A thing or two about changelings and their habits saga

Chapters

CHAPTER 1 (AKA: What in the hay is goin' on here?)
CHAPTER 2 (AKA: My name's Pinkie Pie, what's yours?)
CHAPTER 3: (AKA: Sense and senility)
CHAPTER 4 (AKA: Sparkle, we have a problem)
CHAPTER 5: (AKA: welcome to my realm!)
CHAPTER 6 (AKA: when life gives you parasprites...)
CHAPTER 7 (AKA: are the Apples worth the squeeze?)
CHAPTER 8 (AKA: According to plan)
CHAPTER 9 (AKA: The Doctor is in)
CHAPTER 10 (AKA: About time)
CHAPTER 11 (AKA: party of four)
CHAPTER 12 (AKA: Connections)
CHAPTER 13 (AKA: An unexpected summon)
CHAPTER 14 (AKA: Bubble, bubble...)
CHAPTER 15 (AKA: Toil and trouble)
CHAPTER 16 (AKA: A friendly warning)
CHAPTER 17 (AKA: The legend of the mirror pool)
CHAPTER 19 (AKA: Craindre la revolucion)
CHAPTER 20 (AKA: Keeping mum)
CHAPTER 21 (AKA: Getting there)
CHAPTER 22 (AKA: It’s all about the towns)
CHAPTER 23 (AKA: A dystopian utopia)
CHAPTER 24 (AKA: Emotional swings and roundabouts)
CHAPTER 25 (AKA: Cunning plans and sly tactics)
CHAPTER 26 (AKA: The art of making oneself conspicuous)
CHAPTER 27 (AKA: XOXO)
CHAPTER 28 (AKA: Food shopping)
CHAPTER 29 (AKA: The reunion)
CHAPTER 31 (AKA: The calm before the storm)
CHAPTER 32 (AKA: The de-monsteration)
CHAPTER 33 (AKA: Information liberation)
CHAPTER 34 (AKA: Percival)
CHAPTER 35 (AKA: For worse or better...)
CHAPTER 36 (AKA: Final day)
CHAPTER 37 (AKA: The beginning, The book, The promise)
We, the immortals - CHAPTER 1 (AKA: A package from hell)
CHAPTER 2 (AKA: Whispers)
CHAPTER 3 (AKA: Food arcades)
CHAPTER 4 (AKA: Flower among the ruins)
CHAPTER 5 (AKA: Meet the family)
CHAPTER 6 (AKA: Training)
CHAPTER 7 (AKA: The island)
CHAPTER 9 (AKA: Minesweeper)
CHAPTER 10 (AKA: Intention reading)
CHAPTER 12 (AKA: A word among friends)
CHAPTER 13 (AKA: Back home)
Reality split - CHAPTER 1 (AKA: Ripples after splashes)
CHAPTER 2 (AKA: Where crossroads meet)
CHAPTER 3 (AKA: Reality's demention)
CHAPTER 4 (AKA: The art of speaking)
A thing or two about changelings and their habits - PRELUDE (AKA: chapter 0)
CHAPTER 18 (AKA: Family values)
CHAPTER 30 (AKA: Mission implausible)
CHAPTER 8 (AKA: The extent to which one is immortal)
CHAPTER 11 (AKA: A changeling and his machine)

CHAPTER 1 (AKA: What in the hay is goin' on here?)

CLOP
CLOP
CLOP
Went Applejack's hooves clopping against the path as she slowly trotted back to her hometown of Ponyville after the annual Equestria rodeo competition... ahhhhh yet another first place ribbon to put on her mantlepiece and she even managed to redeem herself after that last year's fiasco, where she promised mayor Mare she would use the first prize money she'd win in the contest to fix the town hall building... in retrospect, her reckless behaviour caused quite a BIT of trouble that week (if you pardon the pun).
As she was absent-mindedly trotting on (which was an unusual thing to happen to AJ) one of her hooves snagged on something on the path that shouldn't be there by any possible means... she tripped and smacked her face on the dirt.

Applejack got up quickly, thinking that this is what daydreaming gets ponies to and that she should have her mind set on what's around her more often than she usually does, she picked her hat up, incidentally revealing a more than likely dead changeling's face which would have been contorted in unbearable desparation and pain if he were still conscious.

"What in the hay is goin' on here?" thought out loud our little workaholic mare.
Normally this is the moment where our antagonist would be left to die by the passerby who thinks he is dead but fortunately for him, karma hasn't given up on our hero just yet.
in the most unlikely of possibilities and outcomes in the universe it had to be today that Fluttershy ran out of carrots for her dear little temperamental pet (no, not the fox... or the owl... or the eagle, bat, badger, beaver, kitty, bear, chicken, goldfish... for her rabbit, Angel) and it just so happened that no one in Ponyville had any fresh carrots, so she decided to go to another town nearby to get some and she was on her way back when she stumbled upon a flabbergasted Applejack.
Before AJ could even begin to formulate an explanation in her head, Fluttershy went into a flutterfrenzy, trying to get the floppy body (the same kind of floppy you get when you take a soggy sock off your foot) of the changeling on its cracked hooves and give it some of the carrots, or something to drink.

After 10 minutes of clowning around with the body trying to nurse it back to health to no avail and after another 10 minutes of trying to convince AJ that they should try and help the thing even though their kind tried to take over Equestria, they came to the conclusion that it would be best if they took him or her (most ponies can't tell the difference between a male and a female changeling) over to fluttershy's cottage, call the rest of the girls and discuss what to do with the changeling once it's nursed back to some of its former health.

Once Twilight Sparkle heard the news, she instantly threw- i mean she instantly put down the book she was reading, carefully and neatly next to the pile of alphabetized, chronologicalized (and other types of -ized) books and rushed to her
shelves to look for a book about changelings thinking that there's a book for that.
There was no book for that.
Having found nothing on the subject, she teleported (as there was no time to spare) to Fluttershy's cottage at once with the elements of harmony at hand in case something were to go out of hoof.

Rainbow dash, was having a good day today, because the new volume of "Daring Do's adventures" came out and she was so excited about it that when she finally got her hooves on it, she refused leave her cloudhouse until she read the entire story at least tenfold, but the moment she heard the news from a Pinkie Pie tied to a bunch of party balloons, Rainbow dashed out the window and dived towards Fluttershy's cottage so fast that she nearly caused a sonic rainboom on the way.
Rainbow Dash knew Fluttershy better than anypony else (after all, they have been ponyhood friends) and she knew that Fluttershy couldn't resist the urge to help a creature regardless of what it was (with the exception of dragons, of course), and that sometimes meant trouble.

When Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle reached the cottage, the rest of the girls already inside including Pinkie Pie (which surprised Rainbow Dash because just moments ago she was at her cloudhouse) and were in the middle of a heated discussion about what to do with the changeling (who was already tucked in a comfy bed, resting next to the girls).

"Look, all i'm sayin' is that we can't trust them critters, you saw what they did at the wedding, what if this is some sort of plan they came up with to catch us off-guard?" said Applejack

"Oh but Applejack, he is hurt, we can't just leave him like that" replied Fluttershy

"Unfortunately i agree with applejack here, must I remind you of the horrible HORRIBLE mess they made at the wedding, dear?"" butted in Rarity

"Yeah but-" began Fluttershy but was unexpectedly interrupted by Applejack

"So it's settled then, we won't help the nasty little thang"
That sentence was the spark that lit the fire between the ponies, as they flared up and began to mindlessly bicker, all at the same time

"Girls, GIRLS! we need to calm down, arguing isn't going to solve anything here" stated Twilight

"Well, what would you suggest we do then, Twilight?"

"I think we should help him BUT that doesn't mean we should keep our guard down, i took the elements with me, if he tries to do something funny, we will be ready"

"I don't think that would be necessary, twilight, look at him, he's so defenseless, poor little thing"

"Poor little thing? that ruffian? i think NOT" whipped out Rarity

"Maybe he's not so bad once we get to know him better, remember Discord?"

"Normally i would agree with you, Fluttershy but this is different, princess Celestia herself asked us to reform Discord and she wouldn't ask us of something that she knew we couldn't handle, but in this case we are doing this without her permission"

"Twilight's right, we don't know for sure if we're not chewin' off more than we can handle"

"Until Fluttershy nurses the changeling back to health and we are able to release him, I think that it would be best if we all stayed over at her cottage" began Twilight

"That's very kind of you Twilight but I wouldn't want for any of you to waste your time here with me..."

"PFFFFF! I wasn't going to go out and fly any time soon anyway, i'm busy reading the new Daring Do book!, it's SOOOOOO AWESOME!!!" said Rainbow Dash as she entered into her own world of monsters and adventures, and began to do some kung-fu summersaults in the air.

Having agreed on the plan, the girls proceeded to prepare Fluttershy's cottage for the biggest slumber party in Ponyville history, because they might as well have some fun while they continue to guard the changeling.
Meanwhile, things began to look up for our changeling protagonist Mark, although near death, he began to slowly feed, off the compassion that Fluttershy showed towards him consequently saving him from certain vanishment from this world.
Perhaps Mark still had a role to play before he vanished into the non-existing clutches of nothingness...

CHAPTER 2 (AKA: My name's Pinkie Pie, what's yours?)

"And then I said OATMEAL, ARE YOU CRAZY!"

"SHHHH! I think he's waking up"

"You mean SHE'S waking up"

"Quiet everypony! get ready, we don't know what he- I mean she... whatever it is, is up to..."
Mark opened his eyes to discover that he's in some sort of room (probably a cottage no doubt) and he was surrounded by ponies of many hues.
Silence fell as quickly as it does when you discover that a beloved family member has died, and the atmosphere tasted horrible, it tasted like... tension, with a pinch of fear (personally, Mark's least favourite flavour of emotion) and it was all directed at him.
Suddenly the Pink pony hopped on the bed he just noticed he was in, shoved her nozzle-like snout threateningly close to his and said:

"Hi! my name's Pinkie Pie, what's yours?"
Silence fell for a second time, like a thin fog in the room, except this time the silence was spiked with awkwardness.
Once Mark figured out that it was his turn to retort, he decided to no longer delay the inevitable.

"Mark"

"Mark?- said pinkie in a tone of disbelief -That's a funny name"

"Says the one named after a finger and a pastry"
Pinkie moved even closer to Mark's face and slowly squinted her eyes.

"Touche..."spoke out Pinkie with squinty eyes and a smile as she slowly removed herself from the bed whilst still maintaining eye contact with the newcomer.

"Hi, my name is Twilight Sparkle, we found you unconscious on the road and my friend Fluttershy here" she pointed at the yellow pony with a pink mane "nursed you back to health... she says she will take care of you until you can take care of yourself but as soon as you are back on your hooves, you need to go away from here"
Mark didn't feel like he had the possibility of saying no, so he just nodded instead.

"Fluttershy, we will be taking turns to keep an eye on him, and the rest of us will be coming to visit you everyday to make sure everything is fine"

"If you say so..." whispered Fluttershy, or did she just say that? it was hard to tell for Mark, the pony had such a gentle voice that it sounded like she was constantly whispering... when he tried to taste her emotions (to try to figure out the pony's character), he could make out kindness, a dash of embarrassment, (seasoned with doubt) and a side-dish of lots and lots of shyness which was dipped in compassion and then deep-fried in friendship.
Once all the ponies apart from Fluttershy (and Pinkie Pie as it was her turn to stay with Fluttershy) left, Pinkie started to quiz Mark about everything (Mark almost threw up from all that curiosity that he was eating from Pinkie, but he was weak and he needed lots of positive emotions aimed at him to get better, so he couldn't afford to be picky)

"How old are you?"

"19"

"Are you a boy or a girl?"

"I'm a bo- wait, seriously? can't you tell???"

"I don't know... how can you tell?"

"OUR WINGS!" snapped back Mark while holding one of his wings with one hoof and pointing at it with the other

"Your wings?"

"Yes!, us males have "chartreuse" coloured wings and females have "harlequin" coloured wings"

"Really? why are there holes in your hooves?"

"you're a piece of work, you know that?"

"Thank you!, why are there holes in your hooves?"

"We just evolved that way I guess... it gives us more speed when we fly because they're lighter and more aerodynamic than just regular hooves and they're handy when you want to hold a few things at once, see?" said Mark as he reached out one of his hooves towards her "and the holes are of different sizes because sometimes we need to hold things that HAVE different sizes, look" Mark pointed at the smallest hole "that one is called a-"

"Where are you from?"

"Sorry?"

"Where are you from?"

"Wait, don't you want to know about the little hole?" asked Mark but the taste of boredom emanating from Pinkie already answered that question for him

"Booooring! I want to know where you're from"

"Ok then, have a guess" said Mark trying to reignite that curiosity inside of Pinkie.
Pinkie began to trot back and forth across the room with one hoof on her snout

"Hmmm... well your accent sounds Coltic so i'm going... to go... wiiiith... ISTALLION!"
Something would have snapped inside of mark right about now if he weren't so surprised by the lack of Pinkie's logic in the first place

"ISTALLION? WHAT THE- HOW- JUST- I'M FROM SCOLTLAND! Scoltland! just which part of coltic spells Istally for you?"
Pinkie made a sour face and rolled out her tongue at him

"You're no fun!"

"So, you like fun, huh?"
He should not have said that... Pinkie, as if being stabbed in the rump by an invisible white hot poker began to hop all over the place (much like a cork does when it is finally freed from the oppressive regime of the champaign bottle)

"OH YES, FUN FUN FUN FUN FUN!!!!"
Mark couldn't take it, the flavour of pinkie's fun was so strong that soon enough the entire bed was dyed with various bodily fluids coming from the changeling's mouth

"Eeeeewwwwwww!"
Fluttershy flew in to see what the commotion was all about

"Oh dear! you poor thing, what's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing, just a little too much fun for me"
Pinkie gasped in horror

"YOU TAKE THAT BACK RIGHT NOW!"

"No! you don't understand, us changelings feed on emotional energy, right? well we don't have to feed off love, we can feed off any positive emotional energy as far as it is directed at us, for instance the only reason why I still exist is because Fluttershy's compassion towards me was enough to keep me alive... and I just tasted Pinkie's fun"
Pinkie shrugged

"Makes no sense to me"

"What about emotions that aren't directed at you? can you feed of them as well? I mean you don't have to answer if you don't want to, if that's a personal question, I understand..." asked Fluttershy while looking down as she drew invisible circles on the floor with her left hoof

"No, but we can taste them, that's why I just vomited because the taste of Pinkie's excitement was too strong for me, sorry Pinkie..."

"That's OK, I stopped listening some time ago anyway"

"Wait, what? what are you talking about?"

"What are YOU talking about?"
Mark sighed, trying to continue this conversation with Pinkie would be the same as trying to smash a supporting wall with his head.

"Never mind... by the way i'm sorry about the bedsheets, i'll clean them right now"

"That's OK, i'll do it, you're sick and you should rest until you feel better"
Mark really wanted to get out of Pinkie's quiz trap

"I insist, doing something would do me a world of good right about now"

"O... OK... i'm going to go now to feed my chickens if that's OK with you..."

"Sure, no problem"
Fluttershy proceeded to the chicken coop outside whilst Mark got up and looked at his artwork on the bedsheets

"Yuck..." mumbled mark to himself, as he took the bedsheets in his hooves, strung them through his holes in order to hold them all at once and proceeded to the bathroom to cleanse them from the horrible stuff.

"Hey, Mark?"
Mark turned around to look at the (still) excited mare

"Yeah?"

"I was thinking, maybe when you get better we could make you a farewell party, I could show you my party cannon!" Pinkie revealed her party cannon out of nowhere.
Mark was surprised once again, every time he thought he just about saw everything, Pinkie happens

"HOW DID YOU DO THAT? did you just take that out of your rump?!?"

"No silly! I just took it out, see? like this!" Pinkie hid the cannon behind her and then took it out again

"You just hid it behind your body..."

"No I didn't, see?" Pinkie moved the cannon behind her once again and then moved aside to show that what was supposed to be there wasn't there anymore

"OK... this is interesting... maybe it's some form of magic"
Mark was now overflown with curiosity, he let go of the bedsheets at once, walked up to pinkie and began to trot around her in a circle carefully examining her

"Hmmmm... you're an earth pony, am I right?"

"Uhhhhh... duh! you don't see any wings or any horn on me, do you?"

"Yeah,you're right, but this makes no sense it has to be some sort of magic... tell me, were any of your ancestors unicorns?"
Pinkie thought hard with her little head

"well... my great-great-great grandfather was a unicorn I think..."

"hmmm... well in that case maybe you've inherited the gene responsible for unicorn magic that has been dormant in your family for generations and it suddenly became active... that would be the most reasonable explanation..."

"But I haven't got a horn, so how can I do magic?"

"Who said you need a horn to use magic? Pegasi don't have horns but they still have enough magic in them to be able to walk on clouds and be able to touch them... a horn only works as an amplifier to your magic, making it easier to control... i'm guessing that you can't completely control all these funny things that happen to you"

"Now that you mention it, I do have my combos"

"Combos? what are those?"

"Combos, they're these things that happen to my body whenever something is about to happen and it's never wrong!"

"You mean like predicting the future?"

"Yeah, something like that"

"well that makes sense... maybe you have an active gene responsible for magic but you have no horn to be able to freely control it, which explains all this random stuff you're able to do... well, back to the bedsheets"

"OH NO!" Pinkie shouted as her tail started twitching, she then zipped under Mark's bed

"What are you doing?"

"It's the twicha-twitch in my tail! this means something is about to fall from the sky!"
Mark decided to be better safe and slightly silly than sorry so he dived under the sofa.
There was a tinkling sound coming from Alicorn knows where, a white flash and a purple baby dragon just appeared in the middle of the air and fell down to the floor with a thud.

"Hi Spike!"

"Ow, ow, ow, ow.... hey Pinkie..." replied the plushy thing

"You know him?"

"Sure, he's Twilight's helper,he helps her out with things, how's the magic going, spike?"
Spike got up with a moan

"Twilight was just trying the teleportation spell, she wanted to check if she could teleport somepony else... as you can see it worked... except that she didn't tell me I would have to walk back..."

"Hi, my name is Mark"
Spike just noticed the changeling hiding under the sofa like a cat

"Hey!, you're that evil changeling Twilight told me about!"

"Is that so..."
A devious idea slithered into mark's mind...

"You, know... us changelings don't just live off emotional energy... we also eat meat... do you know what our favourite meat is?" began Mark as he came out from under the sofa and began to gently proceed towards the now troubled Spike.

"N-no, I d-don't..."
Spike began to slowly retreat towards the door

"Oooohh... but I think you do..."

"I d-d-do???" squealed spike as his back hit the door, which unfortunately for him, had to be opened towards the inside of the cottage... he was now trapped like that one X mark you put in the corner, in tic-tac-toe

"Oh yes... we just loooooove the taste of"

"Please"

"Baby"

"NO"

"DRAGONSSSSSSSSS!" Hissed Mark, with his tongue lashing out at the terrified little thing.
Spike lost it

"PLEASE HAVE MERCYYYYYYY!!!!!" Screamed Spike as he frantically opened the door and ran outside gashing with tears
Mark couldn't hold it in anymore, he fell to the floor laughing his flank off

"HEY, THAT WAS MEAN! YOU MEANIE!"

"OK, OK, i'm sorry, i'll say sorry to him when I see him the next time, but you must admit that was funny..."

"Yeeeeahhhh... OK, it was kinda funny but you took it too far, you need to be careful when you prank somepony, I would know, i'm the number 1 prankster in Ponyville!" stated proudly Pinkie
Mark smiled
Maybe this isn't going to be as bad as he thought it would be.

CHAPTER 3: (AKA: Sense and senility)

It has been a few days since Mark regained consciousness and by now he found out that he was in the "oh so happy town of Ponyville" where everything was perfect... no wonder Chrysalis decided to invade Equestria, out of all the lands possible... it was a shame that he had to leave as soon as he's up on his hooves, this place would have been perfect not only for him, but for any changeling.
Mark was getting better at a faster pace than expected ever since he took off with Pinkie, they pranked everypony who dared to come even close to Fluttershy's cottage which often resulted in Fluttershy telling them off (in a Fluttershy way of course) and even once she had to resort to her infamous "STARE" on the two pony jokers.
Every day was fun, and that was good... lots and lots of positive emotions as the town doctor would have said (when he made a house call to check up on Mark) but instead he just shrugged and told them that he doesn't know anything about changelings, he knows about baby ponies!
Just when Mark began to feel better, it was time for pinkie to go, and Rarity to stay over for a couple of days.
Mark bid farewell to his fresh friend (although "acquaintance" would be a better term given his current circumstances) and braced himself for the newcomer... he wondered which one of the girls it was going to be... he just hoped it wasn't going to be that marshmallow-coloured pony.
It was the Marshmallow-coloured pony.
It's not that Mark had anything against upper-class or bourgeois ponies, it's just that he always felt a bit uneasy in front of them because they gave off this sort of arrogant feel to them that put Mark off (there were also personal reasons).
This filly was no exception and on top of it all, she seemed strongly prejudiced against Mark to begin with, calling him a "rugged ruffian" and all, but Fluttershy asked him to give her a chance, so he obliged, not wanting to be in the line of fire of the "STARE" if he were to decline although he felt that this particular individual isn't going to be just marshmallow-coloured but also marshmallow-headed
Mark braced himself, this is going to be one heck of a day.

"Fluttershy, dear, would you be a darling and help me with these few... luggages?"
Fluttershy agreed without putting up a fight as usual but seeing her resentment, Mark decided to intervene and help in her place, after all it was just a pair of luggages, totally not a big deal.
Mark tried to take the two luggages but as soon as he reached out towards them, he was slapped on his hooves by Rarity who snapped at him:

"Hands off! i don't need the likes of you to show me pity!"
Mark was confused, why would she say that? it's not like there's a mountain of luggages

"I'm only trying to help here"

"It's OK Rarity, i trust Mark, he's a very nice and polite changeling if you give him a chance..."
Mark blushed, it's the first time someone complemented his real self.

"If you say so Fluttershy, but i will be watching you!" snapped Rarity as she walked into the cottage leaving the door open, revealing what at first Mark though was the Equestrian mountain range but soon realized that it was the rest of the luggage on a few carts.
This is going to be a long day all right thought Mark, but he's been through harder times and being a changeling told him that life wasn't easy for some ponies.
After a minute or fifty Mark managed to move all the things inside and what was it with all those rolls of fabric and those mannequins? it was hard to admit it but maybe this filly was crazier than Pinkie.
Mark gathered all his strength (all his mental strength that is, those luggages killed the rest of any energy that might have been left in him)

"If you were so kind to grace me with the opportunity to become more closely acquainted with you, I would me most obliged"
Rarity turned around to look at Mark, she did not expect that and just stood there looking at him dumbstruck with an open mouth.

"Is something the matter, dear?" asked Mark
Rarity still needed a moment to process what she just heard... a few moments later her pupils focused back on Mark, (it's almost like she reset like some sort of computing machine) and she began to talk as if nothing ever happened

"I am sorry for that Mark, you simply surprised me, I was not aware that someone of your..."
Rarity paused for a moment trying to find the right synonym that would not offend Mark

"origin would be so well educated" Rarity's statement was quickly followed by a brief laugh, it was that kind of laugh that said "well... this is awkward".

"No matter, such incidents occur to all of us"

"Well, I must say I am most pleasantly surprised with this and I DO apologize for my unsightly behaviour towards you, it was most uncalled for... as for the acquainting, It shall have to wait i'm afraid, I have a contract with the Canterlot guards for a dozen outfits that i have to finish by this week, and I'm afraid that I shall be busy for the time..."

"Outfits for Canterlot? may this be related to the upcoming ball at the Canterlot gardens by any chance?"

"You know of the ball?"

"Why of course I know of the ball, anyone who is anyone, shall be there, the creme de la creme..." Mark came closer to Rarity and whispered to her: "rumors say that a new talent shall attend the ball, she is quite the virtuoso from what I heard, plays the chello, perhaps you heard of her, Octavia?"
Rarity gasped in delight

"You even know the gossip! I think we are going to get along just fine..."
Rarity paused for a moment

"May I ask you a question?"

"By all means, please do"

"At first glance, you seem to be a ruffian, however you clearly have a sophisticated culture, why?"

"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand the question"

"Why act like common folk if you are clearly someone of a higher status?'
Mark wasn't sure if he wanted to give her an answer for that question

"A number of reasons i'll say, one of them is simply because it is easier and less straining to be of common folk nature, not to mention that there are fewer expectations when you act like common folk which gives me a sense of freedom, although there is also... a personal reason why I choose the latter"

"Oh, I see"
Any trace of small talk that was still left, disappeared to be replaced with a strong sense of awkwardness among the two for a second time

"Oh! would you look at the time" started Rarity at an attempt to save face in front of Mark

"well, these clothes won't make themselves!" said Rarity whilst pretending to be busy with all sorts of pointless tasks like tilting the mannequins back by an insignificant amount or pretending to look for something that was obviously in plain sight.
For the next few days the two did not talk much among each other, most of the time Rarity spent on preparing the outfits... and Mark had to admit, she sure had a sense of style, if he ever wanted to order some fancy clothing he sure would ask her to make it.
After about 2 days, the fashionista managed to complete her masterpieces, then she flunked on the sofa (the sofa she brought from her house that is) with a sense of relief.
Mark approached the delicate thing

"I see you have finished the outfits, truly impressive... I have never come across of somepony with such passion for their work, truly astounding not to mention the results of your work"

"Thank you Mark that's very kind of you"

"Not a problem"
They finally had some time to get to know each other better

"I may come as rude but I simply MUST know where you learned to behave in such a great manner"
Mark somehow saw this coming, after all, such ponies were known to be nosy... well he might as well tell her

"When I was young, My mother was very strict about me and my brother's education and mannerisms, she believed that Changelings are better than any other pony and that we should act as the royal kind for which we are, personally I always disagreed with her viewpoints, but I was just a little pony back then so I had no choice but to listen to my mother, whenever we rebelled as she would say, we would be severely punished"

"I'm sorry, I had no idea, I should not have asked"

"No, it's OK, perhaps it is time it told someone... our mother used to teach us how to walk in the right manner by putting books on our heads, the same would apply to sitting upright during social events, whenever we would drop the books we would be grounded for the day"

"That sounds barbaric!"

"That is why I dislike acting in such away, and do not do so when given the choice, for all my life I have associated the upper-class with my strict mother"
Rarity felt stupid and embarrassed, she had no idea this meant so much to Mark, perhaps not all changelings are so bad

"You can act in any way you please in front of me if that helps"

"Are you sure?"

"Why yes, of course, you may act like common folk but now i know about your sophisticated nature, do not worry yourself with the details dear..."
Mark relaxed

"PHEW! that's a relief! thanks Rarity! it's good to know that I don't have to act all snobby all of the time"

"Uhm... Not a problem"
Mark just noticed his mistake

"I'm sorry I didn't mean it that way"

"It's OK, I understand, with your mother and all, if it were ME I would have felt the same"

"Really? actually you never really told me anything about yourself"
The two ponies opened up to each other and chatted for hours, enjoying each other's company, Mark discovered that Rarity was from a humble common folk family but she always wanted to be in the splendor and glamour of the ponies "up there" in Canterlot, that she had a big thing for fashion (although he kinda guessed that by now) and that she's a hardworking pony.
Rarity found out that Mark in the past would often change into somepony from the upper class much to his disdain, so he knew a lot about what is going on, among the "big fish" (after all, Mark was a changeling), she also discovered a kind side to him, one she did not expect to find in a changeling.
After some gossiping and an exchange of fashion views, they noticed it was dark already so they decided to reluctantly finish their little tête-à-tête and get some rest to be ready for a brand new day tomorrow.

"Three down, three to go" whispered Mark to himself in a somewhat triumphant tone as he was slowly lulled to sleep by the song of the leaves from the nearby everfree forest.

Mark looked around, he wasn't in the cottage anymore... he was in someplace on a field... it was snowing, ice cold, everything was white except for a dark rock in the middle.
The rock moved slightly.
Mark came closer to inspect the rock.
That was no rock, it was none other than his changeling queen Chrysalis, nearly lifeless, desperately trying to cling on to life.
It just occurred to Mark, he was fine but what about everypony else, what about his family, what about his beloved queen? sure he got lucky with Fluttershy coming along at the right time but what about the rest? somehow he doubted everypony in Equestria would be so kind as to take care of a changeling lying on the road.
Mark panicked.

"Oh god, oh god, oh god, how could I forget? I need to do something, I need to find them! I could be the last living changeling in this world!, no! it can't end like this!, I refuse! NO!"
Mark was so determined that he woke up instantly and sat upright, shocked at the sudden realization, his kind was dying and he might be the only one that could help, but how? changelings don't exactly keep contact with each other, they don't even make friends among themselves (mostly because it was a bad idea to do so), some changelings might know where their family members live at best (although as you have guessed by now, mark wasn't too keen on keeping in touch with his family) and even if Mark knew where his family members lived it would have been useless because they were scattered all over Equestria after that Canterlot incident so they could be anywhere for all he knew...
This was not good but Mark wasn't about to give up, if he learned something from his queen is that he had a duty towards his kind, and he will make this right or he'll die or even vanish trying! as soon as he comes up with a plan, he's outta here.
Mark thought of his three friends, his three only friends that he ever had, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie... he really wanted to stay, this place was wonderful and perhaps he might even be allowed to live here, by Himself if he were to stay and try to get along with the rest.
The singing of the leaves and silence of the night was broken by quiet sobbing of a soul standing on a crossroad, one road granting him friendship and acceptance of the ones that hated his species so much in the past, but making him the one, last wondering sould of his kind on this earth, and the other road granting him the safety and survival of his kind but destroying the only friendhship he ever had with the ones he was beginning to care for so much.

The sun or the moon, only one could be chosen and the choice was his to make.

CHAPTER 4 (AKA: Sparkle, we have a problem)

Darkness... darkness everywhere... when suddenly, a speck of gold is born within a dewdrop sitting on a lonely blade of grass as if it were an uninvited guest, the gold speck grew and grew until it spontaneously sprung its runners across the valley in every possible direction that one could imagine.
The gold, as if a thick honey syrup, began to engulf all that exists, even the tiniest atoms were invaded by the amber blanket of the morning sunlight.
A zephyrous voice sang to the leaves, changing them into a waving sea of fans, as if they were attending a concert, the water in the soil started to gently breathe as the plants began to drink from mother nature.
Roads became dirt roads, trees became the Everfree forest, and the cluster of anonymous huts became Ponyville.
Equestria regained its daily pulse that made everything so real, so tangible and yet...

She opened her eyes.
She read her list of things to do for today
She got up from the bed.
Whilst Twilight was brushing her teeth (don't ask me how ponies can do that) she was jumped by the sound of a third party hoof being repeatedly hit against her door in a gentle manner... what could possibly be so important as to interrupt her fourth most important task of the day? (first organising, second, writing letters to her teacher, third reading) she spat the frothy mix into the sink, washed it down and went to open the door.
It was Fluttershy

"What is it, Fluttershy?" mumbled out Twilight with half her brain still sleeping soundly.

"Oh, well... I hope I didn't interrupt anything did I?"

"Not anymore..." replied the purple unicorn now that the irritation fully awoke any part of her that might still have been in Luna's realm.

"Ah, I see... well... you see... I think we might have a small problem, today when I woke up and came to see how Mark was doing-"

"Mark... Mark, Mark, Mark..." Twilight was sure she heard that name somewhere recently

"yes, the changeling, he is gone, I can't find him... but I'm sure he's fine, he's probabbly gone shopping for food"

"But Fluttershy... Changelings feed on emotions, they don't eat normal food"

"I'm sure he was thinking of buying me and Rarity some food, but I'm worried that he might be lost"
Twilight already was way ahead of Fluttershy thinking of all the places the changeling could go to, the ponies he could transform into, and any spells against changelings that she might have remembered since the wedding incident.
This was a chess match between the two of them, thought Twilight, just like Merlock Holmes and Ponyarty.
Twilight violently grabbed poor Fluttershy, concentrated on her magic, forming complicated enchantements in her head and teleported in front of the yellow pegasi's cottage.
Twilight bucked open the cottage door ready for anything that might come at her
She was not ready for what came next.
The duo was greeted by the enticing and welcoming smell of roasted apple fritters followed by the sight of a happy rarity in her morning pinkie coloured gown and fluffy slippers sitting on the dinner table (except that right now it was a breakfast table) and gluttonously chomping down the food on the plate thinking that noone was observing her right now.
Mark was in the kitchen cooking.
Rarity looked up from the plate and noticed the two ponies who barged into the cottage like charlie's angels (minus one) and jumped... she was acting unsightly (she just couldn't help herself, Apple acre's apples were especially sweet today) and se was caught.

"OH-, WHY-, SHOU-" stuttered Rarity trying to find a way out of this ominous predicament, after all, one should do their best to keep up appearances.
Having figured out how to save face, the bourgois mare reverted to her usual self, reached for a silky hankerchief and gracefully wiped her mouth.
Twilight, puzzled, froze for a moment and then tried to make sense of the bizarre situation.
Her puzzlement changed into anger, Mark came to greet the girls with a pan in one hoof and a spatula in the other, however he was suddenly invaded by the angry Twilight, who came up way too close to him having completely obliterated his personal bubble.

"What were you thinking mark? you shouldn't just go out whenever you feel like it, we may be taking care of you but you're still our enemy, do you have any idea how the ponies in the town would react if they'd find out that we're helping a changeling?, or better yet, let a changeling go rogue on the streets?"

"I'm sorry, I just went to buy some apples, Fluttershy recently ran out so I figured I'd buy some... and besides, I changed into a regular pony so noone noticed that I was a changeling in the first place"

"Is that so?"

"Yes, that is so."

"well" began Twilight not knowing how to respond to that "well, next time let somepony know, we were worried you might have done something to somepony out there"

"It's nice to know you think of me as a rabid dog"

"I'm only vigilant, that's all, you are still our enemy, I can't let my guard down"
Rarity noticed that the atmosphere began to reach critical mass, she had to do something

"Let's all calm down and eat, shall we? breakfast is hardly the time for us to remind who is who's enemy right now..."
Fluttershy noticed what Rarity is attempting to do, so she nodded accordingly, gently shoved her bookworm friend to the nearest seat at the table and assured Twilight:

"I think Rarity is right, let's all enjoy this short time we still have together, who knows when we might meet Mark a second time"

"for the good for all of us let's hope that the answer is never because the next time we meet is going to be as enemies"
That hurt Mark more than he thought it would.

"Perhaps, you'd like an apple fritter, Twilight?"

"You don't have to pretend to be nice to me, Mark"

"Treat one as you would treat yourself, I like to say... so about the fritters, would you like some? I made them myself"

"I thought you changelings don't eat normal food"

"sure we don't but that doesn't mean we don't know how to cook" said mark as he flopped a fritter on her plate
Twilight looked at the fritter... she looked at it as one does at a piece of cheese or fish they just took out of the fridge when they are unsure whether it is still edible or not.
She glanced at Fluttershy who made a little nudge in the air with her head from her side of the table and gave a silent "go on, try it" look

"well, we all have to take risks now and then and now is as good as any other time" thought Twilight, "Here goes!"
CHOMP
CHEW
GULP

"Wow! this is really good! Mark, I had no idea changelings could cook so well!"

"Ah, it's not a big deal, I actually worked for some time as a chef in a restaurant in Fillydelphia... you know, we all have to pay the rent some way or other, right?"
The ponies spent the rest of the meal on pointless chitter chatter and organising their day (well, that was mostly Twilight's doing as she insisted to do so) after which they went their own ways, Twilight came back to her library for her monthly reorganization routine and Rarity Packed up the newly made outfits and went to the train station to deliver them personally.
Mark suggested to fluttershy that perhaps it is time for him to begin his physical rehabilitation as he felt strong enough to begin.
The shy pony agreed and suggested that it would be a good idea to go over to Applejack's farm because there is always some work to do there, also it would be a great idea to get to know AJ better as it was going to be her turn to guard him starting from today.
As Mark was on his way with Fluttershy to the farm, he couldn't help but to think about what Twilight said... sure it was harsh but nonetheless it was the truth, once he leaves Ponyville it would be a bad idea to ever come back, the ponies may be nice to him right now but in all honesty it was against their moral principles to help a changeling in the first place and he doubted that they would let this whole thing slide a second time.
Mark thought some more.

"I seriously need to think of a plan... just going out there trying to find survivors from my kind would be pointless... if I would do that, they'd just regroup and try to go to war again with the ponies and we all know how the last try ended... no, the problem is bigger here, I need to think of a way to discourage both sides from going to war... GOD DAMN IT! why can't they all just like each other, that would be so easy, there's always a solution.
My dad was right, there's no such thing as "impossible" you can do anything if you know how to! I mean look at me right now, sure, I've changed into a regular earth pony to hide myself from the townfolk but when I'm at Fluttershy's place I can be myself and everypony (or at least most ponies) seem to be fine with that."
Mark glanced at the pagasus by his side

"There is nothing more powerful than an example... maybe if I manage to set an example that would prove all ponies and changelings wrong, they would have no reason not to cease this nonsensical pantomime. I just need to make some more friends here, try to convince the ponies that I'm not their enemy and then I'd have to find a way to live here... but one thing at a time"
They reached the farm.
the dry mud silenced the clopping of their hooves, an occasional distant sound of bucking broke the sounds of work at the cherry-coloured barn and a blood-red stallion could be seen throwing bails of hay on a cart.

"Good morning Big Mackintosh" Fluttershy greeted the young stallion
"I was just wandering, My friend here Mark needs to get back in shape so I thought he might help you out in the farm, if that isn't a problem that is"

"Nnnope"

"Oh, that's great, also if I could just ask, is Applejack around?"

"Eyyyup" replied Bigmac as he pointed with his hoof in the general direction towards the orchard.

"Thank you very much"
Fluttershy and Mark began to approach the orchard

"you know, that red horse doesn't talk much, does he?" asked Mark

"Oh, that's Applejack's older brother, Big Mackintosh he doesn't really like to talk much"

"I wonder why..."
Only now Mark realised the sheer massiveness of the collosal apple orchard, there seemed to be no end to the green wooden hills, the entire realm of Equestria could not even begin to compare to this.
after about 10 minutes of going in one direction and after another few minutes of getting lost, they finally found the hardworking bucker surrounded by baskets filled with apples

"Hay there Fluttershy, who's your friend?"
Mark changed back to his original form

"It's me, Mark"

"Hay, weren't you that pony that came earlier today to buy some of our apples? I thought that changelings don't eat normal food"

"Again with the food, what is with you ponies and the food? I just got some apples for Fluttershy and Rarity"

"Ah see somepony's got up on the wrong hoof today"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to lash out like that, I'm kinda going through a tough period right now..."

"Y'know, if you're having a bad time it's always a good idea to work, it keeps your mind off things"

"Actually, that's why we came here, I was wondering if perhaps you could give Mark some work to do... you know so that he can get back in shape"

"Sure thang, an extra pair o' hooves are welcome here in the farm, you can start by helpin' me take them baskets back to the barn"

"Thank you very, very much Applejack if there's anything I can ever do to repay you please let me know" replied Fluttershy as she took off.
Mark made a clumsy attempt to pick up the basket and put it on his back, he wobbled for a short while but soon tripped, smacked the grass, dropping the basket and the apples escaped onto the ground

"ok maybe this wasn't such a good idea..."
If this didn't work, then it's time for another strategy
Mark concentrated, his horn started glowing, the apples on the ground soon regrouped back into the basket, which began to float above the soil.

"Ok, I'll be back in a moment, it's time to try out my wings and see whether they're all right"
Mark unwrapped the bandages around his wings and looked at them... they seemed to have the same luscious shine like they always had, they seemed fine.

"All right, up up and away!"
Mark carefully began to flap his wings faster and faster until he ascended into the azure sky like a large black hummingbird with the basket follwing him.
Before the apple cowpony could say "what in tarnation'?" Mark was already back with an empty basket

"You're a fast little critter aren't ya?"

"Please don't call me a critter... but yes, I guess I am, us changelings are known for our speed, we're way faster than pegasi, and all thanks to those holes in our hooves... aerodynamics for the win!"

"For the win? what in the hay are you on about?"

"Nothing, just something I tend to say once in a while. Hey, can I ask a question? it's about your brother, is he always like that?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, he's awful quiet all of the time, I'm sorry if I seem nosey but he's the first stallion I've met so far in this town and you know, I thought I could make some bro ponys... you know, bronies for short"
Bigmack used to be pretty chattery back in the days but..." Applejack took her hat off and looked at it with a distant gaze

"well let's just say he changed some time ago"
Mark tasted sadness from her, he probabbly stumbled upon a taboo subject

"Right thanks, doesn't talk much, got it, you know some ponies just change like that when they grow up, I guess your brother is one of those, in any case back to work!"
The taste of sadness slowly dissolved in the atmosphere.

"That was a close shave, probabbly some family related business, I've got to remember not to ask about it" thought Mark.
He took the next basket full of apples and zipped to the barn where out of nowhere he got smacked on the face out of nowhere.
Mark was thrown halfway across the farmyard onto the pig's playground.

"WHAT JUST HAPPENED?" thought the changeling whilst he looked up and saw Applejacks big brother, an elderly green mare and a young lemon-coated filly with a large bow on her head, all of which were running towards him.
The taste of anger that follwed them made Mark think that this isn't going to be a good first impression... but why? it's not like they've seen him for the first time... and then it hit him

"Of course, they saw me when I was in earth pony form so they didn't know that I'm a changeling... I'm such an idiot"
Just when Mark thought it couldn't get any worse, it got better as an alert Applejack rushed in between the mob and Mark.

"Y'all crazy? what are you doin'?"
The old wrinkly mare was the first to talk

"Get out of the way Applejack, we just found a changeling and we need to throw him out before he does anything!"

"Eyyyyup"

"She's right behind you big sister!-"

"Great, not again- thought Mark, -is it really that hard to tell our sexes apart?"
"It's ok everypony, he's not like the others, ah found him some time ago lyin' on the road, he was nearly done for, but me and the girls saved him at the last moment, he's all right, he won't hurt us, he couldn't even if he tried, he's still weak"

"Applejack" began the green one "you can't be nice to those thangs, they're nasty things that take advantage of your feelings and they suck your life out"
The little one butted in

"Yeah! and I heard that they even suck your blood with their fangs!"

"Hey, we don't suck ponie's lives out! that's a common misconception, it just goes to show how little you ponies actually know about us... as far as sucking blood is concerned it's vampires, not changelings"
"Silence, you hooldum! get out of mah farm, we don't want the likes of you here"

"Eyyyeup!"
AJ couldn't take the pressure, she couldn't believe her ears, how could her family be so insensitive?

"QUIIIIEEEEEEEEET!!!!" Applejack's shout silenced even the pigs at the farm.

"Everypony calm down, ah already told you that everything's gonna be fine, he' too weak to do anything and he wants to help us out at the farm for free, ah see no problem here, do you?"

"He's controlling Applejack!" gasped the old one

"Oh, no! not mah big sister!"

"Oh, for god's sake, seriously? I can barely fly and you're accusing me of controlling her? you've got to be kidding me... this is exactly why I was going around the town in earth pony form, you see, Applejack? this is the problem here, no matter what I say it's not going to change a thing, this is why I have to be here in the first place... this isn't fair, you ponies have no concern towards others... your sister is one of the very few that ever showed compassion towards me, you should all be ashamed of yourselves, there are hundreds of you in this town and there's just one of me, what could I possibly do?"
Applejack agreed

"Mark here has a point, we can't judge somepony based on their kind, every orchard has it's share of bad apples"

"Maybe Applejack's right" replied Bigmack to everypony's surprise
Granny interrputed

"I've lived for a long time, I've seen many things and ah can tell you that i've never came across a good changelin' they're all evil, now get out before my grandson goes all rodeo on you!"

"Ah think it's best that you go Mark, I'm sorry for all of this"

"I think you're right, are you going to be all right?"

"Oh, don't worry bout me, I'll be just fine"

"if you say so"
Mark gradually got up, some of his minor wounds reopened from bigmack's punch and they now stung as if you'd wash the wound with warm water, scrub it with a rough sponge and then sprinkle a generous pinch of salt on them.
Mark changed back into earth pony form and ran away as quickly as his slight limp let him.
He looked back and saw AJ's family surround her asking her if she was fine... she was not going to be fine, this isn't good, if her family reacted that way, he wouldn't want to know how the the rest of the town would react if they were to find out that the girls are still keeping him and nursing him back to health, it was all up to AJ right now not to neigh a word to anypony about this.

Fluttershy was so proud of herself that she could barely concentrate on her daily routine of feeding her animals, she not only managed to persevere in nursing Mark back to health but she also managed to convince her friends to give him a second chance... things were picture perfect right now, nothing could ruin this day... or at least that's what she thought until Mark showed up limping and clearly hurt.
Fluttershy's motherly instincts kicked in

"Oh goodness! what happened? was there some sort of accident?"

"An accident would suggest that this didn't happen on purpose"

"I'm sorry, I don't quite understand what you mean, did you hurt yourself?"

"No... let's just say that AJ's family wasn't too glad to see a changeling at their farm... I got hit by her big brother, Applejack came just in time to help me out, she told me that I should go while she tries to resolve this whole misunderstanding"

"I am so sorry Mark"

"You have nothing to be sorry about"

"Oh, but I do, I can't help but to feel responsible for this, I'm the one that let you go there, maybe it's still too soon"

"Actually I'm kind of glad this happened, maybe that's what I needed, a little push, I've been having a hard time... I didn't say this to anyone yet but I did a lot of thinking lately you know? and I was thinking about this whole changeling-pony thing that has been going on for thousands of years and you know what? I'm sick of it, this hatred never did anyone of us any good, did ponies gain something from this? no, did we gain anything from this? no, so why keep it up? you know I want to change this, and you know what? I want to live here, there I said it, you're all so nice to me, nicer than anypony has ever been before, you could even say we live in harmony right now, so why change it? I know I'm being selfish right now saying that but to hell with it, I'm going to change it whether you all like it or not"
Mark's reply surprised Fluttershy

"Well, that's great that you want to stay here but are you going to be fine with changing into an earth pony all of the time for the rest of your life?"

"You don't understand what I meant, I want to live here as myself, not hide, I want this town to accept me for who I am, and I'm going to make it happen, dont you see? if I manage to live in harmony with the ponies here, I would be an example for everypony all over in Equestria, you know at some point I thought of going out there into the world and look for any survivors among my kind but that wouldn't change a thing, we would all still hate each other and go to war again and again... and I don't want any more wars, we've already had one and that's one too many"
Fluttershy felt compassion for Mark right now, it never occured to her how he could have felt, all she saw before, was a hurt being in need of help... and now she noticed that not only his body was scarred but so was his soul, and those are the worst kind of scars, that can only be mended by love or friendship.
Fluttershy made a decision, she is going to remain his friend for better or for worse, he was right, and if Luna or even Discord can get along with everypony in the end, then so should the changelings and the ponies... friendship has that miraculous ability to make the impossible happen, it can even do what magic cannot, that is why friendship is magic... the most powerful magic of all.

"You are right Mark, that is why I will do all I can to help you live in this village and i don't care what anypony has to say about this, we WILL make this happen"
Mark was speechless this was the first time he ever saw her so determined with something, normally she would retreat back into her shell of humbleness and low self-esteem, Mark liked this new Fluttershy, he was like water, gentle yet persevering, calm, yet forceful when the time called for it and whatever the case may be, she didn't lose her composure...

The legend has begun

Author's Note

Right, no more coloured text, also I am sorry for taking so long to write this, the truth is, I took a few weeks off because i was really busy with other things.

As far as the plot is concerned... it's time to slowly get serious.

Chapter 5 is going to have some major changes so better get ready, all I can say is that you won't see it coming

CHAPTER 5: (AKA: welcome to my realm!)

"You heard about it?"

"What?"

"I heard that what goes up stays up over there"

"Well I heard that you get soap bubbles you can eat there!"

"Pffft! I heard that you get hot ice and that the sun changes shape, like the moon!"
The gryphon teacher walked into the classroom full of excited children, fillies and cubs of every sort

"Everybody sit down!"
The echo of ms. Celia's roar resonated within the skulls the now seated children.

"as you all probabbly heard by now, we are going to take the annual trip to-"
Before ms. Celia could finish, a wall of solid sound shwooshed the teacher which instantaneously gave her a mild concussion

"SIIIIIIILEEEEEENCE!!!"
Everything in the room stopped momentarily.
A green baby dragon sitting in the first row of seats put his hand up

"Yes, Max?"

"Is it true that they have soap bubbles that we can eat?"

"Yes, Max, yes they do"
A brown filly stood up from her desk and interrupted

"Is it true that the sun changes like the moon there?"

"Sugar..."

"Yes ms. Celia?"

"What did I say you should do before speaking?"

"Put my hoof up and ask for permission, Ms. Celia"

"Right, now sit down, put your hoof up and ask for permission before you speak"

"Yes, Ms. Celia, sorry Ms. Celia"
The filly sat back down and put her hoof up

"Yes, Sugar?"

"Is it true that the sun changes like the moon there?"

"Enough, does anyone have any questions about the trip?"
No reaction.

"Ok, in that case I will see you on monday, and remember to get your parents or guardians to sign the release slips, if you don't have one, you cannot go, have I made myself clear?" The gryffon took her pointy red glasses off and looked at her students as an eagle does on its prey

"Yes, Ms. Celia" replied the students in unison.

"Ok then, class dismissed"
The children, babies and cubs began to pack their things into schoolbags of every shape and size and ran out the clasroom door into the corridor as if being rushed by an invisible fire.
Sugar came up to her changeling schoolmate, Pacifica.

"So, are you coming with me?"
Pacifica replied as she always does, with a slight nod... she never talks much... or at least not in public.
The two best friends escaped the tight classroom and proceeded to the slightly less claustrphobic corridor where they met their other friend from class 3C, Knuckles.

"Hey, knuckles! How was it!" Sugar began

"Oh god it was bad, I told my mom I don't want to go to school because I'm sick but she didn't believe me..."

"That's what you get for trying to skip out on school all of the time"

"a-a-A-ACHOOO!!"
a cluster of blue flames came out of his mouth and cinged Pacifica's eyebrows as she slightly tilted her head sideways out of danger's way with the same expressionless face as always

"You should go and see the school doctor" suggested Pacifica

"No way! he's really creepy! I heard that Bob from 2A went there one day and never came back, Sally says that she saw his dead body in the dumpster behind the school grounds!"

"No way!" gasped Sugar
Pacifica rolled her eyes, this isn't the first time she heard something like that... where she used to live, she heard all sorts of crazy things from her uncle, and occasionally, crazy things from others about her uncle...
The trio moved out of the school grounds and walked slowly to their homes.

"What, you don't believe me, loosey?"

"My name's Pacifica"

"Aw come on, loosey sounds better"

"Loosey?" Asked Sugar

"Yeah, you know, Pacifica means Calm in latin, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

"well, you know how someone is loosened up, they're calm?, well loosey as in calm, get it?"
Sugar looked at Pacifica who gave her the "Just ignore him" look once again

"So anyway, loosey, is it true? I heard that you can eat soap bubbles there..."

"How should I know?"

"Well, you know..." Began knuckles

"You used to kind of live there..." finished off Sugar
Pacifica didn't even justify that question with an answer, she's lived for 14 years and this is by far the most childish thing she had ever heard... and that was quite a feat given she had to deal with her uncle.
The Friends reached the crossroads.

"See you guys on Monday then!" saluted Sugar

"See ya, wouldn't wanna be ya!"
Pacifica just waved her hoof at the two as she always did when they split up.

Today is the day.
Pacifica waited all year for this, sure she didn't mind living at the dorm that much but she still missed her uncle (even though he is pretty embarrasing most of the time) but today she'll finally get to see him again along with most of her fillyhood friends, and she could show them her new friends... maybe she might even get to see her parents again.
With the signed slip in her backpack and the snacks tucked in the back she rushed to the school grounds where a schooldragon waited to take the class on the trip.

"Hey! HEY LOOSEY! OVER HERE!!!"
Pacifica looked up at the fifth row of seats strapped to the schooldragon where awaited Knuckles with Sugar.
The changeling gave the slip to her homeroom teacher and joined her friends, and few minutes later all the children were seated and ready for the adventure.
Ms. Celia stood up from her teacher seat in the first row and began to read the list of students to make sure who was present and who wasn't

"Drageel, Max"
Present
Sugar turned towards her filly friend

"So, Pacifica, can we meet your friends and your mom and dad over there? You told me so much about them"
Pacifica nodded
Knuckes butted in

"hey what about your uncle"
Pacifica didn't nod

"Drageel, Knuckles"

"Present, ow!"
Sugar swiftly hoofed the baby dragon

"Hey! You know what her uncle's like, he's probably too busy with his... work to meet us anyway" snapped Sugar

"Brown, Sugar"

"Present"

"Hey who knows, in our free time we might meet him, that would be AWESOME!"

"Agua, Pacifica"
A black hoof raised above the crowd.
The air was especially fresh and breezy today as they flew below the stratosphere at incredible speeds towards the buttercup halo of light in the horizon, where soon enough an impossible city began to emerge full of colours, as if drawn in crayons by a 3 year-old and the smell of every possible sickening candy plugged the nostrils of every being who dared to come even close to the place.
The dragon began to descend and roughly landed on a Launchpad on the other side of the city wall.
The excitement was practically tangible, Pacifica could barely taste anything else beyond it, but she could just about make out the melancholic taste of home... that sweet tinge of happiness, wrapped in fun with a spoonful of friendship and all that baked in love's warm blanket.
Everybody got off the dragon and lined up.
"ALL RIGHT EVERYPONY" loudly began Ms. Celia trying to outshout the screams and sounds of joy from the other side of the candy wall
Sugar raised her hoof

"YES, BROWN?"

"MS. YOU SAID EVERYPONY!"

"DID I?, I'M SORRY, I MEANT EVERYBODY, REMEMBER CHILDREN, WE ONLY SAY EVERYPONY WHEN WE TALK ABOUT PONIES, OTHERWISE, IT IS CONSIDERED RACIST!, now where was I? Oh that's right, ALL RIGHT EVERYBODY, REMEMBER, WE STAY TOGETHER ALL OF THE TIME! SINGLE FILE! FIRST WE GO TO THE MUSEUM, THEN YOU CAN DO WHAT YOU WANT WITH YOUR FREE TIME FOR THE REST OF THE DAY, HAVE I MADFE MYSELF CLEAR?"

"YES, MS.!!!"

"ALL RIGHT, NOW FOLLOW ME!"
The group approached the massive doors (they must have been at least a few hundred feet or meters in height)... the children waited anxiously for the heavy doors to open slowly.

"AFTER ME!"
The Gryphon with the rest of the teachers walked straight to the door and did not stop until they vanished through the closed doors.
Everybody was gobsmacked and confused
Pacifica sighed, she has seen this at least a thousand times.

"You go TRHOUGH the door, isn't it obvious?" She mumbled to herself
A moment later the Ms. Celia's head bobbed out from the closed doors

"ARE YOU COMING OR NOT?"
Suddenly everybody went into a wild stampede towards the door; the teacher freaked out and quickly retreated her head from the other side.
As soon as the kids entered the realm they were strongly whipped on their faces by the smell of sweet spice and everything nice, and what a treat it was to the eyes too! Everything literally looked as if it were coloured in with crayons by a 5 year-old, with the various coloured lines filling the white surfaces and the colours going beyond the outlines of every building, this place truly was an architect's nightmare.
The sun was crescent-shaped and the skies formed a big 500 in the cloud
In this realm clouds didn't float in the sky, the skies floated in the cloud.
earth ponies flying everywhere as if they were pegasi, gryphons running around breathing fire, pegasi changing like changelings and changelings... well the changelings were everywhere, it was a well-known fact that a quarter of the world's changeling population is situated right here, this is changeling heaven, if you are a changeling and you live here (provided you could find a job as staff here) you will never know what hunger or boredom is.
Out of nowhere the skies cleared leaving a clear canvas of cloud and a slow rhythmic beat could be heard coming from everywhere.
The students looked around themselves, confused, whilst the teachers tried to unsuccessfully calm everybody down.
One of the gryphons from 1A screamed in horror, pointing at the colossal pair of doors where a pair of yellow eyes and bushy gray eyebrows glared playfully at the newcomers.
Out of the blue a body of a draconequus protruded from the wall beside the door, the eyeless body came up to the door, slammed its head against it at full force where the eyes were, turned around towards everybody and began to sing to the tune.
Pacifica
You are so fair
Oh dear daughter of mine
Such a beautiful mare
Pacifica knew where this was going and she didn't like it, she was furious right now
I can't help but to gaze
Anger, I see
In your eyes, that blaze
Nonetheless, I love thee
Pacifica shrunk and tried to hide her head in her bag, why now all of a sudden?
All the staff changelings joined in and began to sing the chorus:
Pacifica
Oh Pacifica
The Draconequus continued
I'm crazy about you
My little miss
It’s all true
Give me a greeting's kiss

"Stop it"
Whenever I see you
I can't help but to gaze
Anger, I see
In your eyes, that blaze
Nonetheless, I love thee

"Please stop" begged Pacifica... this was by far the most embarrassing thing yet
The day you left me, I nearly died
Please don't think of leaving again
I'd rather be cut up to bits and fried
Don’t you love me? Am I not exciting, am I plain?
This is what happens when you have Discord for an uncle
Whenever I see you
I can't help but to gaze
Anger, I see
In your eyes, that blaze
Nonetheless, I love thee

"STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Everybody stopped at once
Pacifica gave uncle Discord the worst possible look, that look that says "you just crossed a line you shouldn't have, mister!" (Or as her uncle calls it: "the stare") and ran off deep into the realm.
All eyes turned to Discord
He smiled awkwardly and said:

"ExQuze me for a moment"
He snapped his fingers, got sucked into an invisible whirlpool and disappeared.
Pacifica knew exactly where she wanted to go and her stupid uncle wasn't going to get in her way.
A large pink teddy bear jumped out of the ground with uncle's eyes and shouted

"I CAN HAZ HUGZ?"
The big teddy bent over, and reached out, waiting for a dose for affection
The teenager jumped on the Bear's head and galloped on
All the candy in the stalls around her popped to life chanting "gimme some sugar, gimme gimme!'

