis had managed to salvage pieces of her old throne from the badlands, and there's no reason why her former subjects couldn't have done the same thing. That or the defences had always been here, either as a backup or predating the construction of her throne.

"Cozy! The floor!" The rock under Pacific Dream liquifies: he tries to flap into the air but his hooves are already caught, and as soon as his bird claws touch the ground they're sucked in as well. I immediately take flight, narrowly avoiding a similar fate. "I'm stuck!" the stallion shouts, tossing his head and jerking his wings up and down.

"Keep still!" I flap over and try to pull him out, but it's no good: his feet are embedded a couple of hoof-widths into the rock. My eyes go to the circular indentation in the wall: it's not a conventional door, but I do remember Ocellus rambling about how her hive used to shift and change. If that's the door to the vault, then my best move is to get in there and raid it first, then free Pacific on the way out.

I bring my front hooves up and fly forwards as fast as I can, aiming at the centre of the circle. An earth pony backed against the wall will instinctively spin and buck with their rear hooves, while a unicorn out of magic will lower their head and charge. Pegasi make use of our speed and innate ability to resist high-speed impacts: I can only hope the negavite isn't interfering with that too, or I'm about to break my front legs.

My hooves slam into the stone with a thunderous clop, echoing again and again around the cave. My legs ache with the impact, but I can take it. I'm rewarded with a spiderweb of cracks radiating out from the impact site... which quickly seal up again. Right, living stone: maybe if we could get one of the beam cannons from the Dauntless we could blast through, but hooves aren't going to cut it.

I backwing away from the wall, hovering for a moment. My last hope is the carvings, but they might as well be a plate of spaghetti for all the sense I can make of them. The wiggly lines do seem to come together into a series of denser patches, making something that could be changeling pictograms in a circle around the door. I choose one at random and touch it with my hoof, and to my delight it begins to glow. "Yes!"

"Cozy Glow, I cannot move," Pacific says loudly. He doesn't seem too upset: in fact there's no emotion in his voice at all.

"I know!" I snap back. Does he think I've forgotten? "I've gotta get into the vault first, then I'll get you out." I tap several more carvings at random: each starts to glow green until I get to the ninth pictogram. That one turns red, and a deafening pulsing buzzing sound breaks out all around me.

"Incorrect sequence," Pacific says flatly, then after a pause: "Vulnerable to timing attack."

"I'm sure it is, but your time powers aren't working!" I shout back. I try another sequence, with the same result: the carvings flash red. There are seven symbols on each side, so, uh, fourteen factorial over five factorial... hundreds of millions of possible combinations. Frantically I try several more, as the bassy pounding buzz is hurting my ears and is starting to give me a headache. The guards must be on their way by now...

"Flicker pattern suggests right centre left 2nd-top left 3rd bottom right top right 3rd top left centre left 2nd bottom right bottom right 3rd bottom" Pacific Dream reels off, like he's reading stock prices from a ticker tape.

"Flicker pattern? What? Oh... wait, say that again." He must have noticed something about the carvings I missed. Pacific repeats the sequence and I tap the carvings as he suggests. I'm rewarded by the whole mess glowing green and the horrible buzzing finally shutting off. With a grinding sound the wall begins to iris open, forming a circular opening to the next chamber. "Yes!"

"Cozy Glow, I cannot move," Pacific says again.

"Jeez, I know! I'll be back, ok?!" Is this like the Maud Pie version of a panic attack or what? Leaving the stallion behind for now, I fly into the vault, taking care not to touch the floor. Jackpot! The inner chamber is positively glittering with treasure: piles of coins, gemstones, statues, jewellery, bottled potions and the tell-tale glows of magical items. Frantically I swoop around, searching for the artefacts that Ocellus described. I spot an ovoid shape, but... no, it's just a Fabergriff egg.

Where are they? Maybe Ocellus was- of course! She couldn't see them at first, and neither can I. I let my eyes defocus a little and sweep my gaze over the treasures, trying to find any spots that are seem to resist close inspection. Hmm... maybe... there! Now I see it: a polished lump of blotchy green rock the size of a pineapple, with emeralds where the leaves would be. My horn's on the fritz so I grab the Obscura Radia in my hooves. The next one is easier, and in less than a minute I'm carrying all three in my forelegs.

