Chapter 1: Metamorphosis
by: SteampunkBrony
The Overmind prepared this for her... Is our leader gone? The Hive's concious asked as the Overlord followed the Infestor through the cave system. Within the room before them was an open chrysalis and numerous worker drones.
I believe so... The Overmind gifted us with intelligence so we could complete his will without his full guidence as the other broods needed... I only hope we do not fail in this. We are few in number and cannot grow until she is finished her metamorphosis. The Overlord replied as the pony was placed in the chrysalis. Withdraw the Creep from around the cave and hide the entrance. Send out the scouts to patrol the area, but ensure they stay hidden. We want to remain hidden for as long as possible.
I wonder what she will look like when the metamorphosis is complete, I hope she keeps those wings of hers, they do look rather nice... The Hive thought aloud.
And you say I'm strange... The Overlord said, making a strange huffing sound that could be classified as laughter.
I'm not the one who had a Zergling steal a giant nightcap for... the Hive replied, one of the nearby drones it was using to relay its thoughts giving off an odd chittering noise.
A nearby Hydralisk looked back and forth between the drone and the Overlord, grumbling to itself I hope new leader isn't like them... they insane...
Warmth surrounded Fluttershy as her mind started to reboot itself. The back of her neck was sore but the pain was fading quickly, so she didn't think much of it. Mmm... this feels nice... I think I'll just sleep here... she thought as consciousness once more fled the Pegasus, leaving her to pleasant dreams.
Do you think she'll turn out like the queen of blades? The Hive asked as the chrysalis filled with liquid.
The Overmind said the infestation wouldn't alter her mind much. It would only enable her to hear us, and lead us when the time comes. The Overlord said. Why he told me this and not you I am unsure.
Perhaps he felt I have enough on my mind taking care of the brood in his absence and felt you would be a better teacher?
Perhaps... The Overlord replied as the chrysalis finished filling. He could see the pony inside stir for a moment and then relax within the liquid as tendrils snaked up from the bottom of the chrysalis, attaching themselves to various points on the pony's body. You know... I wonder if that hurts...
I don't think it does... The Infestor that had brought the pony in said as it watched. Then again, I'm not the one having tendrils jab into my body...
Well, not much we can do now but wait... hmm... from the sounds of things the Ultralisks are about to have a round of Baneling volleyball.
Ooh, I don't wanna miss that, last time they almost brought the cave down on themselves.
You really don't like them do you?
What? After nearly being trampled by those morons of course I hold a grudge.
I am beginning to see why the Terrans fight amongst themselves so much... free will is a dual edged blade... The Overlord thought aloud as the Infestor skittered off to watch the dangerous round of 'Baneling volleyball'. At least the Zerglings and their evolutions are still obedient, otherwise things would be very interesting. It thought as it floated into a small cave high up the chamber that it had claimed as its own. It sleepily ordered the two Zerglings it kept up there to watch the door, after they had helped it get its nightcap on, of course.
Fluttershy felt the comforting warmth around her, her mind shaking of the dregs of sleep. I haven't slept that well in ages...
Oh, you're finally awake! A feminine voice said, but she didn't hear it, it was more like it spoke to her mind. Narax, she's awake! the voice called again. Fluttershy tried to open her eyes but they seemed to be glued shut.
”What's going on? Why can't I open my eyes? Who are you?” She asked, it felt as if she was trying to speak with a mouth full of water.
Be calm little one, we don't mean any harm. A much deeper voice said. I'm sure you want some answers but panicking right now will probably do more harm than good. We'll start with your last two questions, you can't open your eyes right now because the chrysalis has sealed them shut temporarily. As for who we are, well I am Narax, a Zerg Overlord of the Hope Brood, and the voice you no doubt heard earlier was Te'ra'tiks the Hope Brood's hive consciousness.
”O-okay... I'm Fluttershy. Um... can you tell me what is going on... if it's not too much trouble?” Fluttershy asked, still scared out of her wits but she was slowly gaining back control of her limbs.
Well... Ter'ra'tiks began but was cut off by Narax.
Let me handle this Tiks, you tend to not be the best at tact. The Overlord said.
Fine... spoilsport.
The last thing we need is for you to make her panic. In any case... Narax scolded before his tone dropped to a much kinder one. Our scouts in the forest around our hive spotted you and were following you as you wandered near our cave, we were going to just let you be but unfortunately a rogue former member of our hive attacked you. He thought he was helping us by defending the hive, and I'll admit he did help us in a way but not in the way he thought or we wanted first contact with your race to go... He injured you badly before the scouts were able to... well stop him is putting it lightly for what they did to him. the voice said with a sigh. They then brought you here. We were able to save your life, but... well I'll be straight with you the only way we could save your life was by infusing you with some of our race's genetics. That's what the chrysalis you are currently within is for, however they are one use... for good reason too but we'll get to that later.