"No, Discord!"
Pacifica spread her wings and began to ascend into the cloud.
She finally reached the graveyard.
All the gravestones grew arms

"Why so grave, all of a sudden?"
One of the graves caught her hoof and dragged her back on the ground.
The soil also sprouted hands that began to tickle gently the mare.
Uncle Discord appeared in the air, sitting on nothing and looking at his daughter

"Come on..."

"No!"

"You know you want to..."

"NO WAY!"

"Say uncle..."

"No"

"All you need is to say is uncle and I'll stop"

"OK! FINE! UNCLE! PLEASE STOP UNCLE DISCORD!"
Pacifica gasped for air, she hasn't laughed so hard for so long.

"Now that's the Pacifica I remember"

"Hm!" Pacifica puffed up her cheeks in disaproovement

"Oh now, why the long face?"

"You just embarassed me in front of all my new friends, you LITERALLY sang a song about me"
Uncle Discord changed into a small baby in a baby carriage

"Aww but it wash sho Quute"

"It was embarrassing, just don't do it ever again! You know I don't like to be in the middle of everything"
Discord changed back, frowned and crossed his arms

"PSH! Fine! I'm sorry, I won't do that again, there are you happy now?"
Pacifica smiled

"I missed you uncle Dis"
She came up to him and gave him an extra-plushy warm hug that lasted for a long time but not nearly long enough.
Discord wrapped his arms around his daughter, closed his eyes and smiled from the deepest part of his heart; he's gone a long way since then.
The two broke the hug eventually and when they did, Pacifica wiped the tears from her face.
Sure uncle Dis was embarrassing most of the time like a little baby but flaws or no flaws, family is family and she still loves that that big jesterous dummy for the idiot that he is.
Discord gently propped her chin on the fingers of his hand and turned it so that she looked directly at his eyes

"Now, let's go back, I promise I won't try to embarrass you anymore, go and have fun with your friends"

"What about you?"
Uncle Dis straightened up and returned to his usual wacky self

"Me?, oh well you know me, busybusybusy... all this fun and chaos doesn't make itself you know"

"I, know, I know, Discord's realm and all that... I just hope that I'll get to visit everyone before I go"

"Don't worry"

"But I'm only staying here for today, and then we have to go back..."

"Well in that case... it would be a real shame if something went wrong"
Discord winked

"You don't have to worry about a thing; they don't call me Discord for nothing"
Pacifica laughed.

The students entered the museum of Alliance history.
A changeling greeted them in front of a large display of all sorts of beings (ponies, gryphons, dragons, changelings, etcetera who all seemed to be sitting in a large table attending an important meeting of some sort)

"Good morning everybody, my name is Patrick and I will be your tour guide for today and welcome to the museum of the Alliance"
The changeling clicked on the little remote he was holding in his hoof, a small lightshow started and a few seconds of a generic uplifting orchestral music could be heard.

"Anyone know what we are celebrating today?" asked the tour guide
A gryphon put his hand up

"The 500th anniversary of opening Discord’s realm?"

"That’s right, it’s more than that, as you all well know this place isn’t only a funfair, or as some call it, the changeling’s capital but it also symbolizes the unity between all beings… this place was created to prove that all beings can coexist together in harmony, even changelings and Discord himself."

"What about before?" asked a filly in the back

"Before this place was erected, this area belonged to a land called Equestria"

"Equestria? What is that?" asked a baby dragon

"That’s what we used to call this part of the land of the animal Alliance before the golden age of ponies began, before all this; the lands were divided by realms of ponies, gryphons and etcetera, and even though there weren't many wars between them, there was constant tension"

"Sir? My mom told me that back then there wasn’t a place for changelings and us, dragons" said a voice from the crowd of students

"That is true, some beings were left out and became a source of discrimination among the ponies, but of course all that changed, anyone knows what we celebrate on April 14th?"
There was silence

"Well, on April 14th we celebrate the day all beings united and made the Alliance we know today, the day is known as the day of the elements of harmony, why? Because as legend has it when the leaders of each kind united they were all given an element of harmony as a peace offering from pony kind, dragons were given the element of generosity, changelings the element of fun, and so on and so forth… Discord being the only being that is of all kind was given the element of magic, as he represents harmony, anyone know why?"
Once again, silence fell among the students

"Because he’s a draconequus, every part of his body comes from different animal, dragons, manticores, you name it… before the Alliance formed, he was a symbol of disharmony and discord among ponykind (hence his name) but now he represents the opposite, all those animals in one body, living in harmony… now moving on, please follow me"
Sugar looked towards the entrance of the museum
The doors opened and Pacifica unsurely entered the building, still embarrassed.

"hey! pssst! over here!" Sugar attempted to shout in a whisper not to raise anyone’s attention
Pacifica joined the crowd.

Author's Note

Yes, this is still the same story

CHAPTER 6 (AKA: when life gives you parasprites...)

Today everypony was especially energetic in Ponyville; I guess it was just one of those days.
The sun branded the blue-maned sky with a particularly juicy morning ready to harvest what the rest of today may bring.
Today Mark was more than ready to set forth his plan, and he was especially excited now that Fluttershy was willing to assist… He got up and hastily prepared himself.

"OK, first and foremost I need to find a job, I feel strong enough to work and I can’t keep on relying on you all of the time, Fluttershy"
Fluttershy blushed

"Oh, it’s not a big deal, really"

"It is, I really don’t like to be indebted to my friends"
Considering Mark was pretty much broke right now, he desperately needed to find a job in Ponyville…

"Maybe it’s not the best way to start but at least it’s something" thought Mark

"OK, Fluttershy, could you please get me as many different local newspapers as they have here?"

"We only have one"

"That’ll do"
Once Fluttershy came back with the newspaper, Mark snatched it at lightning speed, turned to the job offers section and began to go through each one.

"Hmmm… I see they need some help down at the Sugarcube corner, shame I took a course in cooking food and not in baking… hold on a second… isn’t Sugarcube corner where Pinkie lives???"

"Yes, it is"

"So she lives at a store? That’s strange; I always assumed that Sugarcube corner was a name of a hotel or apartments…"

"How about this one?" Fluttershy pointed with her hoof on one of the offers at the bottom corner of the page

"Hmmm… quills and couches? That’s a strange store… I bet there aren’t many of those around, in any case I’d much prefer something related to cooking if possible"

"I don’t think the local restaurant or bar want to hire anypony right now, I’m terribly sorry for that"

"They don’t? This is going to be harder than I thought; you know if I weren’t broke I’d probably just make my own restaurant or something"

"But where would you put it? You’d need to buy some land"

"Well as far as I know you guys told me that the Everfree forest isn’t anypony’s property…"

"Oh no, you can’t do that! The forest is home of all the animals living there!"

"Oh, don’t worry, I would try to make a deal with the creatures living there or something, you know me, I wouldn’t do something as cruel like that, and besides it’s not like I have the money to start a restaurant anyway… unless… no…"

"What is it?"

"Well, I was just thinking, you know, having a second restaurant in Ponyville would be a pretty big competition, you know with the town being so small in relation to the restaurant’s catchment areas but what if instead of competing with it, I could offer them an opportunity to spread their business and open up a second restaurant that works for them, that way I would be given funding to make one, share the profit with them and would not have to worry about competition… what do you think?"

"It might work, but wouldn’t two restaurants be too much for this town? You know with that catchment-thing you said before? I mean I wouldn’t really know anything about it, but you know… just a thought, that’s all"

"It depends, I was known to be a pretty good chef back in the day, all I need is a fresh idea for an original restaurant and bam! I’ll be getting customers from all over Equestria… I’ll have you know I went to the Canterlot University to study cooking"
Mark was pretty certain of the flawlessness of this plan

"It’s decided then! I’ll do just that! I’ll be off then, wish me luck!"

"If you say so, good luck"
Mark transformed into a mauve-maned and khaki-coated stallion and flew out through one of the open windows in the kitchen
Mark flew back into the kitchen through the window

"Hey, kind of a stupid question but… wouldn’t you know there that restaurant is in town?"
Fluttershy sighed so lightly that it could be easily mistaken for breathing

"Maybe I should go with you, so you don’t get lost"

"Good point"

"So this is it?"

"Yes, this is the local restaurant"

"OK… you wait here and I’ll deal with the proverbial sharks"

"OK, good luck with that Mark; I hope it works out for you"
Mark inhaled a lung’s worth of courage and dove into the restaurant.
The Inside of the restaurant was full of fancy-poncy-ness and yet it had elements of simplicity such as the bland ceiling or the windows, someone clearly tried hard to make a simple building in Ponyville look like something it clearly isn’t…

"Hmmm… upper-class much? I guess that’s a good sign, I know exactly how to play these ponies like puppets… that came out wrong… oh jeez! I know what I mean!" wondered Mark
One of the non-many waiters, in fact probably the only waiter ever to have worked there came up to Mark and asked him to have a seat and tried to pass him a menu

"No, thank you, I’m actually here because I would like to talk with the owner of this place"
The waiter turned pale, although that was kind of strange considering he had a white coat to begin with
Mark tasted worry and fear coming from the poor employee and momentarily understood what was going on.
Mark chuckled and patted him on the scared waiter’s shoulder

"Don’t worry! I’m not a dissatisfied customer or anything, you’re not in trouble, in fact I’ve got some good news for your employer, or boss… unless you’re the owner of this place are you the owner of this place?"
The taste of relief triumphed over worry in an instant

"Please wait, while I go and talk to the owner, in the meantime, please have a seat"

"Thanks"
Mark waited for what he thought was certainly not a few moments, but eventually the waiter came out of the “no unauthorised personnel” door and invited the Changeling to come inside.
Mark entered what seemed to be some sort of office, although calling it that would be insulting the owner’s overinflated ego, and it was clear that this room was specifically made to make anyone who is on the other side of the desk look as small and as insignificant as possible.

"Good day, Sir-" Began Mark but was rudely interrupted by the lardy stallion on the big comfortable leather chair behind the desk

"Sir, I have a tight schedule, so unless you have something worth my time I would strongly recommend leaving right now"

"I see… well then it is a shame that you cannot find the time for an opportunity to further expand your… S E R V I C E S at merely no cost"
Mark could have sworn that just for a second he saw a green glint in the director’s eyes

"Expand? No cost? You have my attention, sir"

"Thank you… Sir, I am an excellent developer and currently am looking at a means in developing my own small business however if I were to do that, our services would coincide within this area and that would be most unfortunate, therefore I felt that it would be best that rather than competing and causing long-term loss of efficiency as well as income, we were to cooperate"

"In what way?"

"Glad you asked sir, I’ll be honest, I want to open a restaurant, however I lack the financial resources to do that, the rest is no problem, however, I already have some land ready for use, potential employees and an excellent chef, who is already eager to start in my restaurant. I do not require much and offer plenty in exchange for your financial support"

"How much do you need and how much do you offer in return?"

"I offer 33% of the income for as much as I need to build a regular restaurant and get started for the first two weeks"

"75%"

"With all due respect sir, although I am attempting to settle for cooperation, I am still aiming for having my own business, therefore 33% is as high is I can offer, also please consider the fact that there are many other potential investors who would gladly help me"

"75% or we’re done"

"In that case, thank you"
Mark turned away from the professor and confidently trotted towards the door

"You are making a big mistake; you think you can handle my restaurant? You have no means of even starting, let alone keep up with the big fish"
Mark, already halfway through the door, stopped

"I think you should know one thing about me, sir… I never EVER do risky things, if there is at least a smithereen of doubt in me I don’t jump in, and I am more than confident that my new restaurant is going to do just fine in Ponyville once I open it, it will blow everypony’s mind, it’ll be the first restaurant that has… well, I wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise" replied Mark rather loudly in front of the open door.
A few customers extended their necks from their plates to see what was going on
Mark trotted out and slammed the door.
Now everypony in the restaurant was paying full attention to Mark.
Mark had the director just where he wanted him, all he had to do now is to walk away, and not show up for a few days, as for the gossip… it’ll spread on its own, all he needed was for those few customers to overhear an unfinished sentence.

"Come on, Fluttershy, let’s go to the Everfree forest, I’m done here"

"That was fast, did he refuse?"

"For now… he said he needs some time to change his mind."

"Fluttershy?"

"Yes?"

"I have a favour to ask, if anyone ever comes to you and asks for me in the next 5 days, could you tell them that you do not know where I am?"

"If that is what you want"

The Pegasus and the Changeling reached the invisible wall between the outermost edge of Ponyville outskirts (not too far off from Fluttershy’s cottage), it seemed that they stood one hoof in one reality and one hoof in another, there was a clear line where the twisted, mysterious trees and cryptic flora stopped growing and the well-known town life began.

"Fluttershy? I’m going to need your help for this"

"What do you need?"

"Well, like I said before, I can’t just cut down a few trees from the forest and clear the area to build my restaurant, so I need to come to an agreement with the local animals, and knowing how talented you are with them, I was hoping you could get them to listen to me"

"I don’t think that forcing them to agree with you would be a good idea"

"Oh! No! no, that’s not what I meant, I just want them to hear me out, that’s all, it’s entirely up to them whether they will let me build the restaurant here or not, I’m only going to give them an offer that I think they will find suitable, that’s all"
Fluttershy unsurely nodded and began working her magic, within a few minutes all the animals from the last few hundred square meters were huddled in a group, ready to consider the newcomer’s offer

"Everypony!"
Fluttershy coughed lightly and pointed at the animals

"Oh, right, sorry… Everybody! I have an offer for you all! I know that some of you may have a problem making it through winter when food is scarce and it gets, let’s face it, freezing cold, so I would like to offer you shelter and free food in exchange for letting me use this small area for a restaurant, rest assured I won’t cut down any trees or pour concrete on the soil or anything like that, I will build the building around the trees and the floor will be the soil and grass, this way all of you can continue living here but with the added benefit of continuous shelter and free food from the customers as you will be considered an attraction, I am sure that they will be more than glad to spend time on feeding you all… I am not expecting an instant reply, however I would appreciate if you were to give me an answer within the next 4 days or so… thank you"
The animals turned around towards each other and began to communicate in their own animal way

"OK, that’s that, we’re done, all we need to do is wait for 5 days and it’ll all fall in place. Wanna go get a cupcake?"

"Oh, that’s very kind of you but I have to take care of Angel’s tail, I promised him to wash it and fluff it for him"

"OK, no problem, if you need me, I’ll be in Sugarcube corner, I’ll look something like this"
Mark changed into a bony purple Pegasus and each one of them went their own way.
Although Mark was still fresh to the town, he already had remembered the location of a few key areas such as the restaurant, library or Apple Acres, which he was most likely permanently banned from entering by now… even though he could change into anypony at will, he decided it would be safer to leave it for now, nonetheless Mark was worried about AJ.

"Sorry Applejack, I really want to help but simply barging in or sneaking would be plain stupid, I think it’s best to wait until it dies out, let’s just hope she doesn’t tell on Fluttershy that she’s still taking care of me, honestly I don’t really care what they do to me, after all I’m pretty tough and I’d make it out of any situation but I’m not intending on seeing my only friends get hurt, it’s already bad enough with Applejack, who knows what they’re doing to her right now, let’s just hope it’s nothing serious… actually you know what? Maybe I SHOULD sneak in, just to make sure she’s fine, that’s what a good friend would do, right?, I would just sneak in quickly make sure she’s fine and then leave at once… yeah that wouldn’t be such a bad idea.
It’s decided then! I think it’s best I do that at night, when everypony’s asleep, also I’m gonna need some time to come up with a plan, I’ll ask Pinkie when I’ll see her in Sugarcube corner, maybe she knows what’s going on with AJ"
Mark reached the gingerbread-building and entered (it was kind of obvious that out of all the buildings in the entire town this one in particular would be the cupcake store, you’d have to be an idiot not to figure that out)
Mark was lucky because he happened to come to the store during one of Pinkie’s Cupcake breaks which meant that she was already sitting on one of the tables set in the store chomping down on her daily dose of frosted happiness.

"Hey Pinkie, how are you doing today"

"Oh! Hi! today I’m just peachy- oh wait I don’t like peaches, I like strawberries, you know what I’m strawberry, actually I like apples too, maybe I’m apple today, what do you think do I look more like an apple today or a strawberry by the way do I know you?"
Yep, that was pinkie all right.
Mark leaned over closer to one of Pinkie’s ears and whispered

"It’s me, Mark"

"OH! HI MAR-MMMFFFFMFMFF!!"
Mark chucked the remains of the cupcake into her mouth before she could finish saying his name

"SSSHHHH!!!!! Don’t call me that in public! Today I’m called Gold Whinner, all right?"
Pinkie swallowed the cupcake and gasped

"OH MY GOD! You can change your name? WOW! That’s an amazing superpower! Oh, oh can you do it again? Do you have any other superpowers? What’s your superhero name? Oh wait you can change your name, what’s your NEW superhero name? Do you have a sidekick? Hey can I be your sidekick?"
Mark, yet again was speechless…

"It’s… it’s not a superpower; I’m only pretending that I have a different na-"

"Oh what about gadgets, you must have some really cool gadgets, or what about a cart? You must have one of those cool invisible carts!"
Pinkie ran up to one of the windows of the store and looked at the street outside

"Oh! I see the invisible superhero cart! Or wait I don’t see it! No wait I see that I don’t see the cart!"

"PINKIE! CALM DOWN! Look I’m not a superhero, I’m just-"

"Oh I seeeeeee… of course you’re just a regular pony journalist WINK, WINK"

"What was that?"

"What?"

"That WINK, WINK thing you did"

"Oh, nothing, WINK, WINK"
Mark did a facehoof and sighed

"Pinkie… firstly when you wink at someone you ACTUALLY WINK, not say “WINK, WINK” and secondly I’m not a… you know what, forget it, yes I’m a superhero that can change his name at will, there, now I came here to ask you a few things and possibly ask for some help from you"

"I KNEW IT! YOU DO WANT ME TO BECOME YOUR SIDEKICK!"

"Sure, whatever, look I was wondering, do you know if Applejack is fine? You see I had a little… quarrel with her family and let’s just say that they know who I really am…"

"NO! They discovered your secret identity! Oh no! Is this going to be the end for our superhero? Is he going to make it out of this alive?"
An idea sprouted in Mark’s genius head

"Yes, pinkie, they know who I am but I don’t know if they want to tell the world my secret identity, also they might keep Applejack prisoner! You see they think I’m a super villain when I’m actually a superhero and I need to make sure that we’re on the same side, I don’t think they’re just going to let me in just like that so I’m on a secret mission to sneak in today into their headquarters and make sure they’re all OK and that AJ is treated well"

"Oooooohhh a secret mission! I love those; I always go on secret missions with my friends, like that one time I was on a secret mission with Twilight to go to this library in canter-"

"OK, OK, I get it, you’ve done this before"

"See? I even have a bunch of stuff put away in case of a secret mission emergency!"
Pinkie came up to one of the big cakes on display on the window, stabbed it with her hooves and took out a mushy black (well, black with cake highlights) stealth cat suit
Mark wasn’t sure whether he should be disgusted or impressed by that, in any case one and a half heads is certainly better than one so maybe it would be a good idea to get pinkie to tag along with him tonight… and hey, maybe she might actually have a good idea on how to infiltrate the farm and where AJ is, after all, Mark doesn’t exactly know the farm that well.

"Pinkie, I think it’s best that we talk about this somewhere where nopony can hear us, you know… superhero stuff…"

"Oh, I get it! WINK, WINK, come with me to my room, its upstairs"

"Once again, Pinkie, with the WINK, WINK thing…"
The two went upstairs and Mark for the first time saw what Pinkie’s room looked like.
Yet again Mark was speechless, he was expecting something more… Pinkie-ish, like rubber chickens, pictures of clowns or something like that and whoopee cushions everywhere, but no, it was just a regular room like any other and that surprised Mark, I guess it’s a similar reaction that one would have where they enter a grown man’s room and sees something as unexpected as cute colourful ponies everywhere and posters of rainbows… of course there’s nothing wrong with that but if someone doesn’t tell you about it beforehand, you don’t see it coming.
The rest of the day, the two friends spent on plotting secret missions and writing blueprints of their plans on large blue paper sheets, they even spent some time in coming up with cool superhero names all in preparation of tonight

This was going to be one hell of a night.

Author's Note

Phew! I almost forgot to post this... considering I have no internet at my place I rarely get the occasion to do so, also I wanted to apologize for taking so long to write this... I was kinda stuck at the beginning, I have a lot of ideas and plot twists i want to use but it's still too early for that...

CHAPTER 7 (AKA: are the Apples worth the squeeze?)

It was getting late.
The evening slideshow of the entire light spectrum was gradually replaced with the graphite darkness that slowly but consistently muffled any sound, like a silencer in a pistol.
The night revealed an entirely new playground for many creatures of the black realm which slowly began to spread like dark venom in a victim’s bloodstream dyeing Ponyville as unsafe for anypony who dared to be awake at this time of night.
The Animals at Apple acres became silent, the bales of hay on the cart stopped rustling in the breeze that has halted in suspense of what is about to happen next.
Nearby, a cluster of cardboard boxes marked with “apple” and a picture of an apple lay on the ground ready for export the next day.
One of the cardboard boxes moved slightly in a direction, the cardboard box was not only upside-down but also had a large picture of an orange and the word “Oranges” written all over it… whatever was in that box apparently didn’t think this through well.
Mark sneaked past the pile of apple boxes

"Psst! Pinkie"
The box stopped at once

"Pinkie!"

"My name is not Pinkie" replied the orange box
Mark sighed

"Look, it’s just the two of us, it’s fine, I checked and nopony’s watching us"
The box remained still and silent

"Pinkie?"
No response
Maybe taking Pinkie wasn’t a good idea, a classic example of biting off more than you can chew

"OK, fine, agent seven double-o"

"Here I am!" the box exploded with a loud bang, confetti, and any other party-related good that you can throw up in the air flew out in every direction and pinkie popped up in a Y-shaped pose… she was dressed in her black cat suit, slick like a latex eel, her mane pinned back and her face was disguised by one of those minimalistic masks that don’t really disguise any part of the face in any possible way

"SHHHHHH!"

"Sorry"

"come on! Be a bit more serious, what is with the name and the outfit?"

"Oh I don’t know I just dressed like I thought a cool secret agent slash sidekick slash superhero slash investigator would look like, you like it?"

"Well, nopony’s going to recognise you, that’s for sure, and what’s with the name?"

"Oh, well I thought it would be cool to name myself with a number, you know everypony has a name so I thought it would be cool to try a number instead"

"For starters, why would you use a box of oranges to conceal yourself among boxes full of apples?"

"Well DUH! So that YOU can tell where I am!"

"And secondly… why the name? I told you, you don’t need to change your name, if somepony sees you, they’ll know it’s you so what’s the point?"

"Hey! It took me a long time to come up with the name, I had lots of ideas but only this one was good, like there was Solid Sn-"

"OK, I get it, it took you a long time and it would be a shame not to use it but we need to concentrate on finding AJ, all right?"

"Yessur! – Agent 700 saluted Mark"

"The plan is as follows, you go in through the main door of the house, keep an eye out from below, I’ll fly up on the first floor to Applejack’s window and see if she’s fine, all right? And remain alert to your pinkie-senses, let me know if something is coming up, all right? OK, go!"
Mark waited for Pinkie to reach the main door; although she was certain nopony was watching them she did a cryptic agent-like dance of stealth before she reached her goal anyway.
Much to Mark’s surprise, she squeezed through the dog-flap into the building rather than using that lock picking set he gave her specifically for this occasion (don’t ask how he got it in the first place)

"I heard of rats being able to fit through holes way smaller than them but ponies? I swear, that filly is made out of soft bubble-gum… actually that would explain the pink"
A few moments later Pinkie popped her head out of the flap along with one of her hooves and gave Mark the “it’s safe to go” sign.
Mark confidently but carefully flew up to the height of the first floor and began to approach the window.

"This is it, Applejack’s room; let’s see if she’s in there"
The changeling looked through the window

"Damn! I can’t see whether she’s in the bed or not!"
All Mark could see is the bedposts; unfortunately for him the rest of the bed was hidden behind the wall.

"Well, this is definitely her room because I see her hat hanging on the bedpost, but I don’t want to sneak in, if there’s something I learned from books and stories is that sneaking into somepony’s room is never a good idea, EVER."
Mark began of thinking of a way of waking her up, the next thing he knew, he was gently throwing small pebbles at her window from point-blank range
After a bit of commotion inside the room a few dozen rounds of pebbles, the Hay-coated pony opened her window

"Hay Mark, what in tarnation’ are you doin’ here at a time like this?"

"Hey, AJ, hope I didn’t wake you up"
There was a brief silence, during which the ever-sleepy face of AJ glared at Mark with the “ARE YOU BUCKING KIDDING ME” look

"I’m sorry, force of habit I guess"

"You mean y’all wake folk up at this time o’ night where you come from?"

"No, I meant the courtesy-look, that’s not the point, I just came to make sure you’re doing fine, you know in case your family locked you in or something"
AJ lost it; she couldn’t stop laughing no matter how much Mark begged her to remain quiet in case any of her family members wake up.
Eventually Applejack calmed down

"I’m sorry Mark, ah didn’t mean to"

"I’m sorry but I don’t quite understand where you’re coming from with that reaction"

"You don’t understand where I’M coming from? Shouldn’t I be the one saying that? Why in the blazes would mah family lock me up?"

"Well… you know… that whole “changeling thing” that happened yesterday…"

"Oh, that? Don’t worry, it’s fine, Ah said that you were a rouge changelin’ that just happened to be passin’ by through Ponyville for a day, ah think they bought it"

"I hope you didn’t mention anything about Fluttershy taking care of me?"

"Nah, don’t worry, it’s all OK now, but I have one question"

"What is it?"

"What made you think I was bein’ locked up or punished?"

"Well… wouldn’t they do that?"

"What kind of family would do that?"

"…"
Mark tried to avoid eye-contact with the pony but it was too late.
Applejack was no changeling but you didn’t have to be one to figure out what was going on here

"Hay, you wanna talk about it?"

"Nah, it’s ok, maybe my family wasn’t the best but being sad about it won’t do any good now"
Mark looked at her with a smile on his face and applejack saw the moonlight reflect from the fresh wet trail on his face

"It’s ok, really, I’m over it, not a big deal"
Applejack came up to Mark, lowered his head with her hoof and kissed him gently on his forehead

"It’ll be all right Sugarcube, ah promise"
A few minutes of silence passed by before anypony spoke again

"So, your family aren’t keeping you locked in or anything?"

"Like mah big brother likes to say: Nnope!"

"And they’re not doing anything nasty to you?"

"Once again, no"

"And you don’t need any help?"

"Third time's the charm"

"Ok, so I guess you didn’t need saving after all"
AJ snickered

"That’s mighty kind of you but no"

"In that case, I’ll be going, you probably got stuff to do tomorrow and you need to sleep, I’m really sorry for the trouble, I was just worried, it won’t happen again"
Mark got up and began to climb out the window

"Mark?"
Mark paused and looked back at AJ

"Yes?"

"Thank you…"
Applejack looked straight into Mark’s eyes

"That was the sweetest thang anypony has ever done for me"

"Sure, what are friends for?" replied Mark as he jumped out the window

"Yeah… friends…" Applejack whispered to herself as she gave mark a one of a kind look

"Oh, by the way, Pinkie says Hi"

"Wha?"
Suddenly, in a surprisingly convenient way for plot development, a loud noise came from downstairs; it was the sound of a bunch of hollow metal objects hitting the floor… the sound of trouble incoming with large steps from the nearby rooms and down the stairs alerted every fibre of the changeling’s being that has existed since the most primitive of his kind warning them from danger and it told him that it’s time to go and go FAST but he couldn’t leave without Pinkie…

"AJ, could you make a diversion?"

"Wha? Why?"

"It’s a long story, Pinkie’s downstairs, they can’t find us out!"

"Say no more" replied Applejack and began to scream like a banshee as Mark descended to the ground to scout the kitchen through the windows
The hoofsteps grew louder as the concerned family members rushed in to see what happened to their beloved sister and grandchild.
The big brother was first through the door but Applebloom was the first to speak

"What’s happened, big sis?"
Applejack stood in silence for a moment looking at her family members… she didn’t think this far ahead and on top of it all she never was a good liar

"Eeehhhh… nah, its fine, just a bad dream I guess, y’know I was just dreamin’ bout that… CHANGELIN’ yeah, the changelin’, he was chasin’ me down the orchard… don’t worry I’m fine"

"We heard some noise downstairs, you sure it was just a dream?" asked Granny Smith

"Yeah, I’m definitely sure ah was dreamin’… because… because it was happenin’ in the middle of the day!"
AJ gave her family an insecure smile that didn’t seem to convince them at all

"IN WINTER, really don’t worry I’m fine! Really, go downstairs and check if anypony hasn’t burgled us"
Meanwhile Mark and agent 700 were already far away from the farm.
The rest of the night in Sweet Apple Acres was as peaceful as any other, Applebloom, Bigmack and Granny Smith went to bed convinced by AJ that probably the mice caused the pans to fall in the kitchen.
All’s well that ends well… or is it?
That night AJ couldn’t sleep, one thing didn’t let her close her eyes, something that will give her much more trouble in their future than she thinks it will

"Yeah… friends…"

CHAPTER 8 (AKA: According to plan)

Things were looking up for Mark, although to be honest they could be better but Mark was more than satisfied with what he got right now… for now
The rumours about Mark’s new restaurant being opened spread quicker than electricity does across a wet floor and it was bound to shock the owner of the restaurant especially considering the plots regarding the big “surprise” that Mark’s restaurant supposedly was going to have.
It was all going according to plan.
In the outskirts of the Everfree forest the atmosphere has been rowdy for the past 2 days, however after some surprisingly civilised debate among the woodland creatures and perhaps a little bit of persuasion from Fluttershy’s side, the animals accepted Mark’s offer but clearly emphasised on the fact that they’ll break the deal as soon as they come across something they don’t like… normally Mark would attempt to do something about that but a couple of fully grown bears, a majestic eagle and possibly a couple hundred various rodents aren’t the exact mob you’d want to argue with.
All that was left was the money… or in this case the sponsor who was the owner of the restaurant however Mark wasn’t too worried about that.
Within 3 days of Mark’s visit, the owner of the restaurant came frantically knocking on Fluttershy’s door requesting that she tells him where the elusive stallion may be so that he can cut a deal with him before it’s too late however as Fluttershy promised, she told him that she has no idea as to the whereabouts of the pony in mention.
After a day or two, giving more than sufficient time for the owner to panic, he decided he’s softened enough in his own stress to agree to the terms and therefore Mark decided to pay him a little visit.
The moment Mark’s hoof lightly tapped the first floorboard of the restaurant, the “no unauthorised personnel” doors slammed open, revealing the owner with a messy mane and a giant wave of sludgy stress slowly crawled into Mark’s nostrils.

"Ok, I had no idea this would stress him THAT much, perhaps I went a tad too far this time" thought Mark to himself

"HEY, HOW ARE YOU DOING, FRIEND?" shouted the owner with desperation

"Look, I think we got off on the wrong hoof" the owner approached Mark, gave him a friendly pat on the back

"I never got to know your name, dear sir"
Mark was already prepared for this; anyone who attended to changeling 101 knew the first golden rule of changelings: ALWAYS be prepared before you act, why? Well looking like other ponies is no problem but hiding is much more complex than one might think, it takes more than looks to fool everypony and Mark knew that there is no point in changing if you’re gonna give yourself away within the first sentence.
Mark knew that there have been countless real life examples of changelings being discovered by ponies because they gave themselves away with inconsistencies from what they have been saying and he wasn’t intending on becoming an example anytime soon.

"Sails Agua"

"Agua? That’s an unusual surname"

"And if I may ask yours?"

"Big Boss at your service"

"I see, Mr Boss sir, in that case let’s get down to business"
Mr Boss patted Sails on the back rather harshly

"Please, call me Big!"

"Sucking up, are we? I see the desperation really sunk in…" thought Sails as they entered Big’s office.
The meeting lasted just a few minutes; it all went as smooth as butter on a hot Teflon pan.
Mr Big agreed to all terms Sails offered without even haggling and soon enough, the freshly baked business partner exited the restaurant with enough bits to get him going.

Days passed by unnoticeably whilst the new restaurant building was being erected, and it seemed that the restaurant was ready to open in no time, everything was going so quickly, Mark’s plan was developing as rapidly as mushrooms grow in the Everfree forest after a refreshing cloud of rainwater.
The restaurant building was like none other in the entire realm of Equestria and beyond, rather than cutting down the trees to make room for the restaurant, the building was built AROUND the trees, the arbour trunks protruded out of the roof, the building itself was made of wood and rather that looking like a building it looked like a single massive plant being, living in harmony with the rest of the forest.
The inside of the restaurant was even more impressive, there were no floorboards or even concrete, but a sapphire green sea of grass, countless species of flowers and under all that, a spongy layer of ancient fertile and moist soil that fed life into the whole building.
The walls of the restaurants, rather than being covered in boring pictures or having been painted into a mundane generic landscape, were punctured with hollows where all the animals that Mark cut a deal with began to live in.
Everybody was satisfied and couldn’t wait for the grand opening.

"What do you think of my new home and restaurant, Fluttershy?"

"Wow! It’s amazing! But are you sure the woodland creatures are OK with this?"

"Yes, in fact they prefer this from their old burrows because it’s warmer apparently"

"Did they tell you?"

"Akhem, don’t forget that I’m a changeling, I can taste emotions, if they’d be unhappy I’d be the first to know, in any case, I think it’s about time to open this place and start business! Fluttershy, if you could, please go out to town with a few of your furry friends as we agreed and distribute the flyers while I go to the kitchen and begin preparing the promotional food samples"

"Right on it!"
Fluttershy galloped back to her hut for the leaflets and her woodland friends.
Miraculously Mark managed to keep the location of the restaurant a secret (mostly due to the fact that almost all pony folk are too afraid to come even close to the Everfree forest), this was a great way to keep up the excitement among the pony folk in town however that meant that once the restaurant was opened, nopony would come as they didn’t have any idea as to the whereabouts of the place.
Mark took his place in the kitchen and 2 cute bunnies took their place as the waiters in the restaurant.
Within 15 minutes, the restaurant was packed with equines of all sorts, the tree stump tables (obviously not real tree stumps as Sails promised not to cut down any trees in the area) were flooded with various dishes for the customers, many of the younger customers were captivated by the possibility of feeding the critters roaming in the restaurant, who were soon enough so full, they couldn’t even move.
The restaurant was a success.
By the end of the day, anypony who lived in Ponyville had already gone to the restaurant at least once, and so far nopony complained, Big was ecstatic about the success and even wanted to consider opening an entire chain of such restaurants once he has the right funding to do so but was soon calmed down by Sails.
The day came to a close and Sails put away his apron and chef’s hat, getting ready to go upstairs to bed when suddenly his plan was thwarted by knocking on the now closed door.
An unexpected visitor came to see Sails.
When Sails opened the door he was greeted by a young looking stallion with a spiky mane and a bag hung on his back
This stallion was different from the others he ever met before
Peculiar as it was, the stallion seemed to be the same age as Sails but the eyes! The stallion’s eyes were that of a being of ages, it was strange… Sails never came across anything like this before, and the emotions he emanated, dear god! It was an oncoming storm of all that is, has been and ever will be, the sheer majesticity of what the stallion must have experienced in his lifetimes must have been immeasurable.

"Hello, I’m the Doctor!"

CHAPTER 9 (AKA: The Doctor is in)

The brown stallion shoved past Sails into the restaurant

“I’m sorry-“began Sails

“Don’t be”
The doctor withdrew what seemed to be some sort of metal wand with some kind of light orb at the end which he then proceeded to point in random directions.
The wand buzzed and zizzed in various tones as if it were reacting to something
Sails once again, confused at what the hell is going on decided to ask once again

“I’m sorry, but… well, how should I put it… what the heck are you doing coming into my house at this time of night and doing… THAT”
Sails pointed at the metal wand

“Oh don’t mind that, it’s just my screwdriver”

“Screwdriver? Look never mind that, my name is Sails, now if you were to be so kind as to give me yours and tell me what you are doing here”

“I’m the doctor and I’m here to help”

“Help?”

“Yes, help”

“I don’t need help”

“Yes you do, you just don’t know it yet”

“I don’t need help!”
The Doctor approached the changeling in pony form

“Look, don’t play games with me, I’m the Doctor and I can help you if you tell me everything”

“Do you approach any random pony and tell them that?”
The doctor smiled

“More often than you’d think”

“You’re crazy, you know that?”
The Doctor sighed and inhaled a large amount of air

“You’re not a Pegasus unicorn or a regular earth pony for that matter if you were then you’d look like one but you don’t how do I know that? I know that because a perception filter is fine and dandy unless you encounter anypony with basic psychic training but that’s not the real question the real question here is WHY why use a perception filter to look like anypony else especially a different kind and the answer is simple: you’re hiding but this makes no sense if you’d want to hide you would do anything to keep the attention away from you so why? Why open something like this restaurant if you know this is going to catch everypony’s attention?”
The doctor inhaled the life-giving oxygen back into his lung as if having just come out of a long dive underwater.
Sails was speechless; this stallion was spot-on with everything

“Are… are you a changeling too?”

“No, I’m a Timelo- wait that isn’t right, the ponies here seem to add equine nomenclature to names of all sorts… well in that case I guess I’d be a… Timehorse? Timepony? No… that sounds just weird”

“Timecolt?”

“YES, that’s it! Timecolt! Sounds just right!”

“Hmmm… a Timecolt, never heard of a kind like that… the more you know I guess, well in any case my real name is Mark and I’m a changeling”

“Ello Mark, I’m the doctor”

“You’re called the doctor?”

“Yep”

“Just the doctor?”

“Why does everypony say that as if it were a weird thing?”

“Oh, no no no… there’s nothing wrong with that, I’m sure your parents loved you in their own way”
The doctor fell on the floor laughing which took a solid few minutes for him to calm down

“You’re funny! Funny as in ha-ha funny not oh-oh funny”

“I beg your pardon?”

“I like ha-ha funny”
Mark felt like this was an enormous waste of time

“Look maybe we can talk this through; I’ll boil the water and get the tea and coffee ready”
Once the chessboard of manners was set with tea, coffee and a few leftover cookies from earlier today, Mark began to unfold his tale of past present and even a possible future before the Doctor’s ears.

“So what you’re trying to tell me is that you think your kind is in danger from extinction unless you do something?” asked the Doctor

“Well you’re oversimplifying it but yeah, more or less…”

“NAH, they’ll be fine”

“How would you know that?”

“You know in my travels I’ve come across this one species… not much to look at, they aren’t strong, agile, they have no natural way of defending themselves from predators and although they do have their moments they’re usually rather thoughtless, but you know what? Wherever I go I always, ALWAYS find them, they’re everywhere! And no matter what happens to them, whether they’re enslaved, slaughtered, decimated, upgraded, or tortured they always pull through…”

“What are they called?”

“What they’re called isn’t important, what’s important is not to give up, I’m sure that in a few hundred years your kind will look back at this moment and they’ll laugh at it”

“No they won’t”

“Wanna bet?”

“Yeah, sure, let’s just travel a few hundred years into the future and check” Replied Mark in the most sarcastic possible way

“Why not? I’ve parked my TARDIS just outside, let’s go”
Mark was caught off-guard, He expected the doctor to be surprised at Mark’s reply but he wasn’t.

“So… what you’re trying to tell me is that we’re going to travel a few hundred years in the future?”

“Sure, how do 504 years sound to you?”
Mark was too off-track to reply

“Marvellous! 504 years it is!”
Mark was still trying to get his head around his current situation

“Well what are you waiting for? Let’s go!”
Mark jumped back from the inside of his jumbled thoughts and back into the even more jumbled situation.
The 2 ponies (of course by ponies I mean our two characters even though technically neither of them are of pony kind) quietly exited the comfortable quarters and approached what seemed to be some sort of rather large blue outdoor toilet with fogged up glass windows And a big clear sign at the top saying PONY BOX with a weird lamp stuck at the top of the whole bizarre construction.
“Why would a toilet have windows?” thought Mark
Whatever it was, Mark knew it wasn’t pony kind that built it, or in fact anything sentient that ever existed in this universe.

“I know, I know, it looks like a regular police telephone booth but-”

“Actually I was going to say outdoor toilet… what’s a Telephone booth?”

“Oh, right, I forgot, you ponies don’t have telephones”

“What’s a telephone?”

“Never mind what it is, I’ll tell you some other time… and yeah, I guess you could Mistake it for a toilet… I think from now on I should start locking the doors when I leave it just in case… you know… ponies that have business to attend to”
The colt opened one side of the double doors and entered.
Mark hesitated; it didn’t look like there’s a lot of room inside, maybe he should wait until the Doctor comes out to make some room

“Are you coming or not” replied an unexpectedly quiet echo from within
It was clear that the doctor was shouting and yet Mark heard his voice rather faintly…
A preposterous idea came into Mark’s head as his hooves dared to slowly close up on the open door.

“Wait a minute… nooo… it couldn’t be…”
Mark’s body trespassed the realm of Equestria and entered the realm of Timecolts
The inside of the seemingly wooden box was completely different… in many ways it looked like what one would imagine the inside of a pokéball would look like for a Pokémon residing inside it yet it was indescribingly out of place… the best way to describe it would be to call it… well… Timecolt…-ish

“Ok, NOW I have seen everything”

“I’ll be quoting you on that in a few minutes, now hold on to something” began the Doctor as he began to do random things around in the room with a certain level of certainty as if in all this discordial dancing there was some sort of pattern and sense to it that only the Doctor could make out.

“Aaaaaaand here we go!”
The doctor flipped a lever and all of the sudden the door to the outside world closed, the whole structure began to shake out of control and creak.
A gradual sound began to emanate from all around as if time itself began to breathe in and out.

“Doctor! I think something’s wrong! I don’t think it should shake like this!”

“Oh don’t worry, we’ll be fine… I think”

“You think? YOU THINK???”

“It’s just the transdimensional bridges acting up again”

“Are you absolutely SURE that this is safe?”

“Well, that all depends on how well you’re holding onto that rail, don’t you think?”

“OH, YOU’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!”
The shaking and the breathing slowed down to a halt which was followed briefly by a deep thump… the kind of thump you’d expect to hear when something is forcibly shoved into time and existence all of a sudden.

“Molto bene! Let’s have a look then, shall we?”
Mark pried his shaking hooves from the rail
The doctor peeked through the door and after a second or two he popped the head back in, looked at Mark with a smile and said:

“Well earth’s still there and the air is breathable, I’d say we’re in for a good start”

“Am I to assume that outside of that door we’re in the same place but 504 years in the future and not in the present?”

“Well… yeah, what did you think, we just stayed in one place all of the time? You must be crazy!”

“You know, you’re starting to remind me a certain pink pony I know… I think you two would get along well”

“Oh, you mean Pinkie Pie?”

“How did you know who was I talking about?”

“How many pink ponies have you seen around?”

“Point taken…”

“Now, let’s go or we’ll miss the parade!”

“Parade?”

“Go have a look”
Mark mustered the courage to face the impossible head-on and peeked outside only to be pushed rather harshly by the doctor’s rump into the outside brave new world that shouldn’t exist for at least the next 504 years.
It was amazing, the whole place was like some sort of… well amusement park is the best thing Mark could think of but to be honest, calling it an amusement park would be a clear understatement, in fact calling that an understatement would be an understatement itself.
Everything the Doctor said was pretty much spot on, Ponies, Ponies everywhere but not on their own, no, they were just walking around casually completely unaware of the dragons, gryphons and even the changelings who didn’t seem to have bothered with disguising themselves.
The doctor stopped a random trespasser pony

“I’m sorry to disturb you but I’ve got a question- oh wait a minute… hey Mark!”

“Yeah?”

“We forgot to agree on what we are betting on”

“Oh, I don’t know, let’s say a day’s worth of meals”

“You’re on”
The trespasser butted in and pointed ad Mark

“Your name is Mark?”

“Uh, yeah, why?”

“Oh, nothing, I’m sure your parents meant well… or they didn’t know”

“Know what?”
The Doctor interrupted

“Sorry, I was just wandering, what would you say if I’d tell you that 504 years ago there was a changeling that opened up a successful restaurant in Equestria?”
The trespasser burst out laughing

“You’re having a laugh ain’t ya mate? Mark? Changelings running a successful restaurant 504 years ago? You should watch out what you say around here, not everyone has a sense of humour like I do”

“Thanks, that’s all I needed to know”
The Trespasser pony resumed his routine and walked away

“Told you, you owe me a day’s worth of meals”

“Hey! That’s not what I meant!”

“Sour grapes… so; let’s meet up here in 30 minutes shall we? there are a few rides that look interesting… see you!” finished the doctor with a growing tone as he quickly grew smaller in a crowd of all sorts of sentient kind and finally dissolved into the background.
Mark wandered in amazement for a few minutes and after a few queries to the masses and a couple weirded out glances at him, he managed to make heads and a bit of tails out the current time and place he’s in and he finally had the time to actually look around and see for himself what this place actually was and the best way he could describe it was... a hot mental mess.
Everything was off from the sky clouds forming a giant 500 in the cloud sky to the soap roads, this place was basically the living embodiment of dad jokes

“Let me get this straight… this place is called Discord’s realm, it’s a theme park of some sort where changelings live and work, and where ponies pay to go to, to have fun??? I can easily say that I did not see this coming, not in a million years, let alone five hundred and four, this is incredible!”
This was great news for Mark, so great that he was nearly in tears; His kind is going to be fine! Ha! What an understatement! They’re going to be more than fine! They’re going to be living in prefect harmony with not only their mortal enemies, ponies but also with gryphons, dragons and even with Discord himself! He heard rumours about Discord being reformed but he had no idea that it was going to be something like this!
Mark was so overwhelmed that he didn’t even notice the moment he got lost and wandered deeper into the candy centre of this entire melting pot of emotional delight that this realm was.
Before he knew it, he was in some sort of museum of history…

“I wander what the Doctor would have to say about museums of history”
A numerous group of young children of all sorts sitting on benches and eating caught Mark’s eye… one filly in specific, It was a small changeling filly, Mark wasn’t sure what it was but he felt like he’s known her from somewhere…
Something in the outmost back part of Mark’s mind told him that he should talk to her… or investigate this whole thing… or something, anything.
Mark began to trot inconspicuously towards her, whistling a generic tune which naturally made him all that more conspicuous.
The tune caught the filly’s ears… and she turned around curious of the tune unaware what was about to happen.
The two met
Mark at once knew that he has always loved her… not as a soul mate or a lover but a different kind of love… as a daughter? No, that’s not right… whatever it was they both knew at once, that their fates have always been intertwined from the dawn of time itself.

“Pacifica”

“PACIFICA!”
Third time’s the charm, Sugar’s voice finally reached Pacifica’s consciousness

“Yeah?”

“We’re going now”
Pacifica nodded quietly, grabbed Mark’s hoof and looked at him.
Mark understood instantly that he should just trust her and go with her

“Who’s that?” asked Knuckles

“Friend” replied Pacifica

“Cool, do you work here, sir?”
Mark glanced at Pacifica looking for any signs suggesting what his answer should be and at once he knew what to say

“Yes, yes I do”
The changeling leading the group stopped in front of some sort of painting depicting a mish-mash of interspecies violence happening in a familiar town
Pacifica harshly tugged his hoof, now is the right time to secretly go there, wherever there was supposed to be.
The two sneaked out of the museum, crossed the bridge of trust, stumbled through the house of the living, crept across the complex web of clean soap roads, endured the ice cream snowstorm and finally reached Discord’s shack.

“That’s not a shack” began Mark as he looked up at the towering castle with a giant crooked signs saying DISCORD'S SHACK

“…”

“Oh, right, yeah, I know, Discord, chaos and all that, got it”
As they entered through the main gate, which from the inside happened to be the back exit from the kitchen, Mark was greeted with the pure essence of chaos… everything was in the state of flux, the only thing that remained still in this whirpool of matter was the ever longing taste of joy and fun.
Pacifica initiated a specific dance, Mark knew that recreating every single of her steps was necessary to cross the kitchen, onto the next room.
Pacifica approached a boiling pot full of steaming food, opened it and entered.
Mark did the same.
They came out from under a sofa in a room where some sort of large blue bird was playing a video game with a raccoon.
The two animals looked at the unexpected visitors who emerged from the sofa they were sitting on a few moments ago.
Pacifica just ignored this whole situation completely unsurprised which couldn’t be said about the bird and the raccoon who paused the game looking at the changelings in puzzlement.
Pacifica once again grabbed Mark and walked out onto the park outside.
As they were walking away from the house Mark couldn’t help but to look back and see through the window what seemed to be a red gumball machine shouting

“Go set up the chairs, now! OR YOU’RE FIRED!“
Words could not even begin to describe how weird that scene was, it’s as if they walked out from their universe and ended up in some sort of obscure afternoon cartoon for children that featured adult humour from a different dimension.
A few cameos and video game references later they finally reached their destination, It was the bedroom of none other than Discord himself.

“What now?” blurted out Mark

“…”

“So when is he going to come then?”

“…”

“So we do have a few minutes to spare… tell me, who are you?”

“…”

“You’re right; maybe we should wait for Discord with this… why are we waiting for Discord with this again?”

“…”

“Right, I suppose he does…”
Mark ruffled Pacifica’s hair with his hoof
Pacifica smiled and nearly gave out a girlish giggle... almost.
The oddly not so odd couple awaited the arrival of the one that would clear this whole mess up.

Author's Note

Oh boy, I began to reread my work as I am going to get back to continuing the saga only to realize just how unedited this chapter was, I apologize everybody, I have fixed all the little errors and spelling mistakes, I still don't know how this could have happened.

CHAPTER 10 (AKA: About time)

The day was slowly closing its doors and making way for the palette of evening atmosphere dyeing the room with living autumn colours.
The soothing grandness of Discord’s shack was changing into an extreme sense of overgreatness with the aid of colourful lights, giving the shack an aura of a sonic rainboom.
The customers were slowly retreating to their everyday lives and the changeling inhabitants were getting ready for the annual nightly festivities to which the carnival in Rio could not even dream to dream of.
Back in Discord’s bedroom the royal rug gently folded into the shape of a familiar Draconequus who glanced at the two changelings with a playful intent to (not only) talk.
The funny thing about Discord is that he tends to slip into a room unexpectedly like an extra sheet of paper is slipped into a 500 page report; nobody notices it until its right in front of their snouts… unless you’re Twilight Sparkle, she always notices these kinds of things straight away.

“Well, well, look what the changeling dragged in, if it isn’t Mark… and I thought you were long dead”

“hmmm… so we know each other in the future… interesting…”

“Time travel?”

“Yep”

“The doctor?”

“Yep”

“1.21 gigawatts at 88 miles per hour?”

“What?”

“Oh, my bad, I was thinking about a different Doctor”

“Look, sorry to be bothering you right now but-“

“OH! NONSENSE! I’m always up for a little fun! And I see you met my daughter!” said the draconequus as he slithered in mid-air wrapping himself around Pacifica

“Well, you see, it’s actually about her that I’ve come to talk about… I just met her recently but… I can’t explain it but… it’s like there’s this sort of link between us, it’s almost as I could read her mind… I have no idea what the hell that is but I feel that it’s something important and I thought you might help us… you’re the oldest being I know around here…”
Discord popped his head off his neck, sat on it in a thinker’s pose scratching the block of air that should have been his goatee and began to wonder

“Well… I can think of a few ideas… I mean your fates are linked after all”

“Really? In what way?”

“I can’t tell you”

“Why not?”

“where would be the fun in that?”
Pacifica inhaled

“This is important uncle”
Mark and Discord jumped – neither of them expected Pacifica to actually say something anytime soon… or anytime at all for that matter

“I see…” began Discord “In that case maybe you should know...”
Dicord clicked his fingers, materialising a golf club and a golfing outfit on himself, hit his head with the club towards one of the four walls of the room… his head began bouncing all over the place like a ball of yarn

“Yes?” began Mark

“...that you’re related by blood” said Discord the moment his head zipped by a meter away from mark onto a random wall
“she’s a distant granddaughter of your brother” replied the draconequus’s head as it flew onto his neck and stopped dead in its tracks with a faint plastic pop as if something manufactured in china was put back in its socket.
It was all clear now, that feeling Mark felt for Pacifica, that love, it was the kind of love that one feels for a niece.
A surge of surprise overcame Mark, followed by a whole multivitamin mix of emotions, is his brother going to have kids? but this means that he will have to marry first... and what about himself for that matter, is he going to have a family, a child? a wife?

"Do I have any grandchildren here?"

"Of course you do"

“So, who am I going to marry? does this mean I’m going to be successful? How many children am I going to have? What are they going to be calle-“

“Woah, hold on there, mystery Mike, I can’t tell you some things, you know?”

“Why?”

“Let’s just say that there are some rules that even I can’t break”

“I thought you were chaos…”

“No, no, no… I’m not chaos… I’m an agent of chaos, to quote an old friend of mine and there’s only so much that I can do”

“You’re no fun…”

“Hey! That’s my line!”
Mark’s tension was suddenly replaced by the realisation of the fact that even a changeling after some time could become tired... but the Doctor! He completely forgot about him in all this madness! It’s already been over 30 minutes 2 hours ago… finding the doctor is crucial if he wants to go back…

“I don’t suppose that I could stay here for the night after I find the Doctor?”

“Oh, don’t worry he’ll find you all right… you guys can have the bed if you want, I’ll make myself comfortable somewhere else” pointed out Discord whilst he popped a huge sheet of paper out of nowhere, conjured a pair of scissors and within a few seconds of slashy madness he managed to cut and fold a giant paper sofa into the room that he opened up into a bed.
The jester jumped in the air and dangled slowly onto the paper sofa bed, much as a feather would.
Discord’s body met the sofa and a faint comical ding could be heard for a brief second, the kind you get when you pop a cherry on top of a cake you just made.

“Much better”
Mark snickered

“Good luck with the paper cuts”

“That’s why I used safety scissors” began Discord as he equipped his hand in scissors with plastic wavy edges and snipped twice with them to let Mark know that he wasn’t joking about that… for once”
Pacifica and Mark approached the strangely damp bed.
Pacifica made herself comfortable next to the bed ready to sleep.
Mark was stunned at Pacifica’s action

“Aren’t you going to sleep on the bed?”

“…”

“Suit yourself” began Mark as he flipped away the damp bedsheets only to discover what made them wet in the first place and the very reason why Pacifica refused to sleep on it… of course, this is Discord’s realm, nothing is simple here…
Instead of a bed Mark’s eyes set on what seemed to be a bubble of water floating barely above the ground with a pair of pillows drowned inside.

“Oh, I get it, a WATER BED haaahaaa…”
Mark sighed in unison with dropping his head down as he came to terms with the situation and just lay down on the floor in aid of some rest.
Today was a long day… not only Mark had his first day of business but also all this… he deserved some rest, the excitement can come later.
Mark and the gang subtly slipped into their dreams, or rather the dreams slipped into our characters… Compared to what Mark was up against today, he was disappointed in the mediocrity and forgetfulness of the dream he was having… in fact it was so boring that he just plain woke up from boredom.
It was still dark.
A red flash
1..2..3…
A bang.
2 flashes one after another
1..2..
2 bangs, one after another
Mark looked towards the open doors leading to the balcony.
Just some fireworks… apparently the festivities were going to be an all-nighter
Mark looked at the clock melting off the edge of the bed desk like a soggy pizza.
4:23 AM…

“Well, it was nice while it lasted” thought Mark.
Mark looked at Pacifica sleeping soundly and turned his glance onto where Discord should be…
Mark panicked, where could Discord be? He wouldn’t just leave them behind like that, would he?
Mark looked towards the doors leading out of the chamber.
A brief flash slapped a giant shadow of Discord leaning on shadowy rails on the doors.
Mark looked behind him towards the source of the shadow… the balcony.
There he was, leaning on the rails and… sleeping.

“Just when I thought things couldn’t get any weirder…”
Mark quietly approached Discord, trying not to wake him and had a good look at him.
Discord looked completely different when he sleeps, as if he were the exact opposite of what he normally is…
Mark could taste an ocean of emotions even deeper than the Doctor’s… the sheer amount and size of it all was terrifying…
Mark’s eyes were slowly approaching Discord’s face, ever so slowly, ever so closer…

“Yes?”
Mark’s thoughts and body were thrown off-balance as he fell onto a state of surprise and the floor.

“Sorry! I thought you were sleeping”

“Me? Sleeping?”
Discord chuckled quietly

“What’s so funny?”

“I don’t sleep anymore”

“You… don’t? Why?”