"Hostile changelings! I cannot move!" Pacific's voice echoes from the outer chamber.

"Hey, birdy, we're only hostile because you broke in here!" a squeaky, buzzing voice says.

"Yeah! Now hold still and let me get these manacles on you! Then we can let you out of the floor," a second changeling adds.

"Hostile changeling! Keep back! Keep back!" Pacific shouts, somehow conveying fear despite the harsh monotone.

They're attacking Pacific Dream? They want to put him in chains, take him away? Anger boils up inside me and the plundered treasures slip from my hooves, falling to the floor with a thud. He came for me when nopony else did, he got me the magic I needed, because he was made for me and he's mine! I can feel my rising rage like's a tangible thing, burning hot and overflowing out of me in an eruption of emotion. The world shifts and warps into an array of things waiting to be smashed and burned, as I soar into the air and emerge into the outer chamber.

Two pathetic insects are crawling around my prized stallion: a chocolate one and an olive one. The latter is trying to clamp a manacle onto his forelegs: my beloved bird-horse is convulsing wildly but his feet are still embedded in the treacherous stone. "Get away from him you bug!" I scream, as I dive straight for the offending changeling. I slam into the creature and blue flames pour out over my forehooves onto its carapace. It goes skidding back against the wall, singed and smoking.

"Hey! What- Tarsus! Are you-" I plant my hooves in the ground, spin and buck the other changeling with all my strength. There's a satisfying crack as my hooves shatter its shell. The overgrown cockroach is thrown back into the entrance tunnel, whimpering and mewling. Pathetic cowards, waiting until my concubine has been caught in their trap before they move in for the kill.

I hear a roar from my right, and turn back to the green changeling to see that it's been replaced by a swamp-coloured dragon. I roar back, bare my teeth and charge. The dragon unleashes its flame, but I don't even feel it. With a single beat of my wings I leap over its head, land on its back and sink my sharp fangs into the base of its wing. Flame flows out from me again, piercing through its scales and drawing a scream of pain from my prey.

"How dare you invade my temple!" I scream as I kick the dragon in the head with a rear hoof. It slumps to the floor, flashing green as it reverts to its true insect form. "And stay down this time!"

Something is drawing at my flames, trying to draw them away, extinguish me. More evil trickery from the bug creatures. My eyes follow the streams of flame: they're being drawn into specific spots on the walls and ceiling, marked by some sort of runes. With another scream of rage I fly at the nearest rune and smash my hoof into it, again and again until the stone plate shatters and the glittering black gem beneath is pounded into dust. That will teach them to try and steal my flames! I fly at the next one, and then the next until all of the insect's siphons are smashed beyond repair.

My flames burn higher, magnificent in their radiance. My bird-horse concubine is staring at me in adoration. He is saying something, not in our language but that of the ponies... we need to leave this place? More insects are coming? Let them come, I will burn them all and feast on the ashes. Yet he insists, we must leave now if we are to destroy Twilight Sparkle... merely hearing the name of my hated rival is enough to make me howl with rage.

So be it. My glorious magic is unleashed once more, and I draw the sacred treasures to me. I could free my concubine by destroying the floor, but that might damage him. I need a phase window... I have created them before, have I not? Yet in the heat of my righteous rage, I cannot recall how. My horn sparks, the air flickers, but no portal opens. I scream with frustration.

More bug creatures are coming: their leader is larger than the others, with red horns and purple eyes that stare at me with shock and hatred. I could burn them all, I want to burn them all, but the thought of harm to my trapped bird-horse gives me pause. I hover protectively over him as I force more magic into my horn. The pressure is intense, the pain breaking through my rage to ravage my brain, but my will is strong and I rip open a tear in the fabric of space. Then I yank it down, enveloping us even as the insects charge forward. The world goes dark.

Visions of a mass of kirin stomping their hooves. The congregation pays rapt attention to my every word. Torchlit ceremonies, chosen sacrifices. The gods will be pleased.