“Um... what does that have to do with anything? It's clear that I'm better.” Fluttershy responded, poking at one of the tendrils that were attached to her with a hoof. “And are these... attached to me?” She asked when she felt something move on her foreleg in reaction to the poke.
I'll answer the second question first. Yes they're attached to you, for now, because while you may feel fine you're still recovering from both the injury and the effects of the chrysalis. Those tendrils are pretty much supplying your body with food, water, and oxygen so try not to damage them. Narax replied. You're suspended in a liquid right now so the chrysalis is doing the job that your lungs normally do. Don't worry, you won't drown, the... you know what I'm going to call it a pod from here on in, chrysalis is too wordy. Anyhow, the pod is supplying you with air. As for why you're still in there, your body is very delicate right now, so in order for you to stay safe you're being kept in a way that will prevent diseases and physical damage. I'll be honest, I've seen another version of those things survive a fall from the upper atmosphere so trust me when I say no harm will come to you in there. Narax's voice said with a chuckle.
“Oh... okay... that explains why breathing feels weird.” Fluttershy responded. “Um... when am I going to be able to open my eyes?”
It won't be too long, now I suppose I should get this over and done with before that point though... Now, trust me when I say myself and the brood I am a part of mean you no harm, however I've been told by our race's leader that other races often find us repulsive or frightening in appearance. I can understand why, seeing as we are a race that has evolved by assimilating other species, but most of us in my brood are intelligent. Even the Zerglings have a basic understanding of this language. The only ones of us that are not self aware are the worker drones, but that's simply because they are just that, drones. Think of them as Tiks' hands, she controls them.
I actually have one in the room beside Narax right now so I can speak to you and see you. Tiks confirmed.
What I'm basically saying is we are not the most visually appealing race, and probably not what you'd want to run into on a dark night, so try not to panic at our appearance.
“That shouldn't be too hard, I take care of animals for a living so... oh... oh I hope the ones at my cottage are okay!” Fluttershy's voice filled with concern as she remembered her pets.
Hmm... I wonder...
GAH! Tiks! Warn me before you do that again!
“Um... what happened... if you don't mind me asking.” Fluttershy said, gigiling a little despite herself.
I just hooked up the vision centers of his brain to the visual signal the drone is sending me. I think it was a little unnerving. Tiks said with a chuckle
You think? I'm only used to one point of view, not suddenly seeing from another being's point of view! Narax responded, clearly rather irritated with Tiks.
In any case, I was going to do that for you if you wanted, I can send one of our faster Zerglings out with you telling it what to do and seeing what it sees. That way you can check on your animals, although I wouldn't suggest telling it to go too close to the other animals, as they will probably be scared of it.
“That would be nice, that way I can see if Angel Bunny has returned home.”
Hmm... this Angel... would he happen to be a small white rabbit? Ticks asked
“Oh, yes! Have you seen him?”
One of the Mutalisks spotted him running past here shortly before you showed up, and we spotted him heading out of the forest too.
“Oh that's good. He'll be able to help the other animals. How long have I been down here?”
Hmm... well it's been about a day and a half since we brought you in. It'll probably be another few hours before the pod is finished, judging by the look of things... aaaaand that brings us to something that's probably going to be a little more difficult for you to accept come to think of it.Narax said hesitantly.
“Um... well... may as well get it over with... since from the sounds of things I'm going to find out sooner or later.” Fluttershy said.
Okay... well you remember what I said about the pod infusing you with Zerg genetics?
“Yes...”
Well... that has had some... physical side effects. These pods are usually used to assimilate members of other races, however the Overmind, our leader... well former leader now... modified this one for you when we brought you in so it wouldn't alter your mind. The pods were designed by a brood that were... less than accommodating of other races and led by Zerg who follow the will of The Dark One. However, with the Overmind's help we were able to modify this one to not assimilate you like that, although like I said, we couldn't guarantee you looking exactly the same.
“I... um... how bad is it?” Fluttershy asked, her voice laced with worry.
Well, you're still recognizable, however... well... Tiks, can you hook her into the drone's eyes? Narax asked.
I can, but are you sure that that's a good idea? Tiks replied.
Do you think you'll be able to not panic? Narax asked Fluttershy.
“I'll do my best.” Fluttershy responded. “Is... it a big change?”
You could say that. Tiks said, linking Fluttershy into the Drone's eyes as her mind conjured up grotesque images of horribly mutated ponies.