“Sleep is a privilege of the young and ignorant… I have lived too long to sleep anymore…”

“That doesn’t make sense…”
Discord gradually looked up to the braille night sky and slowly reached his arm to the sky as if trying to grab something that he already knows isn’t there

“You’re all so lucky… you live a few years and you die in ignorance… but there are others that aren’t as lucky, you know… those who are destined to live longer than we should be allowed to, know more than we should be allowed to… perhaps one day if you’re unfortunate enough to have lived as much as I, you might understand…”
Mark frowned in confusion

“…Are you OK? You’re not being your usual…” Mark randomly waved with his front hooves in the air “Discordial self…”
Discord smiled but it wasn’t a happy smile but a sardonic one… a smile of a defeated being, accepting their fate knowing that nothing can be changed ready to embrace the leftover shambles of pain that they call their life.

“You all live in your little cages, constructs that you call societies and laws but all that is irrelevant… everything cumbles eventually… even time… in the end, there is only one thing left…”

“Lemme guess… chaos?”
Discord nodded gently

“Life is unfair but only one thing is just… and that thing is chaos, it’s the one thing that keeps us all from ripping each other apart and lets us live together in happiness…”
Mark smiled at the stupidity of that statement

“That’s stupid, our society works, it’s not perfect but it’s all fine by the end of the day, I mean look here!” Mark pointed at the changeling festivities below
“Look at all those changelings! Clearly we made it through; this means that there are things that last! You’re wrong!”

“Am I?” Discord’s gaze turned towards Mark melancholically looking at him
“you’re forgetting that I’m from your future…” Discord sighed and looked on the nearby floor, then back at the changeling
“there WILL come a time when you’ll agree with me… and on that day… we shall say farewell my friend”

“F-farewell? Wait so you know how I die? I’ll become like you? What? What happens?”
As if an invisible switch was turned in Discord’s head, he returned to his usual jestery and chaotic self

“I’ve said too much already, now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some chaos to squeeze in here and there”
Discord snapped his fingers and folded like a sheet of paper until there was nothing left
Mark’s head buzzed with newer and newer questions every waking beat of his heart, the fear in the back of his brain cause by the knowledge of his imminent death and when it might happen lay there in wait for the right time.
So many questions and none can be answered despite being so close in reach…
Mark was on the edge and needed desperately for reality to pull him back in.

“Pacifica…”
Mark rushed to the changeling filly shaking her in need of attention.
Pacifica slowly rebooted into consciousness and gave Mark a dozy gaze

“?”
Mark calmed down

“S-sorry, I panicked there for a second…”

“…”
Pacifica gave an understanding look towards Mark, she didn’t know exactly what had happened but whatever it was she knew that it freaked the living daylights out of Mark, and he needed attention right now.

“Can I ask you a question Pacifica?”

“…”

“Why is Discord like that?”

“…”

“Actually this time I want you to tell me if you know, it’s important”
Pacifica nodded

“How much do you know about the legend behind hearts and hooves day?”

“Not much… all I know is that a long time ago there was a prince and princess that gave each other some love poison, couldn’t do their royal duties, then something about a dragon and years of chaos… something like that… why do you ask?”

“Because that’s when it all happened”

“What happened?”

“The legend is extremely vague about what happened but after years of nagging my uncle I managed to hear a thing or two from him about it”

“Which would be?”

“He told me that back in those times when he was still young, he was in charge of the royal guard for the pony kingdom”

“HE WAS?”

“Yes, and back then he wasn’t like he is right now, he was just like us, but then came the fateful day when the 2 ponies gave each other the love poison…”

“What then?”

“I don’t really know about this part but something must have happened that changed my uncle because he took advantage of the kingdom’s weakness and took over, starting his reign of chaos… that is all I know”

“Hmmm… that’s it?”

“As much as I know, yes… Only my uncle, Luna and Celestia know what really happened but none of them ever wanted to talk about it when I asked them and there’s nothing in the books about it apart from the same old vague story”

“Princess Luna? Celestia? What do they have to do with all this?”

“I don’t know, they wouldn’t tell me”

“You know… I think I’m gonna start looking into that, Discord told me that I’m going to change in my future into what he is right now and I don’t want that, maybe if I find out what really changed him back then, I might be able to prevent that from happening to me!”

“…”

“So, where are Luna and Celestia now?”

“…”

“Oh… well… it has been over 500 years after all…”
Mark paused for a moment of silence only to unexpectedly erupt once again
“OF COURSE! THE DOCTOR!”

“?”

“You know, time traveller, TARDIS, I’ll go back to my time and ask the princesses myself…”

“…”

“You stay here, I’ll go and look for him”

“…”

“What?”

“…”

“Hmmm… yeah, you’re right, going without a guide would be stupid… let’s go then”
Pacifica jumped onto her hooves and followed Mark outside the chamber.

“…”

“Shortcut??? You mean that before, we could have gotten to the chamber faster?”

“…”

“I’m not complaining, I’m… just…. Nevermind…”
The changelings literally swam across the rug towards a large picture of a dark empty room full of strange contraptions.
Pacifica knocked twice on the Picture

“Enter” replied a voice that made Mark’s mane stand on edge, the voice was similar to Discord’s but it was… wrong in every meaning of the word… Mark knew that whatever being said that wasn’t just evil… he was WRONG
The painting opened up, the two entered into the exact same room that was being depicted on the door but this time a strange caped being was hunching over a table ahead of them.
The figure was mumbling something.

“…”

“How can I ignore that?”

“…”

“Fine, I will…”
Pacifica grabbed Mark’s hoof and dragged him across the room towards a pony-sized jack-in-a-box.
The figure began mumbling louder

“smile? No no no… let’s slap a smile on it? No…”

“Let’s put a smile on that face?” suggested Mark

“Oooh, I like that one… yeah…”
The figure partially turned what seemed to be its head towards Mark for a brief moment, showing a vague contour of what he figured must be horrible scars of the face… those scars weren’t regular scars… they went deeper than just the body…

“Pacifica?” Began the biped
Pacifica stopped dead in her tracks yet Mark was surprised to see that she wasn’t scared

“?”

“Say hi to your uncle would you? Oh, and tell him I said thanks for showing me that pencil trick the other day…”

“…” replied Pacifica as she turned the handle on the jack-in-the-box.
A few moments later a giant puff of confetti jumped out of the box surrounding the two.
Once the colourful hurricane subsided, they were in front of the shack facing the square that was now a raging sea of black and shades of green.

“How in the world are we going to find the Doctor here? I only see changelings…”
Pacifica pointed at a tiny brown speck bobbing up and down on top of the black canvas of green.

“He’ll find us, huh...” pointed out Mark in a sarcastic tone

“?”

“No, nothing”
The duo bravely approached the front of the storm ready to jump in… as far as the living cloud is going to let them.

“Hold my hoof Pacifica and don’t let go”

“…” nodded Pacifica whilst hooking her hoof onto his
They jumped in.
An endless fog of noise and colours surrounded the two, confusing every of one of their senses.
Everything was so… much, so much colour, so much noise, so much movement, so much joy yet neither of them could taste any emotions… that was the strangest part… Mark has been with other changelings before and he knew that a changeling is unable to taste another changeling’s emotions let alone feed off it yet his instinct kept telling him to expect an amazing tornado of emotions as there were so many living beings here, all moving, all rejoicing…
The two ploughed through the changelings as they drew nearer the speck that was now easily recognisable as the doctor being thrown up in the air and back down continuously like a brown fuzzy bouncy-ball

“Oh! Hey Mark, I see you bought-“ the Doctor fell into the sea of black, and briefly flew back up

“-with you! Discord told me you met! It’s great to see that you got to meet-“ the Doctor downed once again and briefly resumed into free fall 6 meters above the air once again

“-other! so, did you manage to solve that-“

“-already?”

“Yeah, more or less, I need to get back now, I know what I need to do!”

“You sure? I mean we could stick-“

“-for a while, it’s a lot of fun you know!”

“Maybe some other time… you do have a time machine after all so it’s not like we can’t come back again”

“OK then” said the Doctor as he fall back into the murky depths and seconds later emerged from the crowd right in front of Mark, standing as nothing had ever happened in the first place

“Shall we go then?”

“…”
The three began pushing and shoving past the changelings, moving vaguely towards the direction of where the TARDIS was supposed to be.

“Wait” began Mark and turned towards Pacifica

“?”

“I know you want to go with us but it would be better that you stay here, the time where I come from isn’t too good for our kind… you’ll be safer here”

“…”

“I’s OK, I’ll be back, right Doctor?”

“Well-”

“YOU!” a loud bossy voice interrupted the conversation.
The three looked quickly towards the beholder of such a familiar voice, it was none other than queen Chrysalis herself.
The sea of changelings parted making a clear path for Queen Chrysalis to reach The two changelings and the timecolt.
Mark couldn’t believe his eyes… it was her, he was so glad to see her in such good shape (or at least in such good shape as for her current age)
Time made its mark on the queen, Her hair lost its sheen and thickness, her body became weathered by the endless years of living, yet she still had the same grace as always… it’s so good to see her again. Thought Mark

“MY QUEEN! It’s so great to see you all safe and sound and-“
A deadly blast of green blackened the ground right next to Mark, the fellow changelings next to Mark retracted in fear.
Something told Mark that he this wasn’t going to be a happy reunion

“YOU! HOW DARE YOU LIVE! YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE GONE! YOU… YOU… MONSTER!”

“What? But I-“
The queen's rickety and frail body began to ominously approach the poor changeling

“DON’T YOU TALK BACK TO ME!” screamed the furious chrysalis zapping every possible area next to mark with a clear intent to kill him but unfortunately for her and fortunately for Mark, she was too blind with age and fury to hit anything but the ground.

“I think it’s time for my favourite part” whispered the Doctor

“What part?”

“RUN!” the doctor shouted as he galloped towards the blue box of salvation.
Mark turned to Pacifica.

"Take care, I will be back, ok? I promise"
The queen was nearing dangerously close now

"..."

"I already told you, no, you are safer here with your uncle watching over you"
Mark pointed up in the distance at the balcony on which Discord was vigilantly making sure nothing happens to his precious little changeling.
Chrysalis was within srtiking distance but Mark’s primal instincts kicked in and he followed in the Timecolt’s footsteps disappearing into the blue box.

“OPEN THE DOOR!” screamed the queen trying to ram the door, unsuccessfully as the door locked as soon as it was closed and the TARDIS was set in motion.

“I’d hold on if I were you Mark!”
Mark managed to hold on to the nearest railing in the nick of time for the incredibly dangerous time travel.
Moments later the shaking and the breathing sound stopped and that fateful DONG sound could be heard signifying the end of the journey that technically never happened.

“Well, that’s that” began the Doctor

“What just happened?” Mark’s confusion took over but he was still too tired to think much, after all he didn’t sleep that much in the first place and all that just happened…
The doctor noticed something was wrong.

“Where is Pacifica?”

"She stayed behind but she will be fine, I don't know Discord well but I could taste enough of his emotions to know that there is no way in Tartarus that he will let anyone harm her, not even Our queen herself"
The pile of metallic garbage sneezed next to Mark

“Oh, you’ve GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!”
This must have been the cheesiest and most predictable “unexpected” turn of events possible, thought Mark as he shuffled away the junk ready to greet Pacifica for a second time today.

“I thought I told you to stay behind!” whipped Mark at Pacifica

“…”

“Don’t be harsh on her Mark, we were being chased and were running for our lives after all”

“No, Doctor, bring her back to her time RIGHT NOW”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that”

“WHAT?”

“Well, I was going to tell you that I can only use my TARDIS every once and then but then all that happened and… well as they where’s the time when you really need it” the Doctor gave out a brief quiet awkward laugh
Mark gave a sigh of defeat

“Well, when’s the next time you could bring her back?”

“Well… that depends, the TARDIS needs to recharge but there are no big time rifts here in this universe at all so it might take a few…”

“Days?”

“…months”

“…”

“Well of course I’m going to do that, the only problem is how am I going to explain you to the ponies in this town, plus you’re gonna need an education during that time, don’t think you’ve gotten away from learning miss”

“…”
Mark gave Pacifica an angry look.
How the hell is he going to pull all this off? What’s more, can Pacifica even change? It’s not like changelings need to do that at all in the future and Mark remembers all too well how hard it was for him to maintain his transformation for longer than an hour for his first time, let alone turn into a pony with the right body proportions… this might turn out to be one heck a problem…

“…”

“You can?”
Pacifica turned into an inconspicuous earth pony

“But how? Don’t you guys have no need for that in the future? Heck, I’d reckon it would even be against the law for you guys to transform”

“…”

“Well then how come can you change then if it’s forbidden?”

“…”

“Discord taught you? Well, he never was one to go by the rules…”

“Uhm…” gently interrupted the Doctor

“Oh, right, yeah, sorry doctor, we’ll be going now, come on Pacifica, Since you're not going anywhere I might as well show you My house and restaurant”
The two changelings politely exited the time travel machine.
Mark’s head popped back into the TARDIS

“Oh, by the way, I forgot to thank you for everything Doctor, you really did help after all”

“I’m not going to say I told you so buuuut…”
The doctor pointed his hoof at Mark

“I told you so?”
The Doctor smiled pleasantly

“Yep”
A few minutes passed as Mark gave his distant granddaughter the spare room with a few necessary items and soon Mark was tucked in his bed ready to sleep once again… funny thing time travel… he wasn’t gone for even a minute…
Mark began to think.
Something was wrong in all this; somehow Mark couldn’t see the whole picture yet again… Why would Discord teach Pacifica the art of transformation if they didn’t need it in their time? It’s as if he knew that she would travel back in time…
Pacifica, Discord, even queen Chrysalis seemed to know something that he didn’t and refuse to tell him… but he’s going to get to the bottom of this no matter what, it’s all for the sake for his kind… for a better future, the kind of future that everybody and everypony will have in over 500 years…
Mark closed his eyes.

The cogs of Mark’s fate clicked into second gear and began to slowly turn the massive cog of worldly fate.

Author's Note

It sure has been a while since i posted my last chapter and i'm truly sorry for that, I have been going through a very difficult episode of my life that is finally coming to an end... slowly.
On a brighter note:
this is the chapter where stuff starts to go down, in my opinion, my best chapter thus far.
ENJOY

CHAPTER 11 (AKA: party of four)

It was almost hard to believe that Pacifica was back in time over 500 years, of course spending a lifetime with someone like Discord sure dampens the element of surprise in these kinds of situations.
Despite Mark’s worries, the animals living in the dining hall didn’t seem to mind the newcomer, what’s more, they were fine with them in their changeling form (thanks to Fluttershy’s amazing diplomatic and convincing skills)
Pacifica was sitting down comfortably on one of the tables eating the delicious oaty breakfast prepared by her Ancestor who was getting ready for a busy day of work.
“So, what do you think, would customers like that?”
“?”
“Yes, I know we don’t eat regular food but I’m asking for your opinion whether I could add this to the menu”
“…”
“The menu it is then”
Mark finished doing whatever he was doing, approached Pacifica from behind the counter, sat down by the same table and gently leaned towards her

“Look, I know you’re curious about the whole hearts and hooves legend and so am I but we can’t just barge into Canterlot… and start asking Celestia and Luna questions”

“?”

“Well, for starters we haven’t got any money”

“?”

“NO, we’re not borrowing any money, I just started this business and it’s hard enough to take off as it is, even if it is a success, I don’t need debt on top of all this so I’m just going to have to work for the money, it shouldn’t take more than a day or two considering we don’t need to spend money on food for us… I’m also going to need to pull some strings to be able to get anywhere near the princesses”

“?”

“Don’t worry, I know ponies…”
Pacifica finished eating her breakfast and got up, put on her schoolbag of old borrowed items from Fluttershy and got ready to walk out the door into the unknown new school (or rather, a really old school from Pacifica’s point of view)

“Wait”
Pacifica stopped, her hoof leaned on the door

“Let’s see what you’re gonna change into”
Pacifica turned into a blue pony with a curly mane

“Hmmm… no… not good”

“?”

“Blue is not a common shade of coat among ponies, you’re gonna stick out… go for brown… you’re supposed to be my niece so go with the same coat as mine, some shade of brown or something”
Pacifica changed into a shade of hazel

“Not bad, not bad at all…”
Mark circled around Pacifica for a moment

“Wait a minute, what’s this?”
Mark pointed at Pacifica’s rump where a cutie mark lay in the form of a pony’s snout with a red X over it

“…”

“NAH-AH”

“?”

“You’re good at changing but you still need to know some basics… rule #1 when changing into a small colt or filly: if you’re young enough not to have a cutie mark, don’t have one, EVER”

“?”

“Because cutie marks are the single most dangerous thing for a changeling to have, it not only makes you instantly identifiable in any crowd but it can also give you away easily, a pony’s cutie mark represents their special ability, something only they excel in… what if you choose the wrong cutie mark that doesn’t suit your character or abilities? You’d be instantly discovered… don’t you ever forget that… fortunately for you, you still have some time before your age would require you to have a cutie mark in your transformations… until then you need to think about what your cutie mark would be, there’s no rush”

“…” silenced out Pacifica, pointing at her rump where the same cutie mark appeared a moment ago

“Well, that may be a quite fitting cutie mark for you in this case but that might not necessarily be your special skill, you’re still young and haven’t tried many things… it’s too dangerous, we can’t risk it, if you’re found out, all of this” Mark pointed at the restaurant “will not only be gone but we’ll be lucky if we manage to survive with nothing and we won’t be able to come back here for a while, even if we can transform into somepony else… that’s another rule we have, the 30 day rule but I’ll teach you about that some other time because we’re already late for your first day and I have to be back here within a few minutes before opening… now take that thing off”

“…”
Pacifica’s cutie mark disappeared in a rapid green flash.

“That’s much better… don’t worry, you’ll be practically invisible”
When Pacifica entered into the town centre with her great-uncle she was amazed at how different everything was yet so familiar… what is going to be Discord’s realm in 504 years’ time is now some sort of puny little village…
The danger of the situation just occurred to Pacifica… not a single changeling in sight… gruncle wasn’t joking around when he said that it’s going to be all over for them if they are found out.

“Pacifica”
Pacifica jumped

“?”

“Calm down, you know my mum used to say that fear is a cloth that dampens a changeling’s mind, relax, nopony can tell, and besides I’m with you right now so you’ll be fine! Take your mind off it, look! It’s a great day! You’ll meet plenty of new fillies in school, aren’t you excited?”
Pacifica looked down on the ground and smiled with a light blush

“Pacifica?”

“?”

“We’re here”
Pacifica looked up at the school barn, it looked just like it sounded… full of life.
The two entered the premises into the classroom.
Inside, a whole bunch of crazy fillies and colts were running around, throwing paper planes and all sorts of things one would expect to see in an average classroom.
Pacifica relaxed, this looked pleasant, maybe she’ll make friends for the time being.
Mark nudged her rib with his elbow

“?”

“Don’t relax too much, never let your guard down and remember, take breaks from the transformation as often as possible when you’re alone but make sure you ARE alone, OK?”
Pacifica nodded
The only other adult pony in the room approached the duo

“This must be Pacifica”

“Ah, yes, hello Miss Cheerilee, I am so sorry for this sudden turn of events but how could I have said no to family?”

“It’s Ok mr. Sails I understand, these things happen, I’m sure we’ll find a seat for her…”

“Oh, also I just wanted to pass on that she might have to rest every once in a while, you know, take breaks, she’s very… fragile. She must’ve gotten that from my mother’s side of the family unfortunately…”

“No problem, you’ll feel just like at home Pacifica, I’m sure you’ll make friends here in no time! Come on”
Cheerilee’s hoof wrapped itself around Pacifica’s neck as she was slowly dragged towards the front of the blackboard.
Pacifica looked back one last time at gruncle to see him give her a hooves up and rush out of the schoolbarn in hope to make it back to the restaurant in time to open.

“Everpyoy! Settle down!”
Pacifica doubted that something like a simple request would put the rowdy bunch in order.
It did.
All the fillies and colts were seated within a split second in their appropriate places, fitting in perfectly like a bunch of puzzle pieces.

“Everypony, this is Pacifica, she just moved in yesterday, I hope you’ll all get along well, Pacifica do you want to say anything about yourself?”

“…”
Pacifica shrugged, what is she going to say? It’s not like she can talk about her friends or what it’s like where she came from… as gruncle said, remain inconspicuous

“In that case let’s begin the lesson, Pacifica, you can sit right next to Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon”
Cheerilee pointed at an empty seat between 2 fillies, one with a diamond tiara on her head (wonder which one could she be?) and the other one looked generic enough to sit next to.
Silver Spoon seemed fine but sitting next to a pony that goes as far as wearing a diamond tiara just for the sake of attention might give Pacifica unwanted attention.
Pacifica reluctantly sat next to the two fillies.
Lessons started… they were so easy! The stuff they were doing was nothing compared to the stuff Pacifica had to deal in her previous school…

“Psst!”
Pacifica turned her head towards Diamond Tiara

“Hey! My name’s Diamond Tiara, but you may call me Tiara, nice too meet you!”

“…”
Pacifica just nodded deciding to go along with whatever is about to happen

“Listen, if you want to make it through this school just fine you should know that there are some ponies that you shouldn’t be with or talk to, they are a mean bunch”

“?”

“Do you see those three behind you?”
Pacifica gently turned her head to be just barely able to see the ponies in question

“The white unicorn is called Sweetiebelle, she pretends to be nice but she’s a horrible fashion diva, the one next to her with a bow is called Applebloom, don’t get too close to her, I heard that she uses her friends for free work with her family and they don’t let you go until you’re finished”
Silver Spoon continued for Tiara
“the last one is Scootaloo, nopony knows where she came from or where her parents are… some say she killed her parents, I’d say it’s better to keep away from her too, otherwise one day she’ll invite you to her shed and….”
Silver spoon slashed her own neck with her hoof
Pacifica rolled her eyes… she was a changeling, she could taste emotions, she was practically a living lie detector and she called bullshit on this one but nonetheless she just nodded for now and deal with the two later, possibly request for a change of desks to a more comfortable and less visible place in the back.
After a few lessons of pony history and arts and crafts the time for recess finally came.
Pacifica was exhausted and needed some time to rest from the transformation.
The first thing Pacifica did after hearing the teacher’s announcement she trotted rather hastily into the filly’s room and transformed back into her original changeling form after having closed the door tightly and making sure there was nopony around.
As gruncle suggested, Pacifica didn’t rest for more than 5 minutes as being gone too often and for too long is going to attract unwanted attention and ponies might start talking.
Pacifica got ready to blend into the crowd playing outside.
The changeling glanced at Tiara and Silver Spoon talking down rather harshly at the trio of fillies that sat behind Pacifica, she could sense the particular taste of bullying…
If there’s one thing that gets on Pacifica’s nerves its bullying… the act is selfish and serves no particular purpose making the whole thing meaningless.
Being inconspicuous shall have to wait.
Pacifica approached the crowd of five

“-I see you met our new friend Pacifica?” said Tiara as she embraced Pacifica in a “friendly” manner.
Pacifica could taste the rivalization between the trio and the duo.
It’s as if the sky itself was split in an invisible line dividing the three little ponyteers and the two just as little brats ready to rumble.
From her own side Pacifica could sense the velvety taste of victory along with the rock hard conviction of one’s upmanship above the other’s dipped in a thick cocoon of fake Chinese innocence and bullshit.
The side of the bullied fillies was an entirely different story, the taste of shame with fear was prevailing over the deep depression of regret of being born the way one is and all that was topped up with a cherry of hatred and restlessness... Pacifica’s least favourite set of emotions all wrapped up with a bow.
Pacifica winked at the three fillies to let them know that it’s going to be OK

“Let’s go Pacifica, we don’t need to waste our time on these three”

“No, thanks, I think I’ll stay”

“What? You don’t mean you want to talk to those…. Three?”

“Why not?” asked Pacifica with a pretend dumb look on her face

“Wha- what?” Tiara was surprised that her new little minion was thinking all by herself “Are you trying to tell me that you want to make friends with them?”
It was time for Pacifica to bitchslap that bully into her rightful place

“Are you trying to tell me that you have the right to tell me what friends I can or can’t make?”
Pacifica began to slowly taste the spicy anger coming from Tiara more and more.

“I told you already, you don’t want to be friends with them”

“I don’t? I had no idea you knew what I was thinking”

“S-stop that!”

“Stop what? I’m not doing anything”

“That”

“What? Talking?”
Now tiara was being overshadowed by the burning sensation of uncertainty's fear, nopony aver talked to her that way before, how is she supposed to deal with this?

“N-no, stop saying those things! Stop playing with me, you're playing with me!”

“So… you want me to stop talking but you don’t want me to shut up? I’m sorry; I don’t quite understand how that’s any different from shutting up”
Tiara was on the verge of bursting

“J-just come on! You’d be better off with us!”

“Better? Sounds like arrogance to me, no thanks I don’t like stuck up ponies that think they’re better than others… I should have noticed this before, you know…”

“WHAT?”

“Well…” Pacifica leaned towards Tiara and began to whisper just loud enough for the trio to hear “Your cutie mark”
Pacifica pointed ad Tiara’s rump
Pacifica sensed Tiara’s emotional state toppling chipping and crumbling… she hit where it hurts

“W-what! How dare you! Daddy says that my Mark represents my high social status!, what do you have, you’re a blank flank!”

“Do you even know what a social status is or are you just quoting your dad?”

“HM! I guess I was wrong about you… blank flank!”

“At least I’m not branded”

“Blank flank!”

“You can't hurt me with something I don't consider an insult” replied Pacifica whilst turning around and intentionally using her tail to knock off Tiara’s tiara.
Tiara’s body filled with rage
Pacifica smiled towards the three girls and extended her hoof as a sign of friendship

“…”

“What do you think you’re doing?” raged on Tiara
Pacifica continued to ignore the bully and continued to shake hoofs with Scootaloo, Sweetiebelle and Applebloom

“…”

“Don’t ignore me!”

“My name’s Pacifica and if I can remember your names, they’re… Sweetiebelle, Applebloom and Scootaloo”
Pacifica pointed out and named each pony correctly

“HEY! DON’T YOU IGNORE ME! DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?”

“…”

“Answer me! Or else-“

“Pacifica harshly turned around dangerously close to Tiara letting her know that she’s not playing around

“You’ll what? Huh? Call me something mean? Or did you run out of ideas after you called me a blank flank?”
Pacifica turned around from the shocked filly that couldn’t take it anymore.
Tiara ran away leaving Silver Spoon who picked up Tiara’s tiara and attempted to catch up with her calling out to her repeatedly.
The Cutie Mark Crusader's jaws dropped, this was the first time they saw anypony talk back to Tiara that way.

“Is she always like that?” asked Pacifica
The shock surging through the fillies dampened that question and a few seconds later finally one of them answered after shaking their head back into reality

“Unfortunately” answered Applebloom
Scootaloo began jumping up and down.

“That was so cool! Nopony ever talked back to her like that before! Maybe she’ll stop bullying us now!”
Pacifica shrugged
The rest of the break the changeling spent on getting to know the other ponies from her class which involved… talking, as much as Pacifica hated doing that, she was forced to do so nonetheless and soon her role of blending in has come to a completion and her gruncle was in fact right about that cutie mark she wanted to use, it would have been a horrible idea to use it.

The class day came to an end, setting the base for afternoon activities…
The sun was slowly melting into the distant hills smouldering the land with a golden buttery consistency counting down moments till the end of the day
Pacifica galloped out from the schoolbarn along with all the other classmates (Galloping isn’t Pacifica’s style but one does what one can to blend in with the rest) and was instantly surrounded by the smell of roasted hot dry soil along with the excitement that one gets once they’re freed from the oppressive lessons.

“HAY! WAIT! PACIFICA!”
Pacifica halted to be caught up by Applebloom and the rest.

“y’know, we were thinkin’ and maybe you’d wanna join us as a cutie mark crusader?”

“?”

“Well? What ya think”

“Applebloom…” began Scootaloo

“What?”

“I don’t think she knows who a cutie mark crusader is…”

“We’re the cutie mark crusaders, we are on a quest to find what our cutie mark might be” Applebloom stood up on her hind hooves and with her front hooves open trying to show how BIG of a deal this was apparently
Sweetiebelle approached Pacifica only to be stopped by the mystery pony’s hoof.

“…”
Pacifica shook her head suggesting that she doesn’t want to be affiliated with their club in any way and walked away home.

CHAPTER 12 (AKA: Connections)

The afternoon made its way with that slow feel that one gets around that time, the shops were glancing lazily at the trespassers who just as lazily moved on with their lives.
A few fillies and foals could be seen running around, doing what ponies their age do at that time of day, playing.
The entire town was silent… not silent due to the lack of noise but silent with the lack of daily duties that have already been finished by the townsponies.
The silence was interrupted by an occasional applebucking sound that could be heard in the far distance.
Pacifica began to like this place; it’s quiet, calm and the exact opposite of what she had to put up with until recently… this place seemed livable for once.
The changeling shortly toured the town having a look around here and there before returning back home.
Pacifica entered the closed restaurant and was greeted with Mark in pony form talking to a Purple unicorn.
The two stopped the conversation to glance at the expected visitor

“Pacifica, I’m just talking to Twilight here about meeting up with Celestia, comes out that today was so successful that we can already afford to go to Canterlot” informed Mark

“-But we still need to get a few details fixed first” began Twilight

“…”

“It’s OK, we should be done in 5 minutes or so, wait until then, all right?”

“…”

“No problem, come down in about 5 minutes”

“…”
Pacifica made her way back to her room to rest; it’s true what gruncle said about transforming, the first day is always hard.
The unicorn and changeling waited for a few seconds after Pacifica closed the door to resume back to their conversation.

“In any case” began Twilight “I don’t think that simply writing a letter explaining everything is going to work, rather than that I think that it would be a better idea to write a letter requesting I meet with her first then I’ll talk to her about this, I know this might take a while longer but that way you could come with me to Canterlot, after all you can’t go on your own if you've never been there before”

“I… sort of have been there before” replied Mark in a regretful tone

“Oh, you have, when was that?”

“Err… well, how should I put it…” Mark had no idea how to say this but his queen; Chrysalis commanded every changeling to attack Canterlot on that fateful day… not many refused considering how hungry they all were… after all, a changeling that is drowning would go as far as hold onto sharp blades in order to save himself
It took a few moments for Twilight to realize what was really going on and decided to move on as quickly as possible

“I think it would be a good idea for me to escort you personally to the princess myself, the guards tend to be a bit more rigorous these days and if they see a familiar face they might let us through more easily”

“How long do you think it would take for Celestia to receive the letter and write back?”

“Oh, only a moment, Spike is able to send the letters instantly”

“In that case what are we waiting for?” replied Mark in an excited tone
Twilight got up from the stump she was sitting on and proceeded to go back home in order to write the letter but as she was just about to exit she stopped and looked back at Mark with worry on her face

“Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“It’s really important to me, what happened to Discord is related to my fate and something I’ll do in the future and judging by the reaction of my queen when she saw me I’d rather not find out what that might be until I do it, better safe than sorry”

“I don’t know, it all seems a little risky to me”

“Spike, take a letter”
Spike got his quill and parchment ready
Twilight thought this through carefully as what is going to happen next will all depend on what she is about to write.

Dear princess Celestia
When I first came to Ponyville, I saw no sense in making friends, I found something as crazy as friendship ridiculous but with time I made valuable friends and learned many lessons in friendship.
Only now I understand the true value and importance of it and why some call it magic, My friends were always there for me and I always tried to be there for them in return, I trust my friends though at times it seems difficult but that’s what friends are for.
Recently I became friends with somepony who I never thought I could be on good terms with, I thought that I should stay away from him as far possible but my friends managed to do the impossible, they befriended him! I couldn't believe it! I still find it hard to believe it; even though I’m that somepony’s new friend I still have my doubts about this.
I’m doing this for the sake of my friends, because I trust them, if they say that he’s a good somepony and means no harm then I’m willing to help him.
Please, Princess Celestia, listen to what he has to say, I know that he may seem untrustworthy at first but I believe in my friends… and in the magic of friendship.

Your faithful student

Twilight Sparkle

Spike rolled up the parchment

“Are you sure about this Twilight?”

“No, but my friends are and that’s good enough for me, what kind of friend would I be if I wouldn't trust them?”

“I don’t know, this Mark pony seems shady... and kinda scary” Spike shuddered

“I’m sure it’ll all be fine, it’s got to be, now send the letter, the longer I think about this, the less I want to do it”

“Then don’t do it, do you have any idea what the princess might do to us if she finds out who Mark really-“

“SPIKE! JUST SEND THE LETTER!”

“OK, OK! Sheesh! No need to get your saddle in a bunch”
Spike blew away the letter and the very second the last scrap of parchment was gonr, Twilight freaked out.

“Oh Celestia! No! What have I done! Do you have any idea what Celestia will do when she finds out that Mark is a changeling? And what’s worse, that we've helped him recover and even let him open a business!?!”

“That’s what I said a moment ago” mumbled out Spike rolling his eyes

“No! I've got to trust my friends! It will all be fine”
Twilight was bouncing back and forth again thought Spike… this time he’ll just sit idly and let this one take its course

“But how could it be fine? This isn't like the same time I was tardy with my friendship report…”
Twilight continued the dialogue with herself

“It’s OK, Princess Celestia trusts me, she says I’m her best student after all”

“That’s exactly why this is so bad! I should be an example to other students, not help delinquents!”

“It can’t be, I’m probably overthinking it”

“Am I?”

“It’ll be OK”
Spike burped out a green flame that produced a letter with the royal stamp.
Twilight impatiently opened the letter and read it.

Bring this new friend with you to the palace at once
We need to talk

Princess Celestia

Twilight snapped, she dropped the parchment and stampeded out of the library in tears.

“Here we go again” said Spike.
Where would Twilight be without him? Thought Spike, it’s a good thing that he’s such an amazing assistant.
The purple dragon got ready to alert the rest of the gang, if there’s anything that could help Twilight to snap out of it, it’s going to be her friends.
Rarity was first.
Spike didn't even knock on the door; he just barged into Rarity’s shop without knocking…
…or at least he would have if the doors weren't locked, instead spike just slammed his face into the wood.

“There’s no time to waste, Celestia knows what Twilight might end up doing when she’s like that, RARITY! OPEN UP! IT’S IMPORTANT!”
A few instances later a rather cross Rarity opened up.

“Spike? What is it darling?”

“Twilight’s about to snap again, I need your help to calm her down!”

“OH! Heavens, no! Where is she?”

“She’s most likely at the hill where we usually go picnicking together, it’s where she goes when she wants to be alone, you go get Applejack and rainbow dash and I will go and get Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, we’ll meet at the hill”
The two dashed in their own directions.
Not a minute passed by when the group of friends showed up at the hill where lay a sobbing Twilight Sparkle.

“What happened Sugarcube?”

“I-I’m sorry! I r-really am! I didn't mean it!”
Spike cut in.

“She sent a letter to princess Celestia requesting that she listen to what Mark has to say”
The ponies that circled Twilight tensed up somewhat

“I’m sure that Celestia will be kind enough to listen to him” began Fluttershy

“B-but he’s a changeling!”

“So?” continued Fluttershy
Everypony jumped at the straight forwardness of that statement, it was so… un-Fluttershy
The yellow Pegasus noticed the curious looks of her friends stabbing her body simultaneously and shrank in response.

“I-I mean, what I meant to say was that well, I think that if the princess trusted us with reforming someone like Discord then she might trust us with Mark, I think, maybe, but I could be wrong, I don’t know but…”
Fluttershy’s voice kept growing quieter and quieter as she kept shrinking and slowly retreating out of the circle of friends and ended with a cute yelp.

“Fluttershy’s right” Began Rarity “If we managed to reform someone like Discord then we should have no problem with somepony like Mark and the princess should know that”

“Hold on a second” started Rainbow dash “I don’t know if we should trust this Mark pony, we don’t know anything about him! he might have a secret plan to take over Canterlot again!”

“That’s cuz’ you never met him properly” replied Applejack “Ah met him and he’s a nice pony once your get to know him, he’s hardworkin’ and wants to live in harmony with the rest of the ponies”

“He’s also sophisticated” said Rarity

“Knows how to par-tay” continued Pinkie Pie

“And he’s very kind to everypony” finished off Fluttershy

“Ah know Rainbow that you don’t trust him but we do, and you can trust us when we say that he means Equestria no harm”
The blue Pegasus thought for a second and sighed

“Fine, but I still think that this Mark pony smells fishy to me”
Twilight sobbed quietly reminding the ponies why they gathered on the hill in the first place

“Don’t you worry your pretty little head Twilight, we’ll come with you to Canterlot and solve this mess together” cheered the bucker pony

“B-but what if Princess Celestia-”
Twilight was interrupted by Rarity

“If the Princess will have a problem with this then I’ll give her a piece of my mind, she saw that we reformed Discord so there’s no reason why she shouldn't trust us”

“Girls…” Twilight got up on her 4 hooves and wiped her tears away along with her worries “You’re right, there’s no reason why we should have a problem with this, we’ve been through worse, right girls?”

“Yeah!” the 5 girls replied in unison

“Well then?” began Pinkie “What are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

The crew gathered inside the wagon of the train what was about to leave their past days of peace forever, but they did not know that yet.
Mark and Pacifica resting on one side of the wagon and the rest on the other.
Mark, curious about how Pacifica’s first day went, attempted to start a two-way monologue between them.

“So… how did your day go today?”

“…”

“Really? No problems then?”

“…”
Mark sighed, of course the first day never goes just fine for anypony

“what was it?”

“…”

“Bullies? They bullied you?”

“…”

“What do you mean, not exactly?”

“…”

“YOU WHAT?!?”
Everypony’s attention undoubtedly swayed towards Mark who turned his voice down to a harsh whisper

“Why did you do that? Do you have any idea how much attention that has brought you?”

“…”
Mark slowly calmed down, he gently put his hoof on Pacifica’s head and patted her lightly

“Well… no harm came of it I guess, but please try to be more careful next time, I know you may not like bullies picking on others but you can’t be stupid about being just, there are other ways you could have done this… but what’s done is done, the important thing is that you’re fine” Mark smiled
Pacifica smiled back

“So anything else happened today?”

“…”

“Really? You've made friends so quickly? I’m impressed, but I don’t think this is a good idea considering you’ll be here for just a few months”

“…”

“You’re right, you can’t just sit idly and do nothing for all this time, I guess a few friends won’t hurt, so who are they?”

“…”

“Really? So one of them is Applejack’s sister and the other Rarity’s? What about the third one?”

“…”

“2 coincidences are good enough I guess, that’s a great thing! This means that you’ll have Rarity and Applejack to help you out with your secret! See? Things are already looking up!”

“…”

“Oh, they have a club?”

“…”

“You refused? Remaining inconspicuous huh? Good girl, I see I taught you well”
Pacifica snickered

“…”

“Cutie Mark Crusaders?”
Mark burst out laughing

“That is the funniest name I ever heard, what do they do?”

“…”
Mark’s face changed at once

“In that case you should join them”

“???”

“This would be a great opportunity to look for your talent and figure out which cutie mark would suit you best! Pacifica you should join them, it’s the perfect cover!”

“…” began Pacifica but was rudely interrupted by Mark calling Applejack this way
Applejack approached the two

“What is it Mark?”

“Hey, I've heard that apparently your sister is in a club… the Cutie Mark Crusaders or something like that?”

“Yeah, why d’ya ask?”

“Well, funny thing is, Pacifica here was saying how excited she was to-“
Pacifica wanted to intervene and say something but was already being held back by Mark’s embrace though she wasn't giving up… and neither was Mark

“…join-“
The two began to wrestle some more

“…their-“
The two were now in serious combat

“…CLUB!”
It was too late, Pacifica subsided in grief
Applejack took a moment to ignore the bizarreness of the last few seconds

“Well, sure thang, ah don’t see no problem, of course you’d have to ask the girls first, ah can tell her if you want”
Pacifica got ready to refuse

“That would be great”
Pacifica frowned, Mark once again out-talked her.
AJ retreated back to her place.

“…”

“Don’t be like that, you’ll love it, besides you said that they’re your friends”

“…”

“OK, NEW friends but still friends, don’t worry if anything happens, Applejack and Rarity will have our backs, it’s better than spending a lot of time with somepony who we don’t know, right?”
Pacifica nodded in silent agreement.
A few minutes of cabin socialization later, they arrived at their destination.
This was it, the glamour of the Castle glazed with the same brightness as the princess of the sun herself, Canterlot filled with just as many guards as civilians, though most of the guards were probably the civilians themselves anyway.
The place was… impressive the changeling duo thought, despite the fact that this little model still waned in comparison to the magnificence of Discord’s shack though the palace does seem to have a certain sense of… grandeur despite its size... it was cute.
The group elevated themselves along the large steps smoldered by the red carpet of royalty.
Mark gulped down the stress, though he believed in his friends and trusted them, a small part of him inside still felt this might be a bad idea, he remembered the last time he was here, along with the rest of his army, desperately attacking any source of food that moves, of course back then they were all so hungry that their brains kicked into auto-pilot and the instincts took over completely.
Mark was ashamed.
They reached the final frontier between them and the princess awaiting them through the tall doors, like a pair of skinny guardians keeping evil at bay from the ruler of this land.
Only now had it occurred to Mark how big all of this was, the whole situation.
Mark’s blood began to skip inside his veins, distributing itself across every possible manometer of his body, his mind began to rapidly erase all of his thoughts dragging down common sense with it.
The chageling began to breathe more and more rapidly, as if getting ready to dive underwater.

“…”
Mark glanced at Pacifica’s calm eyes… she was strong; she had to be for the two of them at least.
Mark stopped for a moment and took a second to exhale most of his stress.

“You’re right, Pacifica, what shall be shall be, worrying now won’t make any sense”

“…”
The doors opened revealing a long hall with the princess sitting down majestically on the other end, it felt like a large family sitting at a long table where the husband and wife both sat on each end far away from each other.
The girls began the most difficult walk in their lives, the changelings alongside them.
Clop
Clop
Clop
The worry began to set in
Clop
Clop
Clop
What if the princess will be angry at them?
Clop
Clop
Clop
She isn’t the ruler of this entire land for no reason
Clop
Clop
Clop
But they made their decision
Clop
Clop
Clop
They should stick to it
Clop
Clop
Clop
They should trust their judgement more, and so should the princess
Clop
Clop
Clop
The worry faded away to be replaced with determination, they’re going to make this work no matter what
The princess stood up from her throne, looked down upon the group and spread her wings as some birds do to appear bigger and strike fear into the hearts into their enemies… it did.

“Well?”

“Princess” began Twilight whilst bowing to her, her voice muffled by the carpet “Have you received my latest letter with my request?”

“yes, I have, and I must say, I didn't expect this from any of you”
The ponies were hit with worry; this wasn’t going the way they were hoping it would, though it was going the way they felt it was going to.

“Princess, I know that-“

“I would like to have a word with Twilight in private” began the princess
A moment of silence occurred, it seemed like an eternity, the princesses’ gaze drilling through everypony in the room, the rest mortified with the upcoming consequences, it’s as if-

“No”
The silence was broken by the gentlest of voices, Fluttershy came up front

“I refuse to leave, Twilight is my friend, and she didn't do anything wrong, if you want to punish her, you’ll have to punish me too”
Applejack joined Fluttershy

“Fluttershy’s right, Ah can’t stand for this either”

“Girls” began the princess

“It is bad manners to not even listen to what Mark has to say”

“Girls”

“If you’ll punish Twilight, I’ll… I’ll… I’ll go on a party strike! No parties until you stop!”

“G I R L S !”
The princess’s royal Canterlot voice reverberated across the hall smashing into everypony’s eardrums multiple times like a jackhammer exciting the neurons in their bodies.

“I’m not angry”

“WHAAAT?!?” replied the herd in unison

“I just want to ask Twilight about the whole story”

“So you’re not going to be a meanie mc.mean meanersmith and punish us?” blurted out Pinkie
Celestia laughed

“No! Of course not!”

“B-but she asked for you to listen to a changeling’s request” continued Fluttershy

“I know, but if you trust this changeling well enough to request an audition with me then so do I”

“R-really?” started Twilight, slowly looking up from the floor

“Of course! But this is still a serious matter and I’d like to talk to you, about this, you’d been very vague about this in your letter, I just want to know the details, that’s all but I’d like to talk with you in private, you don’t have to worry girls, you’re not in trouble, I just want some time with my student”
The herd left obediently along with any other beings within the hall until the student and disciple were one on one.

"I like to have an occasional walk, I find them a great way to start a conversation, don’t you? let's take one and have a breath of fresh air"
The teacher and disciple made their way through the back doors of the throne room and onto a back hallway

“Now, tell me about this new friend you have made”
Twilight began to unravel the story in front of Celestia as they retreated from the hall via a personal exit or as some know it better a “secret passage” down to the Canterlot gardens.
Twilight discovered that the conversation was much easier and pleasant than she thought it would have been, in retrospect Twilight’s worries seemed laughable now.
Once Twilight explained the whole thing to Celestia and reassured her that it is in fact possible to peacefully coexist alongside the changelings the real conversation started.

“I see that you have exceeded my expectations Twilight Sparkle, throughout your life in Ponyville you have grown so much, I couldn’t be prouder of any student…”
Twilight blushed with pride

“…and nothing will test you better than what is about to come in our future”

“Future? There’s going to be a test?”

“Yes, and I am afraid that it’s not one I can give you, this test will be the hardest of all, it will show who you and your friends really are deep down inside, It will not be easy and I’m sorry but I won’t be able you help you”

“What happens if I fail?”

“the consequences will be unspeakable, the great darkness shall soon befall upon us and you and your friends are the only ponies that can save not only ponykind but all beings that live and breathe”

“what will happen?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know but what I am sure of is that the time for change is coming… Our history is coming for us my dear student”

“History? I’m afraid I don’t understand…”

“I am sorry Twilight, I am so sorry for everything that will happen… All I can do is warn you, everything that you have learned about friendship and the good of ponykind will be tested and everything shall hinge on one single thing, if you understand, understand why you have to make that decision… and you, you alone Twilight Sparkle shall have to make that decision much like I had to in my past”

“Well, what did you choose?”

“If I were to tell you, all hope would be lost, in order to save us you cannot know until the moment of the decision comes and then you will either understand, or you won’t”

“Understand what?”

“Circles, remember my dear student, it’s all about the circles”

Things were changing, changing forever.

Author's Note

You'll be happy to hear that I finally got back to writing this after a long break, a lot of things happened since then in my life but one thing remains unchanged, my determination to finish this story

CHAPTER 13 (AKA: An unexpected summon)

A usual day in the field for Twilight, thought the purple unicorn as she scanned the market stands for some delicious food for the next few days, it had been just over a fortnight for her since the day of the audit and Mark still kept evading her questions regarding what he talked about with Celestia behind those doors soon after Twilight’s turn ended, perhaps today Mark might soften up enough to tell her.
The unicorn approached a familiar stand selling apples.

“Hi, Applejack”

“Hay there twilight! Out early today ah see”

“I was hoping to catch Mark before he goes to the Canterlot library again”

“I’m sorry Twilight but He already went today in the mornin’ what do ya need him for anyway? Are you still wantin’ to find out what he talked to princess Celestia about? Ah told ya already Twilight, that’s somethang between Mark and Celestia and if he doesn’t want to tell us then we should respect that, he is our friend after all”

“I know but- I can’t help but to worry, and he’s always going to the Canterlot Library ever since he got Celestia’s permission, I know he means well but don’t you think it’s a little too much work for just one changeling? I feel like I should help somehow”

“Ah know what you mean about somepony biting off more than they can chew-“

“Eyeup”

“Shut up Big brother”
Big Mac resumed stacking the fresh merchandise from the carriage onto the stand

“If you can remember Ah had a few problems some time ago when Bigmac here got hurt and had to rest”
Twilight rolled her eyes

“I remember…”

“In the end you shouldn’t be ashamed to ask your friends help but ah also learned one other thang”

“And that was?”

“That sometimes it’s better to let a friend do a mistake than not letting him do it”

“How does that help?”

“Well think about it, sometimes we need to make the mistakes ourselves to fully understand their meaning and the value of the lesson learned”

“I don’t get it”

“Let me put it this way, have you ever touched a fire and got burnt?”

“Who didn't?”

“Did your parents tell you not to touch it or you’ll get burned and it will hurt?”

“Well of course”

“But you touched it anyway”

“Well yeah, I didn't know what it felt like to be burned so I touched it anyway”

“Exactly, the same thang applies here, you can tell Mark that he won’t manage on his own but he will do it anyway until he finds out by himself, look ah’m really worried about Mark too but If I tell him what he shouldn't do then he’s just going to want to do it even more, its better to let these thangs take their course sometimes”

“I think I understand now”

“Excuse me, are you going to buy something or not?” replied a pony behind Twilight, Twi and AJ looked at the Pony to discover a line of more than irritated customers behind Twilight.
Twilight blushed in embarassment

"O-oh I am so sorry, I'll move"
Twilight sidestepped out of the line releasing the customer's tensions enough not to warrant an argument.

“I think I’ll be going now”
AJ’s muffled bye protruded from the crowd engulfing her in her duties.
Twilight resumed her daily duties and began to listen in to the crowd as she scouted for everyday essentials

“So what do you think?” a voice asked from one side

“About what?” replied another anonymous voice

“About letting the changelings walk among us? Do you think this is true?”

“No way, our princess would never let us even close to those things; all they want to do is feed on us until there is nothing left”
A third voice joined in
“I don’t know, what if they’re not that bad?”
“That bad? Let me tell you something, my brother was in Canterlot when they attacked us, try saying that to him! Or are you with them?”

“No, it’s not what I- nevermind, you’re right”

“Damn right I’m right, they should just go away and die”

“Sounds a bit harsh though”

“It’s us or them, do you think they’d hesitate? Besides it’s not us we’re talking about, its them, not our problem”

“You’re right”
These kinds of conversations were appearing more and more frequently, the rumor seemed to live a life of its own now and it sure gave Twilight some important insight into how Ponies would react to such a situation and she did not like it one bit, it’s a good thing that Pacifica and Mark had been keeping a low profile otherwise it would have been over for them in an instant…

The school bell rang marking the end of classes and the beginning of a new adventure for the three musketeers (and Pacifica), the CMC trotted excitingly in the direction of their HQ, Pacifica followed along, undisturbed by the gang’s ex-bullies who were now wary of the dangers of getting on Pacifica’s bad side, whoever was with her, had immunity to bullying, consequently the Changeling in hiding happened to be forced to be friends with practically everypony in school and was given little to no rest making her breaks from transformations ever harder.
The adventurers entered their hideout and began plotting their next sets of adventures.

“Cutie-mark quilters?”

“No, we tried that last week”

“Cutie-mark racers?”

“Cutie-mark hair stylists?”

“Cutie-mark Bakers?”
Pacifica was really tired of this, how long can it take for them to discover their talents? She’s been with them just over 2 weeks and she already knew what their cutie marks are going to be, she just wanted to shout them out to them, though if she’d do that, the club would be disbanded and Pacifica wouldn’t have any way of staying inconspicuous, especially after all that attention she’s been getting from everypony, she needs an excuse to be away from everypony as much as possible… Still though, Pacifica felt sorry for the CMC, they sure seem to be having a hard time with finding their cutie marks, Perhaps she will tell them where to look for their talents before she goes back to the future as a farewell gift.

“What do you think we should try Pacifica?” asked Applebloom
Pacifica improvised and mimed unclogging a toilet

“Cutie-mark Plumbers? Eww! No way!” responded Sweetiebelle

“I don’t know, we won’t know until we try”

“This is going to be a looong stay…” mumbled Pacifica under her little snout

“Did you say somethang Pacifica?”
Pacifica turned her head in a steady “no”

Another few days passed in a calm river of slow events, under revealing dangerous currents slowly beginning to bode a bad future, the Rumor now has developed and some ponies out there are beginning to claim that there is going to be a pony and changeling summit.
The mane 6 sat comfortably beside one of the tables in Mark’s restaurant, enjoying their occasional meetup.
Twilight, this time was determined to find out what Mark has been up to all this time he’s been away now that he can’t escape.

“So what have you been up to all this time Mark?”

“I assumed that by now it was obvious”
AJ already knew what he was on about

“Ya mean the rumors about the pony summit are true?”

“Yes, I finally managed to find a few unbiased representatives worthy of representing my kind”
Rainbow dash was confused

“Why not represent them yourself?”

“because you need someone from their side on your side”

“Ah don’t think that would be a very good idea Mark, ah’ve been hearin’ what the townsfoalk have been talkin’ about your kind and it’s not pretty”

“It’s OK nopony except the ones at the summit need to know this”
Rarity butted in

“I want all this to end in a civilized manner as much as anypony would but I have to agree on Applejack on this one, I don’t think this will work given your circumstances, in this world, appearance and reputation is absolutely everything darling”
The entrance doors to the restaurant opened, a silent Pacifica sluggishly crossed the room, up the stairs and to her bedroom
Applejack suddenly remembered what Applebloom asked her

“Ah, this reminds me Mark, is everything all right with Pacifica? Mah little sister says she’s been a little down this week”

“She’s fine, just going through a phase I guess, but coming back to the point, you all need to trust me a bit more, I’ve had days to figure all of this out, if the foalk won’t believe us we will just have to show them”

“How?” asked twilight

“What do you think I was doing all of this time while I was away?”

“Setting up the summit?” answered rainbow dash

“That took me one day; my kind is desperate at this point and are ready to agree to anything if it means we could live to see another day”

“So… what have you been doing all of this time?”
The group’s attention veered towards Mark who could taste a little bit of doubt creep into each and every pony on the table

“Look, It’s OK, I really got all of this planned out down to every little detail”

“Having the summit in public outside is not a good idea Mark, angry ponies could attack us and even if we set up a magic barrier we don’t know if it’ll hold” pointed out twilight

“Who said we were going to have it outside?”

“But you said you were going to make everypony see everything”

“Yeah but I never said how, speaking of which, I think we will have to cut our chat short, I see the guards are here” stated Mark as he changed into his pony form.

“Guards? What guar-“ Twilight’s response was sliced by the doors which opened once again revealing 10 royal Canterlot guards waiting for something.
One of the guards approached the group of friends and gave each one a letter with Celestia’s seal.

“Wait-”

“-Is this-“

“-What I think it is?”
The ponies looked at Mark who showed no surprise at all

“You seemed like the best choice, who else to represent ponykind at the summit than friends of a changeling? If anypony will come to terms with the changelings then it’s going to be you six, after all, you already represent friendship and harmony so it would be a huge boost to public relations”
Rarity became even more pale than usual (as impossible as that may seem)

“B-but at once just like that without any preparations? that won’t do! I have nothing to wear for the occasion!”

“You don’t need to wear anything, just come as you are” assured Mark

“You don’t understand, this is a huge part of pony history that shall be remembered for all time to come!” Rarity came dangerously close to mark holding him by the chest, her face so close to Mark’s that he could practically count the number of tiny veins on her bloodshot eyes
“And you say I don’t need to look the occasion?”
“I know how important giving a good impression is for you but you are going to represent the commonfoalk, every single pony in equestria, you need to make them understand that you are just like them, just a regular pony, please, do this for me just this once”
Rarity grabbed her head in agony as she was slowly coming to terms what she was about to do

“FINE! But you are going to owe me an entire fashion show!”
Mark laughed wholeheartedly

“If this works out, I will personally make sure that you will be the first to launch a line of clothing for changelings”
Rarity's eyes widened, it hadn't occurred to her what the success of this summit would do to her career, it would launch it far beyond her wildest dreams, she could become a fashion icon for the ages.

"W-well if you put it that way" Replied rarity being able to only partially hold back her giddy laughter and excitement

"Well" Began Mark "I think its time to go"
The guards began to escort the cluster of close friends to the station

“Mark?” began Twilight

“Yes?”

“Why do we need an escort?”

“I hope you won’t need to find out”
Unfortunately as soon as they reached the train station, the ponies found out why, the train blocked by a small crowd from Ponyville in protest of the train leaving, some ponies more familiar than others.

“What is this?” asked Twilight
Mrs. Cake emerged from the crowd

“We heard about the summit and that you’re going to be in it, we won’t let you go”
Pinkie jumped in shock

“Mrs. Cake?!?”

“Don’t look at me like that Pinkie, I’m sorry but I have a family, I have children to worry about, what if all of this is just a trap set up by them again? I don’t want to raise my children in fear in a land of war, I just can’t take that risk”

“I don’t know Mrs. Cake, I don’t think the changelings could even strike back at us if they wanted, not after what we did to them last time” began Twilight

“You don’t know that!” shouted out a voice from the crowd

“Everypony calm down, why do you think the princess asked us to be there? If anything happens we will use the elements of harmony again”

“Can you promise us that?” replied another voice among the crowd
Pinkie jumped out in front of the crowd

“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!”

“This isn't a joke Pinkie” began Mrs. Cake

”I know, I am really really reallyreallyreally serious! If they try anything funny they will have to deal with one party they won’t want to be in!”