"Cozy? Can you hear me? Please, you need to wake up."

Pacific? I float back into consciousness, slowly at first and then all at once, like I've been underwater too long and I'm gasping for air. I'm aching all over, my skull is ringing and there's a throbbing pain in my horn. My eyes flicker open and the first thing I see is a familiar eagle-like face.

"I'm here, I'm ok. Mostly, uh... are we ok?" I'm lying on something soft: a bed. Wood panelled walls, electric lamps behind frosted glass... I'm in my cabin on the Dauntless. In the background I can hear the engines humming: relief washes over me as I realise I'm safe. We're safe.

"Golly, I uh... I guess... did I turn into a nirik? And then black out?"

Pacific Dream nods. "You became a creature of flame and darkness. You struck down both of the changeling guards, destroyed the Negavite siphons, and teleported us out of the hive. Along with a substantial chunk of the floor: when I broke lose I found you nearby, reverted to your current form. Your horn was still steaming - I could not wake you, so I carried you back here."

"Huh. So I guess this time we're even. I saved you and then you saved me." I roll over and slowly sit up, groaning at the pain in my head. "How long have I been out? Did we get the treasure? Um... I didn't... kill the changelings did I?" It's not like a care about a couple of random bug ponies, but, uh, I guess they were just doing their jobs.

"One hour, thirty eight minutes. Yes, you retrieved all three Obscuria Radias: they're in the cargo hold." Pacific confirms. Good: I'd hate to have gone through all that for nothing. "And yes, I believe both changelings survived, but I cannot be certain. I confess I was in something of an altered state of consciousness myself."

"That's a relief. Gosh, Pacific, that was... that was definitely something. Now I know how Luna felt after she stopped being Nightmare Moon." It was definitely a power boost, and a total rush to boot, but on the other hoof I was totally out of control. If Pacific hadn't been there I would've gone on a rampage through the whole hive - and probably would've fallen straight into more changeling traps, because I wasn't thinking straight.

"The dark side of the kirin. Your comparison is not unwarranted: for a qi-lin, the effect must be yet more intense." A pause, then he says softly: "Do you want to talk about it?"

The whole thing seems like a dream, albeit a particularly vivid and disturbing one. "Maybe later. I need, uh... I need some time." I wonder if I will get better at controlling my nirik form; I'm not sure how I can practice, because going through that again seems like a huge risk. I shiver and decide change the subject. "You were having issues too, huh? Was the negavite messing with your mechanisms?"

Pacific frowns and looks away, pacing back and forth in the little cabin before fixing me a strange, intense stare. "In a manner of speaking. My components were separated, thought and feeling severed from one another."

"What do you mean? Like your brain was split in half? Two separate consciousnesses?" I know that pony brains have two hemispheres and there have been cases where the connection in the middle breaks down: that was one of the lessons where they got a real expert in from the Ponyville hospital. I can see why that would make Pacific Dream panic.

"Let me show you," the stallion says, stepping closer. I'm still sitting on the bed, so when his lower back opens up and the golden bird pops out it's right at my eye level. It's shaped like a hawk with the plumage of a peacock, with emerald eyes that gleam with inner light. The polished avian sculpture is held up by jointed struts, and I can see an intricate mass of gears and wires lining the cavity it came out of. "Do you see those specks of light, moving along the wires connecting my body to the Genesis Bird?"

"Yeah... like little sparks." A dozen or so copper wires - at least they look like copper - trail from the underside of the metal bird down into Pacific's body. Tiny motes of magical energy are racing along them, moving in both directions. "What are they for?"

"Exchanges of logic for sentiment, sensation for meaning, data for insight." Pacific explains cryptically. His tone is hard to place. I light my horn, reaching out... the hippogriff shivers as my magic touches the metal bird. The specks do mean something: ideas, emotions. It's like a conversation, but not with words.