“Oh... my...” Fluttershy found herself looking at a large pod full of a yellow-green liquid on a pedestal in the middle of a cavern, with her body floating in the middle of it. A few dozen tendrils, each around the thickness of a celery stalk, were connected to various points on her body. Her mane was now made up of hundreds of light pink, half inch thick, segmented strands giving her the appearance of having very long dreadlocks. Overlapping plates of cream colored chitin covered the front of her throat and extended down her stomach. Butter yellow plates of chitin covered her back and the front edges of her wings. Her feathers had become almost scale like in appearance, each one a single piece of the material that covered her stomach. Her facial features were unchanged, but in place of fur her face was covered in tiny scale like pieces of chitin the same color as the ones on her back. Her cutie mark remained emblazoned on the chitin on each flank. Her tail was made up of the same dreadlock like strands that her mane was. Two short fangs protruded from her upper row of teeth, with similar changes happening to her bottom teeth.
You should be able to open your eyes soon. Narax said quietly as Fluttershy moved the drone closer to the pod.
“Oh... okay...” She said, her face scrunching up before her eyes opened, thin strands of a sticky substance floating away into the liquid that surrounded her. She caught a glimpse of her, thankfully unchanged, eyes before Tiks disconnected her vision from the drone's. “Th-thank you for warning me before I found out about the changes myself...” Fluttershy said with a weak smile, looking over at the Narax and the drone. “And thank you for warning me about your appearances, I would have probably fainted.” She said, her wings moving through the liquid, pushing her towards the pod's membrane.
That's why we warned you. Ticks said, clearly happy that Fluttershy hadn't had a mental breakdown.
“Well, I'll be honest I was worried it would be worse, but I still look mostly the same.” The pegasus said as she looked out at the Zerg outside the pod.
It's good to see you accepting the change. Narax said. It will be a few more hours before the pod finishes its work, and then you're probably going to be quite weak. That should wear off quickly though.
“That's fine, I just hope my friends aren’t too worried about me...” Fluttershy said, looking around the cavern.
I hope they don't go looking for you, we'd like to stay unnoticed until your kind knows we don't mean you any harm. Narax said. We have a little knowledge on first encounter situations, but I still want to meet on good terms.
“Well... I could get Twilight to send a letter to the Princesses about you guys, and we can go from there.” Fluttershy suggested, looking closely at the chitin on her foreleg. “This definitely feels different than fur, I hope it's not too cold in winter.” Fluttershy thought aloud.
You should be fine. All Zerg species can survive almost any environment, even a complete vacuum has no effect on us. Tiks said. That said, there are a few creatures in this forest that have been giving our scouts trouble, but I think only that large fire breathing lizard would be capable of posing any serious threat.
“Y-you found a dragon?” Fluttershy asked, a hint of fear creeping into her voice.
He's quite a few miles away but yes there is one within the borders of the forest. Tiks said.
“Dragons are territorial, but they rarely bother any creatures that they don't see as a threat to their territory. So long as you don't bother him he shouldn't bother you.”
Well that's good news. Tiks said. In any case, I have a few things I want to take care of before helping you out of there, namely finding something to dry you off with. That liquid in there dries and becomes rather sticky.
“Okay.” Fluttershy said. “Um... Mr. Narax, would you be able to tell me more about your race?”
Only if you tell me your name. Narax said, laughing slightly at the look on Fluttershy's face when she realized she had forgotten to tell them her name.
“I'm sorry! I completely forgot that I hadn't told you my name.” She said as she facehoofed. “I'm Fluttershy.”
Well then Fluttershy, I suppose I can indulge you in the history of the Zerg Swarm while we wait. Narax began before launching into the story of his race in a manner that would have made Twilight Sparkle proud.
Meanwhile back in Ponyville
A knock echoed through the Books and Branches Public Library, shortly followed by a shout of “I got it.” From a small purple and green dragon who had been re-shelving books. He ran over to the door and opened it.
“Hello Spike.” A white unicorn with a well kept purple mane said. “Is Twilight in?”
“Yeah, I'll go get her for you Rarity.” Spike said, before dashing off to find Twilight.
Moments later Spike returned, followed by a purple unicorn. “Hey Rarity.” Twilight said “What's up?”
“It's about Fluttershy, you haven't seen her around town have you? I already checked with Rainbow Dash and she hasn't seen her all day and to top it off she missed our spa appointment. She has never missed a spa appointment without at least sending Angel with a note so I checked at her house.” Rarity said worriedly.
“Was she there?” Twilight asked, worry creeping into her voice as well.
“She wasn't, and angel seemed to be worried about her too. None of her animals had been fed either, but I fixed that before I came here.”
“She never leaves without making sure somepony is feeding her animals...”
“There's another thing, angel was looking out towards the Everfree the whole time I was there, I think she may be in the forest.” Rarity said.
“That's not good at all... I'll go talk to Mayor Mare, you go get Applejack, Rainbow, and Pinkie.”
“Good idea.” Rarity said, nodding before turning and heading out the door.
“Come on Spike, and bring a quill and parchment, if she is in the Everfree we may have to get some of the guard to help.” Twilight said. Spike gave a sharp salute before grabbing the requested items and hopping on Twilights back.