"Please, everypony" started Twilight "We have been through so much, Discord, Nightmare moon, even queen chrysalis, and we all came out fine, We have always protected everypony, all of you, every single time, I know this is difficult but that is why we are here, so you don't have to be scared anymore, Please, let us all be more than who we already are, do you want to be remembered as the ones who helped those in need or do you want to be the ones remembered as those who closed their doors from kindness because you were afraid? I too was afraid, everytime somepony came, I always doubted whether I could do the right thing but with time I learned to trust my friends, to trust all of you, the magic of friendship isn't just a bunch of magical items, it is more than that, it comes from all of us, that is why it never fails, if you don't trust us trust in your own hearts because if you turn away from kindness and friendship, the magic will die, and nopony will be able to protect you"
The end of Twilight's speech made way to a long and tense silence as the crowd began to think, and look deep down inside, maybe it is time to change the way of thinking that has been the standard for so long, perhaps even that becomes outdated... and what Twilight said was true, she and her friends never failed to step up and protect them so why be afraid now?
Eventually, the crowd unsurely parted making way for the train that was about to depart, most ponies still unsure whether this was a good idea or not but right now, that was good enough.
The soon to be representatives boarded the train not quite ready for the upcoming events, Mark looked back one last time at Ponyville before boarding, things are never going to be the same after this summit, he turned around ready to embrace the future but moments before entering the point of no return something held him back, a little part of him asking him not to go… it was Pacifica, her hoof grabbing his tail at a desperate attempt to keep him from going away
Applejack noticed the two looking at each other in silence and decided to intervene, her head bobbed out of the carriage window

“What is it Sugarcube?”

“Don’t go”

“It’ll be okay sweetie”

“Don’t go” Pacifica turned her head wanting to reject their reality and substitute her own. She knew that something bad is going to happen, life isn’t as simple as many make it out to be.

“I have to go now” jutted Mark, Pacifica’s hoof was harshly thrown off his tail and the cold steel enforced doors slammed shut before her.
The whistle blew and the train sped up towards a hopefully brighter future on the other end of a long dark tunnel.

Author's Note

This has been a difficult chapter for me

EDIT:
Hi there everybody, after a very long hiatus I am back to continue this series, I finally settled down financially and have a job that gives me ample time to work on my writing so you will be seeing many more updates from now on.
Currently I am rereading all the chapters I have posted (so far at the point of writing this note I have posted 52 chapters with two stories and will be starting a third one soon) but I have been away for so long that I can't remember everything I wrote, as a result I am rereading every chapter I posted and I noticed that I made a few mistakes so I am also taking my time to proof read to fix any mistakes I might have omitted and possibly add in some more text where it is necessary, I noticed that there is one aspect of the story that I neglected and although it is not a necessary piece I do want to add it so some chapters will be somewhat edited. In general the story won't change, just a few things will be added to the side here and there to add depth and more focus on some characters to make the story more wholesome and enjoyable for all.

I hope that you enjoy my writing and please do not be afraid to give feedback, good or bad, I began writing this fanfic to learn and improve my writing, what am I doing wrong? what are my strengths and weaknesses? please let me know so that I can improve and don't worry about me backlashing like some jerk writers do, I know that there are things I need to improve and so I will gladly accept any and all constructive criticism.

CHAPTER 14 (AKA: Bubble, bubble...)

The sun arose, blocked by the skyline of rock and steel stalagmites of the city of Manehattan heating it up for today’s summit roasting it sunny side up ready for the everyday commonfoalk to gobble it up with eagerness.
Manehattan, the city of opportunities, like a macrocosmic carpet of buildings lay before the one place where it was all going to happen, a building that was the epitome of coexistence, every shape and size of it seemed to melt into the city’s air and atmosphere, its worn glass jade shaded bubbly and wavy domes fading into the city colours and down at the main entrance Twilight and Mark were just doing the finishing touches on a brand new contraption that was supposed to aid them in their task.

“I never imagined you were doing this during your time spent at Canterlot, have you tested it out yet?”
Twilight kept on calibrating the knobs on the left slim metal tower roughly the height of a two story building whilst Mark was taking care of the one on the left

“No, I didn't have the chance to yet”

“B-but you need to test it! You can’t just take this out to the public just like that without a plan!”

“It’s a simple case of redirecting the ambient magic of the unicorns from the street onto the cathode and anode; it’s not rocket science, its magic”

“I have a bad feeling about this Mark; I think we should test it at least a few times before we even try it outside”

"The small scale tests worked and I barely had time to make a full scale version of it"

"I don't know Mark, I still think it would be better to test it first"

“I agree Twilight, but at this point its too late, the changeling representatives are on their way as we speak, I think that right now its best just to trust the theory”
Time flew exceptionally fast in fact, it was flying faster than once could read this very sentence, the changeling representatives have already arrived and were waiting in one room and the pony representatives were waiting in the other.
Naturally it didn't occur to anypony that the Changeling representatives would arrive disguised as ponies, after all walking around as a changeling in city would be tantamount to a death sentence and the only reason why Mark felt confident enough that any of this could follow through uninterrupted by angry mobs was because the area was diligently guarded by The Canterlot Royal guards... still, there was a certain sense of danger to it.
The device was ready. After giving thorough instructions on how to operate said device to the more than capable engineer ponies, Mark and Twilight made their way into the building's green rusted copper doors that pleasantly went well with the rest of the building's composition
The pony representatives were as follow: Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, (The now arriving) Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Princess Luna, Celestia and finally Mark in pony form.
In the other room waited an equal number of unknown changelings with the presence of their glorious queen, Chrysalis.
A muffled young growing crowd of protesters could be heard seeping through the building’s walls.
It was time.
The two parties entered into a large indoor terrace-like open room under the large glass domes
A thunderous gong deeper than the Mariana trench announced the beginning of what will be remembered for hundreds of years to come, effectively silencing the complaints of any mob.
The crowd silenced, held back by a modest army of royal guards.
The device's towers sapped the air between them stretching out an optical illusion showing the crowd outside what is currently going on inside the conference room.
A pair of doors opposite of each other opened up revealing slowly each representative of both sides one by one, who arrived and sat at the large rectangular table on each side, a gryphon in the middle ready to unbiasedly mediate the negotiations.

“Celestia”

“Chrysalis”
The two beings of power nodded their heads with respect and sat opposite each other

"Are both parties ready to discuss the terms of this treaty?" screeched the gryphon
Celestia stood up

"Ponykind is ready"
Celestia seated herself back next to her younger sister, Luna

"And the secondary party?"
All heads rotated to The dark and ominous queen of the changelings who refused to stand up
The gryphon cleared his throat signalling its Chrysalis's turn to give an answer whichever answer that may be but to no avail
An air of awkwardness and tension befell upon the room, Celestia began to worry that this will fall apart very quickly so she decided to intervene but just as she began to inhale preparing her lungs and vocal cords to somehow salvage this potentially disasterous event, Chrysalis finally spoke

"We are ready, reluctantly so"
Luna wasn't going to stand for that insult but her sister, knowing her all too well held her back by a hoof under the table and thus preventing an all out war
The gryphon announced the official start of the first pony and changeling summit in the history of ponykind
A few minutes passed before anypony even said anything, nopony knew where to start there was just so much of everything and-

“Maybe let’s start at making your requirements clear, what do you like us to offer you?” stated Mark at the changeling representatives

“Food” replied one of the changelings
Rarity came into the discussion

“The last time I remember, you tried sucking the life out of us”

“Well then, just be glad we’re not doing that right now”

“Why you-“

“ORDER!” the gryphon screeched the two back into place

“We don’t have much choice, your happiness is our food, we don’t get to choose what we’re born with” continued the changeling representative
It was Mark’s turn to talk and he knew exactly what to say, he’s been waiting for this chance to show up for a while now

“I heard that Love isn't your only source of food, from what I managed to find out is that changelings can feed of a number of emotions, am I correct?”

“That is true, but nothing is more filling than love” answered Chrysalis

“I see, but do you think it would be possible for a changeling to live off other emotions?”

“Yes, that could be theoretically possible and it has been done before but a changeling then would need to feed of a lot on those emotions constantly and that would wear off a pony in a matter of minutes”

“Hmmm…” hummed Celestia “What if you were to live constantly a bit off everypony around you all of the time?”
Chrysalis began to think

“I’m not sure, it might work if we tried but the fact of the matter is that given the circumstances of our last encounter the ones that managed to survive and are still out there are very malnourished, they would need a lot of food to recuperate”
The two groups took off automatically everypony had their own things to throw in, and everypony became ever more eager in making this whole summit to bear fruit.
Time seemed to pass in decades and centuries, not in minutes or hours but eventually the conflicting sides were slowly coming to an agreement with more and more paragraphs and laws being written on a parchment that would extend itself by the hour and eventually they have reached the prelude to their conclusion, things were beginning to go well, even the protesting crowd stopped making a ruckus, that was a good sign and some ponies witnessing all this actually began to believe in the possibility of coexisting between the two kingdoms.

“…So this would abut sum up everything then” said one of the changeling representatives

“I… I guess it does” blurted out Applejack and gave him a smile
The changeling smiled back
Chrysalis came forth in front of the group of changeling representatives

“I shall have my subjects gathered by tomorrow and we’ll start the merging at once”
The changeling queen gave out a hoof filled with good intentions towards Celestia
Celestia approached the queen and accepted the gesture without hesitation

“THE FIRST PONY SUMMIT HAS COME TO-“ what the Gryphon mediator wanted to do was announce the end of the summit but today it wasn't just his day
An explosion
A ceiling of rubble on the floor
Shouts and screams
Panic
Chaos within the 4 walls
The crowd outside became more silent than they have ever have been in their entire lives, their full focus going on making anything out of the magical screen that was now fully smeared with the dust cloud that has covered the wrecked conference hall.
Seconds later dozens of changelings dressed in black protective wear with 3 interlocking red cogs depicted on their chest flew down from what was once the roof of the building into the room, each one quickly latching onto each of the changeling representative and instantly teleporting to an unknown location while the rest of the changeling assaulters got busy in swiftly and effectively rendering the incoming guards unconscious, the job was quick and it was over before anypony could do anything about it.
The last limp body of the guards fell on the floor; an anti-magic bubble fell on the characters in the room sealing them in.
One of the changelings who was probably the group leader, ordered the rest to help the pony representatives out of the rubble most of which were still barely conscious but knocked out enough not to be able to fight back

“Why are you saving us?” mumbled out Rainbow Dash
The boss figure looked at the moderately wounded Dash

“Saving? Oh no, we’re not doing that, we simply can’t have you dead just yet, we still need you all to dance with us for a while”

“D-dance? What do you mean?” yelped out Fluttershy who was just slammed ruthlessly on the floor to fend for herself now that she was out of the rubble

“Well we can’t have us spoil the fun now can we?”

“Sir, have a look at this”
The changeling looked to one of his henchmen who retrieved an unconscious seriously wounded Mark in changeling form

“Leave him, he’s of no use to us”
Celestia gave the changeling boss a vengeful look

“Why, why!”
If they could only use magic within this force field

“Oh, poor little Celia, wanted to live happily ever after with us?”
The Changeling chuckled, clopped his hooves to which the force field perished and the mysterious group vanished in an instant in a series of sparks and flashes leaving the survivors to fend for themselves.
Celestia lamented as they all waited for reinforcements to arrive in aid to help them out of this mess.
It was unbelievable thought Twilight, they were so close but some changeling extremists just had to go and spoil it, perhaps they've already reached the point of no return, now all that there was left was to await for help to arrive.

Author's Note

A short chapter this time but that's because there's a lot more stuff coming this way so it's either one incredibly long chapter or a short chapter and a regular one and I was determined to have finished this chapter by the beginning of today.

As for the building where this all happened, it was inspired by this building in Warsaw called the golden terraces:
https://s.inyourpocket.com/gallery/120845.jpg

And the room? something like this:
https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/0d/e8/53/de/zlote-tarasy.jpg

CHAPTER 15 (AKA: Toil and trouble)

The mob stood petrified outside as everything settled down, the silence was broken by the sound of the weak bonds that were just formed between the changelings and already stretching to their limits, any more tension and bad things were going to happen.
As the mane 6 came to terms with what was happening the horrific consequences had still yet to sink in, luckily for them ignorance is bliss as they were unaware of the full significance of what had occurred.

“Liars!” some rogue voice shouted at the screen

“Yeah! They should just disappear and die!”
The crowd grew more and more rowdy and enraged at how they got fooled by the changelings once again, the mob threw itself at the towers attempting to bring down their mistake.
A dozen or so of royal guards and medical staff stampeded into the conference hall.

“Majesty! What should we do with him?” jotted in a royal guard who was keeping an unconscious mark and spear range.
Celestia looked at Mark, then looked outside the barred window at the crowd that was still paying a little attention to the magical screen that was now displaying the passed out mark, this was not good, he was found out, and getting away with this is going to be tough.

“Should we take him to the Canterlot dungeons and interrogate him your higness??”
The Princess looked back to the source of the attention.

“No, we don’t know for sure if Canterlot is safe, they might have infiltrated already”

“What should we do then?”

“I’ll interrogate him personally”
Celestia gave a furiously judgemental look at Mark in order to fool the guards.
The rest of the pony representatives were helped up and brought back to trotting condition by the guards and medical staff.

“In the meantime, close down Canterlot and thoroughly check everypony for any signs of changeling infiltrators, should you find any, treat them gently and keep them in check”

“But Majesty shouldn’t we just deal wi-“

“NO! if we harm them we will risk a full scale equestrian war”

“But they just assaulted you, your highness!”

“This may be true but we still do not know of the circumstances behind this heinous act, we must act with caution, being reckless now might cost all of us too much, I am not going down as a ruler who murdered an entire species, this is an order”

“Yes your highness!”

“And disable that damned machine outside!”
Celestia was close to her limit right now and the crowd of her enraged subjects outside misbehaving was not helping.
A few guards exited to pass on the order, moments later the machine shut down and the ponies in the angry crowd dispersed to pass on the news to everypony else, now was the time to act thought Celestia, what they need to do right now is sort out the who and the why but this is going to be difficult, Celestia may the official ruler of this land but her power limits at the commonfoalk, if she were to do anything the foalk didn’t want they would rebel and she would lose control of any influence she might have ever had and if that ever happens, nothing she will say or do after that point will be able to stop the oncoming onslaught.
Celestia ordered some of the guards to keep watch of the building in case the attackers came back, using a personal mode of transport is too dangerous right now; they need to become inconspicuous as hard as that may be which means that they will have to take the train.

“Dear sister, Go to Canterlot and rule in my name during my absence”

“But sister, where art thou destination?”

“Our old castle in the Everfree forest, It is old and forgotten if anypony will come looking for us, we’ll be safe. I shall take Twilight and her friends with her; I will need their help”
Once everypony exited and only Celestia, Twilight and her friends and a panting Mark were the only ones within the four walls Celestia unveiled her plan

“What do we do now then Princess?” asked Twilight

“Rarity?”

“Yes your highness?”

“Do you think you could make us some disguise from what’s left of those curtains?”
Rarity conjured a needle and thread out of nowhere

“I hope that was a rhetorical question your Highness, the robes will be ready in a few minutes”

“We are also going to have to keep Mark hidden until we reach the forest”

“Um…”

“Yes, Fluttershy?”

“Perhaps I could look after Mark while we’ll be going, he doesn’t look too good… just a thought maybe…”
The ponies got to work, Fluttershy dragging Mark out of his critical state so that he will be able to pull through, and Rainbow Dash and Pinkie helping Rarity out (emphasis on the “help”) in no time at all the shabby wooden carriage was assembled from the rubble and a stylish mini-collection of regularly looking robes were sewn together
Pinkie and Rainbow Dash lay Mark on their backs and covered him with whatever was left of the fancy curtains.
Everypony was disguised well enough to be unidentifiable outside.
The group got together and slipped out the back door
The city was too quiet, things are going to get restless once the news spreads about all of this, they had to hurry.
Somehow the group managed to drag themselves onto a train and with the aid of Celestia’s Masking spell they managed to reach their destination, Coltown, just on the outskirts of the forest.
It was getting dark, the azure sky was being replaced by the evening wine with pink marshmallow clouds.
Within no time at all the team (with an unconscious Mark) was well within the bounds of the forest, keeping a vigilant eye on any dangers that may intend on pouncing.
Some colt-made sounds grabbed AJ’s attention

“Hay, y’all hear that?”
A bad feeling shuddered Celestia’s mane

“Something’s wrong”
The ponies quietly on their tip-hooves searched through the bushes,
SNAP

“AHH!” Fluttershy gave out a cute yelp as something dragged her instantaneously into the leaves.

“Fluttershy?” mildly called out Twilight

“Let me fly up, I’ll see what’s going on”

“Rainbow dash, no!” Celestia exclaimed in hopes that it’s not too late
It was too late, Rainbow dash was already high up in the sky patrolling the area.

“Uuhh… guys? We have a problem”

“What in the hay is goin’ on here Rainbow Dash?”
Rarity gasped, uncovering the bush that was hiding the castle ruins that were swarming with a few dozen of changelings, all wearing the same emblem as those who crashed the summit.
Fluttershy was being surrounded by some of the changelings.

“We have to do something!” Rarity exclaimed

“Well at least we have the element of surprise” shouted Rainbow Dash from above

“Not anymore!” replied Pinkie pointing at a scouting unit behind them.
Rainbow Dash hid behind a cloud.

“I see we won’t be hungry tonight guys!” replied one of the changeling scouts.
The newfound prisoners were escorted into the palace grounds and reunited with their yellow friend.
Luckily for the heroines, Rainbow dash hid well.

“Anypony hungry?”
The changeling crowd cheered in response as they circled their food.

“First Ponyville and now this? It must be our lucky day!”
The mane 6 gasped

“What did you do to our town you brutes!”

“Y’all better not have touched mah family!”
Twilight’s attention was directed to something horrible, something terrifying… books… they were BURNING THEM.

“Are these books? What are you doing with them!”

“Well, we have to keep warm and cutting wood is so much work these days

“Are those books from MY library?”
“Oh, it doesn’t matter, you’ll never know anyway”
Twilight snapped.

“THAT’S IT! Time to whip out the big guns!”
Twilight looked around for a source of water nearby and noticed a small pool… it will have to do.

“GIRLS! RAINBOW DASH! ITS TIME FOR SPECTRUM TANGO!”
Rainbow dash knew perfectly well what that meant… it meant a sonic rainboom is about to happen and a lot of flank kicking, she jumped out of the cloud and dove straight towards the pool, her entire body stretching to the limits of aerodynamics… going faster and faster and ever so closer to the body of water.

“STOP THAT PONY!”
But it was too late, she was way too fast for anypony to catch up to her.
Twilight focused all of her attention into casting a thin protective shield on each of her friends and the princess as Rainbow dash cut through the air like a projectile shot from a staple gun
100 feet
50 feet
10 feet
3 feet
Rainbow dash timed it perfectly, the sonic rainboom went off just before she smashed into the pool at full speed creating an incredible explosion of water that quickly turned to steam saturated with the entire spectrum of colours from the sonic rainboom, the steam like an avalanche cascaded into the grounds in less than a second blinding everypony.
This was it, Twilight having perfectly memorized the position of every enemy on the grounds, started going berserk with her teleporting, reallocating each of her friends next to an enemy, the mares ready to strike the flabbergasted changelings, knocking them down instantly only to be teleported to the next target.
The entire operation was done in 10 seconds flat.
Moments later the rainbow steam subsided revealing a mass of black bodies all over the place squirming in pain whilst being tied up in a bundle by Applejack’s lasso (one should always have a spare lasso with them)
The All that commotion and the steam explosion was enough to rejoin Mark’s consciousness with his body
Celestia stood motionless her mouth ajar in surprise, never in a thousand years she would have imagined that Twilight and her friends would be able to do something like that

“H-how did you?”

“There’s no time to explain Princess, we have to get to Ponyville quickly and help”

“W-whats going on?” mumbled Mark

“We need to get to Ponyville, quick!” alerted Applejack only to be interrupted by Celestia herself

“No, you go, I will keep an eye on the changelings and Mark”

“Come on Y’all! We have no time!”
The mares galloped to Ponyville.
Far ahead of the heroines lay a dark smudged streak that was soon to come and imprint itself on their destinies, forever changing the palette of their lives, after all, one does not simply trot into Ponyville and come back unchanged.

Author's Note

Just a little reminder to let people know that I am still working on this

CHAPTER 16 (AKA: A friendly warning)

The mane 6 entered what didn’t seem to be Ponyville anymore, each house was raped and their innards hollowed out, many ponies were dutifully retreating the injured foalk into the hospital that was strangely untouched.
The horror was indescribable, their home, the one place everypony knew they could come to and feel safe, was not safe anymore.
For the first time in their lives, the mane 6 knew how Mark felt everyday, the air was soaked in so much fear and pain that one didn’t have to be a changeling to feel it, the atmosphere potent enough that it was being absorbed through their skin alone.
Each of the girls had their own priorities right now.
Applejack rushed to her home what was now a wrecked barn though strangely the apple orchard was left in pristine condition.
There was no sign of her family.
The puss filled rusty needle of fear and insecurity stabbed itself into Applejack inserting her with that sickly ticklish feeling at the very back of her head.
Applejack was out of her wits, she was already beside herself… multiple times, she covered as much ground as she possibly could but still, no sign of life until…
A blip of red in the apple orchard that was not an apple made itself known.
The cowspony galloped faster than her muscles would let her, in her mind praying that the red she saw wasn’t blood.
The red mass sprung into action and pinned her down.
It was her big brother.
Applebloom and granny smith jumped into action from between the trees.

“BIGMAC! APPLEBLOOM! GRANNY SMITH! I’m so glad y’all are safe!”
But Bigmac wasn’t letting loose of his dear sister.

“Bigmac! Its me, Applejack”

“Enope”
Applejack sighed, she knew what that meant

“Lemme guess, changelings attacked the farm?”

“Eyeup”

“Retreated to the orchard”

“Eyeup”

“Made a trap?”

“Eyeup”

“…and you think I’m a changelin’ in disguise”

“Eyeup”

“And you probably want me to prove you otherwise”

“Eyeup”

“Bigmac, if I’d be a changelin’ and wanted to have your attention I’d change into Cheerilee”
Bigmac blushed so hard that it could be seen through his mane, he let go of his little sister at once.

“How are y’all doin’? Is anypony hurt?”
Granny smith decided to answer generously

“How d’you think we’re doin’? Those darn tootin’ changelin’s wrecked our barn and robbed us!”

“It’s a good thing they’re gone now, we came across their camp in the Everfree forest and managed to capture them”

“Well then, Ah guess we should start in seein’ what’s left of our farm”
Applebloom was confused

“Ah don’t get one thing tho, why didn’t they ruin our apple trees?”
Bigmac shrugged.
The damage inflicted on Ponyville was irreversible, Rarity’s shop was now devoid of any sort of fashion, Rainbow Dash’s home was a cluster of thunder clouds, the cupcake corner was now literally just a corner and Twilight’s library had burned down, all that knowledge was now an unreadable atmosphere in the form of soot.
The towsfoalk who weren’t helping with the injured ones were trying contain the fires with any sort of liquid at their disposal whilst the rest was being escorted into the nearby hospital that was no doubt bursting at the seams.
Rarity was running wild across the entire town in panic.
Twilight noticed the troubled mare.

“Rarity, what happened?”

“SWEETIEBELLE! SHE’S GONE!”

“Calm down Rarity! We’ll find her, all right? Come on, let’s go and find the girls”
Twilight rushed in search of the rest of the pack.
The silent hill overlooking the milky, sooty town was mounted by an enraged Celestial alicorn looking down upon the ruins of the town.
Mayor Mare was in office as usual, trying to clean up all the paperwork on the floor.
Bon Bon bucked open the door
“Mayor!”
A surprised mayor filled the air with papers.

“What is it?”

“Celestias are waiting outside!”

“Celestia?”

“No, CELESTIAS!”
The Mayor looked outside through the nearest hole.
A Celestia galloped across town, fixing things in her wake.
Another Celestia was galloping in the opposite direction, working her magic.
Another Celestia, then another and another…
The mayor could not believe her eyes, right now there were more Celestias than there were Parasprites during the infestation a few years back.

“What is going on?” asked the mayor

“Maybe the changelings are striking back?”

“I don’t know, if they’re changelings then why are they fixing everything?”
The mayor, being the one in charge of everything felt she should have a word with one of the princesses and find out what is going on.
Rarity Called out frantically to Rainbow Dash and they met at twilight’s hollow crisp of a tree.

“Why are we here?” asked Rainbow Dash “I was in the middle of fixing up a rainstorm”

“Rainbow Dash! You need to help! Its THE WORST POSSIBLE THING!”

“Lemme guess, you can’t find your red ribbon again”

“No, I-“

“-For pete’s sake Rarity, the town is wrecked! And I need the pegasi to make it rain soon otherwise we’re going to have some big problems with the air pollution here!”

“Sweetiebelle is GONE! And for your information, the ribbon wasn’t red… it was cinnamon”

“You mean like, gone gone?”

“Yes, I looked everywhere! please darling!”

“I guess, I could fly high and check but I can’t just leave the other pegasi on their own, the last time I left them, they accidentally made a typhoon… I’m not leaving somepony in charge who can’t see straight again”
Rarity looked at Rainbow with puppy eyes

“…But I guess they can cope for 5 minutes without me”
Rainbow dashed vertically until she could see the curvature of the world.
The yellow shy pegasus was on her way home, she dreaded to see the damage done but the animals relied on her and she had to be strong.
Upon arrival she saw it, the damage was... it was...
not there
Fluttershy's heart sank, perhaps they took the animals? she burst inside her house only to be greeted by all the creatures as if nothing had even happened.
Fluttershy's knees went weak, dropping her on the floor as she burst into tears it had just occurred to her how lucky she had been, it had finally sunk in.
Meanwhile an impatient and concerned Rarity was awaiting some response from Rainbow dash who was high up in the sky patrolling the land for any signs of Sweetiebelle.

“Rainbow! Can you see her?” called out Rarity.

"No! not yet!"
Rarity couldn't just stay like this in place and do nothing, she didn't know what to do but she knew she had to do something, so she decided to run to random places in hope that chance will be kind to her.
It seemed to take an eternity, every place she went to, everything seemed to be there but her little sister, and everytime she failed to find her a bit of her died inside until A busy Twilight galloped to her with some news

“Rarity, I found Sweetiebelle, she’s at sweet apple acres”

“Is she fine?”

“Yes, she’s-“

“Uuh… guys?” shouted out RD

“-fine”

“Guys?”

“Oh, thank goodness!”

“GUYS!”

“WHAT!” snapped back Twilight at the descending Pegasus

“I didn’t find sweetiebelle but I found… something else”

“What is it?”

“I don’t know how to expl-“
A flock of Celestias flew by as if that were the most normal thing in the world right now

“I think I know what you’re trying to say!” finished off Twilight trying to shout over the loud flutters of countless wings
Rarity had no idea what to do right now, every part of her wanted to gallop to the sweet apple acres to reunite with her dear sister, but… but a flock of Celestias…
Flock of Celestias…
Sweetiebelle…
Flock of Celestias…
Rarity gave out a wholesome laugh, the same kind of sincere, honest laugh of happiness that you hear when someone has a nervous breakdown

“I’m sorry darlings, but a flock of Celestias is just too much for me today”
And all of a sudden as quickly as she burst into the laughter, Rarity galloped off and was was nowhere to be seen.

“What do we do?” inquired Rainbow Dash

“What can we do? let’s follow them!”

“I’m sorry but I have to stay, Twiligh!t”
Twilight began her little chase.

Meanwhile in the sweet apple acres, Sweetiebelle and Scootaloo were guarding a heavily fortified Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse.

“Scoots, are you sure they’re gone?”

“For the last time Sweetiebelle, there hasn’t been a single changeling in the last 3 hours!”

“That’s cuz mah sister took care of ‘em”
Scootaloo looked down at Applebloom, AJ, Rarity and Mark disguised as his Ponyville persona, Mr.Sails, Mark might not have been in his best condition but he was used to it by now given his past circumstances.

“Hi Applebloom”
Pacifica’s head bobbed out of the clubhouse

“I had a feeling I’d find you here, Pacifica”

“…”
Pacifica calmly trotted down the steps to meet up with her guardian, at the same time an excited Sweeitbelle flew out of the clubhouse window and fell straight onto her big sister’s wet and salty embrace.

“SWEETIEBELLE!”
The little filly looked up at her big sister, counting on a warm welcome but instead she was met with a whipping tearful gaze.

“What were you thinking! Playing in your treehouse like that! What if a changeling would have seen you?”

“B-but”

“No buts! We’re going home right now! We have a lot of work to do and we need to talk!”
Rarity turned her back to her little sister and got trotting back home, Sweetiebelle is going to be in a lot of trouble once they get back.

“NO!”
Rarity stopped dead and turned around, her eyes widened with surprise
Applebloom stood firm where she was earlier

“Whaat? What do you mean no?”

“You always do this!”

“Do what? Sweetiebelle, I’m not in the mood for games today”

“Do THAT! You never take me seriously!”
Applebloom was doing one of her scenes again… and in front of Rarity’s friends too

“Oh come on now dear, don’t be silly”

“I WASN’T PLAYING! For your information, I was in the treehouse because our home was destroyed and there was nowhere else to go!”
Rarity observed her livid little sister

“B-but then why didn’t you just tell me?“
“How? You never let me say anything because YOU ALWAYS KNOW BETTER!”

“Sweetiebelle… I’m so-”

“NO! I DON’T WONT YOUR SORRY!, what’s the point of saying sorry if you’re just going to do it again?”

“Sweetiebelle, are your crying?”
Sweetiebelle was desperately trying to hold back on the sobbing but her eyes were already gushing with tears.

“I.. I was doing my homework when they came…”
Suddenly it occurred to Rarity what was really going on, it was time she acted the way an older sister should.
Gently, without a word, Rarity hugged her precious sister who was now sobbing uncontrollably.

“I… I was s-so scared… they came so q…”
Sweetiebelle took a large gulp of air

“Quickly”

“I know dear… I know”

“I wanted to stop them, I-Ireally did”

“Shh…”
Rarity patted the little shaking thing on its head.

The Celestia flock was proceeding in the most twisted route conceivable through the less and less destroyed Ponyville, covering every single detail and inch of town.
Twilight said nothing, she was silenty following the flock, right now, being quiet was the best solution, and besides this whole situation was so bizarre and out of place that even if she wanted to do something, she wouldn't know what.
The whole thing took less than a few minutes, it was one of those occurrences that already have come and gone before one can say: what the hay?
Finally, the Celestias have subsided at the sweet apple acres within sight’s reach of the Blueblood sisters who were at last, reunited.
Everypony’s attention was now on the Celestias.
One of the alicorns concentrated all of her power and in a big white ball of magic, erased all of the other pseudo-princesses, leaving only her in the orchard.
Twilight and the rest carefully approached her, not sure whether this some sort of trap.
Celestia replied

“Its all right everypony, those were just magic mirror pool clones, I needed some help”
Twilight remembered the time Pinkie got her hooves on that pool

“Princess, you know about the magic mirror pool?”

“Of course I do, after all I used to live in that forest, remember?”

“I’m surprised you know of that secret place”

“There’s little I don’t know Twilight, perhaps one day I might even tell you the legend that came with that pool”
Celestia winked

“But if you’re here, then what about the changelings at the castle ruins? Who’s taking care of them? and what did you do with Mark?”

“I have left a few clones to deal with the issue while we wait for some of the guards I called to come, Mark is also on his way to town”

It had been a few minutes since Princess Celestia had been gone and asked for Mark to take care of the captured changelings, he was already being increasingly more worried, there’s nothing more discomforting than keeping an eye on your own kind, he could feel their gazes and boy was he glad that changelings can’t taste each other’s emotions otherwise right now he would go insane with such feelings boiling in each captured organization member.
The worst thing about all this was the silence, its the silence that slowly rots away your thoughts, if you hear somebody angry and shouting at you, you’re intimidated but you’re not scared, you know what that person is thinking, you know what to say back at them but when one is silent…
What do they want to do to me? What are they thinking? You never know and it is the slow unnerving uncertainty that drives you crazy… and that was what Mark was feeling.
Hopefully Celestia came back at the last minute.

“Princess… what is the plan no-“
Celestia came back
Came back
And back
And back
And back
Before Mark could say anything, there were at least two Celestias for each captured changeling but only one wasn’t an emotionless magical hollow shell.

“So this is what you meant by reinforcements”

“I have already sent for some of my guards, they should arrive shortly, Some of us will stay here and keep an eye on everypony and the rest will go with me to help restore anything that was damaged in Ponyville, as for you… I’m sure you have your own priorities in town”
Mark knew she meant Pacifica”

“On it”
Mark stampeded at full steam, or at least as much steam as he could muster at the moment given his current state to his new home hoping that Pacifica will be all right… sure she was a changeling and so were the assailants but something told him that these changelings weren’t on anybody’s side… they were on their own side.
An exhausting few minutes and a transformation later, Mark, now as his Ponyville counterpart Mr. Sails finally arrived at his home, and unfortunately, His predicament was right, all that was left of his home was just a large crater in the ground… of course the blue box that was parked earlier was gone for good without a trace.
For a moment it felt as if all the worst possible emotions flooded and tainted his bloodstream
Where was Pacifica?
He knew she was somewhere, His connection with her made sure of that but whe-
Suddenly an idea sparked Mark’s imagination…
If he’s linked with Pacifica and he can tell if she is still alive then maybe if he focuses strongly enough he might get a feel of where she might be!
Mark sat down in silence
Focus…
…
Focus
…
Focus!
…
Left
What?
…
What was that?
…
Left
There it is again! I think its-
Left
Yes, yes it is! I can feel it!
Mark got up in excitement; he had never experienced something like this before, now he knew where she was… or at least the general direction.
Mark crossed The outskirts of Ponyville, encountering an occasional flock of Celestias here and there until finally he felt he was getting real close as he reached the sweet apple acres… there he met Rarity, AJ and one of Pacifica’s friends no doubt

“Hi Sails” replied An unsurprised Rarity, after seeing a flock of Celestias today she wasn’t going to be surprised by anything else.

“Aren’t you even going to ask how-“

“No”
Mark felt the worry slowly melting off leaving a hard shell of rage behind, clearly she was worried sick about somepony and will no doubt give that pony a piece of her mind when she meets them

“Ok then…”

“Ah guess you’re goin’ to the treehouse too?” asked Applejack

“Treehouse?”

“To see Pacifica” replied the little pony with the pink bow… what was her name again? Mark knew this was going to bug him now
The group finally reached their destination, the treehouse
Sweetiebelle looked out of the treehouse to see her older sister awaiting for her

“Oh, hi Applebloom” retorted Sweetiebelle
APPLEBLOOM, of course that’s what she was called
Pacifica’s head bobbed out of the clubhouse
A huge wave of relief overcame Mark

“I had a feeling I’d find you here, Pacifica”

“…”
Pacifica calmly trotted down the steps to meet up with him but he knew she was just as shaken inside.

“…”

“I kno-“
A wild Sweetiebelle flew out of the window, both Mark and Pacifica jumped but seconds later were relieved to see the sisters catching up with each other

“Did they come?”

“…”

“I see… how did you get away?”

“…”

“Who knew, I guess some doctors really do come in handy at times, I’ll have to thank him sometime if I ever see him again”

“NO!”
Pacifica and Mark looked around, things between Rarity and Sweetiebelle were getting a little heated, both changelings tasted enough emotions to see where this is going

“How did you manage?”

“…”

“Really? I thought you’d see more of those changelings around those parts”
Pacifica pointed at Mark’s fractured ribs

“???”

“..THAT!” shouted Sweetiebelle
The sisters were still at it.

“Oh, this? That was just an accident”

“…”

"It really isn't a big deal you don't need to worry abou-"
Pacifica gently poked him at the ribs, Mark retreating in pain

"!!!"
Mark gave out a heavy cough

“there’s just no getting around you is there? Fine I’ll tell you but later because we have more important things to talk about right now”

“I WASN’T PLAYING!” Sweetiebelle was not on full-on rage mode
Mark grabbed Pacifica moving a little further away from the rant

“I think you know what I’m going to say now”

“…”

“Exactly, its time you go on a holiday, there are a few things I have to do and I can’t leave you on your own”

“…”

“Because it IS too dangerous”

“…YOU ALWAYS KNOW BETTER!” Sweetiebelle's rage peaked

“!!!”
Pacifica was throwing her own fit now, maybe it was because of all that rage that was in the air right now

“Look, this is not negotiable, I’m sorry but I’m going to find somepony to look after you and that’s that”

“NO! I DON’T WANT YOUR SORRY!”

“…”

“I promise that I’ll make it up for you when I get back, all right?”

“???”
“Don’t worry I have somepony in mind already”

“???”

“No, Fluttershy and the other girls have their own problems right now, I was thinking something more like… family”

“???”

“Discord? No I was thinking of my brother back at Maretropolis”

“…”

“No, not Discord, at this point he’s not quite… there yet to be able to take care of you, we’re sticking to my brother, I know he's not the best but he won't say no to family”
Pacifica gave him the “you’re kidding me, right?” look again

“Ok, so maybe our family isn’t renowned for their tenderness but we haven’t got many options here”
A bright flash averted everypony’s attention, it was none other than Celestia herself who dismissed her mirror pool clones.
The group slowly and carefully approached their princess who was talking to Twilight
“…egend that came with that pool”
Celestia winked

“But if you’re here, then what about the changelings at the castle ruins? Who’s taking care of them?” asked Twilight

“I have left a few clones to deal with the issue while we wait for some of the guards I called to come, Mark is also on his way to town”

“What in the hay is goin’ on in here?” asked Applejack
Celestia noticed Mark

“Ah, just the pony I wanted to see…”
Mark looked at the princess and nodded
Celestia nodded back silently
“I’m afraid that I will require your help back at Canterlot, nopony knows changelings better than you do, mr. Sails”
“Pacifica, you never told me that your dad studies changelings” replied Applebloom
Pacifica gave a slow awkward nod

“I am at your disposal, princess however, first I need to see my daughter off to my brother in Maretropolis, somepony needs to take care of her”

“I have a few foalks at the castle if you require somepony to take care of her”

“Thank you for your offer but I will have to decline, Canterlot right now of all times is much too dangerous for somepony like her”

“I understand, however I require of your services at once, I will give your daughter an escort because time is scarce”

“I see… can I at least see her off to the station?”

“Of course” Celestia replied gently.
Minutes later Pacifica was already in the train to Maretropolis surrounded by a makeshift escort consisting of Bigmac and Mr. Cake, they were no Canterlot guards but they were ponies who could be trusted.
Pacifica looked once again at the brief note given to her, for Mark’s brother explaining the circumstances, it was such a bizarre feeling, she had nothing to pack, they didn't even have time to say bye with eachother properly, and just when he came back too... for the first time in her life she truly felt afraid, not knowing what the future shall bring

It had been hours since Scootaloo had spotted any changeling in the distance but one can never be too sure

“Scoots, are you sure they’re gone?” asked Sweetiebelle

“…”
Pacifica was quiet as ever

“For the last time Sweetiebelle, there hasn’t been a single changeling in the last 3 hours!”

“That’s cuz mah sister took care of ‘em!” replied a voice from outside the window
Scootaloo looked down at Applebloom, AJ, Rarity and Pacifica’s dad, Mr.sails

“Oh, hi Applebloom”
Pacifica poked her head outside

“I had a feeling I’d find you here, Pacifica” replied Mr. Sails

“…”
Pacifica calmly trotted down the steps to meet up with her and Sweetiebelle jumped out of the window onto her older sister.
Scootaloo watched the scene below unfold and as usual, Sweetiebelle made a huge fuss, it was funny how similar she was to Rarity, you could tell they were sisters and Pacifica was back with her dad not to mention Applebloom with Applejack.
Suddenly, a bright flash
Everypony murmured something and trotted away having forgotten about the little Pegasus, being too busy catching up with family.
It sure must feel nice to have somepony looking for you.
Scootaloo curled up and began sobbing but nopony came for her as they already were too far away to hear her cry.

Author's Note

So... things are finally happening, huh?
expect the next chapter soon

CHAPTER 17 (AKA: The legend of the mirror pool)

There once lived twin sisters, they did everything together and they loved each other above all else, it was a pure love, and all was right with the world.
The siblings would often spend their days frolicking in the Everfree forest discovering places and finding new caves to play in.
One day, no different than any other, the sisters were discovering the forest as usual and they stumbled upon a new discovery.
It was a cave, one that had never been before; it was as if the ground gave birth to it overnight.

“Come on! Let’s go in!” said the first sister
But the second sister knew that some things should be left alone, everything has a place, and that was one place they did not belong to.

“No, let’s leave, this is not the place for us, the gods will punish us if we enter”
The second sister feverishly tried to warn her sibling, but it was too late, she was already inside.
All it took was a slip of fate and the curious sister fell beneath the ground and into the darkness.
The careful sister called out to her twin

“Please, come back”
But all she could hear was her own words being thrown back at her by the darkness, and so the sister ran to town begging for a benevolent heart to help her.
Luckily for the sister, the town’s blacksmith’s apprentice was out on errands and heard her calls for help, at once he rushed with her into the forest with a newly bought rope and dove right into the ground’s gullet and saved the careless sister.
The careless sister, barely alive looked up at her saviour who acted on compassion.
She thought it was love that spoke for his actions, but sadly the colt had no interest in her, he had a heart of a blacksmith, not a colt.
Days passed tediously as one sister grew apart from the other, trying to win over a heart of a blacksmith, forged of cold indifference and as her body healed, her heart did not.
The careful sister continued to call out to her sibling
“Please, come back”
Only to once again hear her own words being thrown back at her by the darkness of her sister’s heart.
Days changed to months and months into years, each year the careful sister’s heart being bitten by frost of loneliness more and more
Until one day…
The careful sister called out to the apprentice for help, her sister had once again fallen into the cave.
The apprentice once again rushed with the sister to the cave.
The sister was careful that day; for her sister was out of town on errands.
The careful sister waited for the right moment, the sister was careful.
The rope was cut.
The apprentice was no more.
The careful sister came back home as if nothing had happened and patiently awaited her sister’s warm embrace when she arrives.
All was fine with the world once again.
Or so the careful sister thought but when her sister came home all she wanted was the blacksmith’s heart still and rushed into town not being able to wait a moment longer.
The careless sister had come to meet her unwilling partner but he was nowhere to be seen, he was no more.
She called out to him.

“Please… come back”

“He went with you, to help your sister out of the cave, don’t you remember?” a villager replied.
The sister was careless, expecting a warm embrace, she was met with her sister’s fury, she knew what had happened, the careless sister enraged at her sibling and determined to rescue her loved one, rushed to the cave, followed by the careful sister who feverishly tried to warn her sibling, but it was too late, she was already inside.
All it took was a slip of fate and the careless sister fell beneath the ground and into the darkness.
The careful sister called out to her twin

“Please, come back”
But all she could hear was her own words being thrown back at her by the darkness and so the sister mustered all her courage and came into the cave but her sister had disappeared, she was no more and the cave was empty except for a small puddle of water on the ground.
The sister approached and looked at the puddle.

“Please, come back, I’m sorry”
But all she could see was her twin sister in the puddle silently spelling out the same words

“Please, come back, I’m sorry”
The sister waited in the cave day and night and cried until the day she died, her tears feeding the puddle as it grew and grew until one day, there was nopony left but an empty pool of tears.
Such is the legend of the mirror pool.

Author's Note

Thought its time for a little lore this time, I had no idea where to put this because this is a bit too short to be an individual story and since the magic mirror pool was mentioned in the previous chapter I thought, why not?

CHAPTER 19 (AKA: Craindre la revolucion)

Pacifica grabbed a pear from the stand, she ripped it open and kissed the succulent pulp… the pear began to bleed.

“Pacifica, wake up!”
Pacifica was brought back to the land of the conscious.
Shelley grabbed Pacifica out of the bed, she was running from corner to corner as if she were busy, there was a lot of noise coming out from the streets outside.
Shelley came back to Pacifica, she came dangerously close to her face, both hooves lightly squashing each of Pacifica’s cheeks.

“Listen carefully Pacifica, some things happened, I’m sorry but you and Monty can’t stay here, you’ll have to go back to your dad, tell him I’m sorry but there’s no other choice”
This was ridiculous.
Pacifica was sick of all this travelling, first Ponyville, then she had to go to her relatives in the big city and now straight back to Ponyville? This is insane! If this were some sort of book or story Pacifica could bet that the readers would most likely be livid at this point.
But this wasn’t a story, this was reality.

“…”
The unrecognisable racket from the streets mixed in with the rattling of the window pane woke up Montgomery who was looking puzzled.

“uuuhhhh...” grumbled a clearly still mostly unconscious Monty
Shelley tensed up and looked at her son

“Oh, its nothing dear! Some ponies are just having a party that’s all!”
Shelley turned her back towards Monty and silently hissed at Pacifica

“If you tell him anything on our way, I swear…”
Shelley changed poles and was in her cheerful self again

“Monty Dear, Pacifica, you wait here and pack up, all right?”
Monty was now awake enough to muster a verbal response

“Pack? But mum its-“

“JUST DO IT!” whipped out Shelley

“Mommy will be back in a moment dear and when I am, I want the two of you to be packed and ready for… for an adventure, all right?”
Monty knew that when adults tell you to do something, you do it, no questions asked.

“Yes, mum…”
Montgomery reluctantly and slowly took out his backpack from under his bed and got packing. Pacifica didn’t have much to do considering she didn’t even bring anything with her to begin with
Shelley left the two to themselves, and closed the door.
As Monty was busy packing, Pacifica dared to look outside the window onto the city streets.
It was pure mayhem, lots of noise and at least twice as much violence as during the Ponyville incident, there seemed to be a demonstration of sorts… a demonstration of changelings, hundreds of them were marching in unison forming a one large swarm on the road, and they weren't even hiding, there they were, as black as the night.
One of the pony citizens on the road ran up and from a distance and quickly threw what seemed to be a brick at the black marching wall but the brick was pulverized by a green flash of changeling magic and almost simultaneously the pony who threw the brick was overtaken by a barrage of green bursts of magic thrown at him.
Seconds later the bloody mass of the pony was thrown at the ground, the pony was trying to move away from the black blob but he was grabbed by the tentacle of hooves into the group as his insanity and emotions were instantly ripped to shreds in the group, within the same second his body followed the fate of his sanity and every limb was floating on top of the changeling masses in a separate direction.
Pacifica had never seen anything like this, this was worse than anypony could ever imagine, a very personal kind of inferno created by this world’s sick mind.
It had finally happened, a revolution was well underway.
A few loud thumps distinguished themselves from the slaggy noise from the streets.
It came from downstairs.
Pacifica’s head flipped towards the closed door.
Moments later another smash could be hard, further away, Pacifica’s attention was now turned towards what was below the window, specifically, the leftover splinters of this home’s doors splattering on the cobbled street, and a dark arrow darting towards the long past team of changeling rebels.
Pacifica knew that the owner of the figure was Percy.

“What was that noise?”
Pacifica had a suspicion of what might have happened but she was hoping that she was wrong.
She went up to the door and opened it.

“Wait, didn’t you hear my mum? She said to stay here”

“…”

“No, don’t go! Didn’t you see how mad she was? She’ll ground us if you go!”
Pacifica didn’t know what to say, but she knew that whatever was down there, was not something that Montgomery should see or know about anytime soon.

“I’m going downstairs to check, you stay here and don’t move”

“But-“

“DON’T. MOVE”
The cousin just nodded gently and stood in place like the good colt that he was.
Pacifica came into the corridor and closed the door after herself.
The noise from outside was considerably quieter now though an occasional group of rogue changelings could be heard clopping or soaring away.
She could smell it
The smell of fear
Her fear.
The shaking little changeling began to inch herself through the thick jelly air soaked with her own fear, she had never done anything like this and she didn’t know what’s worse, the fact that she doesn’t know what’s going to happen in the next minute and 26 seconds or the fact that way back in her head there was something giving her ideas and suggestions about what to expect.
One step at a time Pacifica lowered herself enough to be able to peek through the handlebars of the stairs down on the kitchen.
What was once white and sky blue tiles was now in red polka-dots, and that smell, that very faint smell of metal… it was sickening, Pacifica always heard about stories when some ponies were badly injured and about all the blood but what they never tell you is that you can smell the blood.
Something was going back up into Pacifica’s mouth, something that should stay down below.
Pacifica bobbed her head through the stair wooden spokes just in time to have her puke drip down the wallpapered stair wall… well at least now it didn’t look so bad.
Pacifica coughed a few times, the sting of the puke etching itself into her throat.
She knew that eventually she had to go and scout the rest of the house.
Pacifica started with the living room.
Nothing out of the ordinary, sickeningly sweet as always.
Now all that was left was the kitchen or the corridor.
At the end of the corridor, the door was no more, just a square gash of what once protected this family from outsiders.
The kitchen
The dishes were neatly put away in the cupboards, the sink, clean as usual, the tiles a bit dirty and Shelley, lying on her back on the table, relaxed and looking out the window, probably wandering what’s going on outside.
What a silly pony Shelley was, everypony knew it was bad manners to just sit or lie on the table.

“That’s it” thought Pacifica

“I’m in trouble now, let’s just hope she doesn’t see me and I’ll go back quietly and wait in the room”
Shelley’s eyes turned towards Pacifica
But Shelley didn’t get up from the table… she couldn’t for you see, her hip and legs were far too far away from the table and the rest of her body, her intestines showing like a carnal carbonara, swinging at the table edge facing the corridor.
Of course Pacifica saw all that but her brain could only handle so much at a time.
The little changeling ran back upstairs, got back into their room and slammed the door.

“So?”
Pacifica still scared from the possibility of her aunt coming upstairs and grounding them, looked in surprise at Monty

“What was it?”

“We have to go”

“Why?”
Pacifica didn’t reply, she didn’t want to, not now, not ever, instead she just threw the ready luggage on a startled Monty and said

“Don’t look back”

“Bu-“

“DON’T. LOOK. BACK.”
Pacifica grabbed Monty and slammed open the door

“Wait, don’t slam the doo-“
But Pacifica wasn’t listening, she wasn’t even thinking anymore, there was just one word in her head, not even an idea or thought, just a word.
RUN
Monty was getting clearly irritated by all this, nopony was taking him seriously, its always been like this, and this time he wasn’t going to have it.

“Stop!”
Monty was trying to feverishly writhe out of Pacifica’s grasp
With hard earned steps the pair managed to reach the bottom of the stairs
Monty looked at where the door once was and he loosened up a little

“Is that…”
This gave Pacifica the opportunity to drag him into the doorway.
Nearly there

“STOP!”
Monty jerked his hoof away from Pacifica who a moment later just realized she wasn’t holding onto anything and turned around to a resolute Monty not moving an inch further

“WHAT’S GOING ON!”
Pacifica had no idea what to say apart from

“We go, now”

“No! if you’re not going to tell me right now, I’ll call my mum!”

“We go… now”
It all happened in bullet time, Monty started to turn his head towards the one place he was forbidden to look at, not now, not ever.
Pacifica didn’t have time to think, she just acted, she grabbed Monty’s face and jerked it towards her lips.
They kissed.

Author's Note

Honestly I thought that this chapter was going to be incredibly hard to write... it was surprisingly not as hard, so there, I finished it earlier, initially I was thinking of having a few more things happen in this chapter but I think this much should be fine for now... leave the rest for later

CHAPTER 20 (AKA: Keeping mum)

Pacifica always expected her first kiss to be sweet or something.
It was surprisingly salty.
The two lips came apart with astring of saliva trickling down from Pacifica’s lips.
POK!
A small teacoster-sized piece of wall plaster fell beside them and smashed like pottery but the colt and the filly were far too busy to notice.
There was a lot of stuff going through Morty’s head right now

“I…”
POK!
This time a scab of wall smashed right next to Pacifica with a noticeably loud and clear sound.

“THERE YOU ARE!”
Pacifica saw a group of 20 or more full grown stallions (with a few unicorns thrown in) stampeding at full speed towards the two
Pacifica for a second was utterly confused, why would an entire group of stallions go after them of all ponies? And then it occurred to her, they were still in changeling form!
Morty was still in bliss, he wasn’t going to come back to reality anytime soon so Pacifica Smacked his face extra hard, changed into pony form, once again grabbed the colt’s hoof and ran… anywhere, it didn't matter where as long as it was away from that group of insane rabid maniacs

“Change!” shouted out Pacifica
Morty was still getting his head around that punch

“What? Wh-“ but then Morty looked back at what was following them and he came to the conclusion that transforming might not be such a bad idea after all.
Pacifica was leading that two pony tango of survival, turning here and there and whipping around Morty behind her, she didn’t know the city but at this point it didn’t matter.
The little changelings could feel every single magical beam that passed nearby, missing them by that much, it felt like hearth’s warming eve, the streets being lit up with a multitude of magical colours that popped soon after being fired.

“Pacifica! The train station! We can run away on a train!”
Monty took the lead but as soon as they switched Pacifica felt a brief jerk on her left hind flank and a moment later a growing warm sting.
Pacifica lost focus and fell to the ground.
She was hit.

“Come on! Get up!”
Monty threw away his pack and tried to drag her heavy body onto his back.
Unfortunately the group had already surrounded them.
A crimson stallion emerged from the group, he seemed like the leader of the pack, on his back, a huge scar running across his entire body in the shape of a crucifix that clashed in style with his neatly gelled black mane.

“You… you have no idea how much trouble you gave us, we had to move mountains just to find you”
The stallion was very happy to see them but not in the way his victims wanted to.
Monty was confused, he didn’t know any of these stallions, and judging by Pacifica’s reaction, neither did she… what was going on?

“Who… are you guys?” Began Monty but the taste of anger and bliss that one has when accomplishing an especially tedious task, already answered the question

“Oh, at this point it doesn’t matter, all you need to know is that… actually you don’t need to know anything”
The stallion bucked Monty’s miserable body at full force away from Pacifica
Monty had never been so much out of breath, he couldn’t breathe let alone shout for help.

“And of course, the star of the show, Pacifica Agua!”
Something about what the stallion just said seemed off to Pacifica

“You’re something, you know that?”
Pacifica decided to stall for time until they figure something out, not much of a chance but hey, it beats dying sooner.

“And without further ado let’s fix all this, gentlecolts, do what you need to!”
“This stallion doesn’t mess around” thought Pacifica
There were no options left… as they say, that was that.

“N…nooo…”
All that Monty could do was to barely breathe out that word and look at the group ganging up on Pacifica, beating her relentlessly, Pacifica all curled up trying to protect herself with her own body.
Each stallion was furiously stomping her fragile body with their hooves.
Monty could feel her pain, it was unbearable and all he could do, was cry and vainly hope that his sole look could stop all this.
But it didn’t.
Monty could feel Pacifica’s presence gradually melting away into the disgusting sea of hatred that he could taste all around him coming from the stallions.
With no sound at all and much less warning, something smashed right into the centre of the beating mass, throwing one stallion high above the ground, where awaited a female changeling who grabbed the body in the air and with an impossible summersault and a threatening roar, smashed the stallion back into the cobbled pavement, head-first.
There was a crack, the henchpony’s neck turned an unhealthy sharp 90 degrees and remained that way until his dying breath.
The group moved away from the dead body, Pacifica and the mysterious changeling on the ground that were now firmly standing, a wall between Pacifica, Monty and their death.
The changeling mare slowly and gracefully descended down to stand arm to arm with her partner.
Pacifica who was badly beat up but was still well enough to stand up and look at what happened, looked at the two saviours.
The changeling mare, was an exceptional slender example of their race, her wings, majestically large and strong, showing off their mossy awe in the moonlight, her outline, a single gentle unbroken line.
The stallion, despite his average build gave off a really threatening vibe, a set of 4 scars in perfect parallel lines to his ribs on each side displayed his experience as a fighter... one wouldn’t want to get in his way and unfortunately, it seems like some ponies DID get in his way. His posture firm and headstrong, he emanated with conviction as if he knew what he was doing.
Pacifica noticed a small pendant on each of the saviours, she could just about make out what they were, they were golden doors with a sapphire sliced in half, each one had a pendant and when put together, they made a set of double doors with an entire sapphire in the middle.
The red scarred boss came out of the group.

“What impeccable timing! I was hoping you’d come a bit later once we finished off those two” The stallion pointed at the ponies behind the changeling partners “But I guess this too, will do…”
The Changeling Stallion’s gaze intensified, calling him outraged wouldn’t do him justice.
The mare seemed to be in a similar mood

“Don’t push it” The changeling stallion growled

“Tell you what, I’m feeling generous today, You can have a go at us and we’ll let your little trophy wife deal with the kids…”
Neither of the couple even nudged

“Well?”

“This is your last warning”

“Oh we’re way past warnings… and you”
The scarred stallion looked at the wife

“Aren’t you concerned about the kids you’re trying to save?”

“…” The wife didn’t say anything

“No? well that’s a bit cold don’t you think? Don’t you even want to turn around to take a peek to see if they’re fine?”

“…”
The mare still didn’t reply, clearly she was too furious for words.

“Oh dear! where are my manners, you know in all of this I forgot to introduce myself!”
The stallion bowed towards Pacifica and Monty who were sitting behind the changeling couple, trying to recover while they still can.

“My name is Crimson Downfall, and I am here to deal with troublesome kids like you… these here are a few of my friends, doubt you’ll remember them all so I won’t bother introducing them and these two heroes are -”

“ENOUGH!” Roared the mare as she burst into the crowd grabbing one of the helpless stallions into the air, jump up to his body and throwing him back down at full force downwards at another one of the henchmen.

“You two run! We’ll take it from here!” began the Husband, his back still turned towards Pacifica and Monty.
Monty looked at the two, kicking flank, he managed to get Pacifica on his back, by now the couple were barely holding back the mob that were all hell bent on going after Monty and Pacifica.