'Foreign magic detected. What is Cozy Glow doing?'
'She is curious. She wants to understand.'
'A fragile mechanism is exposed. There is risk of damage.'
'A strange feeling. The magic of another, touching my mind. Fear and excitement.'
'Why show this to Cozy Glow?'
'A hidden side of her was revealed. This brings balance. A step towards trust.'
'Trust is a security vulnerability. It can be exploited.'
'Nothing tendered, nothing gained. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.'
'Great risk justified by great reward?'
'Or perhaps love makes fools of us all.'

I'm stunned. Did I really just- Pacific suddenly pulls away. The golden bird starts to retract back inside of him, but before it can do so I push a little spark of my own into the wiring.

'Kiss the mare.'

Pacific Dream freezes for a moment, then in one smooth motion reaches over and slides his beak around my muzzle. My lips part, and... the scent of him is strange, definitely not a pony scent, and his tongue is too smooth, but he's warm and this is my first kiss and-

The artificial stallion steps back, staring at me. "Cozy... I'm not sure that-"

"It's ok!" I say quickly, flashing my best smile. I can barely feel the lingering pains, as a rush of excitement takes hold. "Really, it's ok. So, um... you wanna do that again?"

Author's Note

As expected, 'maybe we can be equals' lasted for about two days until Cozy's severe yandere tendencies surfaced. To be fair, a) she hasn't had any examples of healthy romantic relationships in her life and b) alicorn-grade nirik is a hell of a drug. On a meta level, I know canon-OC relationships are frowned upon by many, but something like 50% of Cozy stories and 95% of Cozy shipping is Cozy/Flurry Heart, and I felt that particular groove is a little too well worn.

I'm trying to strike a balance between Cozy acting exactly like her canon depiction, and being a barely recognisable extrapolation. Authors who want to use Cozy as a villain usually have her pop up unchanged, because they want that specific character archetype as an antagonist and she isn't the one getting an arc. Some authors who make Cozy the main character take her through redemption arcs spanning decades into adulthood, which is interesting but a bit disconnected from the on-screen character we originally saw.

Thus in this story Cozy is a teenager; she's starting with quite a lot of magical power but less than her previous peak (her raw potential is similar but she doesn't have the spellcasting knowledge or the Bewitching Bell), she's experienced some character growth from three years of solitary confinement but is still (hopefully) recognisable as the manipulative filly who tried to take over Equestria. Some authors use 'she had a close friend and they left/died' as part of the justification for Cozy 'breaking bad', but I think she acts much more like someone with natural social talent, but due to circumstances (leading to trauma, leading to mindset) never managed to form a close relationship.

I'm not sure if Pacific Dream qualifies as a 'relationship stu' here - Cozy Glow isn't a main character in MLP:FIM and she doesn't have any canon pairing to disrupt - but regardless of whether you love or hate the TvTropes Mary Sue Classsification System (tm), Pacific is undeniably an implausibly convenient husbando. Maybe Cozy was more right than she realised and he is actually Twilight Sparkle's experimental reformation robot? After all, 'Twilight builds a magitech robot' is a fairly popular premise on FiMfiction...

If you've had enough of Cozy+Pacific, don't worry, the next few chapters focus on other characters.

P.S. One of the major disagreements in the fandom is whether changelings actually transform into other creatures, or just use illusions. I've seen both extremes done well, e.g. Prey is my favourite Ocellus story and in that fanon changelings can turn into anything they've seen, get all the natural & magical abilities of whatever they're imitating, and a few can even do custom chimera forms to combine those abilities. At the other end of the scale, many authors feel this is all hopelessly O.P. and make changeling disguises purely a mental suggestion power, with no physical change or extra abilities. This interpretation was more viable early in the show's run: once the changelings reform and Ocellus shows up there are a lot of scenes that are hard to explain with 'it's just an illusionary disguise'.

There are various compromise positions: here I'm saying that changelings do change shape and do get the purely physical abilities of whatever they're imitating, but not the magical ones. Infiltrators are skilled at using illusions to fake pegasus weather working, dragon breath, non-trivial unicorn magic etc. That's the bare minimum needed to explain why Chrysalis transformed into a cragadile and then a roc in 'Frenemies', when she was climbing the mountain on her own and an illusion would not have been useful.