“T-thank you” was all that Monty could breathe out.
Right now all they had to do was get to the train station.
Monty waddled as fast as his breath could let him, he was still very sore from that buck.
He looked back at the place where everypony was having a physical exchange of opinions.
The couple were really good, they were taking care of the mob swiftly and professionally.
Left
Right
Across this alleyway
Monty and Pacifica had reached the train station, but they were faced with a problem.
There was no way that anypony could get past that soup of panicking foalk.

“You think you two will be fine?” asked Cynthia

“Oh, I know they will”
They did all that they needed to do, the Pegazooka and Rumble suit were already waiting for the two children.

“Don’t talk honey, you know its bad for you”

“I know, Cynthi- COUGH! COUGH!”
The changeling spat out blood all over his dying trampled body

“It’s just… its just that I wish I could have been there to see our little Pacifica grow up”

“You know that’s not the- KEH! KEH! –way this works Cynthia”

“I know… I know…”
Cynthia lay down on the cobbled street to rest and never got up again.
At least they dealt with every single one of them, thought the trampled changeling, and joined his wife.

Author's Note

One of the stories that I will do in this saga will be about Pacifica's parents.

CHAPTER 21 (AKA: Getting there)

Pacifica and Monty stood in place, clueless as to what to do next.
The train station must have been a TARDIS in order to fit everypony inside, that is bigger on the inside because there’s no way it could fit that many and yet, it did.
This posed a problem for Pacifica’s plans, not only because its going to be nearly impossible to go inside but there also wouldn't be any room in the train anyway.

“What do we do now Pacifica?”

“Let me go”
Monty dismounted his cousin.
Pacifica had forgotten just how much pain her body was in until she actually stood up on her own, but luckily she wasn’t in critical condition.
Pacifica’s head began to go through a spider-diagram of things they could do right now and how they could reach uncle Discord… going by train was out of the question because its most likely full, and even if they would manage to board it, they didn’t have any bits for the tickets.
The one best option was to go to Ponyville, at least there she had some friends, and knew ponies who might tell her about the whereabouts of her uncle, however getting there was another thing.

“Pacifica?”

“…”

“Pacifica?”

“…”

“PACIFICA!”

“I’m thinking!”
The only solution was the most tedious one… they had to travel to Ponyville by hoof… but how?
Follow the tracks, that would be a good start.
But what about the areas where the tracks split? How will they know which track to take?
They’re going to need a map.
If they’re going to need a map they might as well get a compass, just in case, after all they won’t be able to stick to the railroad tracks the entire time, they’d stick out too much and that would be dangerous.
A (barely) safer solution would be to follow the tracks until they’re out of the city and then map out their own route, cutting straight through the forests the tracks go around.

“We need to get a map and a compass”

“But I don’t have any bits, I left my backpack…” Monty didn’t finish the sentence; he didn’t want to mention what had just happened to them.

“We’ll have to steal them”

“W-what? No! stealing is wrong!”
Pacifica sighed, they didn't have time for a conscience

“So what do we do?”

“I don’t know”

“You don’t know…”
Pacifica shook her head.
The two stood there for a moment doing nothing.

“Alright, fine! We get what we need but it’s going to be your fault!” scoffed Monty
But Pacifica wasn’t listening anymore, she was already on her way to the local souvenir store located just outside the station, Monty caught up with her.
They entered the store.
They just realized that stealing something only sounded easy in theory, it felt like they were glowing red and attracting attention.
Pacifica had never been so glad to be a changeling, right now she could taste everypony’s emotions in the store including the store clerks’, letting her keep tabs on everypony at the same time.
Pacifica and Monty awkwardly went their own ways, occasionally their eyes glancing at the store clerk whilst pretending to observe a product only to put it back in its place.
A customer approached the store clerk
Pacifica was a changeling of opportunity.
There was one less Compass on the shelf.
The store clerk didn't notice, he was far too busy dealing with the current customer, besides 2 ponies like them wouldn't steal anything, would they?
Pacifica was onto her next target, the Maps that were conveniently located next to the snow globes, which gave an excuse for a pony her age to be next to the maps and not seem conspicuous.
Pacifica grabbed the map and just noticed why the map is going to be a bit more tricky…
Where the heck is she going to hide that big paper thing?
The clerk just finished dealing with the customer and he was already looking at Pacifica.
Pacifica tensed up, she wasn't going to just put back that map, but she already got the salespony’s attention.
The customer pony left the shop, closing the door with a ding.
The salespony was still focused on Pacifica who had no idea what to do now but to stand in place
Suddenly Pacifica heard Monty shout loudly

“Dad just left! Come on Pacifica!”
The salespony looked away from the thief and towards the accomplice.
A second was more than enough; Pacifica quickly put back an invisible pretend map on the shelf whilst holding on to the real one, she turned her back towards the salespony so that he couldn't see what she was holding onto and rushed out the door to catch up with Monty.
As soon as they were onto the street the two stopped for a breather, they needed to see where to go from now.
Pacifica looked around for an entrance to the railroad tracks.
The whole area around the tracks was guarded by a wire net fence.

“Why don’t we fly in?”
Pacifica pointed at where his and her wings would normally be, unfortunately they changed into earth ponies without thinking and changing into pegasi wasn’t a good idea when they’re so close to so many ponies.

“I have an idea” Monty broke the silence

“We get to a platform with a train that’s about to go, when everypony is going inside, we jump down on the tracks behind the train and stay low out of sight and we run after the train when it leaves, that way nopony will see us!”
Pacifica thought about this possibility… it was stupid and dangerous but right now it was the only thing they could think of

“All right, follow me and don’t let go of my hoof no matter what happens”
The crowd packed inside the train station created a mist of all sorts of emotions, though fear and worry were dominating.
Squeezing into any of the platforms was as hard as cutting butter straight from the fridge… with a fork.
It was especially hard for Monty to hold on to Pacifica, they were both at that annoying height where they weren't tall enough to be able to see what is going on through the sea of all those adult ponies but they weren't quite small enough enough to crawl their way through that sea of hooves…
Finally after some trial and error, they reached to the very edge of the platform, right behind the train, and as Monty said, everypony was far too busy to be the first in the train to notice them jump down on the tracks and disappear far below.
Now they had to wait for the train to make its way towards its next destination, both cousins, plastered to the side wall of the platform so that nopony sees them.
A minute or two of shuffling later, everypony was squashed inside the wagon.
A loud whistle cut through the air.
The wagon began to gradually accelerate, so did Pacifica and Monty.
It didn't take long for the train to outrun the ponies but it didn’t matter, they were already out of the Train station at this point and they could take it easy from here.

“It’s done… finally, it's done!”
Mark looked down upon the blueprints of the machine.
The machine was a giant glass dome stood on three stubby fat legs, within the glass bubble, a complicated mechanism, comparable to that of a clock to an untrained eye.
The rustling of the blueprints echoed in the secret dungeon room that was lent to Mark by Celestia.
This was it, this was the machine that was going to solve the problem, once and for all, everypony will finally be happy living together, both ponies and changelings alike, and who knows, maybe even the dragons and griffons.
All that Mark had to do now was to get the parts, and that isn't a problem for a stallion that is fully being supported by a pony deity.
Suddenly out of nowhere a thick pin of pain hit Mark’s head.
Pacifica was in danger, he could feel it, her pain growing.
Mark held on to the table in order not to fall onto the ground… he wasn't in pain but he would've preferred that over what he was feeling right now.
Mark’s body gave up and he fell to the ground.
He had to hurry up with the machine, something was wrong with Pacifica but he can only do so much at a time.
It was high time that Celestia did her part for the plan just as she promised.

Author's Note

This chapter had been an exceptionally tedious one to write but eventually I managed to do it, enjoy!

CHAPTER 22 (AKA: It’s all about the towns)

It had been hours since Pacifica or Monty had seen the railroad tracks and right now, they were treading through a Savannah in a warm afternoon light and since there was not a pony in the line of sight, they could finally transform back to their old changeling selves.

“Where are we now?” Asked Monty for the Nth time
Pacifica opened up the map and took a few moments for the compass to sync in with the map to tell her where they were.
Pacifica pointed a few centimeters further down than she did 40 minutes ago but to Monty, it was still in the middle of nowhere.

“Jeez! We haven’t moved at all! Are you sure we’re going the right way?”

“…”
Pacifica gave him an angry look.

“I’m hungry”
Pacifica Presented the fields around them, barren from any sentient being.

“But I’m really hungry!”

“So am I, don’t complain”

“Come ooonnnn…”
Monty’s nagging was getting on Pacifica’s nerves.
She opened the map angrily yet again to see the closest settlement.
Of course, the only one for miles had to be the other way, didn’t it?
Monty also looked at the map

“Oh! Let’s go there!”

“No, we have priorities, we keep on going that way, we’ll eat tomorrow when we get there”
Monty just about had it, he was hungry and hunger wasn’t something a city changeling was used to, for his entire life he lived in one of equestria’s most populated cities, whenever he wanted to eat, he just ate, there was always food… always, even in his own room.

“No! We’re going to that town! Give me that!”
Monty ripped the map and compass out of Pacifica’s grasp
Pacifica wasn’t OK with that, Monty was an idiot, hunger they can deal with but what they can’t deal with was another attack by ponies if they’re found out.
Pacifica jumped at Monty who wasn’t prepared for that.

“What’re you doing? Get off!”
The two were shuffling, fighting over the map and compass just as they were fighting over the bed.
Pacifica this time prevailed.

“Priorities” Said Pacifica, already on her way.
It was either follow Pacifica or go alone.
Monty didn’t like being alone, he was just a colt.
Maybe bargaining would help.

“Come on Pacifica, don’t you want to eat?”

“…”

“Aren’t you hungry too? We’ve been walking for aaages!”

“…”

“I can already imagine what it’s like in that town, that mild mixture of slow-pace life… hmmm, I’d like a bite of that… what’s your favourite emotion Pacifica?”
Pacifica’s tummy growled.
She stopped
She sighed in anger
She turned around without a word.

“W-wait, so we’re going?”

“…”

“Pacifica?”

“…”

“Hello, Equestria to Pacifica…”
She turned dangerously close to Monty and looked straight at him

“This time, it’s on you!”
She resumed her quest.
Monty smiled.

“OK, if something goes wrong, then we’ll call it even for that time in the shop”
Pacifica sighed once again and gave out a short rageful scream into the air, is this what everypony’s relatives are like?

Princess Celestia decided to give Mark a visit, he had been ruthlessly working on that machine of his in the past day or two, and if he becomes ill because of the stress he won’t be able to do anything.
Celestia scanned her bedroom, there was nopony to be seen.
The princess turned towards a large oil painting hanged above her bed, depicting Equestria’s landscape bathed with a sun, high up in the sky.
Celestia focused her alicorn magic on the painting.
Everything in the landscape suddenly began to move as if one were watching a sped-up video, ponies were zipping from left to right, crops were being rapidly cut down and the sun swam steadily across the sky until it set and night took over glazing the painting in dark blue hues, a few houses lit up from within.
The bed’s front posts came off and began to move towards the middle of the room in an upright position and then finally, stopped.
Celestia zapped the space in between bedposts, causing a rip between this world and her secret dungeon.
The Princess crossed into her world, and fixed the rip behind her.
Nopony could get through now from either way unless they know what the exact magical frequency for this world is.

“Ah! Princess Celestia, just who I wanted to see! The blueprints are finally ready and-”

“I hope that you have been resting Mark”

“Well, not yet, I had to double check if everything checks out with the blueprints, all we need to do now is build it, I just need to have the parts made and-“

“-and you can take a break while you wait for the parts to be delivered”

“Well… yes, but the parts have to be very precise and-“

“I’ll have my finest blacksmiths in Canterlot forge them”
Mark deflated his tension

“Oh, thank you Princess Celestia, really”

“I should be the one thanking you Mark, if this machine will indeed put this age old conflict between changelings and ponykind at rest, you will have my endless gratitude”
Mark blushed with pride

“Well, I’m only doing what’s best for everypony… how is Queen Chrysalis doing?”

“She is fine, we have managed to maintain a... professional relationship despite recent events, she also accepted our offer of helping to find and suppress the changeling extremist group”

“I think that's a great idea, we have to show ponykind that we’re not all savage beasts and show my kind that we can still make this work… especially with this thing”
Mark pointed at his blueprints

“How does that machine work?”

“In simple terms, it synthesizes artificial emotions to feed my kind, it produces small amounts but it’s a significant step towards the future”

“I understand that changelings will be unable to feed of this alone then”

“No, but it will take some weight off the shoulder from your subjects and it will appease my kind’s impatient ones to give us more time to develop this into a more efficiently working model.”

“I hope you are right Mark, with the most recent events unfolding we cannot afford to take things in our stride”

“Yes, that assault had-”

“I’m afraid, that’s not the event I have in mind”

“What do you mean?”
Mark could taste what was coming next, he knew that Celestia felt sorry, but he didn’t know what for.

“I’m sorry Mark, but one of my royal guards informed me about what had just happened in Maretropolis”
That’s where Pacifica was!

“There has been a break out of changeling masses onto the street, the whole city is in disarray right now, there are strategic discussions taking place at my palace as we speak”
Mark began to hyperventilate; this explains the attack that Mark recently felt, the only family member that he got along with, his most precious filly was in danger!

“Mark! Calm down!”
Mark couldn’t hear Celestia through his consciousness that was fading
Mark’s fatigued and stressed body slammed onto the floor.

Shining Armour knew that he might have to deal with Queen Chrysalis again one day but he never thought that it would be under such circumstances, in one room.
On the same side.
With Cadence keeping an eye on both of them.
This was awkward for everypony but Cadence wouldn’t have it any other way, as soon as she heard from her husband that he was ordered by aunt Celestia to work with that anorexic bitch of a Queen, she had to come with him and no super-secret army tactical meeting thingy crap is going to get in her way from protecting their marriage

“We should mobilise our main troops around the main cities” stated Shining
Celestia chuckled

“Is there a problem?” Cadence practically growled words at this point.

“You would be wasting your time my dear-“

“Don’t call me dear” whipped Cadence.

“It might stand to reason that changeling rebels and extremists would target the most densely populated areas but they will target the small villages”

“And how would you know that?” continued Cadence.

“I’m a queen my dear-“

“I said don’t call me that!”
The Queen continued to ignore the Princess.

“Back in the day, I focused on teaching my subjects advanced war and survival strategies, going after a large city might yield a greater food supply in general, but it is far too great a risk to take, especially in the state that most of us are currently in”
The Queen stabbed the married couple with a stare.

“Smaller towns are easier to take over and generally easier to control, you need an army to invade a city, but you only need a group to take over a small town, the few citizens can easily be impersonated by just as many changelings so no outsider would notice the change, not to mention that its easier… to store the food source”

“We’re not a food source; you’d know that if you’d stop treating us like one” Cadence hissed back

“I do what’s best for my subjects, if you would treat us with any sort of dignity we wouldn’t be here in the first place”
This was now becoming a personal grudge match between two mares.

“Humph! You sure take the high road for somepony who just invades straight away instead of finding a mutually beneficial solution!”

“Oh, but I have… but I see that your precious aunt hasn’t told you about that yet, has she?”

“Don’t put this on Aunt Celestia!”

“Oh, but I’m not, I’m simply stating facts, is it not true that I had come to the Princess in good spirits? Is it not true that I offered a truce? Is it not true that she declined?”

“I see that you try to deceive with not only your looks, Chrysalis”

“I’m not here to convince you of anything, if you want to hear the truth then you can always get it straight from the horse’s mouth if you want, I’m not going to excuse myself from what I did, I am not ashamed of it, it was what I had to do to save my kind and now, this is what I have to do”
Queen Chrysalis began to tower over the ponies; her patience ran out a while ago, it’s high time that somepony told this damn filly about the reality of things.

“Grow up and start living up to your title, princess! You have a responsibility that comes with that name, so you either do what you’re supposed to or go back to being a children’s toy horse Mi Amore Cadenza!”
That hit Cadence pretty hard and Shining Armour stepped in to protect her.

“Chrysalis, stop”
Cadence covered her wet face from everypony in the room and tried to exit but was intercepted by the Queen who blocked her exit.

“You don’t get to leave, you can’t crack and your bad decisions will stay with you for the rest of your life, that is the role of a princess, Celestia never taught you that because she is too kind but somepony has to tell you this whether you like it or not”

“Let me go!”
The queen sighed, Celestia will owe her one for the future.

“You are here, because there is a conflict between changelings and Ponykind… I am ready to protect your ponies from my changelings, but are you ready to protect my changelings from your ponies? Are you ready to take the full responsibility of your actions? Are you ready to be hated by your very own subjects that you tried to protect from themselves?”
Cadence looked up on the queen and saw her in a new light, perhaps it was the tears or maybe she was just in a weird mood today but Chrysalis suddenly didn’t seem to be as an abstract evil she always was.
Cadance for her first time had a good look at Chrysalis, she began to notice that the Queen was of flesh and bone, a scratch here, a small scar there and even a wrinkle or two, if she’d get to the nitty-gritty of things she had to admit (as much as she didn’t want to) that probably Cadence herself would most likely make the same decisions as Chrysalis has if she had to in order to protect her kind.
Cadence’s sobbing slowly subsided.
Chrysalis was right, we all have to bite the bullet sometimes and occasionally even take one and being a Princess was all about that.
The Princess looked at the Queen with newfound respect and silently, filled with a new determination, nodded at the queen, who, full with understanding, nodded back.

Pacifica looked ahead, now the town was considerably closer, they could make out individual buildings with a few ponies flying here and there.
Monty couldn’t handle his excitement
“Come on!”
“Wait!”
Pacifica was far too weak to run after him but she did anyway, it was just an extra mile anyway
Pacifica looked ahead to a standing Monty who she finally reached

“Wh… what… is… it… Monty?”
Pacifica could barely get the words through her panting

“…”
The filly enhaled to finally get some words out

“Monty?”
Pacifica looked at where Monty looked, at the town.
Changelings
Changelings everywhere.

Author's Note

I had a surprising amount of fun in writing this chapter, and honestly with the things I have planned for the next ones there's going to be one heck of a ride.

CHAPTER 23 (AKA: A dystopian utopia)

The tiny town of Saddle... an insignificant cluster of buildings, with nothing that stood out... except for the fact that there were changelings everywhere, and what surprised Pacifica even more was the fact that they weren’t invading or pillaging… they were living there! Changelings doing ordinary everyday things, taking the water from the well, raising a house, fixing windows…
I was strange for a changeling-only settlement to exist at all, changelings can’t live without a food source, so where’s the food? It made no sense.
Pacifica began to wonder just how long this town existed for; it was on the map after all.

“WOAH! This is so cool!”
Monty’s excitement grew even more

“Cool?”

“Yeah! It’s awesome! I don't even need change and nopony would care! We’re totally safe! Come on, let’s go and find something to eat!”
Pacifica wanted to stop him but it was too late, he was already asking everypony around.
Monty was right, there was no point in keeping up appearances if everypony here knows who they are, and besides, they did have to eat sometime.
Monty approached a lady over a counter with various hammers, nails and other tools for DIY that was currently in fashion.

“Miss, miss!”

“Who’s this? Hello there!”
The lady seemed exceptionally nice, not something that Monty was used to when it came to changelings.
Monty’s tummy growled.
Pacifica cut into the conversation

“We’re hungry”

“Oh, well I’m sorry but I can’t help you, if you need nails or bolts, I’m your mare! Why don’t you go and ask your mum and dad for a meal?”
Pacifica decided to go with a sob story, after all, changelings can’t taste each other’s emotions so she shouldn’t be able to call their bluff

“We… we don’t have a mum and dad”
The Mare didn’t quite follow what they said the first time over

“Wait, but-“ Monty was elbowed hard by Pacifica

“Oh, don’t be silly, everypony has a mommy and a daddy! Where are yours?”
Pacifica had to put on a show if they wanted results.
She began to give a show of crocodile tears in front of the counter, Monty confused as ever looked at her and tried to cheer her up by patting her on the back or something, he didn’t realise that this was all fake.

“I’m sorry miss shopkeeper for her, we just came from Maretropolis on our own and she’s really hungry”
The Mare took a second glance at Pacifica and just noticed how bruised and beat up she was, could it be that these poor kids came from the big city on their own as they said? Any good parent would tend their children’s wounds straight away, surely a bandage or two and what got them in that state in the first place?

“Come with me children, STEVEN! WATCH THE SHOP WHILE I’M OUT!”

“OKAY!”
The two followed the mare inside a nearby house.

“So, you came on your own?”

“Yes miss!” Monty replied in a cheerful manner, it was something he was proud of, it’s not every day you get to do something of that magnitude on your own, he was so mature right now!

“Oh, call me Rose please!”

“Can I call you Aunt Rose?” suggested Pacifica who was now seriously buttering her up
Rose laughed.

“Oh, well, aunt… well all right darling, and what’s your names?”

“Montgomery”

“Pacifica”

“Well, Montgomery and Pacifica, you can stay in my home for as long as you need to, aunt Rose will take care of you until you feel better and we find your family, all right?”

“YAY!” jumped Pacifica, again, putting up a show
Monty was giddy with good hopes, it couldn’t get any better than this, they’re in a town full of changelings, they don’t have to hide anymore, and they can stay as long as they want! This was going to be awesome.
Rose showed them their new temporary home, a wooden little house, truly a nice little corner for living, nothing out of the ordinary though, in the main living room, a few pictures with a bunch of ponies, probably her in her pony form along with her family, most likely for those times when an outsider pays this town an unexpected visit and upstairs a room for each pony, strangely enough already decorated and prepared for a filly and a colt… it’s as if Rose already had children

“…”
Pacifica wanted to ask Rose if she had children but was a bit too shy to ask something so personal at this point.

“Let me clean you kids up and then we can eat, all right?”
This was pleasant, being treated nicely once in a while, nopony shouting at Monty, he could easily live here for the rest of his life.
As rose washed Pacifica’s back, she began to reminisce the times when Uncle Discord would help her in the tub and they would play all sorts of games… she never really realized just how much she missed him, sure she missed Mark a little bit but not nearly as much as uncle Dis, She had that link with Mark so it felt like he was always with her, but not Uncle Dis… Pacifica never thought she’d hear herself say this but she even missed those tacky songs he would always sing.
Tears began to gently trickle down her cheeks, this time honest ones, she was tired, beat up and lonely, sure Mark was around but she missed her old family and right now, she had to care for Monty but didn’t have anypony to care after her.
Rose didn’t notice the concealed sobbing; she was busy trying to get the two changelings back in shape in the bathtub, one after the other and Pacifica was first in line for a clean.
A good scrub and a few bandages later, it was time for food.
Pacifica was finally going to find out how the hell a small town entirely made of changelings is self-sufficient with food.
They walked back to the stand at which Aunt Rose was working; a large crowd of townsfoalk was clustered around it.

“What’s going on here?” Rose asked herself, she knew that recently it’s been good for business but this was just ridiculous.
The aunt shoved her way into the middle.

“Steven, what’s happening here?!?”
One of the changelings waiting in queue (if you could call that mess a queue) decided to answer for Steven.

“What’s happening here is that this kid doesn’t know how to run a shop!”
Rose gave an angry look at Steve who was clearly having trouble with being fast enough.

“Steven, come here for a moment”
Steven jumped, he really needed this job

“I-I’m sorry ma’am I swear I’ll fix this!”

“Ok… Ok, its fine, relax, you go with the kids here and feed them and I’ll fix this”

“So… I’m not fired?”

“I’ll hold on to you for a while longer, I really need the additional hoof especially now that I have two extra pairs of wings to take care of”

“Oh, thank you so much ma’am! I’ll do anything to make this up to you, I promise”

“You can start by taking care of those two”

“Yes ma’am! come with me kids”
Steve escorted the kids out of the angry mob of customers out on the road; he then proceeded to guide them across the few alleyways that the town had to offer and finally, reached the Market square.
Pacifica and Monty began to taste a small tinge of hopelessness, anger, fear… every possible negative feeling from the emotional spectrum.
The market square was wrapped by a massive wooden fence, rivalling in height the nearby buildings, located within, the food source, trotting miserably in circles, or retreating back to the small wooden shacks that were supposed to protect them from the elements, and of course, where there are prisoners, there are also guards, a few changelings keeping an eye on things here and there.
Steve came up to a merchant selling pony food.

“I’d like a carrot and some hay please”

“That will be two bits, please”
Steve paid the merchant and gave the hay to Pacifica and the carrot to Monty.
The two stood there with the food in hoof.

“Well?”
What were they supposed to do with that food? Changelings don’t eat pony food.
Steve caught on.

“Just go up to somepony, eat and give them food for exchange, food for food, fair trade don’t you think?”
Pacifica didn’t know if she was more disgusted by the way the ponies were being treated or by the fact that everypony in this town thought it was acceptable to treat them that way.

“We’re tired”
Pacifica looked at Monty who seemed really eager to eat

“Speak for yourself, I’m-“
Pacifica elbowed Monty into silence

“Fine, suit yourselves”

“Thank you” replied Pacifica as she gave back the hay and gave Monty a sharp demanding look, expecting him to do the same with his share of food.
Monty, very reluctantly gave it back to Steve.

“We’ll go back home”
The two Left the market square, both angry but for different reasons, they let Rose know that they’ll be going to bed now, and went back home… Monty was going to give her a piece of his mind, they came all the way here to eat and suddenly she has a problem with that? This time he’s going to put his hoof down.

Mark woke up in Celestia’s bed, luckily without her inside it which was a relief because that would have been awkward, Celestia was sitting in a far corner of her room in front of a desk, writing something.

“Princess Celestia, what happened? Why am I in your bed?”
Celestia turned around and approached a fully rested Mark.

“You passed out, I was worried so I laid you to rest”

“But… why in your bed?”

“I hope that you haven’t forgotten about the secrecy of what we’ve been doing”

“You’re right, the fewer ponies know about me, the better”
Mark remembered about Pacifica.

“Princess”

“Yes, Mark?”

“I’d like to ask a favour of you”
Celestia listened.

“Do you remember Pacifica?”

“Your child? Yes I remember her”

“Well it’s a long story that I’d rather not tell but she’s in danger right now and I’m afraid that she might be alone, I was hoping that you might send somepony to find her and make sure she’s all right”

“I don’t see why that should be a problem, I’ll send one of my guards right awa-“

“I’d like Discord to find her”
Mark’s statement took Celestia by surprise… why Discord of all beings?

“I am not sure that would be a wise idea Mark”

“I understand your concern with Discord considering his reputation, but he’s the only one that can do it”
This wasn’t the reason for Celestia’s concern, She knew Discord better than anypony else, He may be mischievous but evil never belonged to his nature, after all he was the only one to sacrifice so much for the sake of everypony...
They were treading a fine line between peace and war, and should the worst happen, they are going to need a strong ally on their side ready to take action at any moment and the last thing they’d need, is to have that ally far, far away.

“Please, Princess, this would mean a lot to me and I know that Discord can teleport anywhere he wants to teleport to so it would not be a problem for him”
Princess Celestia gave in.

“All right, I shall summon Discord”
Celestia posed herself firmly for the summoning, focused at the middle of the room and zapped Discord into existence who seemed to be in a gardener’s outfit along with a strange blue whale-shaped watering can and was watering the floor for a moment until he realised where he was.

“You know, it’s rude to summon somepony without any warning”

“Discord, I ha-“

“I don’t barge into places unannounced”

“I’m sorry about tha-“

“Oh, who am I kidding, I LOVE barging into places unattended!”

“DISCORD!”
Discord threw away the watering can onto the floor, splattering water all over it… it wasn’t doing a good job of watering the berries anyway, the one who sold him that wailmer pail shafted him.

“Fine, what is it you need”
Discord wrapped himself around Celestia.

“This time it is not me that has a request”
Celestia looked at Mark who still lay in her bed.

“Ohohooo, you’ve been getting around Celestia I see”
A leathery BDSM outfit appeared on Discord’s body and a black whip showed up in his hand.

“I didn’t know you had a taste for these kinds of things old girl”

“Discord, hi, it’s me Mark”
Discord's attention shifted to The changeling

“Mark? I don’t believe we’re on “you” terms just yet”

“What? But you…”
It had just occurred to Mark that he met discord far in the future; of course this Discord hadn’t met him or Pacifica yet.

“I’m sorry; I’m still a bit dizzy”

“After Celestia was done with you, I’m not surprised”
Discord offered a cigarette to Mark out of nowhere.

“Discord, please listen to Mark”

“Oh dear, but I’m all ears!”
Discord’s leathery outfit disappeared and ears popped out of every side of his body.

“Pacifica… my child is in danger; I was hoping that you could find her for me and make sure that she’s safe”

“No”
That was an answer that Celestia didn’t expect.

“What?”

“I said no”

“But why?” asked Mark

“Do I need a reason?”

“Well, usually ponies don’t do things without a reason”

“Well, I’m not a pony, now if you’ll excuse me I’ve got a refund to take care of”

“Discord” Celestia looked at the draconequus.
Discord stopped.

“If there’s anything I learned in friendship is that you ignore your friends unless you need something from them, I don’t see why I should help somepony whom I don’t even know, what’s in it for me?”
Mark thought for a second… it wasn’t a surprise that Discord is all bitter considering the way Twilight and the rest of Discord’s “friends” talked about him behind his back, if that were Mark, he’d also be cross.

“I get it Discord, you’re mad because all your friends aren’t treating you like one, and I’m not asking you to help me, what I’m asking you is to help Pacifica, she’s the only pony I know that really understands you, she’s a real friend and she would really appreciate it if she saw you again”

“I’m afraid that finding her doesn’t matter much to me, I never heard about a Pacifica before”

“Actually you have, you just don’t know how”

“And that would be?”

“Why don’t you ask her yourself?”
Discord smiled.

“Oooh, I like this one Celestia, manipulating and making others do what he wants, I have a feeling that we’ll get along just fine, Mark… it’s a deal, I’ll find this Pacifica of yours but only because it sparks my interest... but how am I going to find her...”
Mark focused.
“She’s somewhere in that direction, she’s a young changeling, you’ll know when you find her, she’ll make sure of that”
With a poof, a generic colourful caped superhero costume appeared on Discord

“DISCORD, AWAY!”
The caped draconequus flew up right through the ceiling leaving a large hole and a mess on the floor.

Author's Note

I wonder how many people got the POKEMON reference in this chapter

Also: sorry for posting this so late today, had a busy day and its like 02:08am right now... time to pass out in bed

CHAPTER 24 (AKA: Emotional swings and roundabouts)

As soon as Pacifica and Monty set hoof into the house, Monty started his rant.

“What the hell Pacifica!”
Great, this was the last thing Pacifica wanted right now, she was tired, hungry as hell, depressed and just wanted to rest.

“We came all the way here just to eat and suddenly you don’t let me eat? What the hell!”
Pacifica was getting irritated as well, she had no idea how much more she could take of all this.

“We’re not going to eat from them; you saw how they were being treated”

“Why not? We had food for them, we eat, they eat, fair trade, remember?”

“No”

“Well you don’t have to eat if you don’t want to but you can’t tell me what to do you’re not my mum, and this is all your fault, I bet that if we’d stayed at home-“
Monty’s statement was broken by a soul shattering scream coming from Pacifica who was covering her ears and rolled up in a ball on the floor, she couldn’t take it anymore, mentioning Monty’s mum was the last straw, that time… when she… no, she refuses to listen! She won’t remember! No!
Monty freaked out, he didn’t expect Pacifica to react like this, she was like a little filly, bossy, did whatever she wanted and didn’t want to take responsibility when it was her fault.
But then why did he want to protect her all of a sudden? They’d always get into fights and he hated her so why does he feel this urge to take care of her?

“All right, all right, sorry, I won’t talk about it anymore okay?”
Marty wanted to hug Pacifica to calm her down but she shoved him aside and went to her room, closing herself in.
Monty was left alone with himself in the room.
He began to think about Pacifica, first they hate each other, then for no reason she kisses him and then they fight again… did she like him, or hate him?
Fillies are weird, Monty didn’t understand them.

The day slowly gave way into the night, plastering the little town of Saddle with a palette of nightly shadows and dreams, everypony was asleep.
Two little changelings were in bed but were far away from Luna’s realm of dreams, with all the things that happened in one day it was hard to go to bed… the mind had no room for sleep.
Monty was still thinking about Pacifica, he was worried about her, she looked pretty bad today, maybe he should be nicer to her…
Two quiet and shy knocks presented themselves into Monty’s room

“Monty?”
It was Pacifica.

“Yeah?”
The doors opened to reveal a Pacifica

“...I’m sorry...”

“You can’t sleep as well?”
Pacifica nodded and without a warning, she got into the colt’s bed.
This time, Monty moved aside to make room for her.
Both little changelings were looking up the ceiling in an awkward silence, Monty felt tense, he was right next to the filly that kissed him.
Pacifica just wanted to be with somepony right now in silence.
Monty had to know How Pacifica felt about him, it was driving him crazy and it’s being so awkward right now because of that.

“Hey, Pacifica?”

“…”
Monty wasn’t sure how to ask her what he wanted to ask her.

“What… who do you want to be when you grow up?”
Close but no cigar.

“I don’t know”
The way things were going recently, it was hard for Pacifica to imagine any sort of future.
Monty wasn’t going to suddenly change the topic, he had to at least finish this one first.

“Like, what do you want to do?”
Pacifica thought about what she’d like... right now having a normal life with a family sounded nice.

“Have a normal family”

“Oh, OK…”
The topic ended as soon as it began.

“…”
Pacifica looked at Monty who a second later realized that it was his turn to tell her.

“Me?”
Pacifica nodded.

“I’d want to be the most amazing trisport player of all time!”

“Trisport?”

“Oh, that’s right, you don’t know that, well it’s a sport that-“

“What else?”

“Sorry?”

“Is that everything you want to do in your life?”

“Well… I also like writing... so I guess one day I really want to make an amazing book that will change everypony’s lives!”

“What is it going to be about?”

“I don’t know yet”

“Sounds nice”
The two returned to silence.

“Pacifica?”
Pacifica just wanted to sleep, what was it this time?

“Yeah?”

“I… I wanted to ask you… about…”
Pacifica waited for the question but it didn’t appear

“Ask me what?”

“You know…”
Pacifica looked at Monty once again and shook her head letting him know that she didn’t know what Monty meant.
Monty took a deep breath, it was now or never

“Well… that time you… you know… kiss…ed… meee….”
Pacifica glanced at Monty, who was in full blush, staring at her intensely.
She turned away from Monty in silence; she never thought about the kiss, all she could think of about that night was… that thing.
Monty felt both relieved and disappointed, he felt relieved because he finally managed to pop the question but he couldn’t help but to feel beat down by Pacifica’s reaction… maybe he wanted her to like him after all…
With no warning at all and as swift as an elbow to Monty’s ribs, Pacifica turned around and kissed him quickly on his cheek and turned away once again.
Maybe she liked him after all.

Discord looked at his map and crossed the next town off the list… he was a good few hours into the search and was already bored.
A pitchfork whistled past him who was floating high up in the air.
Discord ignored it and continued to think… He was now genuinely intrigued by this Pacifica pony, how could they know each other if he didn’t knew her?
A flower pot nearly reached Discord… nearly.
That made no sense… Discord liked no sense.
Another flying pitchfork approached the draconequus, this time he had to evade it.
Such rudeness! What’s everypony’s problem? Can’t a draconequus just ask a few questions these days?
Discord looked down upon the town that was all fixed now.
Soapy roads, roofs flying off the tops of houses, and of course, chocolate rain.
What a bunch of ungrateful ponies, he just came in and wanted to ask a few questions… well OK, he MIGHT have fixed a thing or two, the dirt roads weren’t dirty anymore, ponies indoors can now enjoy the sun and who doesn’t like chocolate rain? But of course poor old Discord gets the usual welcome package.
Discord landed on the ground, popped up an umbrella and began to dance and sing whilst evading identified flying objects.

“I’m siiinging in the rain…”
One of the townsponies had enough of Discord’s tomfoolery and decided to face him head on.

“Get the hell out of here Discord! We don’t need you here!”

“Oh dear, it’s such a shame that Subtlety is a thing of the past, don’t you think?”

“I said, leave”

“All right, fine, I can tell when I’m not wanted”
Discord was finally leaving.

“And this isn’t one of those times!”
Or not.

“I still have a few questions I need to ask everypony, answer and I’ll leave”
Discord resumed his singing and dancing.

“Then ask them instead of singing that stupid song!”
Discord stopped the song.

“Just be glad that I wasn't singing chocolate rain…”
Ponies have no sense of humour these days.

Author's Note

Sorry if this chapter is a bit shorter than my previous ones but This seemed like the right place to finish it.
Off to write the next chapter!

CHAPTER 25 (AKA: Cunning plans and sly tactics)

“Aww!”
Rose couldn’t get enough of how cute Monty and Pacifica were, sleeping in one bed.

“Come on now, wake up sleepyheads or you’ll miss the morning!”
Monty was shuffling uneasily in bed

“Fffive more minutes please…”

“All right, but no more than five, all right?”
Monty grunted.
Rose took that as a yes and went downstairs to prepare to go out with the kids.
It was so nice to have somepony else in the house, it would get so lonely sometimes, and Rose always wanted to have a family…
Maybe she should start looking for a special somepony again.
Rose looked in the mirror.
She was a bit pudgy, especially her butt.
Some stallions like to have something to grab on.
She was just past her prime.
Some gentlecolts prefer a mare who knows what she’s doing, and she had some experience already… that is until she found out that a family would be out of the question…
Rose sighed, let’s be real here, Changelings want a mare that can have kids, that’s why she could never find anything serious out there, only an occasional one night of fun… but that’s going to change now that she’s taking care of those kids, Stallions go crazy for a mare with a golden heart and she had one to boot.

“Stallions, here I come- oh wait”
Rose just realised that she won’t be able to… persuade stallions she’d bring home when the kids are around.
This was going to be tough but she’ll pull through.
A mare does have her needs after all.
Little hoofsteps announced Pacifica and Monty who were ready to take on what today had to offer.

“Morning Aunt Rose!”
Monty hugged his aunt, he loved to hug but he never got to do that too often at home so he was making the most of it while he could.
Rose blushed with pride for a moment, then remembered what they had to do.

“Come on now children, let’s have breakfast, are you ready?”

“Yeah!” replied Monty.

“Washed your face?”

“Yep”

“Brushed your teeth?”
Rose got him there.

“Uuuuhhh… yeah?”

“Nice try, go and brush your teeth, we’ll wait here for you all right?”

“Do I have to?”

“Do you have somepony you like?”
Monty’s face was splashed with crimson.
He was so cute! Puppy love, rose could see it bright as day.

“Well then you’d want to look nice for her wouldn’t you? You never know when you might see her again”
Monty ran upstairs.

“Now, it’s just the two of us fillies left”

“…”

“So, what do you want to talk about, want to talk about mare stuff?” Rose's eyes sparkled with interest and gossip
Pacifica could tell that Rose was trying really hard to get Pacifica to like her.

“Why are you so nice to us?”
It was Pacifica knew that when somepony is nice to somepony else, they usually expect something in return, something Uncle Dis taught her when she was little.

“What do you want from us”

“Want from you? I don’t want anything from you, why would I want something from you?”

“When somepony is so nice like you are they want something in return”

“Oh, dear…”
Rose’s heart cracked, this filly must have had a very tough time before she came here to be thinking like that.

“Not everypony is a big bad timberwolf you know; sometimes you get a good fairy, like me!”
Rose Made a cute pose.
Seeing an adult mare do such a childish pose caused Pacifica to burst into laughter… that’s just what she needed.
Monty came downstairs, all ready.
The family went down for breakfast.
Once again, Pacifica didn’t want to eat but this time she didn’t stop Monty from feeding, not after what he told her yesterday.

“Oh, don’t be silly Pacifica, you need to eat, or you’ll never heal, you don’t want to have scars now do you?”

“…”

“Come on now, do it for Aunt Rose”
Pacifica began considering the options, she was at her limit already, she didn’t eat for a solid few days and it was true what aunt Rose said, she does need to eat, especially now of all times in order to get better and to be able to resume her search for uncle Discord.
There wasn’t much of a choice, if she wanted to find uncle, she had to bite the bullet and eat.

It had been two days since Monty and Pacifica first visited the town and they managed to get accustomed fast, the days were slow despite everypony working at the town, there were no other changelings their age to talk to or to play with.
Because of that, Monty would often succumb to boredom and wanted to play with Pacifica who had been purposefully evading him recently… She’d either suddenly have to go the little filly’s room or she’d be away, eating… and she was eating a lot in these past few days.
Pacifica had been busy lately with figuring out a way to send a message to uncle Discord and let him know where she is and that she is looking for him, plus the kiss… she didn’t know what to do about it, what she was starting to feel, was new to her and she didn’t know how to deal with it yet so she’d do everything she could, not to be with Monty.
The two changelings would spend most of their days doing what they wanted; only occasionally helping Aunt Rose at work.
Life seemed to have a time of its own here; the only link with the rest of the world was the newspaper that came from outside informing them of the Equestria’s allied forces cracking down on Changeling activities.
Monty really wanted some time with Pacifica, he kinda liked her and he wanted to see everything she did… Monty was also figuring out this new feeling.
Today it was Pacifica’s turn to help out in the store during the afternoon and Monty took that chance to see her, this time she won’t be able to get away, it’s like she was purposefully evading him!

“Pacifica”

“!!!”
Pacifica turned her back on him, pretending to be incredibly busy with stocking items that were already stocked behind the counter.

“Pacifica!”

“…”
Monty grabbed Pacifica firmly and made her look at him.
Pacifica tried to wriggle out, but he was too strong.

“Pacifica… I want to play with you”

“Not now”
Pacifica was still trying to wriggle out.

“Ok then, later”

“Maybe”

“Why?”

“…”
“Do you hate me?”
“No”
Monty let Pacifica go.
“Please don’t hate me, I… I really like you”
Pacifica looked at the young stallion

“I don’t hate you”

“So we can play later?”

“Not really… I… I have something I need to do”

“What?”
Pacifica overcame her shyness decided to let Monty in on her plan; they were travelling together after all.

“I found a way to call my uncle and make him come here”

“How?”

“Chaos magic”

“Chaos magic?”

“He can sense when somepony uses chaos magic so that’s what we have to do”

“But I don’t know how to do chaos magic”

“I do”
Being raised by the god of chaos himself had its advantages, her uncle taught her a thing or two and she learned a few other things from looking at him do his thing.
There was only one problem.
Chaos magic required a tremendous amount of energy which is why Pacifica’s been eating a little extra these days and she wasn’t sure if she’d even manage, doing a little magic won’t get herself noticed, she will have to pull off the biggest magic show she ever had, she knew her uncle well and knew that he won’t be able to pass off this opportunity for fun, he’ll have to come and visit.

“How are you going to do this?”

“Normally”

“Like how?”

“Like I’ll go outside and start using magic”

“But we’ll get into trouble! Our aunt-“

“She’s not our aunt, Monty”

“But-“
Pacifica liked Rose but unfortunately that was the truth and they had their priorities.

“If you help me, nopony will find out and we won’t be in trouble”

“I don’t know…”
This was pointless, Pacifica thought he manned up but apparently he was as flabby and passive as always.

“All right, I’ll help”

“We’ll do it tomorrow”
Monty nodded.
Rose just noticed Mark and Pacifica talking.

“What’s that you’re talking about dearies?”

The parts for the machine had finally arrived, these past few days have been an exceptional pain in the flank for Mark, not only he had to wait for the parts and sit idly by but Discord hadn’t shown up yet as well…
The panic attacks on Mark had subsided, that was a good sign, this means that his body had rested and that Pacifica was doing much better, if only he could talk to her somehow…
Time was running out, Mark had heard from Celestia that things were happening, the commander of the royal guards and Queen Chrysalis were working around the clock on simmering down the uprising.
Far out on the east wing of the castle, Cadence, Shining and Chrysalis were being updated on the most recent news.

“Maretropolis is already overtaken” began Chrysalis.

“That’s impossible; we have our guards scouting every inch of the place as we speak” Stated Armour.

“The guards are long gone”

“Chrysalis I can assure you that my sourc-“

“I also have my sources Armour, being queen has its privileges, it seems that the changeling rebels use corruption to their advantage”
Cadence didn’t like that, it wasn’t cricket.

“That’s low, even for them”

“All’s fair in love and war my dear” Jabbed Chrysalis.

“In that case what do we do?” asked Armour, he was the commander of the royal guards and the army but he never dealt with anything on such a grand scale before.

“There isn’t much to do; we are playing on their terms and because of that, they will have their way in a matter of weeks”

“It’s hopeless then?”

“I didn’t say that, we can still change things, if we want to have the upper hand we need to have them playing on our terms” retorted Chrysalis
Amour and Cadence were confused.

“how exactly are we going to do that?” asked Cadence.

“What’s the one thing we have and they don’t?”

“You don’t mean the elements of harmony-” suggested Armour but was interrupted by the queen.

“PSCH! The elements of harmony! A kingdom that relies on a single asset cannot succeed”

“Then what?”

“An army”

“But we’re utilising our army already and it isn’t yielding results”

“That’s because you’re not using it as an army”
Armour got what Chrysalis was implying.

“No, I refuse, there must be another way”

“What is she talking about Shining?” asked Cadence.

“She’s suggesting that we start a war”
Cadence gasped.

“No!”

“I am merely proposing that we prepare for war”

“Equestria hasn’t had a war in millennia! And besides whom are we going to strike at? The changeling rebels are hiding everywhere!” stated Armour

“Showing the rebels the consequences of their actions may persuade them to come out of hiding and mobilise”

“And then what? We start a war?” Cadence continued

“That will not be necessary, when they mobilise, we will be watching for any mass migrations of ponies, we will find them, after that, we shall infiltrate and gather intel on the rebels… plans, size, methods, everything and when we do, we will be able to shatter the structure at its base”

“And what if they don’t mobilise but stay hidden?”

“They will not”

“How can you be so certain of that?” asked Armour.

“From what we have managed to gather so far, we know that only a small fraction of the group consists of specialised individuals, however most of these rebels are simple foalk who are driven by fear and anger… they want to see us fall down, hard and want to see us suffer and when they’ll see the opportunity to do so personally, they will not be able to resist the urge”

“I don’t understand” said Cadence.
Armour began to explain the tactic to his wife.

“What Chrysalis is trying to say is that most of the rebels are angry, that’s what made them rebel in the first place so we use their anger and provoke them with an army to come out and fight and if they want to do that they will have to come together and make an army, when they do, we will find a way to break them apart from within before they strike… a powerful albeit risky tactic”
Cadence was impressed at Chrysalis, even at a time like this she manages to find a way prevent war.
Chrysalis looked at an admiring Cadence.

“Watch and learn my dear, a queen has to know these kinds of things”

Author's Note

Recently I've been thinking, maybe instead of writing an entire set of books for this saga I will just include all of the stories in this one, I'll just separate the chapters of each story... what do you guys think? maybe I should do that after all, it would be simpler that way rather than going through the trouble of publishing a new story every time... of course this story will end like normal but after the last chapter I'll start a new one of the new part of the saga.

CHAPTER 26 (AKA: The art of making oneself conspicuous)

The day has come… the grand exam of calling out to Uncle was going to start today.
But first, Pacifica and Monty had to help Aunt Rose, Thursdays apparently are the busiest ones so Rose and Steve needed all the help they could get.
Pacifica had to be in tip top shape in order to pull this off, Monty decided to put in 200% of effort and work for both of them.
Hours passed like seconds, it’s funny, Monty always imagined that time flies only when you have fun but apparently that also happens when you’re too busy to look at the clock (thank god for that)
Soon enough the time came for Pacifica to make her uncle proud.
Monty sat down outside, he was keeping an eye on all activitiy within the vicinity.
Pacifica began to think what to do…
There was a flower pot on their neighbour’s window ledge.
She had to start sometime.
Pacifica looked at Monty who gave her a hooves up from the other end of the road, nopony was looking this her way.
Pacifica concentrated all her brain cells and energy on that flower pot.
The flower pot turned into a green sewer pipe, the flower grew lips, its carnation now red with white polka-dots…
One down, tonnes to go.
Now onto something bigger.
Pacifica looked up at the clock tower.
Perfect.
She took a deep breath, gave it her best and zapped the clock face.
A pair of eyes and a mouth popped on the clock, the hands of course being now a thin pointy French mustache.
The clock face was now a clock face.
This was going to be quicker than she thought.
Zap
The wooden blocks that made up a house came to life and sprouted a bunch of leafy branches.
The house was now a tree house.
Zap
The nearby ground was ground… into a mushy dust pulp.
Zap
All the windows on the street were replaced by doors and all doors were now windows.
Zap
No town would be complete without some chocolate rain, everypony loves chocolate rain.
A few tiny clouds drifted away and did their own thing.
A changeling, curious about the time slipped by Monty who wasn’t even paying attention anymore, he was amazed at what Pacifica could do, where the hell did she learn all that stuff?
The changeling stallion looked up at the clock tower in hopes of figuring out the time but instead he found a face looking down on him.

“What the hell? What’s wrong with that clock?”
To the Changeling’s surprise the clock replied, in a strong French accent

“What’s wrong wiz me? What’s wrong wiz you, don’t you know it’s rude to make fun of living beings? You don’t see me calling you a liquorice reject”

“Hey! I resent that”

“I resent you”

“I resent your face!”
A large drop of spit extended itself from the mouth of the clock and engulfed the disgusted changeling

“hahaha!”
Pacifica was still doing her thing.
The changeling tried to shake off the gooey frothy spit off of him, he was glistening.

“That’s it!”
The stallion put down his (wet) bag and conjured a slippery large wrench; he then proceeded to elevate himself with his wings to smash the face with the wrench.

“You’re gonna get it now!”
The changeling took a full swing at the clock’s glass skin
The clock parried the changeling’s blow with one of his moustaches.

“AHAHAAA! EN GARDE!”

“why you little-”
Thrust
Thrust
Parry
Thrust
Parry
Parry
CLONK
The changeling’s wrench flew out of his grasp and was now at the clock’s mercy

“Surrender!”

“Never you stupid broken clock!”

“Even a broken clock 'iz right twice a day!”
The clock thrust his moustaches to finish off his nemesis but the changeling evaded it perfectly and fled.

“You haven’t seen the last of me!”

“Ha! Running away, as expected of my adversary, coward!”
Moments later he returned with backup.
The clock gasped

“Mon dieu! Have you no pride as a warrior?”
The group of changelings were completely taken by surprise, when they heard their friend telling them to help him deal with an annoying ponysona they were expecting a rude changeling at most… not this.

“Did that clock just…“

“Are those…”

“Is that…”

“I think it is…”

“Guys! This… this pocketwatch insulted me and spat on me! Are you going to just stand there or are you going to help me?”

“Pocketwatch? POCKET WATCH? I AM NO POCKETWATCH!”
One of the stallions noticed what Pacifica was up to

“Hey guys! Look!”

“Not now Rory!”

“No, look I think that filly from Rose might be doing this, see?”
Rory pointed way down below at the street that now looked like something out of a show for little girls, in the middle of it all, Pacifica zipping and zapping away with her chaos magic.
The stallions realised that they had beef with the wrong thing.

“Where are you going! Come back and face me you… you cowards!”
Monty finally noticed what was going on and waved at Pacifica who was already exhausted.
The stallions nearly landed when Pacifica was already on the run, they noticed.
The stallions ran after her.
It didn’t take long for them to catch her, she was already drained out, plus she was a filly, they were fully grown stallions.

“You’d better explain yourself”
But Pacifica was as quiet as ever, trying to free herself from the grasp of the two stallions holding her by each front leg.
They dragged her all the way back to Rose’s stand, attracting a lot of attention on the way.
Monty was still on his way but he was too late, they were talking to Aunt Rose who was finding it hard to understand exactly what the angry stallions were saying, something about… having a swordfight with a clock?
Pacifica wasn’t going to have any of this, she was caught so she might as well go all out.
Pacifica roared with newfound power, blasted away the stallions (Rose of course unharmed) and went on a rampage.
Zap
Things began to fly off their place.
Zap
Other things just couldn’t take it and simply walked away.

“Get everypony! Catch the filly!”
The whole town in a matter of seconds surrounded Pacifica but she wasn’t going to go down without putting up a fight.
In the background, Rose and Monty were saying something about not harming her or talking this out but nopony was listening.
A blast of magic swirled the middle of the wide street, causing a whirlpool dragging in the scaffolding and neatly placed building materials, everything was now orbiting around Pacifica who was at the epicentre of the magical activity.
A stallion focused his magic on stunning Pacifica.
It was going to be a tricky shot, even if he manages to get her from this distance, he would be able to make her flinch at best.
He took the shot.
The magic beam slapped Pacifica on her cheek.
For a moment the magic was gone.
A moment was enough for everypony to pile up and incapacitate her.
Pacifica did all that she could but she was too worn out to take on a horde of changelings.

After a long discussion, it had been decided by a nearly unanimous vote (Rose of course being the only exception) that Pacifica was far too much of a danger for the town to afford to keep, it was high time she went back where she came from.
Rose had done everything she could to put the decision to a halt, she didn’t know why Pacifica did what she did, it must have been the cause of somepony else because Pacifica was a good and quiet filly, there was no way that she would do this on her own accord and besides, how was it even possible for such a small thing to have so much magic? It had to have been somepony else controlling her or something.
Rose and Monty were standing right next to Pacifica who at this point was too exhausted to even get up but was fully conscious nonetheless.

“Don’t you see? Something must've been controlling her!”
An elderly bearded changeling came out of the row of villagers surrounding them.

“I understand your concern Rose and maybe you’re right but we can’t risk another rampage, our project is risky enough as it is”

“But-“

“No buts Rose, I’m sorry but this is final, she will have to leave”
It was hopeless, there was no point of dragging this on, it was like hitting a head against a stone wall.

“If she goes out there all on her own, she’ll die… or worse, disappear from hunger”

“That is not our concern”
Monty looked at Pacifica… he really didn’t want to go, he loved living here, and Rose was a great aunt but he wasn’t going to leave Pacifica…

“She won’t go alone, I’ll go with her”
The elder changeling drew his attention to the youngster.

“Do not worry little one, you were not responsible for this, we will not exile you”

“I know”

“Oh?”
At this point, Monty was shaking with anger; Pacifica was just trying to find their family… that was something that the changelings of this stupid little town promised to do and never did…
Monty took a gulp of air, what he was about to say was going to piss off a lot of the townsfoalk.

“You’re all stupid buttfaces! I always thought that grown-ups are really clever and everything but now I see that you’re more babyish than me! if you want to be little foals then go and play with your stupid toy hammers, I will do what you should! I go where she goes!”
Everypony including Rose gasped; an entire town being told off by a small colt like Monty was unheard of.
Monty didn’t dare to open his eyes.
The clock’s voice could be heard echoing far off in the silence.

“He’s right you know!”

“Shut up! nopony asked you!” shouted in reply the stallion that was fighting with the clock face earlier.
Pacifica was burning up, she never had anypony stand up for her like that… she loved all the attention she was getting from Monty, for the first time she could really feel that he was there for her.
Pacifica covered her face, she was embarrassed about the fact that she couldn’t stop smiling and didn’t want anypony to see her.
The elder huffed, in his entire life he had never met a more troublesome pair.

“If you wish to follow her fate then we will not stop you, now go!”
Rose protested.
“Are you crazy? You can’t just throw these two out into the wild! I won’t allow it!”
“Please Rose, don’t make this harder for us, you’re such a nice mare”
“It’s too late now, I’m not going to leave them on their own, Steve will look after my shop while I’m gone, STEVE! I’M GIVING YOU A PROMOTION!”
“OKAY!”
“TAKE CARE OF THE STAND WHILE I’M GONE!”
“YES MA’AM!”
“STEVE!”
“YES???”
“DON’T SHOUT!!!”
“OKAY!!!”

“Now if you’ll excuse us, we have some packing up to do”
Everything had failed, Pacifica didn’t manage to do nearly as much chaos magic as she wanted to do and what’s worse, she was being exiled so even if Uncle does come, she won’t be here waiting for him.
But then why couldn’t she stop smiling?

“Are you all right dearie?”

“…”
Pacifica was too embarrassed to talk so she just nodded in silence… she will have to thank Monty and make it up to him, she really wanted to, she didn’t even need to have a reason for it.
Once Monty explained to Rose that they’re going to Ponyville (Pacifica still couldn’t get anything out of her mouth yet) they packed in a matter of minutes.
The townsfoalk initially refused to let them feed before they go but after a bit of haggling and getting a huge discount on nails, they agreed and let them have one last meal, the journey will be long and the towns on the way are far apart and so everypony (especially Pacifica who was already famished) needed to have their bellies as full as they can before they set out.
The aunt along with her niece and nephew changed into their pony counterparts, waved one last time at the townsfoalk who didn’t wave back and left.

Discord was in the middle of playing a fun game with one of the ponies he was currently talking to, he liked to call that game “where’s your face?”
Needless to say, the pony was losing pretty badly.

“So you wouldn’t say that you have seen a small changeling about this tall, named Pacifica?”
Now that was just silly, the faceless body stood up on its hind legs and crossed its front legs, how the hell was it going to give an answer if it hasn’t got a face?

“Well, if you’re not going to-“
A jitter came across Discord’s body.

“Oooohhh!”
Again, a jitter.

“What’s this?”
Suddenly an endless tingle crossed through the draconequus’s body.
Discord couldn’t stop scratching the itch.
He stopped.
Dropped.
And rolled.
But the itch only got bigger and bigger, finally reaching a climax and then, nothing.

“That’s interesting… somepony is having fun and didn’t invite me! Time to crash a party!”
Discord at this point really wanted to have this whole search out of the way but this opportunity might not ever happen again.
Discord took out a red gem, approached a wall and crouched in silence.
A minute later, a tornado came and blew him away in the direction of Saddle.

Author's Note

As some of you may or may not have noticed recently, I have done a few little changes to this fanfic, specifically as requested I have changed this fanfic to fit the whole series (or saga) in one go, The synopsis of each upcoming fanfic will be clearly separated and marked in the synopsis of this series and so will the chapters, At the first chapter of each new fanfic I will put in the title of the fanfic and will start the chapters all over again, that is, after the last chapter of this fanfic, there is going to be chapter 1 of the next one, marked as "title of new fanfic of series" chapter 1, and then chapter 2, chapter 3 etc...
The site registers all of this as one fanfic (and in a way it is one fanfic because what's a saga but a single story separated into segments?) and therefore none of you dear readers will have to worry on missing out any sequels or prequels to this series.

On another note, When I was writing the fight scene with the clock face, I had to stop a few times as I had one of those "what the buck am I writing" moments.

CHAPTER 27 (AKA: XOXO)

When Rose thought about spending time with the kids this wasn’t what she had in mind.
They had just passed the 10 mile mark on their travels, the flora becoming more and more lush, this is where the woods start.
Aunt Rose was going through a list of things that they could talk about, Pacifica was the quiet type, especially lately and Monty had long been used to that so he wouldn’t even bother striking a conversation at all so the sound of words were replaced by the sound of hoofsteps and pants.
To Monty’s surprise, the same Pacifica that would always trot far ahead of him now was trotting along very close to his side and seemed to be happy with it… overall she seemed in high spirits which surprised Monty considering what had just happened hours ago.

“Are… you all right?” Asked Monty.
Pacifica nodded energetically with a smile, she couldn’t help herself when she was close to him and she really wanted to be close to him now, whenever he would pick up the pace, so would she, whenever he’d slow down, she wasn’t far behind.

“You know, this is great, we’ll get to spend some time together and I’ll get to know you kids better!”
Monty took the chance to finally talk to somepony.

“We’re… well I’m from Maretropolis”

“Oh, really? My uncle lives there!”
The conversation suddenly died, Rose accidentally put herself into a corner, neither her not Monty could think of what to say next.

“I like Trisport” Monty started , he couldn’t think of anything else right now

“Trisport? Oh isn’t that the game when they fly and shoot from those big guns or something? That sounds dangerous”

“Nooo, it’s not like that, aunt Rose”
What was it with changelings and this sport recently, it’s like nobody heard or knew about it.

“Are you sure? I remember seeing one of them with a gun or something shooting at another one on a poster”

“Well… no… yeah… sort of”

“How do you play it?”
Monty was waiting for this question from the moment he met Pacifica, he’s been dying to tell her the rules and try and play it with her but he never found a good excuse to do so.

“Well… there’s like this big field, right? Like really big, it’s sort of a long square and stuff”

“That’s a rectangle my dear”

“Yeah, rectangle, and there are lines all over it right?”

“Lines, like what lines?”

“You know to divide the field for each team”

“How many teams play, three?” Because of the sport’s name, Rose assumed that it would have three teams playing.

“No, two teams play and they both have a half of the field, right?”

“OK…”

“And there are four different types of players, there are the runners, the chasers, the shooters and the flyers”

“So they use guns”

“Only the flyers, there’s one for each team, like the shooters and the runners, the shooters despite their name don't use guns, they use their horns to shoot magic”

“I see, so both teams have one of each”

“Yeah”

“What about the chasers?”

“Oh there are five of those for each team”

“All right… and what do each of those do?”

“The runners are supposed to run to the end of the opponent’s side of the field and cross a line”

“And what happens then?”

“The team gets a point and everypony comes back to the middle except for the flyer and the shooter”

“Where do they go?”

“They go to the end of their team’s field”

“Why?”

“Well, because the shooters are supposed to shoot the flyers, then the team gets 10 points and the fliers are supposed to shoot the shooters with the pegazooka and if they both go to the middle, the game would be too easy so they have to go far away from each other”

“Pegazooka?”

“That big gun thingy”

“Oh… and how many points does the team get when the flyers shoot the shooters?”
Monty chuckled, everypony knew that shooting the shooters doesn’t give the team any points!

“They don’t get a point”

“Then why do they shoot them?”

“Because the shooters are always Unicorns, right?”

“Right”

“And they use their magic to shoot at the flyers”

“All right”

“And the flyers have a pegazooka that has special magic bullets that take away some of the shooter’s magic when they’re hit”

“I see…”

“When the shooters of each team are out of magic and can’t continue, the game ends”

“Sounds like a dangerous game”

“Oh yeah and the chasers are supposed to catch the opponent’s runner before they get to the other side of the field, when they touch the runner, the runner has to return to the middle of the field”
Monty began to go through the things he mentioned to see if there’s anything he missed out.
There were a few things.

“The chasers cannot touch the shooters and the shooters cannot shoot anypony else except for the flyers, the flyers can only shoot at the shooters, the runners can’t touch each other too, if anypony breaks those rules, they are sent away and have to be replaced with another spare player, there are two spare players for the chasers and one spare player for the runners but no spare players for shooters and flyers and everytime a rule is broken, the opponent's team loses 5 points”
Monty was getting carried away, he was talking too much and too fast for Rose to follow.

“I’m sorry dearie but could you repeat that?”

“Which part?”

“Umm… the part when you say who can touch who”
Monty sighed, it was simple, how did she not get that?

“Ok… to make sure nopony cheats or hits the wrong player, only chasers can tackle or pin other chasers and runners, shooters can only shoot flyers and flyers can only shoot shooters, nopony else can touch or shoot anypony else”
That, Rose understood a little better.
Pacifica rolled her eyes, this conversation was so bizarre and out of place as if it were some sort of forced chapter in a book... no a book would be too well structured for this, more like... a fanfic, yeah, a badly written fanfic.

“And if anypony breaks those rules they change with a spare player, right?”

“Yeah… except for the shooters and flyers that don’t have spare players… there are also a lot of other rules like the flyers cannot touch the ground or be too high or nopony can leave the field and stuff like that”

“It must be a dangerous game, do players get hurt often?”

“Not usually, no. They have special suits that protect them, the runners have a speed suit that protects them from the chasers that have to wear rumble armour, it’s like a speed suit but heavier”

“And the shooter and flyer?”

“The flyer has a very light suit so they can fly fast and attatch their pegazooka when they need to evade the opponent’s shooters; the shooters are the only ones who don’t have a suit”

“That doesn’t sound fair”

“It’s because if they had a suit it would stop the magic bullets from the flyers from working on them”

“So this is your favourite game?”

“Yeah! I always played it with my friends at home!”

“And who were you playing as, The flyer?”
Monty looked down in disappointment

“I wish, I was an earth pony back at home and I could only be a chaser or runner, I always wanted to try the flyer, they’re awesome! But you need the pegazooka and they’re like reeealy expensive you know, so I never got one”
Now Rose had something to get for hearth’s warming eve or his birthday.

“Maybe if you’re a good colt, I’ll buy you one”
Monty’s hopes were raised incredibly high.

“Really?”

“But only if you’re a good nephew”

“YAY!”
Monty gave Aunt Rose a big hug.
Pacifica looked with envy at Rose, Monty always hugged her.

“What about you Pacifica? What do you like?”
Pacifica gave her aunt the silent treatment; she turned her head in the opposite direction pretending not to hear her.

“…”

“Come on dearie, don’t be sad, it’s not so bad, look, your older brother is having fun”
What did Rose just say?
Pacifica snapped.

“O…o… older b-brother… OLDER BROTHER???”

“Uhh… Aunt Rose..." Began Morty who was about to blow his new aunt's mind "...we’re not siblings”

“WHAAAT?”
Aunt rose didn’t expect to hear that, she never asked them about it because she just assumed they were siblings.
Pacifica went on rant mode.

“We’re cousins! Why would you think we’re siblings! we look nothing alike and if anything I’d be the older one, not him, he was the one always being so childish and I always have to get him out of trouble, and for your information, I’m like a year older than him! hmph!”
Pacifica puffed up and went up front at a cute angry stomp.
Rose suddenly understood what was going on and she instantly caught up to her.

“Pacifica, I’m sorry, you’re angry because you’re jealous, aren’t you?”
Pacifica halted… Rose knew? But how…

“I’m sorry, there’s no reason why you couldn’t hug as well”
Pacifica blushed, so Rose is fine with her Hugging Monty?

“Go on”
She smiled shyly, Rose was a better aunt than Pacifica thought, she totally understood her! And not only that but she’s also fine with her and Monty hugging!

“Well, what are you waiting for?”
Pacifica couldn’t hug him just like that, she started panting heavily with excitement.

“Oh, all right if you won’t… Monty-”
Pacifica squeed, Rose was totally going to make him hug her!

“-Don’t be jealous, all right?”
What?
Rose gave Pacifica a bear hug

“There there… remember, you can ALWAYS hug your aunt when you want to… you don’t have to be jealous of your cousin”
Pacifica’s hopes had smashed like a plate falling from a clumsy pony's grasp.
For the rest of the day Pacifica was back to her usual self, trotting alone far up ahead in silence.
By nightfall, the Changelings had reached the nearest town.
Rose found a small inn for them to stay at and got two rooms, one for herself and one for Pacifica and Monty.
Everypony was tucked into their respective beds tired and eager to fall asleep.
Of course Pacifica and Monty were in their own beds this time.

“Monty?”

“I thought you were mad and you weren’t talking to us”

“…”
Monty was mad at Pacifica this time, she was being weird again for no reason.

“Why do you hug Aunt Rose so much?”
Monty turned around to look at Pacifica, that was a weird question to ask.

“I don’t know… I just like to hug, maybe because mum would never have time to hug me at home?”
Why did Monty have to hug Aunt Rose? Couldn’t he hug her instead?

“I don’t like it when you hug Aunt Rose”

“Why?”

“I… I just don’t, Ok? Stop doing it”

“But I like hugging and she’s so nice to us and everything”

“Still, I don’t want you to hug her”
Monty got off his bed.

“No! I like hugging so I’ll hug auntie whenever I’ll want to! You can’t tell me what to do!”
That’s it, Pacifica also got off her bed and looked straight at Monty, her furious gaze piercing him.

“FINE! IF YOU LIKE HUGGING SO MUCH THEN I’LL HUG YOU!”
Pacifica ran into him and at full force and knocked him off balance.
The two changelings fell to the ground, Pacifica embracing Monty as hard as she could, pressing her face against his chest.
For an eternity the two savoured the moment, nothing had ever felt as important as this very second.

“I’ll… I’ll hug you every day from now on so… don’t hug anypony else, okay?” begged Pacifica in a muffled voice, Monty felt every word vibrate clearly on his chest.

“…”

“Please…”

“Okay… b-but you’ll have to hug me every morning!”
Pacifica nodded.

“And before going to bed!”
Pacifica nodded again.

“And… and… whenever you… want t-to…”
Pacifica tightened her embrace around Monty in a reply.
Tomorrow was going to be a new day for everypony.

The morning sun had risen to blind a sleeping Clock face.
Saddle town was torn upside down and the changelings had to rebuild everything all over again, everything that they have been working on in the past few days had been destroyed and the discount on the nails wasn’t a good enough consolation prize.
The changelings reluctantly got up from their beds and got ready to start working… yet again, in fact not only they were back to square one but they also had to fix some damage done to the houses, trim the branches off that tree house, bag the fire-spitting plant-in-a-pipe, wash away the ground pulp, replace the windows with doors, replace the doors with windows and blow away the chocolate rainclouds.
All in all it seemed like a good day for a fresh start but unfortunately for the changelings, today’s weather forecast, was once again chaos.
A Discorded whirlwind brought a surprise with it.
The God of chaos had finally found the source of that magic surge he felt yesterday.
He looked at yesterday’s aftermath.
It was amazing, Discord was like a little kid and this was the candy shop.

“Oh my! Is the road… and the windows… the clock…”
Discord gasped, he couldn’t contain his excitement, he was flying here and there looking at every single little thing, the tools hiding under the shed, the ingenious houses, it was incredible, he was speechless.
Discord looked up.
Tears of joy and happiness trickled down his grinning face.
Two little clouds were floating, enriching the town with chocolate rain.
“CHOCOLATE RAIN! I can die happy now!”
Discord was so moved that he had now words… when he finds whoever did this he will give them one big hug and a wet kiss, he didn’t care who it was, they deserved it.
Discord couldn’t help it, he burst into song… along with the rest of the entire town, the houses, the clock, the tools, everything except for the changelings living there were now singing.

What is this, all that chaos that I see
A soul is here, much alike to me
Has provided needed betterment
For this tiny lousy settlement
Come out, come out wherever you are
I have travelled so long, wide and far
To finally find somepony with whom I’m on par
I’m Discord the god of chaos, who are you?

Discord awaited for the voice of the culprit to sound but heard nothing.
That was strange, Discord tried again.

I’m discord the god of chaos, who are you?
Still nothing, this made Discord angry

“I’m sorry, didn’t you know it’s rude not to join when you hear somepony randomly burst into song?” the draconequus replied to the nonexisting culprit
Still no reply.
Something was fishy here and it wasn’t the fish walking on the roads.

“Well then, I see it’s time to ask a few questions once again…”
Discord was livid, nopony has fun without him having a piece of that cake, he wasn’t in a mood to horse around so the changelings here had better make this easy for him or else they’ll find out just why ponies call him a GOD.

CHAPTER 28 (AKA: Food shopping)

The morning passed like nothing out of the ordinary for Pacifica and Monty despite them being all sore from a whole night spent sleeping on the floorboards of the room.
It was time for food shopping.
Monty and Pacifica procured and excessive amount of emotional food when they went food shopping with aunt Rose, food shopping of course being an age old tradition practiced by changelings, where one pretends to go out to the city in order to buy food at the stands whilst secretly feeding little by little from the unsuspecting masses.
Once they were ready, they ventured deep into the woods in order to cut straight through to their destination.
It was a dangerous path for two little ponies.

“I told you already dearie, we can’t afford a pegazooka right now”

“But you proooomised!”

“And I will get you one some day”
Monty was throwing a little tantrum right now, Rose should have never let him step a hoof into that blasted store in town.

“Please, pleeease!”

“I’m sorry Monty, but nay means nay”
Monty began to moan and was now getting not only on Rose’s nerves but also on Pacfica’s
Pacifica gave him a smack on the head.

“OW! What the hell Pacifica!”

“!!!”

“I thought you were on my side, you know…”
Monty was referring to last night.
Pacifica froze for a moment, she wasn’t sure where they stood… were they a couple? It’s not like they talked about this in a direct sort of way, but right now that was beside the point, Monty was being a big baby.

“Hey, Pacifica, you there?” Monty waved in front of Pacifica’s field of view.
Pacifica gave Monty a violent bump.

“W-what the hell?!?”
Monty bumped her back.

“!!!”
How could he! You can’t hit fillies! Everypony knows that!
Pacifica bucked the rude colt, who payed her back not a moment later.
One hooked the other in a luchadore grab and the black ball began to rumble loudly throwing up a thick sheet of leaves and a glaze of fresh onyx soil that smacked an angered Rose on the cheek.

“WOULD YOU TWO STOP IT!?!”
The aunt’s roar, took over the entire woods.
Monty and Pacifica stopped at once as ordered for there is nothing more terrifying than a gentle changeling who is angry.
Something roared back.
Except that.

“What was that?” Asked Monty

“Something we shouldn’t find out” Replied Pacifica

“Time to go dearies”
Nopony argued with that decision, everypony mobilised in a tight triangle, and got going.

“Where are we going to go now?” asked Monty.
Rose pointed at the nearby hills, this wasn’t the first time she had been in this situation, she was a tough Mare and it was time to prove it.

“Whatever that was, the best thing to do right now is to hope for some sort of cave in those hills”

“There’s no guarantee that the caves will be safe” Began Pacifica
But the trio was already running towards the hills, the ground beginning to slope, a boulder here and there.
A bare grassy field opened up before the changelings, revealing a cave conveniently placed a hundred feet ahead of them or so.
Rose smiled; this was exactly what they needed.
An overwhelming stench grabbed everypony’s nostrils.
Rose knew what that meant, they had to hurry.

“They’re close! We need to go now, and don’t look back!”
Pacifica and Monty galloped, leading in their aunt’s hoofsteps.
Moments later a loud rumble smashed through the woods and into the field.
Rose looked back, it was as she suspected.
At least 4 packs of furious timberwolves were after them and they were catching up quickly, it was mating season for timberwolves so during this time of the year they are especially territorial aggressive and active.
There was no way they will make it.
Rose stopped in her tracks and turned around, ready to stall, there was no way she will make it but there was a chance that she might get the two packs to finish each other off after they’re done with her.
Monty and Pacifica stopped right next to their aunt.

“You go dearies, I’ll keep them busy!”
Pacifica wasn’t intending on seeing anypony else dying anytime soon.

“You stay, we stay!”

“Yeah! I’m not going to let you die!” Monty replied.
Rose chuckled.

“You children underestimate Wild Rose!”

“But-‘

“No buts! Get your rumps into the cave! NOW!”

“All right timberwolves, time to show you what this does”
Rose detached a long steel staff from the side of her bag, her mouth firmly gripping one end, and with a swift swing she revealed a scythe’s ribbed blade.
Pacifica and Monty were now safe in the cave, unable to take their eyes off from their aunt.

“What is she doing?”

“…”

“Is that a… scythe?”
The first wave hit Rose but she was ready, just like old times, she started her dance.
With one powerful “swoosh” a timberwolf shattered, his body parts hailing powerfully on others, throwing them off balance.
About a dozen or so timberwolves were already lying on the ground, but Rose didn’t stop there, she went for the kill and viciously stabbed one… two… 3, 4, 5 timberwolves, smashing them apart.
The pack had no chance.
Unfortunately for Rose the next pack came too soon, a set of wooden teeth dug themselves into Rose’s ribs but she had a fang of her own.
Rose in great pain pinned down the timberwolf with the scythe, using the rest of the momentum she vaulted over the pile of wood and cicked the buck out of the nearest carnivore.
Rose was putting up one hell of a fight but unfortunately, she was gradually losing her strength as there were more and more packs surrounding her.
Pacifica had to do something.

“We need to help her!”

“How?”

“No idea!”
Pacifica started to nervously trot within the cave, pointlessly trying to look for something.

“Pacifica, I don’t think you’ll find-“
Monty didn’t manage to finish what he wanted to say because Pacifica had tripped on something that wasn’t a rock.
It was a rumble suit.
Pacifica got up quickly and examined the suit.
It just happened to be her size; it was as if somepony had left it there for her to discover it.
Pacifica without delay began to put on the suit.

“Wait, what are you doing?”

“Helping Rose”

“But the timberwolves-“

“-Won’t do anything”
Pacifica knocked at her chest to show Monty just how hard the suit was, she should be protected for the most part.

“But there’s no helmet”
Pacifica didn’t care, she already had to deal with Monty’s mum and she wasn’t going to deal with Rose, she just couldn’t do that to Monty.
Pacifica charged at the pack.
She charged as fast as she could.
To her surprise, Pacifica realized that she could charge faster than she ever could.
Much faster.
A black bolt announced itself with a familiar crack that comes with breaking the sound barrier.
Pacifica had little to no time to react as she was about to hit into Rose.
She dug her hooves into the ground anchoring herself deep inside into the rocky soil.
A powerful wind swept away everything in front of her, annihilating any remaining timberwolves and throwing Rose far ahead of her.
Pacifica spat out an abundance of earth and rocks in her mouth.

“What…”
Was a rumble suit supposed to do this?

“A rumble suit isn’t supposed to do that” mumbled Monty to himself from within the cave.
It wouldn’t be fair if Monty didn’t do anything either, who knows, maybe if there’s a rumble suit lying around then there might just be a pegazooka somewhere nearby, a really dumb logic but hey it beats not doing anything.
Much to Monty’s surprise, he was right.
A huge, metallic pegazooka lay propped against the cave wall.
Monty hoof-pumped the air

“Yessss!”
He was going to kick flank wit this thing, maybe if the suit Pacifica was using had special abilities, this one might too.
Pacifica was already kicking flank for the both of them, sweeping away hordes of timberwolves, Rose trying to double the the bodycount.
Monty picked up the pegazooka, it was much heavier than he expected it to be.
He tried aiming at the timberwolves.
No chance, that thing was so heavy that aiming with it required an extra amount of concentration and strength.
How the hell was he going to fly with that thing?
But there was no time to play around, with a great feat of strength he gradually flew high up in the air to get a good aim at the targets.
He aimed.
He pulled the trigger.
Nothing.
But it was all over already, the pieces of timberwolves were reattaching themselves and the packs were retreating back to the woods.
Monty landed next to the other two changelings.

“What was that?” asked Rose, looking at Pacifica’s rumble suit and Monty’s pegazooka.

“…”
Pacifica shrugged, she knew as much as Rose did.

“We found these things in the cave” began Monty

“They must be somepony’s”

“I don’t think so, there wasn’t anypony around… does this… mean that I can keep this?”
Monty was getting all pumped up again, maybe the thing was broken but its the closes thing he ever got to a pegazoka
Rose knew how much Monty was going to nag her if she wouldn’t let them keep those things, and besides, those items are expensive, and if what the kids were saying was true, these were just lying around.

“Well… I guess you could keep them, finders keepers, no?”
Monty literally flew up in joy, his aunt was the best.

“Thankyouthankoythankyou!”
He swooped down and gave Rose a big hug.
Pacifica gasped in disbelief.
It was only a second later that he realised that he shouldn’t have done that, he let his aunt go as if Rose were made of lava and he jumped away from her to a safe distance.
Monty looked at Pacifica who felt betrayed

“I-I’didn’t mean to-“
A loud rumble followed by an aria of cracks announced to the changelings that the timberwolves weren’t done with them yet.
Every single timberwolf was gnawing away at a nearby tree at the fringe of the woods, smashing it to pieces and splinters.

“What are they doing?” asked Monty

“I don’t know” replied Rose, timberwolves had never done such a thing before.

“We should go” Announced Pacifica, she propped a limping Rose on her and gave Monty a vengeful look for doing what he did.

“I think it’s too late” Monty pointed at where the timberwolves were.
It was as if the whole forest was one whole big lego field, every single piece of wood, whether it was from the timberwolves or from the freshly cut down trees, was magically attatching itself to make a monster that would easily rival an ursa major.
The giant thing raised its left paw and with a colossal might, smacked the changelings.
Monty got lucky, he was far enough to make it, he flew back up in the air to gain some distance.
Something was opposing the giant’s paw.
It was Pacifica who was barely managing to keep her and Rose from being squashed.
The timberwolf retrieved its paw to look at what was all the fuss about.
Pacifica’s hind quarters were embedded in the rocky soil and she couldn’t get out, this time, she was stuck.
The timberwolf began to pounce on her deeper and deeper into the soil.
Monty had to do something.
He pulled the trigger.
Nothing.
He tried again.
Nothing.

“Come on, work!”
Nothing, once again.
Out of all the things, Monty had to get a broken pegazooka.
The timberwolf got ready, he pulled back, and sprung high up in the air, ready to belly flop the changelings.

“COME OOOOOOOON!”
Monty focused all of his energy hope and magic into that damn metal thing and pulled the trigger.
Click.

Author's Note

I have a few important announcements to make:

1
Firstly and most importantly, an apology, I wanted to apologize to you all for having taken such a long time to make this chapter, you were probably looking forward to the next chapter for some time.
The truth is that a while ago, when I was publishing a chapter a day, I was actually over at my grandmother's, helping her out with stuff, how does this relate in any way? well she has a big drinking problem and always says hurtful things, and so this time I decided to just write instead of spending time with her and talking, that is why I managed to get so far so quick with these chapters, however near the end, she got drunk (once again) and before I left, she said a lot of hurtful things to me such as: "you're dead to me, I have no grandson" etc etc... I'm not going to make a list here.
Needless to say, I had to take a few days' break from everything to get back into reality, it's not everyday you hear something like that, in the end I told her that she won't ever see me or hear from me until she fixes her alcohol problem for good... a tough decision and it took a while to get over it.
However this wasn't the only reason why this chapter took me so long to write, this is the chapter where Morty and Pacifica get their items and I was having a problem in figuring out just how they manage to get them, all together I wrote at least 3 versions of this chapter, in one of them, Derpy accidentally drops the pegazooka and the rumble suit, in another, they buy it in a store while they were food shopping, but in both cases it seemed too forced and unnatural. in the end I stuck with this version.

2
And now for the second announcement.
Now that I am back in the city, I have stuff to do, that is, my job, uni, etc... HOWEVER this doesn't mean that I will be posting chapters at a random intervals, I will be posting a MINIMUM of two chapters every week and I'm sticking to it.

See you in the next chapter!

CHAPTER 29 (AKA: The reunion)

Discord could sense another surge of chaos magic, this time it was close.
The draconequus accelerated, flying over a green shaggy canvas of flora.

“Now where is that blasted Pacifica?”
Another surge of Chaos passed through Discord’s body

“Oooh, my chaos-sense is tingling”
It seemed to have come from a grassy field up ahead.
Discord zapped above the field to be greeted by some changelings duking it out with timberwolves.
A bowler hat and a monocle popped on Discord who conjured a teacup.

“Why, it would be rude to interrupt”
Not moments later the Timberwolves began to retreat

“Oh what a shame, and I just barely started my elevenses”
But before Discord could think of a flashy way to enter the stage, the timberwolves pulled out their last card onto the table.
The forest folded into an origami of wood and trunks.

“Well, that escalated quickly”
The timbergiant swatted the changelings.
One of them managed to fly out of danger and he seemed to be holding some sort of… gun.
The Timberwolf revealed the crater with still alive changelings, if it didn’t work this time, it might work the next, so the timberwolf giant began to relentlessly pounce the earth but not for long, the colossus retracted and bunny hopped right above its targets.
It was time Discord made an entrance.
He popped on a scientist’s robe and 2 pairs of goggles, both on his head.

“I’ve always wondered of the consequences regarding the short-term exposure of wood to an overabundance of chaos magic…” Stated Discord as he began to rub his hands micheviously
A thick syrupy ball of chaos was taking form and shape in Discord’s claws, the energy surging though his body, the current being rapidly pumped up to dangerous levels.
The hellish concoction was ready, alternating though this and countless other realities not being able to make up its mind, changing weight colour shape, smell…
And now for something to hit it with.
A baseball bat perhaps? of course not an ordinary bat, the only material durable enough to deal with this level of chaos would be a baseball bat of biblical proportions and so not a moment later discord was holding a baseball bat made from the bible’s pages (the old testament to be more precise, that stuff is hardcore)
Discord looked directly at you.

“Don’t ask how it works kid, it just does”
The God of chaos got into position and threw the ball high up in the air.
Suddenly a blast of chaos magic of biblical proportions disintegrated the wooden carnivore along with a generous amount of woodland acres, leaving an oval crater.
There wasn’t even any ash left to fall to the ground.
The ball was still in the air as Discord hadn’t hit it yet; somepony jumped the gun and did the job for him.
Discord looked at amazement at the damage until he finally identified the source.
It was none other than Monty himself.
How the heck did something so small do so much damage?
The ball bonked the god of chaos on his head, and bounced into his free hand that started to burn.
Discord began to plop the ball of energy from hand to hand as if it were a hot potato, but then he stopped.

“Just kidding!”
Discord consumed the delicious slime ball with a loud slurp.

“But more importantly…”
Discord swooped down to the changelings, the one with the gun had already landed and was trying to excavate the one in the black armour.
This was it, that filly Discord had been looking for, the one who did a wonderful job on chaosing that one town, it was all her, that tiny… insignificant little equine body.
Monty was still trying to pull her out.
Discord rolled his eyes, this way they were going to be here all night…

“Let me do this, Leroy”
Before Monty noticed the figure behind him, the draconequus was already in his place… with one powerful smash of his hoof on the ground, Pacifica popped out like a Champaign bottle cork and smacked the soil.
Rose was in bad shape but was well enough to be standing on her own and that, she did.

“And you would be?” began Rose

“Oh? Don’t you know me?”

“No”
Discord gave her a shiny coin with the profile of his face engraved on one side.

“Well?”

“Well what?”

“Don’t you recognise me now?”
Rose looked at the face on the coin and then at Discord and shook her head.

“Hmmm… How about now?”
Discord turned his profile to her so that it matched the one on the coin perfectly.
Rose nodded her head.

“Oh yeah… I still don’t know who you are”

“OH COME O-“
Something squeezed Discord’s waist in a bear hug.
It was none other than Pacifica and this time it was Monty who gasped but she didn’t care, she spent all this time looking for her uncle and yet it was him who found her.
Discord wasn’t sure how to react to this; nopony had ever been so happy to see him.

“HEY! Pacifica! What the hell?!?”
Monty was outraged, first Pacifica is mad at him for hugging somepony else and then she goes and does exactly that… who is this… long snake-goat thing anyway?

“Pacifica, I presume?”
Pacifica nodded.

“And you were the one that did all that chaos magic back in that town?”
Pacifica nodded again.

“Not bad… who taught you all that?”

“…”

“The silent type, huh?”

“Do you know him, dearie?” asked Rose

“My uncle, Discord”

“Wha- no, I’m not your uncle”
Pacifica squeezed tighter.

“Oh, wait you’re squee-“
Pacifica squeezed tighter.

“Say it”

“I can’t-“

“Say it”

“Let g-“

“Say it!”
Discord couldn’t take it anymore.

“UNCLE!”
Monty was puzzled.

“So… this is the uncle we were going to visit?”

“I’m not her uncle”

“He’s my uncle”

“Not uncle”

“Uncle”

“Not uncle”

“Uncle”

“Not uncle”

“Uncle”

“…”

“I can’t believe I fell for that”

“I learned it from you”

“Awww… you’re like the daughter I will never have”

“I hate to be the one to spoil the moment dearies but-“
Rose showed everypony her scars and the gash on her side, it wasn’t fatal but it was bleeding pretty badly

“Oh, that’s no problem”
Discord clicked his fingers and materialised a Band-Aid wrapped around Rose’s wound.
Rose wasn’t too happy with this; she would rather have it treated with magic rather than just covering it.

“I would prefer if-”
But discord interrupted.

“-What’s that? Band-aids heal everything? Yes they do! and now for something completely different”
It was time they gate-crashed Canterlot.

“No, nononono, no, I won’t let that happen”
Queen Chrysalis may be Mark’s queen but if she thought she could just throw Pacifica into danger just like that she had another thing coming.

“I’m sorry, but this is the only way” began Celestia

“Why not have a fully grown changeling infiltrate the enemy’s troops? Why is that a problem?”
Chrysalis explained once again.

“Nopony considers children as a potential threat, she is small and will be invisible, the perfect infiltrator”

“I refuse, get an adult changeling instead”
Celestia was going to have to reason with him.

“We have no adult changelings, you are the only changeling around and you’re the only one that has to stay here and tend to the machine”

“No, it’s not happening and that’s that“

‘That is not what we agreed on, Mark” stated Celestia

“That’s right Princess, we haven’t agreed on endangering Pacifica, I’m sorry but she’s my responsibility”

“So is your kind Mark, believe me when I say that if there were another solution, we wouldn’t be here right now”

“Don’t make me choose between her and my kind, you need me to build-“
This was pointless, they were banging their heads against a wall… once again, Queen Chrysalis was going to have to deal with this.

“ENOUGH! KNOW YOUR PLACE CHANGELING! I AM YOUR QUEEN AND YOU WILL DO MY BIDDING!”
The room darkened and everything in it began to rattle.
Mark was shocked, Chrysalis sure lived up to her name…
A furious Mark stampeded out of the room.

“Chrysalis, we don’t need make things worse by shouting”

“A queen has to make herself known and assert herself among her subjects Celestia, he will help us regardless of whether he agrees to it or not”

“And how can you be so sure of that?”

“Because he wouldn’t have come to Canterlot if he didn’t care about his kind”

“I don’t approve of this, Chrysalis”

“You don’t approve of many things, my dear”

The rumble of hoofsteps and clanking metal was smashing across Canterlot’s hallways; the time of the demonstration was coming close.
A sea of gold marched out from each door and crevice of the city, onto the peak of the mountain, the army’s shine creating a warning light visible across the whole of Equestria, letting the enemy know that it’s high time they pulled themselves together and fought back, if it’s a war they want, it’s a war they’ll get.

Author's Note

Dear readers, I have decided that I will post a chapter each monday and thursday... look forward to the next one guys!

also: things are beginning to slowly come to an end but don't worry, already got a few ideas for the next part of this saga, and here is where you guys come in, specifically, I am giving you guys the opportunity to choose what you want the next fanfic from this saga to focus on, here are the possibilities:
1 - continue the adventures of Pacifica and Monty from where this left off.
2 - make a chronological prequel focusing on Pacifica's parents and the series of events that lead to their death.
Both stories will be made either way but you guys get to choose in which order.

CHAPTER 31 (AKA: The calm before the storm)

Deep in the Woodland sea, not too far off from where Monty and Pacifica were attacked, a small organised group of changelings, hell bent on bringing down the injustice of ponykind were hiding in their own personal cave, they had managed to successfully bring down the pony summit and stir things up, time for the next plan.

“Sir! The new report has come in”
The leader of the group retreated from the current discussion among his comrades for a report that was much more important than anything right now.

“Well? What is it?”

“I’m afraid that Canterlot had put its army on guard, they also seem to be mobilising, I believe that they may intend on striking us down”

“What? But how do they know where we are located?”

“There are speculations sir, some believe that they do not know where we are and that the army’s purpose is to… cleanse the cities”
This was the last straw, an entire army going from city to city and rooting out every single changeling? This was exactly why this group was set up.

“How much time do we have?”

“A few days at best, the army seems to be mostly ready, what are your orders sir?”

“There’s only one thing left to do at this point, infiltration is out of the question, by now they probably set up barriers”

“So what can we do?”

“We have an army of our own, time to use it, dispatch a few of our members for recruitment, tell them to look for smiths and anypony experienced in battle, the inexperienced ones will come in handy as help in forging our weaponry”

“Yes sir, right away sir”
If they want a war, they’ll get one; it’s time to for the Blood of the Innocent to make their next move.

The last and final day of peace dawned upon the golden Canterlot skyline, Monty and Pacifica having finally rested for a good while in the royal suites, of course due to Monty’s little tantrum, they had both been placed in one room.
This was a nice break from the usual adventures they were having, it was something they needed before the infiltration begins.
Pacifica however wasn’t too happy, Both, Uncle Discord and Mark seemed different than usual, Uncle Discord was excused as she was familiar with the uncle from her timeline, not this one but Mark… it was as if she were watching him from a television, no matter how close she got to him he still felt distant… of course she could still feel the connection but it was considerably weaker now.
There was no point in further pondering over any of this if she is just going to stay in bed.
“You Okay Pacifica?” Asked Monty.

“…”

“Come on, you can tell me”

“…”
Pacifica felt that it was too personal to tell Monty, they might be close but they’re not THAT close.
Monty was already used to Pacifica’s quiet times, she’s been having them more and more often these days.

“I’ll go and check up on our gear, all right?”

“…”
Monty was up and ready in no time, he was already getting used to the Palace grounds… perhaps this time he won’t get lost again, he changed into his pony form (everypony agreed that it were better that Pacifica and Monty keep a low profile for now) and trotted across the wide stone hallways.
Left, right, left, left, right, across, third door to the left.
Inside, a plethora of scientific instruments and various bubbly substances.
In the middle of it all, Twilight Sparkle, experimenting on the Pagazooka and Rumble suit which were laid out on a metal table.

“Hi Twilight”
Twilight was much too focused to even notice Mark let alone hear him.
Mark approached the purple pony and tapped on her shoulder, her heart practically jumped out of her throat and unwillingly a magical surge as a defence mechanism teleported her exceptionally high at the peak of the hanging chandelier in the room.
Twilight, not expecting to be on top of the chandelier couldn’t keep up with the sudden necessity to keep balance and fell to the floor.

“Hi Twilight”

“Hi Monty…”

“Are you going to get up?”
Twilight held out her hoof whilst on the floor.

“Just… a moment… what is it Monty?”

“I just came to ask about our stuff”

“Oh, your magical items?”

“Yeah”

“They are most interesting, they seem to characterise with a particular magical field, most unusual”

“Magical field?”

“It means that they’re magic”

“Well duh, I know that, they’re magical items, right?”

“True but usually Magical items don’t contain magic of their own and when they do it’s only a limited amount”

“I don’t get it”

“Think about it this way, magical items are like batteries, most of those items need magic from an external source to activate, like a battery if you want it to work you need to fill it with a charge, and some are like batteries which are already full of this magic but when it’s used up you need to refill them with that magic, however these two items are different”

“How?”

“They not only contain magic but they also seem to produce it, it makes no sense, only living beings can produce magic… there’s also one other thing I need to test out, and you came just in time”

“Test out what?”
Twilight grinned, it was a grin of a mad scientist looking at its prey.

“Wait, wha- no, stop! HEEEL-“

Mark revealed his nearly completed machine to Pacifica.

“Well, what do you think?”

“…”

“Isn’t it obvious? It’s an emotional compressor, it takes a few emotions and compresses them, lets them grow inside for later use, it’ll solve the entire food crisis for our kind!

“…”

“I know that it’s a long shot but it’s either that or war, you saw what happened in Maretropolis…”
Pacifica stepped back a little, avoiding eye contact with Mark.

“I really wish you’d tell me what happened back there, I know something did, you can’t hide it from me, you know…”
Talk about hypocrisy, Mark was also hiding something away from her, for the first time in her life, she felt that she couldn’t trust him, not until he explains to her what happened to him.

“…”

“I told you already, I’m fine”

“…”
Pacifica had this conversation with him at least a dozen times already and it always ended the same way, she wasn’t going to bang her head against a wall.
Pacifica walked away; she might as well spend some time with Uncle Discord or Aunt Rose instead.
The secret portal closed itself with Pacifica on the other side.
The emptiness in Mark’s chest was getting greater by the minute.
Not long until it happens, Mark just hoped that Pacifica will be fine.
He needed a break; perhaps he will give Rose a visit.

In one of the countless rooms, Rose lay resting, she was feeling much better with all that top of the shelf medical attention she’s been getting all thanks to the benevolent Alicorn Princess and the frequent visits from Mark were the cherry on top.
Speak of the devil.

“Hey” greeted Mark

“Hi Mark!” replied Rose from her bed

“How are you doing?”

“Oh, you know me, it takes more than a few timberwolves to-“

“Bring down Wild Rose, I know… you seem much better, did they tell you when they can let you go?”
Rose giggled seductively, may the games begin.

“Oh? Could you be wanting by any chance to ask me out?”

“Mmmmaybe”

“Well I don’t know if I’d accept”

“Is that so?”
Rose nodded, getting closer to Mark.

“There’s only one way to find out”

“I suppose I have some spare time after all of this blows over…”

“And?”

“And… I was thinking if you’d want to do something together sometime”

“I don’t know… Working in my store, taking care of the kids, I’ve been busy lately”

“You mean my kids”

“Oh, suddenly they’re your kids, you’re cute if you think they’re yours, I’m not giving them up easily without a fight”

“I’m not afraid to get rough”
Rose came within breath’s reach to Mark.

“I’m sure you don’t… well I suppose you could come join us sometime, I promised the kids I’d go with them to a Trisport game when all of this is done”
Could Mark have misread? He thought that she wanted to go out with him on a date, not a friendly outing with the kids.

“I’m sorry, but… I sort of thought that you wanted to…”

“Yeah?”
Here goes.

“…Go on a date”

“I never said I didn’t want to”

“But you just said that-“

“If you want to get to me you have to prove yourself to the kids first”

“Oh, I see how it is”

“A mare like me likes being chased after”

“I’ll have you know I was the fastest colt in school”

“We’ll see about that”

“Have you found anything, Luna?”
Celestia looked at her little sister who was intensely scanning the land with her telescope in her observatory.

“It is as we had predicted Dear sister, the changelings are making an army of their own”

“Where?”

“At the woodland sea not an hour’s trot from where Discord found the children”

“Are you certain?”

“Yes, they have made a valiant effort to make themselves known to us”
Celestia squinted her eyes at a small black dot far off in the distance beyond the mountains.

“I see… I shall inform Pacifica and Monty at once, we have no time to waste.
This was it, no more games.

Author's Note

Had one heck of a translation to do last week which is why I didn't manage to make a chapter for Thursday, I'm truly sorry for that, job comes a a priority I'm afraid.
This doesn't mean that I have been just sitting idly by, I was also working on the first chapter of this fanfic, it was something that has been bothering me for a long time, I am dissatisfied with it and so I'm doing a remake.
Don't worry though, it's the same thing but in a different form so you're not missing out on anything the only thing I did was have the explanation at the beginning in the form of a conversation between Queen Chrysalis and another character, if you come back and read it carefully you might notice something familiar about what Chrysalis says, I will post it today as soon as I'm done with it, in the meantime enjoy this new chapter!
Speaking of which, I just finished and uploaded it, go check it out!

One last thing:
Yes, I try to post the chapters every monday and thursday but keep in mind the timezones, I live in poland, that's GMT+1 so if you're living on the other end of the world that might be a bit of a difference in time for you.

See you this thursday!

CHAPTER 32 (AKA: The de-monsteration)

„Don’t move”

„I’m not!”

„If you wouldn’t move this would already be on”

“Well I’m sorry if I’m ticklish”

“There”
Twilight had finally put the helmet on Monty, it was time to test out the effect that Monty has on this Pegazooka as he seemed to be the only one able to activate it, much like with Pacifica and the Rumble Suit.

“Try using it”
The purple unicorn threw the Pegazooka on his hooves; Monty nearly fell off the table with the sudden weight.

“Shoot at the target”
Twilight pointed at a distant dot far off in the corner of the rectangular room.

“I don’t know…”

“Just shoot”

“Fine”
Monty did his best at aiming and pulled the trigger.
CLICK
Nothing.

“Well, where is it?”

“I can’t”

“What do you mean you can’t? Just do what you did in the woods; just remember to hold back on the magic”

“Yeah but there, it just… happened you know?”

“Happened?”

“Yeah, I tried a bunch of times to shoot but it didn’t work like now…”

“But that one time it worked… was anything different?”

“Hmmm… well we were being attacked by the giant timberwolf and I aimed and… well just shot”

“Hmmm… maybe this thing is activated by something, perhaps a magical switch? Try to hit the pegazooka with your magic”
Monty focused, he zapped the thing with a jolt of his magic, to their surprise the item began to glow and in a flash it was gone, in its place, a golden pendant of a door with half a sapphire on one side.

“Well… that’s new” said Twilight.

“I think I’ve seen this before…”
Twilight took a brief look at the readings from her machines.

“Interesting… it seems that this item resonates with your magical frequency”

“What does that mean?”

“It means that you and only you can use this, it’s as if somepony made these items just for you two…”
Monty looked at the swinging pendant that he was holding in front of him.

“Do you think you could change it back?”

“Maybe…”
Monty focused his magic once again and in no time at all a large Pegazooka clonked down on the stone floor.

“Well, now that we got that out of the way, we just need to figure out how to use it”

“I told you already, it works whenever it feels like it”

“I might have an idea on how to make it work”

“How?”

“These items seem to resonate with you two, maybe they react to your emotional state, what did you feel when you activated it in the woods?”
Monty frowned as he looked back to the recent past.

“I felt-“
The doors burst open, Luna approached the two, Pacifica stood in the background.

“Twilight… Monty… I hate to interrupt this discussion, it seems that it is time for you and Pacifica to go”

Every single heartbeat in Pacifica and Monty was pumping an increasing dose of stress and adrenaline that began to unpleasantly tickle their chests with every thump…
The two ponies geared up, Monty told Pacifica about his most recent discovery about their items, unfortunately there wasn’t time to figure out the rest.
Minutes later, everypony who was in on this was gathered… Mark, Rose, Queen Chrysalis and even the Mane 6.

“Why do we have to be here again’?” asked Applejack.

“Should the worst happen, we will have to rely on the elements of harmony” replied Celestia.

“The elements to the rescue!” Pinkie jumped on two hooves and whipped out a red cape out of nowhere.

“I’m afraid this time the elements won’t be enough… Discord, you are to find a good moment to slip Pacifica and Monty into the enemy’s ranks, once that is finished you are to come back at once”
Discord popped a private’s metal helmet and saluted Celestia.
Aunt Rose came up to the two little ponies all ready to go and squeezed them between herself.

“You take care of yourself dearies”
It was Mark’s turn but Pacifica wasn’t too keen on a hug from him.
Celestia approached the two and gave them a small sack of green glistening powder

“These are powdered dragon's flames, when you have some information, throw some of this powder into a fire, throw the report into the fire and it will transport it to my personal quarters”
Pacifica nodded.

“Well then, time to go, up up and away!” jumped in Discord
Discord conjured an invisible jet, smacked Pacifica and Monty on invisible chairs and took off to the sky looking totally ridiculous... and invisible.

The day of work had long since gone to make way for the hours of rest and preparation for the next one, the sun was nearly out of sight and it was soon time for Luna to take over the sky.
The Woodland Sea was now being infested with a stable income of changelings secreted from every single city, town or village an army was being forged through the depths of hunger, pain and suffering.

“Sir! The recruits from Manehattan have arrived!”

“How many this time?”

“30 give or take a few, unfortunately mostly kids and teens”

“That won’t pose a problem, children are easy to control and learn quickly, take them to the training grounds and prep them for the talk”
Among the group of newbies, two familiar ponies were marching silently, not bringing any attention to themselves… they both wore a gold pendant each.
The new group was recruited into a freshly deforested plain, already full of other changelings in groups, training on dummies, climbing walls and crawling under fences under the orders from various trained grown soldiers, all sizes and ages of recruits were there though mostly those of the early teen ages of Monty and Pacifica.
The one leading their group stopped them at the middle of the grounds, where the grass had already worn off, showing the brown shaded grey dirt and rocks.
The leader took out a whistle and blew on it, the sound cut through everypony’s ears.
Other whistles followed from around the grounds as the others ordered the rest of the recruits from the field to group up together on the other side of the new recruits.
A long silence ensued, those who knew what was happening stood in silence and fear and those who were new to this were about to find out why the others were so quiet.
The leader of the entire organisation entered the stage in front of the new recruits.
Monty and Pacifica were standing silently three rows in the back not attracting any attention.

“Hello, I’m John and I will be looking after you during your stay here, now without further delays, does anypony know why you’re here?”

“…”
Nopony answered.

“You’re here for war, some think that I shouldn’t tell you but I think you have the right to know… you’re here because we’re at the brink of extinction, for eons we have managed to live quietly beside ponies but now they have cast us aside to die… it is time that we show ponies what we are capable of”

“…”
The new recruits were as silent as the older ones.

“I would like to demonstrate something to you all…”
The leader looked at the new recruits scanning for something.

“You”
The leader pointed at a colt beside Monty, he was about Pacifica’s age.

“Come here”
The colt uneasily approached the leader.

“Why are you here”

“To fight a war?”

“Yes, but are you aware of that?”
That’s was a strange question, the colt thought.

“Uhh… yeah…”

“That’s strange because I don’t think you are, I don’t think anypony here is”
Some of the older recruits were trying to not look at the centre of attention as if they were scared of something.

“Now… what is you name”

“Connor”
”All right, Connor, I want you to come at me as if you’d want to kill me”
It took a few moments for the order to sink into the Connor’s mind but eventually he obeyed expecting some sort of demonstration.
What he got in return was something entirely different.
Connor ran at full speed towards John who expertly turned to the side, grabbed him by one of his limbs and threw him down.
The new recruits began to clap at John’s amazing skills but he wasn’t done yet, he mounted the colt’s chest and began to punch and stomp the shit out of him.
The new recruits gasped in shock, Connor desperately tried to call out, barely being able to gargle out the word help but nopony did a thing, they were all too mortified to do anything.
For the next minute all that could be heard was the near rhythmic sound of the colt being pummelled with an occasional semi-scream that was interrupted by the next punch or buck and sometimes a grunt.
Monty saw this once before and this time he could do something about it, this colt was being beaten to death in front of hundreds of others and everypony was too scared to move, it was time to whip out the pegazooka and he would have done that if Pacifica didn’t hold him back at the last moment, shaking her head… their mission was too important to be discovered just now, they will have to watch this to the end, like everypony else.
John wrapped his legs around the bloody colt and began squeezing his soul out of his throat with his grab.
Connor was coughing, grunting and writhing but couldn’t get out of it.
The energy and will of survival was leaving the colt, he wasn’t going to see his mother again.
The body stopped and loosened up.
John let him go and flopped the limp body on the ground.
It was finally over.
At least that’s what they thought.
John bucked the body as hard as he could, reviving the poor colt who was at the edge of death.
The poor thing didn’t even have enough will to cough the blood out of his lungs.
The newbies now knew what the older recruits were so afraid of; this was beyond monstrous it was some sort of sick… demonsteration…

“THIS is what will happen to you, all of you! Your parents, your friends, they will all end like this unless you learn how to fight! I hope you are ready to give it 100% because that won’t be nearly enough! Remember this moment for the rest of your lives because this is what you will have to face over and over again”
John calmed down and bowed in front of the newbies like some screwed up entrepreneur.
“Welcome to the next 2 weeks of your life”

Author's Note

Well, We're getting close to the end guys.

See you monday!

CHAPTER 33 (AKA: Information liberation)

"Come on, get a move on!"
Monty's and Pacifica's group was thrown straight into the training grounds, first, was the galloping, and it wasn't easy.
The entire group was wiping away the dusty layer of the ground's soil with their excessive panting, it had been over ten minutes of constant running at full speed and they were at their limit long ago.

"Rest!"
Monty never thought that the sound of that leisurely word could be so... unpleasant, it's as if it didn't matter what their supervisor said, it always seemed like he was telling you off...
A pack of water was supplied to everypony, it wasn't enough.
The rest of the day passed more like a month, the newbies were thoroughly tested under every aspect, both physical and mental, not only their bodies were being worn out like wood on a sander but their minds were being screwed over to such an extent that when the time to sleep finally came, nopony was even close to tired, they were on a whole new level of exhaustion and the two spies still had to orient themselves around the terrain as well as send a message to the castle ASAP.
2 weeks... that's the time that Monty and Pacifica had before they set out to war, neither of them knew how they'll pull it off.
The group was presented with a long green tent, within it stood countless wooden bunk beds... one would be surprised at how fast a chengeling is able to work when he has carrot up front and a stick at the back.

"These will be your quarters during your training, pick a free bed, that's where you'll sleep"
The changelings were too tired to even question anything at this point, they took the final walk, those unlucky enough had to climb on the top bunk on top of it all.

"The wake up call is at 5am!"
The body of group moaned unanimously with the remains of what they had in their lungs.
Monty and Pacifica found a free bunk, it was essential that they stay together the entire time, how else would Monty watch over her? but that wasn't the hardest part, by far the hardest thing of all was the fact that they would both have to sneak out in a few hours. once everypony falls asleep.
It seemed nearly impossible to stay awake for more than a few minutes, however, fortunately for the spies, the same applied to everypony else in the tent and much sooner than expected, the place was covered with a dreamy veil that embedded the entire tent in the creamy subconscious.
Pacifica, lying down on the lower bunk bed, knocked on Monty's part of the bunk above to signal the start of the mission, she wasn't woried about waking anypony up, not even Luna was necessary to keep them at bay, not that she had any power over changeling's dreams in the first place.
It took about a minute for Monty to finally descend and follow Pacifica.
The two bobbed their heads out of the camp and scanned the area with their eyes, there was a minimum number of guards though most of them were located by a cave further up ahead.

"That's where we need to go" Pacifica pointed at the cave.

"You think that might be their center?"

"It's protected the most"

"I see your point"

"You stay here"

"Why?"

"Keep an eye on things"

"I should go with you"

"No, you stay here and if anything happens, make a distraction"
Pacifica used her magic to spawn the Rumble Suit on her as did Monty with his Pegazooka.

"If you go, I go with you"

"No, you stay!"

"It's because I'm black isn't it?"
Pacifica rolled here eyes and got going, Monty remained beside the tent, eyeballing the scene for any possible trouble.
Pacifica stealthily tiptoed around the open field, using her small body to avoid detection by swimming in the shadow bars of trees on the very edge of the field, silently swishing from one to the other, like a cat going for its prey, every now and then stopping when a guard's attention was inched towards her general area.
in no time at all, she was as close to the entrance as she could, Monty focusing on her whereabouts, when he noticed that getting inside was going to be a different thing altogether, there was no way of passing the guards unnoticed.
Pacifica couldn't afford a diversion, especially considering just how close she was to the guards, she could easily reach them from the side and so she would be caught before anything happened which probably wouldn't be an issue as she had the rumble suit and she would probably take them on but the whole point of this mission is not to go head on but to infiltrate.
Monty aimed his pegazooka high up in the air, trying to remember what Twilight said about activating it.

"So this thing might work on my feelings, huh? let's hope she's right"
Monty tried to remember what he felt at the time he shot the giant timberwolf... he felt pretty much what he did right now, the needed to protect Pacifica, though not nearly as desperately as back then.

"I swear to god, if you don't-"
Click
A steady beam of magic streamed with a gentle whistle up into the infinite sky, giving his position away.
The guard's attention was successfully averted, the two closest to the entrance came to a common understanding and went out to check what fired that beam.
Now was the time, Pacifica had to get going, there were still two other guards left on the other side but she might not get another chance... she took it as she slipped thrugh the narrow gap of the two other guards and the cave wall that was shapeshifting under the flamed light of the torches.
Inside the cave lay a few chairs and tables and even a sofa, on the other end, a few changelings (the leaders and planners no doubt) were doing their stuff, some were resting, others were discussing matters of importance and one was sitting by the largest table whose surface was clothed by some sort of map and a litter of papers... Pacifica unfortunately was too far to be able to make out their mumbling let alone be able to read what was on those papers, hopefully if everything goes just right they'll be out of here by tomorrow.
There just had to be a way to get closer, and every second she spent behind those guards was an increase in the risk of being found out.
A few meters up ahead of Pacifica there was a ledge, higher than any of the changelings in the cave that would make a great hiding spot from the light and the rest of the changelings, a wide crack large enough for her to squeeze through and it would lead her as close to the tables as she needed to be.
There was no time, she had to get on there, but flying wasn't going to do the trick, it was way too loud and she'd be discovered in no time... she had to jump.
The ledge seemed pretty far but out of all days, today Pacifica had a good workout (to say the least)
She tilted and bent her backbone like a spring, giving her that edge that she needed to make that jump.
The took the jump, as calculated, she had made it far enough to grab onto the ledge, however the momentum of the massive jump caused the rest of her armoured body to smash against the rock and with a loud scrape she slid down the ledge and onto the ground.
Everypony's attention was now on her, it was too late, she was found out, luckily for her, she was in particularly dark spot which made it hard for the other changelings to make out who was there, but that didn't matter, they certainly knew they saw somepony and were on their way to her already.
It happened momentarily, the sudden surge of adrenalin activated Pacifica's fight or flight switch.
Flight
but how? the way out was blocked.
Teleport!
Pacifica in the last moment remered how Twilight was known for her ability to magically teleport through short distances... she never tried it before but that wasn't going to stop her, if she'd go out fighting in the cave that would raise the alarm across the entire area and the mission would be over at once.
Pacifica stood still using the darkness to her advantage, she focused as hard as she could on teleporting out of here...
But that's not what happened, instead, a faint bulging sound, like that of a hungry stomach grumbled for a moment and Pacifica was still there.
It was too late, the guard was already right next to her looking straight at her.
Pacifica remained still at this point having no idea what to do, they were in deep trouble.

"What was it Tim?"
The changeling right in front of Pacifica went towards her, she swayed to the side and let him through, he seemed to be ignoring her.

"I have no idea, I can't see anything here, just a pile or rocks, maybe they broke off or something"
Then an idea came to Pacifica's mind, was he an ally?

"I don't know Tim, that didn't sound like rock to me"

"Well then, have a look yourself"
No, that wasn't it, if that were the case he wouldn't call out to the other guard.
the other guard came within eyelash length to Pacifica who was now desperately trying to be as soundless as possible..

"Hmmm... maybe you're right"

"Everything all right there?"
It's as if she was invisible.

"Yes sir! just a pile of rocks broke off the cliff"
That was it! she was invisible! she didn't know how this had happened but the Suit must have absorbed her magic or something and turned her invisible!
Things suddenly became much more simple.
She had to make sure that her theory was correct, she had to risk it, at this point using that rock cliff once again was out of the question.
She approached one of the guards and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Huh?"
The guard turned around to look directly at her.
Pacifica remained still, her heart pounding away.
The guard resumed his duty

"What?"

"This cave sure gets drippy, I need to get a waterproof coat or something"

"True that"
She was invisible after all.
Now that she had this out of the way she felt confident enough to casually walk right next to the tables beside the changeling going through the papers, among the papers she could make out a number of plans and weapons, some that could have only been invented by mad ponies, those machines weren't meant to kill, they were meant to break ponies... what would they need them for?
and then she noticed the map on the entire table, it was an ancient map of Canterlot but what was circled and scribbled upon all over the place was a cave that lay deep below the castle grounds.
It seemed that the rebels are going to strike from below this time, but something felt off, why would they do that if there are so many other more effective ways of getting through?
Then Pacifica noticed a whole number of little grills drawn in various areas of the cave system.
It wasn't going to be a passage, it was going to be a prison.
But how? how were they going to beat down the army? they didn't have nearly enough troops.
Pacifica had to think this through, little made sense and that which did, lead to a dead end... there were too many question being raised and too few being answered.
Pacifica was going to have to spend a few hours in that cave hoping to overhear something that might help her in understanding any of this.

"I swear to god, if you don't-"
Click
A steady beam of magic streamed with a gentle whistle up into the infinite sky, giving his position away.
Two of the four guards who were located right next to Pacifica were on their way towards Monty, it'll have to do for now.

"Oh..."
Monty had intended on creating a diversion but didn't really think through the rest.

"I think it's time for me to go"
Monty turned his Pegazooka back into the pendant and ran alongside the tent as fast as he could, only seconds later after he turned around the corner, on the far end where he was moments ago, the guards had arrived.
Monty looked at Pacifica far off in the distance who was now further in the cave but jammed between the cave wall and the other two guards.
The two guards who were distracted must have assumed that the beam was of no significance as they were both were already coming back to their post.
Monty panicked, Pacifica was in plain sight, if any of those guards would come back to the cave, she would be discovered and it would all be over.
Monty had to think fast, and he nearly did... nearly.
He spawned his pegazooka, knowing that his plan had involved the use of it and without thinking he decided to shoot one of the guards.
The Pegazooka, as if it had heard the command of its master, snapped towards one of the guards, and Monty pulled the trigger wanting to just grab his attention, not harm him.
A very light whisp of magic travelled towards the guard and smacked him gently enough to have him think that somepony is throwing something at him.

"Ok, who was that? I know that wasn't a coincidence"

"Maybe one of the recruits are pranking us?"

"Let's find out"
Monty jumped into the sea of trees nearby the tent and shot once again at one of the guards.

"In the woods!"
This was more fun than Monty could hope for as far as he remains hidden he could do this for hours.
And he did, approximately 15 minutes of pranking later, Monty was jumped by a Pacifica who appeared out of nowhere.

"How did you get here?"

"This suit can make me invisible"

"Did you get what you needed?"
Pacifica nodded

"And?"

"I'll tell you later, we need to get back and send the letter"
The two snuck by the guards who at this point were highly doubting what they saw all those minutes ago, it was late and they were tired.
Pacifica and Monty came to the back of the tent, Pacifica took out a small plain piece of parchment that she nicked from the cave along with a small quill.

"So what is their plan?"

"They are going to imprison everypony in canterlot's secret underground caves"

"But how? the army is so big compared to this one"

"The cave has a lot of special crystals that are able to deflect magic, they want to lure us in, and they'll shoot us from the entrance, the crystals will keep deflecting the magic fired and it will take down the whole army, we won't be able to fight back with magic if we enter the caves because of the crystals, all they have to do is seal the entrance and exit and we'll be trapped and they'll use everypony in there as food"

"But that's like... thousands of ponies"

"Exactly, and most leaders including the Princesses as well, it would be enough to feed almost every changeling in Equestria"
Pacifica finished writing just that, she rolled the parchment and sprinkled some of that powder that was given to her by Celestia, she then proceeded to ignite the message via a magical spark and soon enough the whole thing puffed in magical smoke.
Tonight's mission was a success.

"Do you think we'll manage to stop this war?"

"..."

Time was for Mark just like the machine that he has been working on, nearly over, with a last push, he screwed in the last few bolts and cogs, it was done, it was ready, may the army come and he will show everypony the machine that will bring peace to their kind, once and for all.
Mark's body was growing numb, his condition couldn't get much worse at this point and all that recent stress wasn't helping much either, but the job was done and he had managed to keep his condition secret for long enough.
Mark fell to the ground, his mind falling into the unconscious.

Author's Note

So... the plug inlet to the charger to my laptop is busted, this means that I can't charge it anymore which also means that the chapter I wrote for monday is gone.
I tend to write on word and then post the ready chapter here but thank god for the option of saving on this site, this means that I can continue to post chapters without a problem and save it to go back to it on any other laptop later on.

One other thing, we are just a few chapters away from the end and I'm getting more and more stuff dumped on my shoulders (job, etc) so I decided: screw waiting for thursday, I'll write all the chapters right now and post them all at once and when I'm done I can take a break for a while before starting the new one here, so look forward for a good few chapters later on today! (hopefully all of them for this particular fanfic)

CHAPTER 34 (AKA: Percival)

The peace of the night was broken by a silent pop announcing a very important letter to Princess Celestia.
The rolled parchment smacked her sleeping snout gently, awaking her from the most pleasant part of the dream.
not a few minutes later, she was already up, fully attired and delegating her troops along with Shining and Chrysalis.

"Are you sure that is the best choice for now, Princess?" asked Shining.

"We still haven't got enough intel to be able to devise a tactical breakup of the enemy so for now all we can do is micromanage our troops for the best strategic standpoint for a possible battle scenario" replied Celestia.
Chrysalis got her strategic genius to work.

"The best move would be to place the troops by the entrance and exit of the caves, possibly put up a few traps within the vicinity, we cannot afford to let our troops retreat into the caves"

"I don't think a few traps will stop the army" replied Shining.

"It's not supposed to, we'll use the traps to move the enemy's army into the caves and use their own tactic against them... it's all in the element of surprise if what's included in the letter is true then we have no other choice, what about Mark, has he completed the machine?"

"I have, my Queen"
Mark trotted into the room, at this point it was clear that something had taken its toll on him.

"Mark! are you all right?" asked Celestia.

"Yes, it's just the stress, that is all"
Celestia had seen stress before and this wasn't stress but she had no time to ponder on such things now, they only had two weeks before the attack to come up with something better than going to war.

"The machine is ready to use at any moment given we meet the requirements"

"What are they?" questioned Celestia.

"It needs to be close to a large number of ponies, Princess"

"Have you tried it?"

"On a very small scale, yes, but this thing was designed to deal with the emotions of hundreds, even thousands of ponies at once"
Queen Chrysalis butted in.

"At least now we know what to use our army for"
Celestia thought about all this carefully.

"And how much of these emotions would this machine require?"

"No more than usual, it extracts emotions from the surrounding atmosphere, not from the ponies, it concentrates, multiplies it and spews it right out for the changelings to feed on, if we place it out in the open when the changelings strike, we can give them an active demonstration"

"But this would be providing we would partake in a war" Continued Celestia

"Or providing we tour it across Equestria, advertising its abilities and producing them on an industrial scale, I believe that would be the better choice from the two"

"I suppose you have prepared the blueprints for it?"

"Of course"

"In that case I will have them distributed across all the cities and towns at once"

"I'm sorry but I can't let you do that, this machine is very powerful and if somepony wishes to, they may find a way weaponize it, we can't take such a risk as the consequences would be more dire than the ones of going to war"

"What would you suggest then?"

"Open up a plant that would mass produce them, I have already included a protection system from tempering by a third party in the build, I will personally supervise the production"

"In that case I shall have one built at once, come with me Mark... Shining, Chrysalis, I entrust to you the army, also, set up a larger version of the machine we used during the first summit so that every changeling in the rebel army could see and hear us clearly when we demonstrate the machine should it come to that"

"Warm up time!"
the sound of two dented pans being continuously smashed against each other barged right through the sleepy brains of everypony in the tent, slapping their brain back into the uncomfortable reality of things and that supervisor's whippy tone wasn't making things any better.
This was going to be one hell of a day for Monty and Pacifica but they didn't know that yet... nopony knew what was about to happen.

The morning had risen and the golden canterlot army was making its way down into the caves, filling up the entranceway, the insides of the caves glowing with a beautiful multiplex of colours refracting what little light was within.

"All right! unit 1 go to sector 1, set up the traps and come back to report at once, unit 2, scout the area for anything out of the ordinary and unit 3, come with me, we have a machine to set up by the exit"
the units split out whilst the others stood in place, all they were supposed to do was now wait for the other units to come back from their missions.
barely a step had been taken into the caves by the third unit when the crystals started rumbling and violently and flew in every direction in the form of shards, instantly killing those closest to the blast and crippling those further up ahead.
The entire cave was booby trapped by somepony.

John, the leader of The Blood of the Innocent, was in the middle of his shower in the cave when he felt a jolt come across his body... somepony had activated the alarm systems that they had set up in the caves.
Perhaps a small animal had wandered in...
Minutes later, another jolt had crossed his body, this time when he was drying.
and another.
and another.
this wasn't a coincidence, somepony or some ponies were taking down their traps one by one.

"Shit!"
There was only one explanation to this, somepony had infiltrated and was hiding among their ranks.
It was time for some spring cleaning among his ranks.

The Mane 6 got to Canterlot as soon as they could, they knew that they would have time would come but they had no idea it would be so soon.

"Princess Celestia! we have come here as soon as we could!"

"Have you brought the Elements?"

"Yes"

"Good, we might need them... Now, I want you to listen to me carefully..."

John was outside, everypony stood displayed in front of him to see, Mark and Pacifica had no idea what this was about, they assumed this was just another part of the murderous training, they had already been out galloping, climbing, flying and crawling but they haven't been taught any battle tactics yet so this was probably it.

"I don't see the point of waffling on so I'll just get straight to it, just a few hours ago I had found out that there is a traitor among us, and it seems strange to me that some information had been leaked on the exact same day when the group from Maretropolis have arrived... maybe I'm wrong... but I doubt it... but don't worry, I'll find him or her and I will punish them accordingly... speaking of punishments, here is today's group!"
To pacifica's horror she noticed something she had been pressing down into the deepest bowels of her mind for a while now and at this moment it was regurgitating itself back to the surface.
In that very group, among the ponies, stood Monty's father, Percy.
Pacifica's sanity broke apart and stripped itself layer by layer, there was no way she will be able to keep the secret away from Monty anymore and once he'll find out that she'd been keeping it from him all this time he'll leave her and she'll be all alone, she had already lost most of her link with Mark and Uncle Discord wasn't even her uncle yet.
A vein popping aria of screams had gashed out of her mouth as she fell to the floor curled up, covering her ears.
The perfect rows broke up instantly, forming a circle of bare soil with Pacifica and Monty in it, Monty trying to desperately calm her down, thinking she couldn't take the pressure of John finding out about them, how wrong he was.

"I'll make a wild stab in the dark that you are the one behind it all" began John as he entered the ring.
Monty had to come up with something.

"Sir! please help I don't know why but my sister just got this attack, she has... epilepsy!"
But John rammed his left hoofswing into Monty's jaw throwing him on the other side of the ring.

"You seriously expect me to believe that crap? Dear god, canterlot must be desperate to send you two here"

"I... I swear, we have never been to Canterlot before, Me and my sister have-"
But john had already began his rampage on Pacifica.

"NOT THIS TIME!" shouted Monty, he tried grabbing his pendant, ready to annihilate this entire damn world if he had to but was held back by somepony... Monty looked up at the adult to discover that it was none other than his own father.

"Dad?..."
What was his dad doing here? Monty was momentarily surprised but he had no time to be surprised as Pacifica was in grave danger
"let go, he's hurting Pacifica"
But Monty's dad had other plans

"And you're going to watch"
The father grabbed and locked his son's head in place, it was time for Monty to man up and start showing some balls, this was going to do the trick, besides, Percy never was one for family ties, as far as he was concerned, Pacifica was a bitch that had it coming and Monty should also be punished for taking her side.

"NOOO! LET ME GO! LEAVE HER ALONE! DON'T YOU DARE HURT HER!"
But everypony was oblivious to Monty's screams and shouts, he could do nothing and the fear of John kept everypony else at bay, they all knew that this time he wasn't going to stop.
Pacifica kept taking all those hits, sure, she could use her rumble suit but what's the point? if Monty will leave her she might as well die here and now and who knows, if she takes all these kicks and punches he just might forgive her in the end.

"PACIFICA! USE IT! COME ON! WHY DON'T YOU USE IT! WHYYY! DAD! LET ME GO! OR I TELL MUM!"

"YOUR MOTHER IS DEAD!"
The penny dropped.
Monty forgot about every single thing, the only thing in his head right now was what he had just heard.

"No..."

"Yes"

"No..."

"Are you deaf?"
Percy threw his son onto the ground who was shaking his head repeatedly like a broken animatronic, eyes glassy with tears.

"Nonononononononononononooooo..."

"Shut up"

"Nonononononononono..."

"Shut up!"

"Nonononono..."

"SHUT UP! SHE'S DEAD! I KILLED HER!"
Monty interrupted his mantra at once and looked at his father.

"D-dad?"

"I killed her..."
Percy was always a harsh stallion but he loved his wife, he never would have done something like that but that night things just got... out of hand.

"Why..."
A second of silence made itself present with the sound of Pacifica being beaten to death in the background as Percy thought of what to say.

"She wa-"

"WHY!"
Monty pierced his Percy with his bloodshot eyes

"She was going to let us all die! see all this around you? she was against that! she just wanted to sit idly by as they came to kill us!"

"How..."

"In the kitchen, just before I left... I'm sorry"
Things were ticking in Monty's head, that time Pacifica kissed him, how she'd never talk about anything...

"Sorry? are you fucking with me?"
Monty was now laughing mildly at the bullshit level of that statement

"I know that you're furious but-"

"I'm not furious dad, I'm not even mad, I'm just offended that you'd say something like that after what happened... fuck you dad"
That truly hurt Percy.

"This is why I always tried to teach you to be strong, son"

"You want me to be strong? then how's this for strong, dad.. I promise you, I'll tear apart everything that's important to you, I'll bring you down, and then, I'll help you back up only to beat you down again and again, over and over until the day you die and I'll make sure you'll live as long as possible, I'll do whatever it takes and even if I die before you, I'll make sure that others will fulfill my promise"
Percy roared, his life just fell apart, he lost his wife and he wasn't going to lose his son, even if that meant tying him up and keeping him in the basement for the rest of his life.
The father threw himself onto the son who was ready for what was coming.
Experience and age won with anger and rage.
Monty was being pinned down by his father in no time, but the fury was putting up a fight and Percy was barely able to hold him down, meanwhile, Pacifica's body was going numb, the kicks and punches weren't even hurting that much anymore... it's funny how easy this is once you haven't got any fight left in you.
This was it, a dead end for Pacifica and Monty, nothing was going to save them at this point.

"JOHN! JOHN!"
John averted his attention at his comrade who had just arrived.

"WHAT!"

"THE CANTERLOT ARMY! THEY HAVE BLOCKED THE ENTRANCE TO THE CAVES! WE HAVE TO STRIKE NOW!"

"FUCK!"
John released a nearly dead Pacifica who at this point didn't even care if she lived or not.

"Ey! you there! gimme that kid!"
But Percy wasn't listening, Monty was more important than some stupid John.

"Somepony bring me the kid, some rope and two chairs!"
Not a minute had passed and all the ingredients were at John's hooves.

"Shouldn't we just kill them now?"
John began to explain as he was tying Pacifica and Monty to chairs, back to back.

"No, we'll leave them here and if they're still alive when we come back we can use them as hostages"

"OI! FUCK OFF FROM MY SON!"
But Percy's body was held back at an instant by a dozen of changelings, all around.

"You're his father aren't you?"

"And why the fuck I'd tell you that?"

"Tell you what, we need changelings like you in the fight so let's make a deal, You come and fight with us and we let them go, how does that sound? after all, isn't that why you came here in the first place? to fight for a better world? one your son could live in?"
Percy slowed down, his rage subsiding.

"..."

"Well what's it going to be?"
Percy began to think... there was just so much in his life that he wasn't even sure what to do now... he killed his wife, his own son disowned him and will probably hate him till the end times... the least he could do for his son is to save him and fight for a better future for him... if he dies, oh well, the only bridge he ever had left was already burned so he had nothing left to lose.
Percy looked at his son one last time and then to John, he had made his decision.

"All right, deal"

Author's Note

Boy am I pissed, there I was on the best part of the story where Morty is talking with his dad, just finished it, about an hour of work and BOOM the page just crashes for no reason... guess what? it didn't save... now I know how Morty felt... hopefully now this will be much easier to write as I know exactly what's going through his head right now...
Why laptop, why do you want to see my soul burn so badly?

Heh, heh... the page just crashed again for no reason but I've been saving this every moment I got so SUCK IT LAPTOP! unfortunately I didn't manage to get the scene just quite right this time but it's close enough for comfort.

Well... onto the next chapter! (Crikey O'reily, so far I've spent 8 hours just writing)

P.S. Oh Buck, I think I just broke Morty and Pacifica, I wonder how this will end...

CHAPTER 35 (AKA: For worse or better...)

A furious swarm of changelings was approaching Canterlot, or the cave entrance to be more precise but the Royal army wasn’t ready yet.
Shining armour was managing the troops

“Come on! is this how much your life’s worth to you?”
The troops were going at full speed, setting up the cathodes and anodes of the contraption that was going to visually display and enlarge the demonstration of the machine, Twilight this time was considerably less stressed as they already tried it out during the pony summit, although this thing was at least a dozen times bigger, it could be seen for miles.
Discord was up in Luna’s tower along with the younger sister and Queen chrysalis, they were to be the backup plan, should the army fail and Celestia was off to retrieve the machine with Mark.

“Well… here it is in all its shiny glory, what do you think?”

“It certainly looks the part but I’m more concerned about it working”

“Oh, don’t worry, it will…”

“That’s not the only thing I’m worried about”

“What, you think it might break? I can assure you I have put in extra-”

“I meant your health Mark, you seem very ill”

“It’s that obvious, huh?”

“I’m afraid so”

“Well… all I can say that it’ll all be fine in the end, trust me”
Celestia carefully lifted the glass domed machine and hovered it to the portal leading back to their world but there was only one problem.
The machine wasn’t going to fit through the portal doors.

Monty and pacifica sat next to each other all alone in a quiet deserted plain, to call this torture would be an understatement of all time.
After what seemed to be an eternity, Monty broke the silence.

“You knew, didn't you”

“...”
Pacifica was all alone now.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Don’t…”
silence.

“What?”
Pacifica’s whispers were barely audible.

“Don’t… leave me…”
Monty could feel a shake.
Then another shake, and a second later another one.
Pacifica was crying, but this time it wasn't just a normal cry, when somepony cries, they cry loudly and honestly to let those feelings out, to let others know how they feel but this was different… this was a quiet, controlled cry, one of fear… Pacifica was too scared to give out any possible sound, because that would mean that she acknowledged the fact that Monty is going to leave her, she was so mortified that she was crushing her insides to be completely still and silent, but Monty knew… he could feel it.

“Idiot”

“S-sorry…”

“I will never leave you”
Monty could feel Pacifica’s head desperately trying to turn towards him.

“Really?”

“I can’t leave somepony I love”
Pacifica started to laugh, gradually transitioning into the loudest cry that Monty had ever heard in his life as the concept of just how close Pacifica was to being all alone had sunk in.

“So, let’s get out of this and show those changelings who they’re dealing with…
Monty focused his magic on the pendant that turned instantly into the pegazooka that fell to the ground beyond his reach.

“All right… now what?”
Pacifica who was already in her Rumble Suit and out of the ropes came up to Monty, her face wiped from her tears.

“Care to loosen my ropes too?”
Pacifica shook her head.

“No? what-”
But Monty never finished as Pacifica payed back something she owed him for a long time now.
The couple had their first true kiss.
It was nothing like the previous one, this one didn’t feel awkward or embarrassing at all, in fact it just felt… right... as it was finally in its place in this world just like their relationship was.

“Boy can’t we make decisions huh?”
Pacifica laughed and booped her snout with his.

“Any ideas on how to get to Canterlot before the army does?”
Pacifica had an idea or two…

“I can run there with my suit, maybe you could turn your Pegazooka into something?”

“What would make you think that?”

“Think about it, so far out items had the exact things we needed, mine turned invisible when I needed it, I could run fast when I needed it to, maybe yours is like that too…”

“Hmmm... maybe you've got a point, wouldn't hurt to try”
Monty grabbed his pegazooka, and closed his eyes.

“Focus your magic on the Pegazooka, close your eyes and think of what you need right now”

“I need… I need something to help me fly… a suit? no, wings! yeah! like awesome black wings! I always wanted black wings and like they could just be like floating feathers instead of being in one whole piece, that would be so cool!... did it work?”

“You tell me”
Monty opened his eyes, the Pegazooka that was on the floor was now gone, he looked around to see where it had gone to realize that he had a pair of badass black wings on his back above his own, the wings being exactly the kind that he wanted, an opaque black colour, sharp and they looked like an aerial mosaic of independent floating pieces.

“Oh my god! that’s so awesome! so I can have anything I want with this? Ok then!”
Monty closed his eyes once again and focused his magic on the wings.

“I want a cup holder!”
He opened up his eyes expecting to see one.

“No cup holders, huh?”

“I think the way this works is that it gives us only what we need the most at the moment”

“Oh well, one out of two isn't that bad I guess… hey, Pacifica wanna see which one of us are faster?”
Pacifica rolled her eyes, the answer was obviously her.
Mark burst high into the air whipping up a slim tornado of dust with a loud scream and Pacifica zapped at full speed towards the castle.

The Changeling army was nearly at its destination but the machine was nowhere any nearer to where it was supposed to be.

“Well, maybe we could teleport it to the other side” suggested Mark

“No, nothing can teleport across worlds, it can only be physically transported across the portal” replied Celestia

“Well, we have to do something, we have no time!”
Mark was right, Celestia grew tired of this folly.

“Screw the goddamn door!”
Celestia bombarded the wall, annihilating an entire half of the room revealing a portal that was easily big enough to fit through the machine.
Celestia rather than carefully levitating the thing through the portal she just threw it with excessive force.
Mark could only stand in awe at what had just happened.
Celestia’s furious gaze hit Mark

“This remains between us”
Mark nodded, there was no way in hell he’d disagree with such an angry Deity.
They crossed the portal into their world to reveal Celestia’s room now wrecked by the machine that was lying horizontally on the floor, rolling around.

“How fast can you gallop?”

The Canterlot army could already hear the enemy approaching, there was a light buzz in the air.

“What in tarnation is takin’ them so long!”

“That’s a good question, Applejack” Twilight answered.

“Don’t you worry, dearies, It’ll all be fine..”

“I hope so, miss Rose”

“INCOMING!”
One of the royal guards announced the arrival of two projectiles.
One of them was Monty and the other Pacifica.
Monty slammed down onto the ground causing a crater close to the mane 6 who were still trying to set up the contraption.
Seconds later, two sonic booms rattled the souls of everypony around.
Aunt Rose had never been so happy to see them before

“Pacifica! Monty! you’re both fine! Oh, I’ve been so worried about you! and so was Ma-”

“The army is almost here, what do we do?” panicked Monty but was caught by one of Aunt Rose’s famous hugs, not even Pacifica could got away from it.
If there was anything they had discovered, now was the time to tell Shining Armour.

“Have you managed to gather any other information that might come in useful?”

“Not much sir, all I know is that my dad is in that army”

“I will make sure to let the others know to bring him back safe and sound”

“No, you leave him alone, I will deal with him myself”
Pacifica was going through the possible options right now.

“The plan?”

“We need to use Mark’s machine but it hasn't arrived yet”

“The army is practically here” Monty replied “There’s no way they’ll make it in time… we're going to have a war”

Author's Note

Dear god... I've been doing this for so long today that I think I can taste words now...
Great, now I can also HEAR them... well that's what you get when you write for over 12 hours without a break.
Hopefully after this chapter I only have 1-2 more to go, it just depends on how short they'll be, if they will be very short then I might slap them together... who knows? I'll see how it fits together.

P.S. Make that 14 hours of constant writing... and still not finished... sorry guys, I could still keep on going (Thank god for my ADHD, that's what makes this possible) but I have to take care of my body, I've only switched back my biological clock to what it should be recently and I don't want to throw it off balance again, or at least so soon but I promise I'll finish it tomorrow, besides 3 chapters within a 24 hour period isn't bad, you guys got your fair share to read for now so sit back and enjoy while I sit back and pass out!

CHAPTER 36 (AKA: Final day)

The sun was high in the sky, it was burning away all doubt and enlightened the current situation…
A war was at the doorstep and the doors were wide open.
The Canterlot army may be impressive but what it can’t do was slow down time… the traps they were supposed to set up and prepare weren’t there, the changelings beat them to it, they’ve been outsmarted and what's worse, the machine wasn’t there either… now was the best time to demonstrate it, both armies were standing face to face, neither of them sure, who will take the first step, a 10,000 makeshift changeling army versus a 5,000 fully trained and specialized Canterlot army

“What do we do Shining sir?” Asked an unsure Monty

“Only one thing Monty, we have to stall”

“Me and pacifica can slow them down with our items but I’m not sure how long that will last”

“It will have to do for now”
Monty looked at Pacifica who nodded at him.
They were about to head right into hell.
Monty boomed into the aerial kingdom to deal with the flyers and Pacifica charged at the ground troops.
The changeling army had no idea how to react it was all in an instant, all they could do was strike back, there was no way they could afford to attack the Canterlot army as Monty and Pacifica gave them a fair share of challenges.
Monty scanned the army for his father, he was way in the back among the flyer’s ranks.
Pacifica smashed through the first layer of ground troops like a windshield smashes a bug, the changelings flew in all sorts of directions, it’s almost as if one was watching an Asterix and Obelix cartoon with the exception being that it wasn’t funny, bodies were flying in all directions, bones were cracking and blood was spouting.
it was a bloodbath, A changeling’s body wasn't designed to withstand such forces, the changelings that got hit by Pacifica’s Rumble Suit were still alive and in great pain but were out of commission for a while.
In the case of Monty it was an entirely different story, rather than using brute force and smashing into ponies he utilised all that he knew about flying, those new wings of his gave him more mobility than he could have ever wished for.
Monty swished and flicked through the aerial troops, one by one, his sharp wings slicing and cutting others who soon enough fell to the ground, their wings crippled for life.
It seemed as if the couple was going to win but the items are only as powerful as their beholder and soon enough both of them were out of steam and the changelings were engulfing the two
Shining Armour had to do something

“ATTACK!”
the Canterlot army arose like a tidal wave of hot steaming gold and hit the enemy’s slate wall.
Two of Equestria’s greatest forces were at a clash, the clank of weapons against hooves, the shouts, screams and war cries all melding together in a melting pot of pain war and death.
This was a first for many here, the Canterlot army may be full of trained professionals but none of them have ever been on a full out war, they didn't need to.
The ponies from the Mane 6 could just look at the death and destruction up front, for the first time they had felt what war was like, they felt this incredible need to help in some way or other but it was being held back by the fear of going there and meeting their end.
One by one, each of the mane 6 broke down, it was too much, they always knew about war but they were never aware of it up until now.

“Is this what war is?” said silently Twilight.
Mark’s machine smacked between Twilight and Armour announcing the presence of Celestia and Mark.

“Celestia?”

“Do you understand now Twilight? this is the true importance of friendship, this is what you all have been burdened with, you teach others in this land about friendship so that the horrors of war never see the light of day”

“I’ll set up the machines!”
Mark expertly turned the dials and knobs on each cathode and anode.

“And now the main part of the show…”
Mark came up to his machine, this was it, this was the moment everypony’s been waiting for, once this is switched on, it will bring peace to everypony, once and for all.
Mark turned the dials some more setting up the activating code.
The pendulums began to swing, the cogs began to turn and the machine began to ominously tick.

“Everypony! focus your magic on the cathodes and anodes!”
The ponies obliged and a large magical screen showed up that displayed Mark next to his machine.
Mark was still, he said nothing.

“Psst! Mark! say something!” whispered Twilight.
But mark didn't say anything, instead he turned and ran to the caves.

“Mark!” Celestia shouted, what in Equestria was he doing?
Mark was already off towards the caves, seconds later he was close enough to the entrance and he started his speech.

“SILEEEEEEEEEEEEEENCE!”
His amplified voice boomed across the entire area instantly stopping any fighting that was going on, everypony be it changeling,earth pony unicorn or pegasus looked up at the screen that displayed Mark who was barely holding on, he was at his limit.

“To those who don’t know me, my name is Mark, and I have devised something that will solve the problem of changelings once and for all, you needn’t fight anymore brothers and sisters for you will all die”

“WHAT?” Celestia shouted out, what did he just say?

“I’m afraid that I haven't been quite honest with you, friends… that device right there was never designed to feed changelings… it was designed to kill anypony within a 3 kilometer radius, you see I realized something some time ago, if I can't talk ponies out of this war I might as well kill them… don't blame me for it… or do, It was me who had set up the Blood of the Innocent in the first place”
John’s expression widened, so he was the one who had suggested the ideas with the caves, it was him who had recruited him into the group and set it all up, it was him who betrayed them.
Celestia put her royal canterlot voice to use.

“YOU SET ALL OF THIS UP?”

“Yes, even down to the attack on the pony summit and these traps in the caves”

“STOP THIS MACHINE AT ONCE MARK!”

“Well, I am the only one who knows how to stop it and I took extra care to make it as indestructible and untamperable as it can be so if you want me to stop it you'll have to catch me first… I’ll be waiting in the caves”

“EVERYPONY, STOP MARK!”
It’s as if the entire war just disappeared into thin air, changelings and ponies alike were now fighting for their lives.
Pacifica couldn't believe it, the rebels, the attacks, it was all Mark’s doing?

“PACIFICA! WE NEED TO GET HIM IF WE WANT TO LIVE!” shouted Monty from up above.
She had no choice, they had to go get him, the machine was ticking down until activation.
the two zapped faster than anypony else to the caves, Celestia, Shining, Rose and the Mane 6 were already at the entrance.
Celestia knew that Mark must have set up some traps for this occasion.

“Watch out, there are probably some traps set up here we don’t wan-”
But Celestia couldn't finish that sentence as Monty and Pacifica boomed through the cave activating countless traps.

“NO!”
A multitude of explosions loosened up and entire avalanche of crystals that were now going to crush the group.

“EVERYPONY RUN!”
And everypony did, the gigantic crystals bringing down the rain upon them…
Celestia focused all her magic to hold up the now falling ceiling to let the group through
A rock smashed behind the ponies and erased the entrance from the incoming armies.
The armies had finally reached the entrance that was now blocked by a mountain of crystals.

“WORK ON THOSE CRYSTALS PONIES! OUR LIVES DEPEND ON IT!”
The changelings pitched in, as much as they hated to work with ponies it was either that or they all die.
Twilight opened her eyes, everypony was safe and sound around her, the caves glistening in their full glory.
They had made it.

Pacifica was having trouble keeping up with Monty, she knew that he was furious at Mark, and he might blame him for the death of his mother, she was going to have to hold him back.

“WHERE IS HE! PACIFICA! TELL ME!”

“I don’t know! I can't feel the connection with him anymore!”
There he was running away the coward that he was.

“THERE YOU ARE YOU SON OF A BITCH!”
Monty swooped in for the kill but pacifica intervened.
The two items clashed causing an explosion that shook the entire cave system.

“Pacifica, let him go”

“No!”
Pacifica wasn't going to let this happen, she might have lost her link with him but she still cared about Mark, and she didn't want to choose between him or Monty.

“It’s because of him that my mum died!”
Mark knew that this was going to happen eventually, he was ready for it.
The rest of the ponies caught up to the trio.
Applejack whipped out her lasso and within a split second she had tied Mark up like a cow, Mark didn't fight back, his body was failing him, he couldn't even cry at this point.
Celestia was furious, she was a deity and nopony was going to toy with her and her subject

“YOU BETRAYED OUR TRUST MARK, WHY!”
Mark coughed miserably, announcing his gradual departure.

“B-because… this was the only way for us to live together…”

“NO, THERE ARE OTHER WAYS”

“You are wrong, Celestia… changelings and Ponies could never coexist without pain… the only way to have you all work together was to…”

“...give us a common enemy” finished off Shining Armour.

“I’m sorry that it turned out like this everypony, but we all knew this had to happen”

“NO IT-”

“YES IT DOES! and you know it, somewhere deep down inside in that darkest part of you, you all knew this, and if this doesn’t happen, we will have wars upon wars over something so trivial… all it takes for us to live together is to will it but we have to put aside our past… please… this has to happen, hate me, curse me do what you want, I had already accepted this fate long ago, just let this happen”

“But ponies will die!”

“Yes, they will but this will erase our past, it will make a new page for you to write on, Please, Twilight, Applejack… everypony, teach everypony the true value of friendship, I entrust the future to you”

“This doesn't have to happen Mark” replied Celestia

“Throwing yourself straight into hell for your friends, this is true friendship, Celestia”
Mark’s body was going numb.

“I caaaaa….”
Mark let out his final breath.
His body began fade, slowly turning into a slither of magic ready to disappear from existence.

“Mark! MARK! TELL US HOW TO STOP THE MACHINE!”
But it was too late, his body was now gone in a ribbon of magic floating away into the unknown.

TICK
TICK
TICK
CLICK
The countdown had ended.
Cogs and pendulums began to spin and swing more rapidly, the machine was now emitting an aura.

"IT'S HAPPENING! RUN!"
But it was too late.
A flash and a blast of magic covered the entire area, all the emotions were being sucked out of every single living being, fear, anger, hopes, dreams…
seconds later, the panic subsided, every single changeling was now gone, their bodies erased from existence, an entire army of ponies now stood in place lobotomised, they were now a hollow shell, only capable of breathing, nothing else was left, memories, feelings, all gone.
silence befell on a plain white sheet of history.

Author's Note

I'M BAAACK!
Heh, I wonder how many of you were expecting this little twist at the end... hope it payed off, but this is just the beginning I have lots more coming up in the next fanfics of this saga!
In the end, it's going to be 2 chapters after all...
Also: I'll probably meet up with some friends later on I haven't seen the outside for about 2 days now, gotta take care of that body and mind guys!

Also: look forward for the last chapter later on today!

CHAPTER 37 (AKA: The beginning, The book, The promise)

The news of the tragedy spread across Equestria, families of the lost ones joined at ground zero to mourn their loss, ponies left to tend to lifeless husks and Changelings left with but a memory of their loved ones.
The machine built by Mark ticked on and hummed indefinitely to remain untouchable for years to come.
A day later a promise was made.
A week later, species united.
A month later Changelings lived alongside Ponies, this time out in the open.
Life had returned to normal, Celestia continued her reign with the aid of Queen Chrysalis and Rose having seen the loved ones being stripped from Pacifica and Monty one by one, adopted them and took them in, having moved to ponyville where her beloved Mark had once lived.
As for Monty and Pacifica…
Pacifica had finally found her place in life and Monty had figured out what he wanted to write about... nopony knew anything about changelings and they needed something to help them with that, the book was going to be called "A thing or two about changelings and their habits" and it was to become one of the most important books ever written.

Into her own reflection she stared
Yearning for one whose reflection she shared
and solemnly sweared not to be scared
at the prospect of being doubly mirrored

Today was a good day for a trisport tournament, the sky was bright, the clouds had been dealt with and the wind was practically nonexistent.

“Come on! it’s going to be the Rumbling stampedes against the Thunderclaps!”
Monty had been waiting for Aunt Rose to bring him and Pacifica to the game for so long now.

“All right, all right…”

“You know Monty, when it comes to the trisport tournament, he won’t miss it for the world” said Pacifica, Rose noticed that she recently had managed to open up much more and be more talkative, she was now almost like a normal filly.

“Speaking of missing things, where is your uncle?”

“In the bathroom, he said he’ll catch up to us later”

“No, your other uncle”

“Uncle Dis couldn't make it today…”

TO BE CONTINUED IN THE NEXT STORY

Author's Note

Well... this is it guys, the end of this fanfic... but it's merely the beginning of what's going to happen later.
It was one hell of a ride especially near the end and I hope that you enjoyed it as much as I did.

One
Last
Thing: I intend on writing up the prelude to my next fanfic sometime this week, to those who don't know this yet, it will be posted here, so you will be notified when it comes out as this site will register it all as one single fanfic, that way none of you will lose track of all the incoming sequels and prequels... the title and synopsis will be added below the title and synopsis of this fanfic so keep an eye out for it!

We, the immortals - CHAPTER 1 (AKA: A package from hell)

What a fine day it was to start one's career, what a fine day indeed.
Stanley Svelberg inhaled the fresh city air of Manehattan, the city stood proud and green before him.
Stanley had heard of the stories about this city, it was once full of steel concrete and skyscrapers and look at it now...
The skyscrapers were replaced by baoblocks, thick giant hollow trees that sheltered countless of ponies, gryffons, changelings and in some cases, dragons.
This was exactly why Stan had picked this city, in it anything was possible.
Anything.

"Well, the baoblocks aren't going to design themselves"
Stanley gave in to his excitement, it was his first job and he was already going to be a baoblock architect, all he had to do was nail that job interview.

Stanley remained nailed to the chair, awaiting for the verdict.
His potential boss was leafing through Stan's portfolio, humming here and nodding there.

"Well, I can certainly say that this is one impressive portfolio"
The young changeling looked at the employer who was now weighing out the pros and the cons.

"Well, I don't see a reason why we shouldn't hire such a talented individual as yourself"
This was exactly what the talented individual was hoping to hear.

"Welcome to the team"
Stanley shook on it.
The rest of the day practically melted away and before he knew it, Stan was already resting in his baoblock flat on the sofa.

"Well, it's time to celebrate so I might as well go fancy"
The changeling approached to his fridge in the kitchen for a special something just for this occasion.
It was an entire, unopened bottle of zap apple beer from Granny Applebloom's local brewery from his home town.

"The taste better be worth those 200 bits"
He opened the bottle with an inviting fizz.
Stan took a whiff of the heavenly scent and was about to get high on the ambrosic taste but a violent knock on the door had stopped that ceremony of pleasure.
That was the one thing that Stan couldn't get used to in the big city life, just sitting down in quiet was impossible without some constant interruption by something or other.

"What is it this time..."
Stanley came up to the door.

"Who is it?"
No answer.

"Hello?"
Silence.
Stan opened the door to see who it was but he only managed to catch a glimpse of a dark figure that was already around the corner of the corridor.

"Wait!"
But it was too late, the mysterious character was long gone, all that was left, was a mysterious package on his doorstep, a package that was going to change his life forever.
Stan, of course, being none the wiser, took the package in to inspect it.
It was a curious thing, the package, a box of thick grey crumpled paper that was tied with a hairy brown string.
There was nothing written on the package apart from a hastily written STANLEY on one corner.

"Guess it's for me"
Stan put his unwrappng skills to good use.
The string proved to be a harder opponent than expected.

"Come... on... open... UP!"
With the strength of twenty thousand changelings and a godzilla's grasp he ripped the thing in two, spilling its guts on the floor.
A shimmer caught his attention.

"What the..."
Stanley picked up a gold pendant shaped like a part of double doors with half of a sapphire on one side.

Author's Note

As promised, here is the first chapter of the next fanfic as a teaser and keep interested, the synopsis of this fanfic can be found below the synopsis of the previous one.

See you after the break!

CHAPTER 2 (AKA: Whispers)

The early sun had thrown its light onto the leafy canopy of Stan’s baoblock, spitting speckles of green light filtered through the leaves creating a maze of green on the flat’s wooden floorboards.
The alarm woke up Stan.
He got up.
Had a shower.
Got ready to go out to town to eat.
As Stan was about to leave, Yesterday’s pendant caught his attention on the table.
He picked it up once again and had a good look at it.
The thing was beautifully fashioned but it looked unfinished, as if there was another half of it somewhere out there in the world.

“Hmmm… I guess it looks nice but I've never been a fan of jewelry”
Stan threw the thing right in between the sofa’s cushions, embedding it deep within the furniture and thought nothing of it
Stan would have taken the lift if it weren't for the fact that it was broken.

“The stairs it is”
Living on the 32nd floor had its disadvantages sometimes but Having wings sure helped.
Stan jumped out of the stairs and onto the thick pillar of air, plummeting down onto ground floor and landing with a hard thump.

“Morning!”
The caretaker waved back.
It was time to eat.
Stan was eager to try out that new place in town, he had heard that Pinkamena.inc had opened up a new fun and party joint not 5 minutes away from where he lived.

“Just as expected from Pinkamena.inc…”
Even from the outside one could see that this place was huge… party balloons, slides and such a strong taste of fun in the atmosphere that one could cut it with a cheese knife… and the knife would wedge.
Considering the high number of changeling inhabitants, it was customary for ponies and griffons (and sometimes dragons) to visit dinner plazas to eat in the morning and have fun to brighten up their mornings to keep them going for the rest of the day, the arcades and various attractions being free of course, as the owners of the plazas made money from changelings who payed an entrance fee to come in and feed off the strong emotions in the atmosphere.
Pinkamena.inc’s fun plazas were by far the most popular fun spot, after all, its hard to compete with a business that’s existed for hundreds of years.
Of course the bouncers who controlled who went in and out were always changelings, after all only a changeling can recognise another changeling and the fact that transforming into other ponies was illegal now didn't stop some from trying.
Stan couldn't wait to get inside, he was going to get his fill today.

“That will be 15 bits, how would you like to pay sir?”

“Credit card”
Stan took out credit card from his saddle bag.
The bouncer took out a little electronic box and slit the machine’s wrist with the thing.
Normally a ding would announce the payment but this time, no ding.

“I’m sorry sir but credit has been rejected”

“What?”
How come? he had over 4,000 bits in his account…

“May I see my card please?”
The bouncer gave him the card.
Stan wiped it, maybe all it needed was some cleaning.

“Sir, I don’t think that will help”

“Just try it”

“All, right”
Once again, no ding.

“I’m sorry sir, either your credit card has been blocked or you have run out of funds in your account”

“That can’t be right”

“Either way sir, if you cannot afford to pay the entrance fee I’m afraid that we can’t let you enter, of course if you prefer we accept in cash”
Stan was grossly cross, he was looking forward to this so much, especially his stomach that was now grumbling… and hunger was the one thing that every changeling was extra sensitive about because if one dies of hunger, they disappear.
Stan sighed.

“Fine, I’ll go somewhere else”
But nowhere did Stan find that his card was accepted, this couldn't have been a coincidence, something had happened with his accounts, maybe somepony stole the money…
Stan had to get to the bottom of this but he was out of time.
As mad as he was right now, he had to admit defeat and go to work or else he’s going to be late and that’s the last thing he wanted on his official first day at work.
“I’m sorry Mr. Stanley but I’m afraid that we can’t hire you”

“What? why!”

“Well, during the interview yesterday you failed to mention your criminal record”

“Criminal record?!? what criminal record?”
This was outrageous, Stan didn't have any criminal record, in fact he was the nicest, politest and most law abiding citizen in his entire town! he had never even as much as jaywalked.

“Please Sir, let’s leave this while we’re at a high note”

“High note? HIGH NOTE? what high note, You've barely hired me yesterday, this is my first day at work and you’re already firing me!? I didn't do anything, I couldn't do anything even if I wanted!”

“I’m sorry but we cannot afford to hire somepony of your… stature”

“I have a perfect stature!”
Stanley’s ex-boss took a deep breath, this was going to be a tricky one.

“Your criminal record show-”

“You're not listening, I have no criminal record, I’m as damn clean as those windows!”
Stan pointed at the immaculate state of the office’s windows.
The boss sighed, it was going to have to be the hard way after all as he began to read Stan’s record.

“2 cases of Grand theft carriage, 1 case of domestic violence and at least a dozen cases of fraud and you have the nerve to tell me that I’m lying!”

“I-”

“I recommend that you leave at once”

“But-”

“I INSIST” his now ex-boss's voice boomed through the room
Stanley, as livid as he was, had no choice but to leave the premises.

“Great, I might as well go home now”
As Stan said, Stan did but once he had reached his floor at home he had noticed something peculiar and worrying…
the door to his flat was wide open, its entrails spilled out onto the corridor.
Stanley rushed in without thinking, what he found was leftovers of what he recently called his flat, everything toppled over, smashed and broken.
Stanley’s rage peaked and had to come out somewhere and it found a nice little wall to the side to buck a hole in.
The wall took it surprisingly well, but Stanley didn’t.

“What the hell! my money is gone! I can’t eat! I was fired before I could even work and now somepony trashed my place! WHO THE HELL DOES THIS!”
A quiet whisper replied to his command.

They were looking for something

“Wha- who’s there!”

Under the sofa
It was a strange voice, nothing could describe it it didn't even seem something that a pony could give off or anything else in the world that could talk, and guessing the gender of the thing that was talking to him was impossible, all one could say about it was that it was… a voice and figuring out where it came from was impossible, its as if his mind heart it, not his ears.

“I can hear you! if you don’t come out right now I’ll call the police”

Under the sofa
Stanley wasn't sure if he could trust the voice, so far being a goody two shoes didn't work out too well for him.

“Might as well, like it’ll get much worse than this”
Stanley bucked the sofa aside, it was all broken up anyway at this point and he began to go through the debris that was uncovered.
The pendant that stanley left on the table was lying motionless but he reckoned that this was what the voice was referring to as it was the only thing that that was in one piece in his entire flat.
Stanley picked up the thing only to realize the little mark that was embedded on the floor where the pendant was but a moment ago.
The mark began to slowly grow, like some sort of plant, wrapping its vine around the neighbouring floorboards and smoke began to rise from the tattooed floor.

Run

“No argument there”
Stanley put on the pendant and dashed to the door.

Through the window or you’ll die
Stan stopped at once, the floor was now ablaze, what was he doing? trusting something as sinister as that voice?
it seemed that the changeling won’t make it, just as he was about to smash through the window an explosion of an immense magnitude had helped to slingshot Stan through the glass and out into the air along with an impressive amount of debris from not only his flat but from most of his neighbors.
The shock-wave instantly coursed through Stan’s cells, whacking his lights out.

Stanley, Stanley!
Stanley felt the wind pressing against his face but it felt so peaceful, he didn't want to wake up, he just wanted to rest.

Wake up ya knob!
The sudden derogatory whip of the voice smacked him back into this world.
Stanley was out for just a few seconds but it was already enough to have him reach terminal velocity, the world was approaching Stanley and it was approaching him fast and above him a cascade of furniture and large smoldered bits of wood that was once the flats on his floor were awaiting to sandwich him with the ground that wasn't all that far away from him now.
Stan was still in shock, he couldn't think all he could taste was fear… his fear and he didn't know what to do about it.

Fly
That’s right! Stan had wings, he remembered now, not all was lost, Stan put them to some good use, but the explosion had made its mark on him, a changeling’s wings are a fragile thing, anything can harm them, especially something like an explosion.

“I gotta try!”
Stan’s wings may have been close to unusable but ponies say endangering somepony’s life is the best recipe for a miracle.
Stan had never felt so much pain in his life, wings shouldn't bend that way, but screw wings, he had his life to worry about.
The wings were not good enough to keep Stan up in the air but they were good enough for him to slow down to safer speeds and to have some control over the direction of his fall.

That roof
Stan looked to his left down below, indeed a roof was rising before his eyes, he had to act now ot it will be too late

“I see it!”
The changeling saw what the voice had in mind, it was a small two storey building, the flat rooftop was perfect for crash landing.
Stan flapped like there was no tomorrow.

“I’ll make it!”

The debris
Stan looked up.
The one thing he hadn't thought about was that he was falling slower now… but the wooden debris wasn't and there was one right in his path.

Faster

“I know”

Faster!

“I know!”
The debris was now dangerously close to him.

“COME OOONNNN!!!”
Stan smashed into the flat rooftop and barrel rolled into a stationary position.
He made it.
A deafening rustle of smashes and shouts had greeted the city streets below.
A second after he had taken his breath and realized that he was still alive and the instant rush of dopamine hit him.

“YESS! TOLD YOU I WAS GONNA MAKE IT! WOOOOOO!”
His shout echoed above all else but Stan, moments later had realized what had just happened.

“Oh my god, the civilians!”
Something told Stan no to look down, but there was something inside him, something that was telling him: go on! you've never seen anything like this, have a look!
Stanley gave in to his curiosity and looked down.
He regretted doing that instantly.
The street was bedlam, the flats were spread out across the cobbled streets, blood here and there, splattered, some ponies trying to get out alive, others trying to find their limbs which were long gone under the enormous wooden chunks and others trying to help.
One of the ponies happened to see Stan.
Perhaps it was just the shock talking or maybe it was Stan’s incredibly badly timed cheer that got the pony to point at him and say

“It’s him! he did it!”
Stan wanted to sort out this misunderstanding before it gets out of hand but was interrupted by the voice.

Don’t bother, they’ll make sure the mud stays on your name

“They? who’s they?”

The ones who did this, they want you dead…

“What? who’d want to kill me! I didn't do anything!”

Listen to me, in 24 hours I will die, you have to find Cynthia if you want to save me and yourself

“Where is she?”

That’s a good question
Stanley had found himself in a sticky situation, yesterday his life looked promising and now he's out on the streets chased by unknown ponysonas who want him at the bottom of the river and he has 24 hours to find somepony named Cynthia.

Author's Note

I know that I was supposed to just leave it at the first chapter until the break but I didn't feel quite satisfied with it, I felt that it didn't keep everybody on their toes as I hoped it would so I decided to put up this chapter as well, but this is it, you guys are going to have to wait a little for the rest, but don't worry, once my break is over, I'll be posting a chapter every 2 days as by then I should be finished with the whole fanfic.
This fanfic will be much more action packed and fast paced, this chapter is more of an accurate representation of where I'm going with the story.
I hope this will keep you interested for the next chapters!

CHAPTER 3 (AKA: Food arcades)

“So where do we find This Cynthia mare?”

That’s a good question

“You mean you don’t know?”

You were supposed to read the note, that’s where she tells you where you were supposed to meet

“What note?”

The one that came in the package, next time you get a package I suggest you go through its contents first, ya knob

“Well, excuse me for not being… the Spitfire of package openers”
Down below among the rubble and panic one of the ponies dared to look up and saw Stanley.
Maybe it was Just the shock talking or maybe it had something to do with Stan’s bad timing with his screams of joy but the civilian pointed at him to attract everybody’s attention.

“It’s him! He did this!”
The police that was already on its way to the site of the accident was now dangerously close within shoutshot, having heard the accusations they knew who to target.
We better get going.

“But where do I go?”

Run, I’ll tell you where to go on the way

“That’s rid-“
The police was already a few meters away from Stanley.

JUST RUN!
Stan did as he was told, he ran in the opposite direction of the ponies and changelings who were after him

Jump to the other building!

“But I-“

JUMP!
Stan had no time to argue, or to think for that matter, he had to jump.
Stan leaped off from the building and began to flap as much as his wings let him but the explosion in his flat damaged them badly making flight impossible.
Stan came nowhere near to reaching the other side, instead he just plummeted diagonally smashing into a display window of some sort of fashion shop, the best that his wings could offer was a minimally slower fall.
Glass pulverized into the air.

Get up
There was a moment of rest before the nerves in Stan’s body informed him of the pain he was in.
There was little time for pain, Stan got up, he was cut here and there but nothing lethal, which couldn’t have been said about his wings.

Across the street and take the first alley to the left
Stan galloped across the street, miniscule parts of glass slicing and detaching themselves from his flesh.
The police wasn’t far behind; if it weren’t for that fall he might have been safe by now.
Stan ran into the alleyway, it was a dead one, a wall stood tall in front of him.

“It’s a dead end!”

The door to the left of the wall, break it open

“But it’s a steel door!”

Trust me
The police were still onto him, he could hear them getting closer, the alleyway bought them some time but not much.
Stan took a few steps back, got ready and ran into the door at full force ramming his ribs into the cold steel plate
The rusty hinges gave way just as the voice had predicted and Stan’s body was down down onto the floor of a dusty staircase as he rolled to the bottom.
Stan heard something crack and snap.
A second later the changeling had realized that what he thought was the sound of the hinges giving way, was in fact the sound of his wings.
They weren’t just damaged anymore, they were broken and mangled.
The pain surgically removed Stan’s sanity as he writhed in pain, barely able to keep down his screams, he was still aware of his situation, he had to go right now otherwise his wings are going to be the least of his problems.

“W… where tooo?”
Stan’s pain had full control of his tone.

Apartment 2c upstairs, knock on it, when the griffon opens it barge in, and jump through the window that will be right ahead and onto the roof of the next building... are you all right?

“Nooo…”
Stan was now making his way up the stairs.

This is what happens when you use your face to open a steel door instead of your mind

“DON’T EVEN”
Stan knocked on the door and as predicted, moments later an elderly griffon had opened up the door to see who was on the other side.
Stan instantly overpowered the old lady, obliterating the chain that was keeping the door from swishing wide open.
There was no time to think, Stan just had to trust the voice.
The changeling burst through the door that couldn’t handle his force and darted ahead with his eyes closed.
Stan’s body felt the cold brittle wall of glass smash yet again and the feeling of freedom that came with the outside air... and more shards slicing his already messed up body
He opened his eyes.
He shouldn’t have closed them; the ledge of the next rooftop was further than he had anticipated
With a last push he mustered the strength to flap his wings a few times with great pain and awful sounds of cracks and snaps but it was just enough force to carry him barely far enough to grab onto the ledge, the rest of his body with the power of the momentum that was still in motion slammed onto the wall forcing any remaining air out of Stanley’s lungs.

Come on, get up
With the pain that was now stabbing him in whatever was left from his wings, he crawled onto the rooftop with great difficulty and lay on his belly, he dreaded to even think what it would feel like to lie on his wings right now.

“I… I need to rest”

You will in a moment, just one last thing.

“What else? I don’t even think I can stand anymore”

You won’t have to.
Stan was thrown off track by that response

“So what am I going to have to do?”

It’s a bit cliché but there’s a ventilation shaft to your left, it will lead you to the inside where you’ll be able to pull yourself together, rest and eat.

“What’s below?”

A food arcade, you’re welcome.
The voice didn’t need to say anything more, he was already convinced, he was tired, hurt and hungry and this was the perfect place to deal with all of those issues at once.

Try and find the colt’s room, there pull yourself together and then go feed and mingle, we need to keep a low profile until everything calms down.
Stanley did as he was told, He opened up the vent's entrance and a few minutes of crawling through tight vents later, he had successfully located the bathroom, waited a few minutes until everybody was out and busted right in.
The main priority right now were his wings.
Stan locked himself into one of the cubicles and began the inspection.
The wings were in the worst possible condition, the stabbing pain was now replaced by a pleasant warm pain as his brain came to terms with the current state of his body.
The once veiny clear glassy wings were now scratched as if they were a carbon fiber suitcase that was dragged by a plane that was taking off, in some areas they were also snapped, like a mirror that was just punched by an angry teenager who just saw his acne-infested face.
The wings were beyond repair, Stan couldn’t see it but his body told him that quite a few muscles and tendons connecting his wings to the rest of his body were pulled apart.
The best that Stan could do right now was with immense pain to fold his wings back into their default position and somehow subside the bleeding wounds with toilet paper.
The rest of Stanley’s body looked quite bad, bruising in most places and there where there was no bruising, a constellation of minor cuts with an occasional glass shard still embedded into the flesh.
It was a good thing that he was a changeling, his black carnation concealed the bruises and blood quite nicely... but it also meant that he couldn't bandage himself since the crimson blood would stick out too much with the white toilet paper he would use.
Once all that was dealt with, it was time to leave the toilet and feed.

Stick to the dance floor.

“Why?”

The dancefloors are always the darkest areas in such places, plus ponies are always dancing and moving, that will make it harder for anypony to notice the state you’re in

“But I don’t know how to dance”

Either you dance, or they catch you, your choice.

“I’ll just trot around the place, they’ll probably not notice me”

Porbably isn’t good enough, you need the best chance you can get, now go and dance.

“FINE!”
Stan had never imagined that his first time at the food arcade would be like this, in the small town where he came from changelings just went food shopping so they didn't need any food arcades.
At first it felt awkward for the changeling when he entered the dancefloor, it felt as if everybody was looking right at him as if he was glowing with some sort of guilt or something but soon enough he began to loosen up as his belly was being gradually filled with the plethora of emotions, the rest of his body was being kickstarted to the beats of the songs as if dancing were something he were born to do.
Hey, take it easy, you don’t want too much attention.
Stan was whipped back harshly to reality and calmed down before he grabbed anybody’s attention.
Before Stan had even noticed a few hours had passed.
Time to go.

“Let’s stay for a little while” mumbled out Stan quietly enough for the voice to hear but not loud for anybody else to notice him.

First we find Cynthia and sort this mess out, then you can have all the fun you want, all right?
Stan couldn’t just be hear talking to himself so he went to the colt’s room.

“Fine… where to?”

The ghetto.

“Ghetto? Why there?”

That’s the place she stayed at before I was delivered, there’s a chance she might still be there.

“But isn’t that where-“

All the poor ones are, yes.

“Any address in specific?”

I’m… I’m more of a visual kinda guy; I’ll tell you where to go from there, just keep a low profile.

“Somewhat hard considering I’m wanted”

You’re a changeling, just transform.

“Wha- I can’t!”

Sure you can, just… transform

“It’s illegal”

Are you serious? There’s an entire group of ponies and changelings that are hell bent on killing you, they blew up your apartment, they’re ready to terrorize this entire city just to get to you and you’re worried about doing something illegal…

“Look, I couldn’t change even if I wanted to… I don’t know how”

What do you mean you don’t know how… you’re a changeling, it’s in your blood, are you trying to tell me that you never transformed?

“No, nopony ever taught me how to”

Sheesh, all the items in the world and I was assigned to you… I’m going to have to teach you a lot of things if you’re going to become somepony.

“Hey!”

Don’t you hey me, the two of us are the key to the single most important event the last 500 years have witnessed and you’re telling me that you’re useless.

“I resent that!”

All right, enough of wasting time, we need to go, now.
Much to Stan’s surprise it was much easier being inconspicuous out in the streets, it was rush hour and everybody was coming back from home.
One single changeling hardly stood out from colonies of dragons, all three kinds of ponies and other changelings.
Soon enough, Stanley had reached the wall dividing the ghetto ruins form the rest of the city and was ready to take his first step past the point of no return.

Author's Note

As promised, I'm back and of course, a chapter every two days, look forward to the next one!

CHAPTER 4 (AKA: Flower among the ruins)

It is said that the city of Manehattan was built over its own ruins when it burned down hundreds of years ago in a freak fire.
Most of that story is legend but a fraction of it lived on in one part of the city, the ghetto, the one part of the city that has never been rebuilt.
The stone ruins of buildings dwarfed next to the rest of the green baoblock city.
Within the ruins, Stanley was traversing across the silent littered streets.
It was nothing Stan had ever felt before, he knew this area was poor, he knew about all the crime and unhappiness present in this area but the streets… the ruins… it was all so… peaceful... what ever horrid unspeakable thing had happened here, it was long over.
Stan found it hard to admit it but it felt amazing, the soothing silence, not a soul around, the litter and lack of law liberated one’s mind, freeing them from all the restrictions in their lives, everything that which Stan had to do on that day, everything he couldn’t do, nothing of it mattered, the only thing that mattered was here and now, the cloudless sunlight shone at the building skeletons setting a high contrast of white glare next to the pitch black shadows.
The cold breeze from the shadows mapping pleasant Goosebumps across Stan’s body, the nature ran wild, hedges and shrubs spurting out of the stone brick soil and the grass carpeting patches of what were floors hundreds of years ago.
It was a pleasant walk, one that Stanley wished would never end.
But all good things come to an end.
Stan stood in front of a hollow factory, whatever signs of life that thing had were gone decades ago.

This is the place

“You sure?”

Yes, inside, but be careful just in case, she’s known for being feisty.
Stan heeded the warning and entered through a window hole and lowered himself as quietly as possible.
The broken glass on the floor crackled invitingly.
Stan instantly hid behind a bulk of generic dusty crates.

Do you see her?
Stan cautiously peeked out onto the main area, the building was just a hollow shell, no assembly machines were present, no nothing, whatever was in this building was long gone.
Far up ahead on the other end a black figure stood hunched away from Stan in front of the only thing that broke up the rough outline of the littered floor, a table.

“I see somepony”

Can you make out anything else?

“No, I’d have to get closer”

Get closer then.
Stan had to squeeze his brain juice for this one, there was almost no cover apart from an ancient crate here and there but that wasn’t going to happen, the crates were so old that the rusty nails had probably given way long before he was even born and the years’ worth of rays bombarding the wood through the windows had annihilated most of it leaving pages of the wood’s harder rings dried up and most likely more brittle than a ponyphone’s screen.
Alas, an idea had greeted Stanley’s mind, if he can’t get closer from within, he’ll have to get closer from the outside, after all one can’t see through walls.
Stanley turned back to whence he came from ready for the stealth mission.

She’s seen us!
Stan turned around as a black bullet had barely missed him and annihilated the wall where he was supposed to be a second ago.
Stan, shocked looked at the attacker who was now in the place of the wall
It was a changeling mare, her silhouette beautiful with a single unbroken line and her wings in an impeccable pristine condition (easily a fashion model’s) contrasting with her golden glowing retinas.
Stan was going to remember this moment for the rest of his life, the being, her body so gentle and beautiful, colliding with the sharp cutting glow of her retinas.

Left buck!
As soon as Stan saw the mare getting ready to strike, he knew what the voice was trying to say.
Stan instantly swayed to the right, his shoulder chipped by her blow.

“W-wai-“

Right upper!
Stan crouched.

Front, center!
Stan stepped back.
The mare stopped for a second, then she took off to the air with no friction whatsoever and stood motionless as a hummingbird for a moment.

She’s taunting you, probably has the advantage in the air.

“It’s not like I can fly, Look Lady! I’m here-“
But Stan couldn’t finish what he was going to say because the beauty had already swooped and like a falcon grabbed him and was soaring vertically upwards to the old rusty ceiling.

“Wait! No! I can’t fly!”
But she wasn’t stopping; they were getting much too close to the roof.
The Mare with all the momentum she had swung Stan right towards the roof that gave way with practically no force and Stanley for a few seconds saw the bright day sky until gravity started acting on the changeling, bringing him back down.
He fell right back through another portion of the roof a few feet away from where he came out of moments ago and was now falling to his death, the mare looking down on him coldly from below the roof.

FLY!

“I CAN’T!”

SHOW HER ME!
Adrenaline took over Stan’s body that grabbed the pendant and was swaying it to get the mare’s attention.

“THE PENDANT!”
Stan closed his eyes bracing for impact.
A second later, he felt what he thought was the impact.
Surprisingly, dying wasn’t that painful.
Stan opened his eyes, he was floating a few feet away from the floor, he was being held up by the mare herself who harshly let go of him and landed gracefully in his line of sight.

“You’re not him”

“Y-yes I am, see?”
Stan waved the pendant he was wearing in front of her

“The voi-“

Don’t.

“Why?”

Keep it secret, trust me.

“Because you’re not the one who lives in the flat I left the package at”

“Yes I am”

“You’re that tall handsome changeling from 835?”
Something in Stan clicked.

“Oh, you probably mean Wally from 835B… our mail always gets mixed up, you see you must’ve-”
But the mare was already in front of him trying to take the pendant off

Don’t let her take me!

“Give it!”

“No!”

“It’s not a toy!”

“I-I know that!”

“Just… give…”

“No!”

Tell her that you can use the pendant’s power

"I can use its power!" replied Stanley as he was desperately holding onto that thing
The mare stopped at once.

“You… can use its power?”

“Yeah”

But don’t tell her about me

“Huh?”

Just tell her that the power makes you… know stuff

“All right then, what is it?”

“Well… I know stuff”

“Just because you know about the pendant doesn’t mean that-“

Ask her to ask you a personal question

“No, I KNOW stuff, look ask me a question”

“All, right… what’s my name?”

Cynthia

“Cynthia”

“Well… just because you know my name doesn’t mean that’s a power”

She’s rude, feisty and has no womanly charms at all…
Stan parroted the voice without thinking

“You’re rude, feisty and have no womanly charms at all”

“WHAT!”
Stan’s face was met with Cynthia’s left hook and she was getting ready for the second round, clearly livid.

“YOU…”

…because she never had any friends so she doesn’t know how to act in front of others.

“You should have said that sooner!” Stan whispered angrily, massaging his right cheek.

“You creep up on me and you think you can just insult me like this?”

“You had no friends and because of that you don’t know how to act in front of others, that’s why you’re like that!”
Cynthia’s face changed.

“How… how did you know that? I never told anybody about this”
Stan pointed at his pendant once again.

“…”
Cynthia gasped, maybe he was the one who could use the pendant's power

“Are you all right?” asked Stan, Cynthia for once was being unnaturally quiet

“Fine, but don’t think that being the rightful owner of the item doesn’t make us a couple”

“Wha- a c-couple?”

“How much do you know?”

“I don’t know, It depends on how much I use the pendant-“

“-Item, but that’s not what I mean you dumbass, I mean can you fight?”

“Uuuhhh…”

“Well?”
We have to go, we don’t know when they might show up

“Yeah, you’re right?”

“Right about what?”

“About going, we need to go now, we don’t know when they might show up”

“Go where?”

“I don’t know”

“You don’t know…”

“Well I was tol- I mean I know that I was supposed to meet you and you were supposed to take me somewhere”

“You’re weird”

Nice save.

“Thanks”

“That wasn’t a compliment, I wasn’t being sarcastic”

“I wasn’t talking to you”

That wasn’t a compliment, I was being sarcastic.

“Who… we’re the only two here, who were you talking to?”

“Uhhh… myself, I sometimes talk to myself”

“…Aaaaaaaanywayy now that you’re here we should get going to my uncle, he’ll know what to do, he always does”

How in the hay are we going to get to Discord’s realm? You’re probably already wanted all across Equestria.

“Discord’s realm? Your uncle lives all the way in Discord’s realm?”

“Is that a problem?”

“Uuuhhh… you heard of the term keeping your head low?”

“Yeah…”

“And do you know the definition of irony?”
Cynthia squinted her eyes, this seemed suspicious

“what did you do”

“Well, I may or may not be wanted”

“WHAT”

“But don’t worry, the explosion wasn’t my fault”

“EXPLOSION?!?”

“They tried to blow me up, they nearly managed, see?”
Stan showed her the horrid state of his wings.
Cynthia gasped, she didn’t like this newbie but nopony deserved what had happened to his wings.

“it… it really hurts in case you’re wondering

“If you want to ever use those again we’ve got to get going NOW”

“And how are we going to do that without getting caught?”
Cynthia pointed at her golden glowing retinas.

“I have my ways”
Stanley wasn’t sure if he could trust her, but as he was going to soon find out, that was the least of his worries.

Author's Note

Well, exams are getting closer... damn it!
Can't wait until they're over.

CHAPTER 5 (AKA: Meet the family)

The most cartoonish and outrageously fun place in the universe, a place like no other, a land with such joy that one felt sticky by simply going anywhere near the place, The place in mention was of course Discord’s realm and two unlikely changelings were traversing through its heartstrings thumping with life and an endless conga line of parties.
It was just as Stan had remembered it as a colt, it’s as if he were some sort of permeable wall through which entered a constant overwhelming source of positive emotions such as fun, joy and everything else positive than one can think of, this place for a changeling was a 6 star restaurant, heck not just that it’s as if there were multiple restaurants in the same place, over there the spicy oriental blend of thrills of the rollercoasters, further up ahead the more refined French minimalistic cuisine of theater and on the side the occasional Amareican fast food stand where colts, baby dragons and griffons would be given the cotton candy, hay fries or gem cakes whose joy of full bellies filled the stomachs of nearby changelings.
Whatever one learned, whatever rules they lived by, the things they couldn’t do... here, all was possible, there were no rules, in fact there was no rule even stating that there were no rules, a one big giant heap of chaos, but a pleasant chaos, one where nobody was pressed by everyday rules, where they could just live in the moment and forget about each and every one of their problems.
Stan was so overwhelmed with the surge of information from everywhere that before he knew it, they had reached their destination with almost no effort at all, Stan thought that it would be somewhat harder to manoeuvre around Equestria when one is a notorious terrorist.

“How did this happen?”

“Well, we got on the train and-“

“No, I mean how did we get here so easily?”

“Magic, babyyyy!”
Stan frowned, Cynthia was crazy and not the hot sort of crazy, the cat lady sort of crazy.

“You’re crazy”

“Pschhhh! And you’re boring!”

“No, really, how did you do this?”

“We’re here!”
Stan looked ahead, just a plain ordinary house in the residential area of the realm (or at least plain and ordinary in Discord's realm's terms)
Cynthia simply opened the unlocked doors briefly followed by Stan.
The contents of the home were concise, a single main room and of course no kitchen (after all, changelings don’t need one)

“Cynthia!”
A thick boned changeling mare ran right into Cynthia crushing her with an oversized hug that would easily knock out a grown stallion.

“And who’s this handsome fellow?”
The attention was now averted at Stan whose only option right now was to introduce himself.

“Helo, I’m Sta-“

“Oooohhh…” the mare pointed at his pendant

“He’s your special somepony”

“AUNTIE!”
Cynthia gave her a powerful jab to her side to shut her up.

“I thought you went for different... types of stallions”

“I do, this one’s a mistake”

“Hey!”

“I’m sorry Stanley, she can be a little mean sometimes”

“No! really this one’s useless! He doesn’t even know how to use his item”

“He’s not useless, the items are never wrong”

“Well they are this time, we need to undo all this”

“But dear, you know the rules-“

“I know! But there HAS to be something, that’s why I’m here”

“Well, if anybody will know what to do it’ll be either your uncle or your grandfather”

“Well, where are they?”

“You uncle is at work, as usual as for your grandfather… well you know him”

“Come on” ordered Cyntia
Cynthia hooked Stan by his neck and dragged him out of the house

“It… was… nice… meeting… you!” Gasped out Stan, choked by Cynthia's hold

“Likewise!”
The aunt giggled as she closed the door behind them.

“Where are we going?”

“To my uncle”
Stan’s body felt raggedy and worn, now that he was no longer hungry he had time to realise just how tired he was, he had never been so wiped out in his entire life, he needed a proper rest and fast.

“Look, can we just have a break for a moment?”

“Don’t be a lazy bum”

“Bu… BUM?!? Are you seriously calling me a bum right now??? I’ve been through hell today if my body doesn’t rest right now I think I’ll pass out”

“Don’t be a pussy”
Cynthia’s foul language smacked Stan in the face.

“LOOK NOW-“

“FINE! SHEESH! We’ll take a break when we get to my uncle so stop your whining already!”

“Oh yeah? And where is he? Canterlot? Saddle Arabia?”

“Right there”
Stan looked at where Cynthia was pointing to, and she was pointing directly at Discord’s shack

“Wait, you don’t mean-“

“Yep”

“Your uncle…”

“Eyeup”

“Works at Discord’s shack?”
Cynthia facehooved.

“Yeah… sure whatever”
The giant wobbly gelatinous doors were unclosing in front of the couple ready to greet them with pure chaotic fun.

“Oh my god! I’ve never been inside! It’s got to be amazing!”
But instead of going through the entrance, Cynthia turned towards the slimy doors.

“What are you doing?”

“Whack-a mole for guacamole”
The doors produced a green shiny rump that shortly after making its appearance received five smacks at its left buttcheek and a tickle on its tail.
Stan gagged, the scene of Cynthia slapping a slimy jiggly rump and playing with it was not something he needed to see that day

“Why are you slapping this?”

“Beats kissing it”
A set of trap doors opened up above them and sucked them in before closing and disappearing into thin air.
Stan had never experienced anything like it, he was flying through… stuff, he couldn’t even put it into words what the hell he was seeing, every moment he was in an entirely new universe, one moment they are made out of string, then they’re traversing through the negaverse (whatever that meant) after that stan was pretty sure that he was with Cynthia on some metal gray train with some being with formal attire holding a suitcase in one hand and calling them “mr. Freeman” or something like that, then a flash and there they are in the middle of reading a fanfic about themselves on an obscure webpage.
Suddenly
Peace
Finally a moment for them to get their bearings.
Gravity
Yes
Floor
Check

“Sweet Chrissy! What just happened?” Stanley exclaimed

“We’re here”
Stan was too busy trying to figure out the last few moments of his life... or maybe lives (he wasn't sure) to notice where he was… some sort of bedroom, and not just any bedroom, whoever lived here was one hell of a bigshot, a large double bed deserving of royalty, a huge mirror wall on one side opposite the bed doors, revealing an immense balcony and right in the middle of the room, stood none other than the god of chaos in his full draconequus self who extended his arms like a harmonica in a friendly greeting

“Why if it isn’t Cynthia!” Chuckled Discord

“Uncle!”
Cynthia was now wrapped in a harmonica or arms

“And who’s this I see? Stanley I presume?”

“How do you know?” asked Stanley

“This douche stole the ite-“

“I know everything Cynthia darling”

“You do? Oh good”

“Hmmm… yess…”
Discord was examining Stan with a pair of x-ray glasses, not the real ones though but the cheap cardboard fake novelty ones that were basically just a pair of regular colorful glasses with cardboard for lens and a tiny hole in the middle to see through.

“I have to say My fellow, She really did take after you”

“After me? Who?”
Discord popped a ton of cats and kittens all over himself along with a granny bonnet and a rocking chair

“Oh, don’t mind me, just a crazy old draconequus talking to himself”
Cynthia decided to move this conversation back on track if there was such a thing as a track to begin with, in this place.

“We need to undo this, he took the item by mistake and-“
Discord poofed into a discord-headed rope that tied up cynthia

“I’d love to help, but I’m afraid that I’m a little tied up you see, with the annual celebrations coming up and all”

“But-“

“Don’t you worry I’m sure the family will approve of him”

“But it’s not him”

“Of course it’s him”

“No he isn’t”

“Yes he is”

“Isn’t”

“Is”

“Isn’t”

“I- wait you’re going to do that thing where I say isn’t then you say is and then you say Isn’t and then I say is aren’t you?” retorted Cynthia

“Oop, busted, sometimes I wish I had taught you less my dear”

“Come on Uncle Dis”

“I’m sorry but what’s done is done and-”

“COME O-O-O-O-ONNNN!”
Cynthia was in the middle of a stamping tantrum, her voice wobbling along with the rest of her body

“No means no Cynthia, not this time, some things even I can’t do”

“Fine! I’ll go to granddad instead!”
Discord turned towards Stan.

“Boy you sure have your work cut out haven’t you?”
Stan rolled his eyes.

“Tell me about it”

“Well then, I guess I won’t keep you here any longer!”
Discord huffed and puffed them through the doors leading onto the balcony, and as soon as they were through the doors they found themselves in a cave.
A mirror fortress reflecting history of Cynthia’s family as well as a glimpse of Stan’s soon to come future which was being revealed as they were traversing patiently needing time to take it all in.
The cave in which they suddenly found themselves was entirely made of some sort of crystals, with countless podiums with all sorts of objects, a giant hammer, a metal helmet with massive feathered wings which was grotesquely catching attention, a magical whip made of fire, encrusted with sharp gems made of ice, a teethed long sword and far up ahead, a massive metallic double doors, which was where they were currently headed.

“Where is this place?” Asked Stan

“You ask too many questions, you know that?”
Stan was so offended by that statement that he couldn’t even get himself to reply verbally, instead he furiously gesticulated everything around them, countless objects on podiums, each glistening with their own history long past, others, more recent yet they all contained something peculiar, something that made them stand out, much like a cutie mark of sorts, Stan couldn’t put his hoof on it though.

“This is our crib, it’s been our family heirloom for years now”

“And all those objects? Like that bow?”

“They’re...”
Cynthia pointed at her pendant

“Fashion jewellery?”

“No, you idiot! They’re magical items! Like the one which you have which clearly doesn’t belong you, you thief”

“Well then next time, I suggest that you send the package to the RIGHT place”

“Why do you think we’re here? We’re gonna take that off of you”

You won’t manage
Stan averted his gaze at the pendant and turned to whisper mode

“I don’t know much about all of this but it can’t be simpler than taking you off and giving you back”

It doesn’t matter now, you are the rightful owner of this pendant

“But she said that-“

Cynthia knows how these things work, she just doesn’t want to accept you, that’s all

“Me? What’s wrong with me?”

...
Stan was now moderately aggravated.

“Oh, giving me the silent treatment now, are we? just spill it, what’s wrong with me?”
Cynthia, assuming that was directed at her, inhaled getting ready to give him a very long list she has been meticulously preparing throughout this entire trip

“You’re dirty, weak, don’t know how to fight, rude, weird and you talk to yourself”

She’s right you know, you do talk to yourself
Stan smacked his pendant to shut it up.

...Or at least that’s what it looks like

“Well excuse me for being equine, besides talking to oneself isn’t all that weird”

“Who the hell talks if they don’t want anyone to hear them?”

“Who the hell writes if they don’t want anyone to read it?”

“What?”

“Diaries”

“Diaries aren’t weird”

“Diaries is basically writing to yourself, the only difference between writing to yourself and talking to yourself is that you have a quill ink and parchment”

“Still, it’s weird”

“IT’S NOT WEIRD!”
Stan’s voice bounced off every cave’s surface, the objects on podiums rumbled slightly as the innards resonated with his tone ever so slightly.

“Ok ok! Just shut up already or they’ll hear us upstairs”
The two stopped in front of the metal doors made in the image of the pendant door design with a massive diamond in the middle.
Very faint ticking could be heard as if beyond those fake doors were some metal being with a tin heart ticking away his or her time.

“You, don’t do a thing, don’t even move or we’re screwed”
Cynthia tapped at the door with the greatest of care as if the thing itself were made of the thinnest glass.
The sound dispersed along the metal, Stan could almost see the sound being amplified a million times over by the door’s resonant properties and then the rest of the cave joined in on the fun.
The sound was getting immensely loud, it was becoming painful to hear.
And then the sound stopped almost immediately.
A line along the middle of the artwork began to trickle down perfectly splitting the door in half along with the diamond, then the thing opened in the most gentle and sublte way possible, the ticking was now becoming more clear, some of the air from the cave began to travel into the contents of the room on the other side of the doors and a figure emerged.
It was a changeling, but an incredibly old and aged one, whoever he was, he has seen things nobody else has, his body scarred with life experiences, truly what one would consider and elder.
Stan bowed in front of him; it just felt like the right thing to do.
The loose saggy and wobbly face spoke.

“Cynthia”

“Grandpa!”
Cynthia threw herself onto him.
Stan jumped in to prevent that, the grandfather’s body seemed so old and frail that it might turn to dust under Cynthia’s weight, or indeed, anybody’s but he missed it by just the smallest of inches and Cynthia crushed the old being with her love.
Much to Stanley’s surprise the hug was fully returned.

“Grandpa, This is-“

“I know who Stanley is, child”

“Really?”

“Yes, I also know why you’re here”

“Oh, that’s great, then when can we get the item back from him?”
The grandfather looked at Cynthia for a brief moment.
Stan’s curiosity about the ticking was killing him he had to know what the heck was ticking away so lively behind those doors, he extended his neck beyond the other two to see what’s inside.
The Grandfather waved his left hoof at the door which obediently closed but just before it did, Stanley managed to see for the briefest of moments what seemed to him the corner of a dome with some complicated mechanism of cogs and wheels ticking and whirring away.
The elder signalled Stanley and Cynthia to follow him on a tour of the cave.

“Stanley, This is our history, who we are, every item you see here isn’t just an item, it’s a living being, a part of our family that once lived but is now gone”

“That’s very interesting sir but-“

“Of course it’s interesting, it’s only natural for you to want to know about your family”

“Wait, MY family?”

“But- grandpa, he’s the wrong-“

“There is no such thing as coincidences Cynthia, not with this”

“But-“

“Hold on a second, MY family? I think you might have me mistaken for someone else and-“

“You Found a package with nothing in it, later, after being fired on your very first day of your job and not having eaten either you came back to your apartment that was ravaged by somepony only to discover this pendant and find out that the flat was rigged to explode when you enter”

“How did you know that?”
The Grandfather smiled.

“As an old friend told me once, I know a lot of things and I know that you’re not a thief, I apologize for my granddaughter, she tends to let her imagination get the better of her at times”

“Look, just because you know stuff about me doesn’t automatically mean that-“

“How did you survive?”

“Survive?”

“I can tell that you’re new to the hardships of life, how did you know that the flat was going to explode? How did you survive all this time on your own?”
Stan’s cover about the pendant was being blown, he really wanted to ask the voice right now on advice but now out of all times would be the worst and it seemed that the voice agreed with him because it wasn’t saying a thing.

“It’s all right, you don’t have to answer, we all have our little secrets, don’t we?”
Cynthia had just realized what they were really talking about.

“Waiiiit a minute, you can use the pendant?”

“Well...”

“Give it to me right now!”
Cynthia threw herself onto him trying to take away the thing around his neck that seemed to be the source of all his problems.
So why was he protecting it? Stan couldn’t explain it, he just knew that taking it away from him would be plain wrong.

“Come on!”

“No!”

“Gimme, it’s not a toy!”
The shuffling was covering the cave’s atmosphere with a hearable fuzzing.
The Grandfather stomped his hoof on the crystal floor, the sound wave cleared the air, shocking the fighting pair into submission.

“That’s enough Cynthia”
Cynthia also seemed to have enough, she couldn’t take it and ran off hiding her face, possibly trying to cover up her tears.
“Cynthia...”
Stan reached out to her but she was already gone
“Leave her be, she will be fine”
“Look, I really have no idea what you’re talking about here, this whole thing about magical items and now I’m your family, I can assure you that I have a family of my own”
“I don’t doubt it”
“See? This is what I mean, you’re not making any sense, I lost everything today, I’d like to at least know why”
“Have you ever heard of immortality?”

“As in someone who can’t die?”
“Yes”
“Well I heard About the idea, why do you ask?”
“Because you are temporarily immortal”
Stan’s face dropped.

“Wait, just run this through me again, what am I?”

“Immortal”

“Like I don’t age?”

“No, you simply cannot die for a period of time”

“Uhhh, I’m pretty sure that I’d die if I’d jump off the top of a baoblock”

“Yes you would, but you won’t, fundamentally you are just like any other living being, no different, you age, you can be hurt and you will die someday but not for some time”

“So I can’t die but I will die eventually? How does that work?”

“How familiar are you with time travel?”

“Well I’d be more familiar with it if it existed”
The Gradfather grinned.

“Time travel exists? Really?”
The grandfather nodded.

“It all started a long time ago when a changeling filly travelled from the not so distant future to the faraway past, there she had met a colt and fell in love with him, they married, had children and raised a family but what they didn’t know was that they were related, the colt was the filly’s great grandfather from a long time ago and not long after they had established a happy family they stumbled upon a mysterious book, this is the book”
Stan looked at the book upon the podium in front of them, it was a very old and tattered book and on the cover a simple “family tree” title lay spread out across the front.

“This is a book about their family for the next 500 years, it is somewhat simple and has n”

“And I’m a part of that family?”

“That filly who travelled to the past, was your daughter”

“My daughter? But I don’t have one”

“Not yet, but you will some day with Cynthia”
Stan burst into laughter, he couldn’t imagine anybody else less appropriate for a relationship with him than her.
A minute or two later after he had calmed down, he went through the facts once again in his head.

“Tell me, how can I be sure that you’re not lying”

“Because you’re in the book of course”

“I see... Then I guess it’s all right if I see it then”

“No, it’s a family rule passed down from generation to generation”

“AHA! So you are lying”

“I am not”

“So then why can’t I look?”

“Because, no good comes from knowing too much about the future”

“How can that be a bad thing?”

“Ever wondered what would happen to your life if you knew exactly when you’d die? Everypony is scared of death yet we all live on, how is that possible? Because we never know what awaits us and that ignorance is bliss, if you look in there, you will regret your decision for the rest of your life... but if you want to look that badly, I won’t stop you”
Stan walked up the podium containing the book.
Most of Stan was pushing him to open that book, so many answers could be in there, what’s going to happen to him, yet a small little thing, a tiny little force was overwhelming the rest of his body.
It was fear.

“You can feel it, can’t you?”
Stan violently turned his head to the Grandfather, something was wrong with Stan right now and he was worried.

“Why... why can’t I do this?”
The changeling descended off the podium.

“Because you know what would happen if you’d know too much, why do you think suicide is so difficult? Our bodies were made to live, not die, it’s the most basic part of our nature, to survive, and you know that looking in there is wrong”

“Then why, why would such an abomination exist?”

“Only the one who gave this book to your daughter knows the answer to that”

“Who would so something as cruel as that?”

“That’s the one answer the book doesn’t have, we might never know”

“So what now?”
The elder sighed.

“Whatever happens, happens... all we can do is wait and endure what life has laid out in front of us the best way we can”

“But why tell me all this? Couldn’t I have just lived peacefully? Why is all this necessary? So what if I’m immortal for some time?”

“Don’t you think it would be a waste of such an opportunity? You cannot die, at least until you have a daughter, don’t you feel some sense of responsibility with this?”

“I... I don’t know it’s all a lot to take in for a day”

“Our family for hundreds of years have been utilising this rare opportunity to do what’s right, to help those in need, make sure this world doesn’t fall apart”

“This is beginning to sound like some sort of superhero comic book stuff”

“If you want to call it that”

“So what, just because I have this immortality thing and this pendant I should put on a cape and run around like some masked thing?”

“Oh, nothing like that”
Stan sighed with relief

“Oh good”

“The cape isn’t necessary”
Stan just wanted to be back in his comfy old home, just sit in silence and think what to do with his life next, and for that he was ready to turn down an offer of a lifetime.

“Thank you for your offer but I think I’d rather go back to my old life”
Stan turned away from the Grandfather and got going.

“There are other immortals, ones who stand against us and wish us harm”
Stan stopped dead in his tracks.

“Others? Are those the ones who did all this to me?”

“Indeed”

“How many?”

“Just one, but he has many under him”

“Why does he want me dead?”

“Not just you, anypony from our family, they think themselves as gods, beings who are fit to rule above all else with an iron hoof, and they most certainly can if it weren’t for us”

“And that’s why they ruined my life?”

“and the life of many other innocent bystanders on the way, yes”
Rage was about to blow Stan’s top off, he knew how horrible it was to have his life taken away and something in him just couldn’t accept the fact that something as horrible as this might happen again and again to other innocent beings because of a whim or a sick sense of pride.

“Well then, they have another thing coming, they think they can just play around with anybody like this? Grandfather... actually what IS your name?”

“Call me the inventor”

“Well, inventor, consider me as part of your family, I promise that I’ll bring those changelings down!”
A news sense of purpose was breathed into Stan and a new unstoppable force was being born.

Author's Note

I apologize for the delay, I had just noticed that although I had put this chapter up 2 days ago it was still unpublished, must have forgotten to press that little publish button...

CHAPTER 6 (AKA: Training)

Stan was up and ready for this, the ointment given by Cynthia’s aunt had worked wonders and so did those few days of rest, Stan had never appreciated a bed so much in his entire life.
Right now he was standing in one of the crystal caves, specifically designed and emptied for combat.
On one end sat The Inventor along with a few other family members, the aunt included, ready for first aid if need be and to observe Stan’s skills, what he could do which right now wasn’t much.
On the other end, in front of Stanley stood Cynthia, as mad as she’ll ever be, she had been giving Stan the silent treatment since the time she had to accept him as a family member.
It was a tough two days.

“So… what do I do then?”
The inventor stood up.

“You fight”

“How?”

“That’s up to you, Cynthia”
Cynthia instantly transformed her pendant into her glowing retinas and took off into the air and straight towards Stan.

“Wait but-“
But there was no time to talk, she wasn’t holding back, Stan thought that she was fast the first time he was up against her but clearly, he was wrong.

Duck left!
Stan ducked left, Cynthia’s grab barely missed him, he could feel a slash of air cut through his fur, giving him chills.

Spin right!
Cynthia took no time to recover, she used her momentum as a sling and with an even greater force came back with an aerial u-bend straight to the terrified changeling.
Stan had no idea what the voice had wanted him to do but he just went with it and spun right.
Cynthia didn’t miss this time, her right punch was as if a truck weighing a few tons had ran over Stanley’s face, however the momentum of his spin managed to decrease the blow’s power just so that it was unbearably painful, now he was spinning significantly faster and couldn’t get his footing back long with his balance, he smacked into the ground, right on his wings.
The ointment may have done wonders but his wings were still far from anywhere near functional.
Stan got up as quickly as his hooves allowed him to.

BACKFLI-
But Stan was already in Cynthia’s grasp, it was over.
Cynthia locked Stan’s neck in mid-flip, for a second she stood upside down above Stan using him as a balancing stick, then her wings propelled her back on the ground, Stan could feel that his back was soon to reunite with the hard crystal floor.
Cynthia rolled into a ball behind Stan’s body, her hind quarters now propped firmly against Stan’s wings and back, she then moved onto utilizing her control of his neck to twist it and in combination with her massive buck on his back and the momentum of their fall redirected upwards by her arched back propelling Stan into a high air flip spin making it impossible for him to recover from before he finally hit the ground.
Cynthia then coiled tightly as a spring and with all the force she could muster she jabbed upwards like a nail gun into a spinning mid air Stan’s stomach that cracked like a bag of chips under the sheer force of her blow.
Stan coughed out any air within him along with some blood as he ascended further up into the air with the sheer power of the blow.
But Cynthia wasn’t done just yet, she had a lot more to tell him with her body.
As Stan began to fall yet again and the pain of the blow began to kick in, Cynthia, waiting in midair below him grabbed him by his hind quarters, let the momentum of his fall do a 360 degree full circle up and back down around Cynthia as she added her own force to the acting gravity to deal a massive smash into the crystal floor.
Once again a crack but Stan was in so much pain that he couldn’t even tell anymore if that was the sound of his bones cracking or the floor.
Right now, Stan would scream if only he could but his lungs along with the rest of his body failed him, all he could do was observe as Cynthia ascended high up right to the ceiling and began her final blow, flying down right into Stan.

“That’s enough Cynthia!”
Cynthia instantly changed course and flew sideways away from Stan and slowed down into a halt.
All Stan could do right now was cough out blood.
The aunt came in to deal with Stan’s fatal injuries.

It was night, and Stan was still recovering from those 30 deadly seconds of fighting with Cynthia who didn’t seem to feel any remorse about what she did, he lay in silence thinking through what he decided, he knew that he wasn’t going to die but sometimes dying is less painful than living.
The doors to his room creaked open exposing The Inventor.

“Do you have a moment?”

“I’m not going anywhere if that’s what you mean”

“I discussed your repertoire of survival skills with the rest of the family”
Stan was afraid of what he was pretty certain he was going to hear

“I didn’t make it did I?”

“There’s no such thing as making it or not in this family, this wasn’t an exam”

“But I failed so badly”

“Well, You have to consider that Cynthia had a lifetime of experience with what she does”

“But still… it’s been at least a week and all I’ve done is lie in bed, I didn’t learn anything, why can’t you teach me something?”

“Because teaching you would make you weak”

“Weak?”

“Tell me what is the one single greatest weakness of any warrior?”

“I don’t know…”

“His teacher”

“Teacher? What do you mean, like when he’s kidnapped or something?”

“No, when you learn from somepony else, they not only pass on to you their successes but also their failures”

“I don’t understand”

“Tell me, have you ever seen anypony else fight like Cynthia?”

“No”

“Exactly, that’s because it’s her fighting style and her own only, nopony else can do that apart from her”

“But wouldn’t it be easier to just learn how to fight from someone else?”

“Have you ever heard of judo?”

“Yes”

“Have you ever seen it being used?”

“Yes”

“Precisely, the greatest weakness of any skill is its popularity, you know judo, and chances are, you could find its weaknesses and flaws and if you do, anypony who knows judo would have trouble facing you yet if you present the enemy with something absolutely new and unique they don’t know how to respond to... well... did you know what Cynthia was going to do to you?”

“I see your point… so what you’re saying is that having your own technique adds the element of surprise”

“Yes”

“But how the hell am I going to come up with an entire fighting style just like that?”

“Just between the two of us, I know a way”

“Now we’re talking, what is it?”

“Come with me”
Stan’s body was still a little rough but he was much better considering he was receiving intense magical healthcare on a daily basis.

“Where are we going?”

“To the caves”
Stanley followed The Inventor through the portal at the home’s basement through to the caves.
The caves glistened with a nightly melody.

“What’s that sound?”

“It’s the cave sleeping”
The two stopped in front of the giant metal doors in front of which lay a sleeping Cynthia.

“I brought her here”
Stan jumped into a new level of alertedness

“No, if it’s anything to do with her I don’t want to have anything to do with it”
The Inventor approached the door and then turned around facing the sleeping Cynthia and an opposing Stanley.

“Cynthia also needs to learn a lot of things, she may know how to fight but she doesn’t know much else aside from that”

“You don’t have to tell me that… so what is this training going to be?”

“Training? Who said anything about training?”

“Well… you did”

“The best and fastest way to learn is by living”
Stanley yawned, it was the middle of the night and he wasn’t sure if he was registering the words properly.

“I am living”
The Inventor chuckled mildly and stomped his hoof gently, the faint clop spread throughout the cave replacing itself with an increasing ticking sound from behind the doors as if a bomb was about to go off.

“Come back alive”
The floor below Stan and Cynthia who was still sleeping being none the wiser began to glow as a portal was opening itself under their hooves.
Stan couldn’t do anything, he couldn’t use wings at all, not in the state that they were and the portal was far too wide for him to be able to reach anything.
The two fell like water through a sieve and as soon as they did the portal was closed and gone.
By the time Cynthia had woken up they had already hit the ground.
Stan this time had gone through enough falling this past week to be able to finally land on his hooves for once.
Stan looked vigorously around.
The red sky was swirling furiously with countless supercell storms, in the distance a black sea was smacking the rock cliffs and the wind was carrying the smell of danger.
He had no idea where they were but one thing he knew for sure, they weren’t in the same world anymore and something told him that finding a way home is going to be the hardest thing he’ll ever do.

Author's Note

My initial plan for this was just to make a brief story about Pacifica’s parents but now that I’m doing it, I think it might be longer than I had anticipated (don’t know how this will end up) which means that I might end up doing 2 stories about Pacifica’s parents and if I do as soon as I finish this first part I’ll be coming back to Pacifica and the rest, now depending on how this works out I might do the rest of her parent’s story in the next story with Pacifica and Morty in the main role… this is as much as I’ll say, in fact I think I might have said too much already as is, don’t want to spoil anything and it’s hard to say anything really without having a spoiler as I’m heavily intertwining everything in every one of my stories, but all of this is providing this story ends up being too long, it all just depends on how the next few chapters end up.
Look forward for the next chapter in 2 days!

CHAPTER 7 (AKA: The island)

Cynthia’s head was going through the motions that day, it’s been a while since she had such a vivid dream about anything, the whole issue with Stanley was getting to her, she hated him, he was the exact opposite of what she was looking for in a partner, she just couldn’t get along with him, he was the exact type of changeling of which she and her friends used to make fun of back in school, those with no life at all.
And then that falling feeling.
Not even a split second passed and Cynthia’s body alerted her that this wasn’t a part of the dream, she was indeed falling.
Cynthia did her best to get her bearings in time but one can only do so much and the ground was too close this time.
Cynthia thumped her left rump on the rough igneous soil.
Thankfully the fall wasn’t big enough to deal any significant damage, Cynthia checked her rump, she was just going to be a little sore later on.
The next thing that caught her attention was where she was.
She stood on some sort of black igneous beach-like soil, full of small and somewhat larger rough edged rocks and pebbles, the light slope on which she was located led to a far off beach with a sea of red that melted into the swirly blood sky emanating a gentle glow and littered with dark swirling storm clouds.
The whole place was bizarre, as if it were a different world entirely, the place didn't even have a sun, everything seemed to be illuminated by the entire glowing sky making it next to impossible to determine what time of day or night it was let alone get one's bearing regarding direction.
North east south and west had no power here... and neither did the changelings.
The smell hit Cynthia's nostrils, it was a strong smell, one she had never experienced before but one that the back of her head knew well, it was the smell of death violence and danger.
It was bizarre, every part of Cynthia’s body was telling her that she needs to get out of here as soon as possible because someone or something is going to get her yet she couldn’t sense any emotions whatsoever, it’s as if this place was devoid of life yet full of something else.

“Are you all right?”
Just now Cynthia noticed the little addition to the scenery that Stanley was.

“What… were…”

“I’m as surprised as you are”

“Where are we?”

“Let me know when you find out because I’d like to know that too”
Count on Stan to be useless.

“Well… do you at least know how we got here?”

“Yeah but I don’t think you’ll like it”

“Just shut up and talk”

“Well, you remember your grandfather? He brought us here”

“What for?”

“All he told me was for us to come back alive”

“So you’re tellin me that my grandfather just throw us in here and put us in danger?”

“Basically”

“Bullshit”

“No, really I’m telling you, that’s what happened”
Cynthia's blood boiled, this motherfucker had the balls to talk smack about her granddaddy

“You know I put up a lot with you recently but I’m not going to put up with this crap, what the fuck do you want form me?”

“Want? Why would I want something from you?”

“Cut the bullshit, ever since I met you, you’ve done nothing but make my life a living hell and now we might actually BE in hell because of you and you've got the nerve to blame my grandfather for it!”

“I swear it was him! Why would I lie? and you know what? It’s not like this was easy for me you know, all you think of is yourself, always you, you, you! all you’ve been doing since I met you was complain, I wonder how you’d feel if I’d complain days on end about you in front of you! My life was shattered but no, you don’t care about that, what’s important is that I’m not what you expected me to be, for once in your miserable life try acting your damn age and think about someone else besides yourself”

“You want me to think about someone else? Fine, if I’m such a bother then you’re not going to see me again!”

“Really?”

“Yes, now go fuck yourself!”
Stan rolled his eyes, as usual, she was making things harder

“Don’t you think this is a bit stupid? Out of all the times you could have decided to do this, you decide that NOW is the best time to be completely on your own? look around you! neither of us know where the hell we are and if you have any sense or maturity or common sense in that head of yours you’ll suck it up and stick together until we get out of here”

“I’ll stay when hell freezes over”

“Well I can’t force yo-“
Cynthia gave Stan one last left hook and took but this time, to Cynthia's surprise, he had enough of her crap and blocked it.
The two changelings shared a hateful look, not a second later Stan violently threw her hoof aside telling her to back off because he is not playing around this time.
Cynthia puffed up, turned around and and angrily trotted away.

“Well, that went exactly as I thought it would be”

So what now?

“Now we go home”

And how are you going to achieve that?

“Well, first I need to know where I am, do you know?”

Of course.

“Care to tell me?”

I won’t

“What? Why?”

If I do everything for you it defeats the purpose of you two coming here in the first place

“Just cut the you two stuff, it’s just me and you right now, she’s gone for good”

Not if you want to get out of here, you won’t manage on your own

“But you’ve seen what she’s like! There’s no way she’ll ever do anything she doesn’t feel like, she’s like a 4 year old princess”

She’ll come around eventually, that’s why she’s here

“Oh yeah? And why am I here?”

You've got to learn to fight and survive

“I was doing that back there”

Only life can prepare you for itself, knowing what to do and actually doing it when the time comes are two different things
So that's how its going to be then, thought Stan... this is a major pain in the flank

“Oh I see, so you’re not going to help me at all then?”

Of course I will, you need to learn how to use your item properly, consider us as… brothers... I’ll help you but only when you can’t handle it on your own… so what’s the plan?

“Well if you’re not going to tell me where we are, I’m going to have to find out for myself”

And how are you going to achieve that?
Stanley looked up in the sky, it was windy as all hell

“Well, we’re on a hill, normally I’d just fly high and see where we are but it seems like it’s pretty windy up there, plus I don’t think I’ll fly anytime soon given my current condition, all I can do right now is go uphill and then just have a look around the place, maybe find the highest point within sight and see where that takes me”
Stan got his wits together and began to climb up the slope leading to a large hill.
An hour passed easily and there was a clear difference in the already subtle flora, a sign of a different height, what was once an occasional thorny tree with individual large waxy white leaves was now replaced with smaller shrubs.
Stan was nearly at the peak, just a few more minutes but as he was getting higher, so was his worry, it had been over an hour of trotting and he STILL couldn’t sense any emotions apart from an occasional tiny little flicker here and there probably caused by some small local burrowing animals.
This spelled trouble for Stan, he was a changeling he had to live off of something, something living, something that feels, perhaps if he were a pony Pegasus or any other animal that feeds on actual physical food he might be fine with the vegetation as food but for a changeling this place might as well be a desert.
Finally the changeling had reached the peak of the hill, the top was solid rock, perhaps a dormant volcano? Who knew.
Stan now had the full opportunity to have a 360 degree panoramic view of the place.
Sea
Sea
Sea
Sea
Wherever he looked he could just see the sea, this was worse than he had anticipated, they were stranded on an island.

“Great, this is just perfect… no food, over an hour wasted and what’s worse, on an island and stuck with the one changeling I’d decide NOT to take with me, I feel like a punch line in
A distasteful joke”

It’s not as bad as you think The voice intervened

“Really? And how is that?”

Well, you have food

“Where? You mean those tiny little rodents I sensed on the way? Each one of them is like a single hay fry, I’d have to catch about a hundred and keep them locked up just to make the bare essentials!”

I was referring to the campsite below to your left
At last, some good news.
Stanley looked around and indeed, down below in Celestia knows what direction there was whjat seemed to be a local primitive wooden settlement

“All right! Now that’s something I can work with, I'm sure whoever lives there will be able to tell us a thing or two about this place!”
Stan headed straight to the settlement.

As Stan neared the settlement he began to realize that it wasn't a settlement as much as it was a campsite and once he was within 50 feet of the place, he was able to finally make out what was going on, despite the place looking quite small from afar, up close it was teeming with life.
The creatures living there were none other than cerberi, some had only two heads whilst others had the classic three, some even had as few as just one head, all of whom had humanoid bipedal bodies, walking on their hind legs.

I’d recommend being cautious
Stan hid in some nearby bushes

“I know, I’m thinking what to do right now, I have a few options”

Which are?

“1: I just go in and downright ask them where I am and if they could help”

That would be the stupidest thing to do
Stan gave a discreet chuckle

“Don’t worry, I’m not Cynthia, 2: I creep up quietly, assess the situation and then when I think it’s safe to go in, I go in... and that's the safer option which I think I will go with”

I don’t think that’s a safe bet either

“Why not? I can’t sense much danger from them”

Listening to your instincts is important but living by them is reckless, instincts are good when you don’t have time to asses the situation but when you do, you need to use your head, look at them and tell me what do you see

“Well, they walk on two legs”

This means they must use their arms often, maybe rely heavily on tools... or even weapons perhaps?

“They have up to three heads”

Increased audiovisual and nasal senses multiple times, an evolutionary trait developed through eons, perhaps for hunting. What else?

“I don’t know, they’re some type of dogs?”

And dogs are?

“Ummm… cute?”

What do dogs eat?

“How am I supposed to know that?”

Look, ponies are herbivores and dogs are….

“Carnivores”

Exactly, what does that mean?

“Well, that means that they eat meat”

And you’re made of?
Stan sighed and facepalmed, how the heck did he not get that, it must have been some sort of brain fart

“You reckon they might eat me? we don't know for sure”

True, and I don’t think they necessarily will either, they seem too advanced to just eat anything that moves but that does pose a problem for you

“And what would that be exactly?”

Their entire bodies were designed to kill, big sharp teeth, ears and noses sensitive to the slightest sound or smell… I wouldn’t risk exposing myself for the chance that they MIGHT be friendly, and even if they are, might be stuck on this island for a while so there’s no guarantee that they won’t change their mind and if they do you’ll have a horde of highly skilled killers on your tail

“Catching rodents it is then”

It doesn’t matter now

“Why?”

Because they’ve spotted you, RUN!
Stan didn’t notice this earlier but every single Cerberus in the camp were slowly and inconspicuously coming closer to the shrubs were Stan was hiding, if it weren’t for the voice, he had been done for.
Stan jumped out of the bushes and at once the whole camp just went haywire, a multitude of voices all shouting commands in a foreign language but Stan didn’t have to understand the language to know what they were shouting at this point.
The voice was right, those Cerberi were fast as hell, he had no chance against them despite being an equine, his horsepower was no match to theirs.

They’ll catch you at this rate! Use your wings!

“Agreed!”
Stan just hoped that his wings will be able to do their job this time, screw their state, he’d give those wings away for free if it meant making it out of this alive.
The changeling bit one end of his bandages around his back and with one swift whip of his neck he flicked away the bandages and began flapping away.
It was still very painful but he was finally flying after all this time.
He was going to make it.
One of the cerberi down below revealed a net which he threw towards his prey.

Watch out!
But Stan found out what the voice meant the hard way, the rest of the horde grabbed whichever part of the net was closest to them and pulled Stan back down.
Stan was hyperventilating, this was it, he can’t talk himself out of this, he can’t fight them either and he doesn’t have any time left to come up with a plan.

CHAPTER 9 (AKA: Minesweeper)

It was such a pleasant day today, not a slightest breeze to poke the senses, as if the air were practically stale with immobility, a perfect room temperature where one doesn't know where their body ends and the surrounding begins.
Stanley was outside, some sort of savannah and he and her were taking a pleasant stroll and chatting, he had never had much of an opportunity to talk to her before and now was the chance.

„I have GOT to stop doing reckless things” Began Stanley as if striking a conversation with her were the most normal everyday thing imaginable

“When will you learn?” she asked

“Never, I presume” Answered Stanley, stepping on that landmine was such a dumb thing to do

“Oh, come on now don’t be so harsh on yourself dad, I’ve also done some pretty stupid things when I was young”

“You’re right…” Stanley couldn't remember her name, this was embarassing

“...Pacifica”

“Pacifica, right… wait! but I don’t have a-“
Stan woke up.

You’re finally awake I see

“Wha-“

Just which part of survive do you not understand?
Stan wasn’t listening, he was far too confused, the last thing he remembered was being caught by the Cerberi and now he’s in this strangely familiar place.

“Oh no…”
The place was familiar to Stanley because it was the Doctor’s tent.

HEY! KNOB! YA LISTENING TO ME!
The voice ringed in the changeling’s head.

“Yes! Yes I do! Why the hell are you shouting!”
The voice didn’t seem too pleased with Stan.

Because what you just did in that minefield was the single stupidest, most dangerous and damn craziest thing anypony would ever come up with! you’re damn ballsy for somepony like yourself you know that? The next time just do as you’re-

“Oh, shut up already, it was crazy, it worked”

Barely
Stan had run out of patience, it was him that risked his own life, it was him that came up with the plan and then there’s this voice that’s complaining about it all.

“Shut up, you have no say in this, I came up with something, you did not, I get to complain, you do not, next time if you want to complain, come up with a damn plan instead of being totally useless”

...

“Don’t feel like apologizing I see…”

You’re still alive so I suppose the plan sort of worked…

“Sort of, sort of???”

Well, you didn’t exactly get away

“Fine, I’ll give you that one" its not as if Stan was going to get anything better than that from the voice

"how long have I been out?”

A day or so, and while you’ve been passed out I haven’t been standing idly by, I’ve been thinking and I know how we can get off this island

“Really? How?”

It won’t be easy

“I don’t do easy anymore, I’m here to train after all”

Now you’re thinking, all right, for this we’re going to have to first of all escape but not only, we’ll also need to kidnap a Cerberus, after all, we have questions, and the Cerberi have answers

“Well we can’t just plain ask them, we can’t even interrogate them, I don’t understand a single thing they say”

That’s all right, I’ll teach you intention reading

“What the hell is intention reading”

Time and place Stanley, time and place... first let's focus on getting a cerberus
Stan began to ponder on what would be the best thing to do... all the cerberi seemed so aggresive huge and intimidating, they would all be a handful to deal with in captivity, and for that matter, how would they even kidnap one? those things could overpower a changeling in no time... and then, it hit him.

“Let’s kidnap the Doctor, he seems to be one who’d be the most cooperative of the lot”

Agreed

“The real question is how are we going to escape this time”

First, we contact Cynthia and let her in on all of this, we’ll need her help

“Oh sure, let me just give her a shout… she’s probably at the other end of the island and even if she’d be somewhere nearby there’s no way she would be within earshot.
It’s all right, in case you’ve forgotten you wield a magical item, I’ve never told you its ability.

“I assumed that you talking to me is your ability”
No, this item’s ability is communication.

“Communication? But I thought you couldn’t translate the Cerberus’s language?”
Not translation, communication, your item is a communication device used to communicate between any number of beings over any given distance, a sort of super-phone if you will.

“So I can talk to anypony I wish right now?”

Yes

“And you didn’t think this would have been handy a while ago?”

No, it wouldn’t have made any difference
Mark's rage boiled

“It would have made all the difference! I could have called Cynthia instead of looking for her, I could have-“

-What, called for help? Before you’re given any form of power you first need to be ready for the responsibility that comes with it, do you remember what happened when dragons were incorporated too quickly into ponykind?

“What has the united Equestrian revolution have to do with any of this?”

There is no better teacher than the past of your own land, the point is that neither the dragons nor united Equestria were ready for such radical changes, which resulted in a near catastrophe for the whole world

“Oh come on, we’re talking about a pendant, not an entire species!”

You seem to underestimate the importance that your actions bear in this world

“Whatever, look just show me how to get in touch with Cynthia, or better yet, the old stallion that put us here in the first place”

That is simple, you need to focus your magic on the pendant and think about those with whom you would like to converse with
Stan focused at Cynthia’s grandfather, he will surely know what to do.
Nothing.

“Hey why isn’t this working?”

You focused your magic on the pendant?

“Yes”

You thought of Cynthia?

“No, I thought of her grandfather, he would know what to do in this situation”

Ah, well therein lies the problem

“Oh, so now you’re telling me that I can contact ANYPONY except the grandfather”

No, you can contact him, however it is far more complex to contact one outside this world than one within, it will take considerably more practice to achieve that than to contact somepony on this island
Stan let out a heavy sigh, he was already used to things not going the way he wanted them to.

“Cynthia it is…”
Stan focused on Cynthia and zapped the pendant with magic
Something popped in his ears as if a new channel was being opened

"Cynthia?" asked Stan

"Stanley? you're alive? thank god! how did you survive? where are you?"

"I don't have the time to tell you everything, all you need to know is that I am back at the Cerberus camp, I'm going to need help with escaping"

"Wait a second, how can I hear you from all the way over there?"

"My item, look that's not important right now, I need to get out of here and I have a plan, but first I need to rest for a bit and feed, in the meantime look for me and I will explain everything to you"

The island’s winds danced among each other like a group of hellish ferrets in heat, and right in the middle of it all, Cynthia was trying to get her bearings, this goddamn place was impossible to navigate through
It was hard enough not to get swept away by the winds but Cynthia still had to juggle one other thing.
She focused her magic and activated her item.
The world all around her lighted up in a yellow-orange hue, all shapes and forms of energy were now visible to her, all around, the whole island, nothing could escape her vision.
Cynthia had used the item before, in fact she was quite used to how difficult it was to handle but this was on a whole new level, she had to locate the camp and the exact position of Stanley whilst keeping an eye on every single Cerberus and maneuvering through the sky.
Cynthia began her search, it was like a sea of sensory overload, the deafening whistle of the wind wasn't helping either, however what was helping was the barren lifeless island, making those golden outlines of cerberi and Stan all the more visible as they popped out from the lifeless slate island.

“There you are!”
A small cluster of dots lay in one of the distant tents, seemingly no different than any other dots but Cynthia had enough experience to tell the difference between each form of energy in the way it moved and behaved, the Cerberi’s energy was more calm and flowed like a small river in their bodies however in the case of Stan or any other being that uses magic, the life energy within was more erratic, pulsing with magic and there was also something... else... the life energy of his item?
There was no time to wonder about weird stuff because now that Stanley was located, it was time for a diversion.
Cynthia flew close enough to be sure she would hit her target, a tent, devoid of any life energy but far enough not to be noticed by the enemy.

“Are you there?” Asked Cynthia making sure the communication link between them was still there

“Yes, are you ready?”

“That should be my line but yes, I’m ready”

“Let’s get started then”
Cynthia sent an incendious magical bullet towards the tent that caught on fire instantly.
The winds were in their favour, the flames were infecting other tents nearby and the constantly changing wind was helping them spread across the entire area.
The flow of energy in each Cerberus had increased, this meant that they caught onto what was happening and were now doing everything they could to minimize the damage and salvage as many things they could, buckets of water were being collected and the contents thrown onto the problem areas.
The fire had now spread across most of the camp, the doctor was in the middle of treating a minor wound for one of his patients when it had happened.
The Doctor panicked, what if the tent the captured being was in caught on fire? He could not escape and if he’d die, the opportunity of a lifetime would be wasted.
He could not let this slide, that black thing was going to turn him into the doctor of the century and will help him advance medicine a few decades further in the span of a few years.
The fire raged on, digesting whatever it came across.
This was the chance Stanley needed, he still had enough energy left to set himself free from the chains now that he had rested for a while and eaten on the emotions of all these Cerberi that surrounded him constantly.
Stan blasted away his chains, the metal they were made out of was resilient but eventually gave way but not before exhausting the changeling first.
Are you all right?
“I’m fine, I’ll get to eat soon enough anyway”
Stan sat up, his body just as achy as it had been the last time he was here, his wounds restitched.
As soon as Stan set his hooves on the ground, he felt a pain deep in the bones of his left hind quarter that stepped on the mine earlier that day, it had received the majority of the blast, possibly cracking some of the bones he had there.

"It's livable" said Stan to himself

What is
Stanley just realized that he had just said that out loud

"No, nothing, just talking to myself"
Now all he had to do was to find the doctor and lure him into the woods.
Stan exited from the tent to be met with a scene of total chaos and nobody in it paid any attention to him whatsoever, they had far more important things to deal with

“Cynthia!”

“Yes?”

“I’m out but I still need to lure the doctor to the woods, stall for a few more minutes”

“I’ll try”
Cynthia kept on shooting incendiary magic shots into every flammable crevice and corner, this time flying much too high for any of the cerberi to reach her with any net or throwable object... wings were a godsend to Cynthia right now.
Despite the plan working surprisingly well and without a hitch, it was exceptionally hard for Cynthia to keep this up, her brain couldn’t handle this sensory overload for such a long time, in fact it wasn’t designed to handle an extra sense in the first place, if she keeps this up, the damage might…
Cynthia cringed and sucked it up, she couldn’t quit now, Stan was relying on her.
Cynthia stopped for a second.
Since when did she start caring for Stanley anyway? She didn’t like him, in fact she left him to fend for himself, so why was she going this far just to help him?
A sharp nail of pain had struck through her mind, reminding her that now was the time to act, not think, the quicker this is done the better for the both of them.

“Hey, Cynthia, where’s the doctor?”

“Find him yourself, I’m not a map!” Whipped back Cynthia, must she do everything?

“Hey, I-“

“I’m too busy doing my part, you do yours!”

“Fine, sheesh!”
But as Stan’s luck would have it, the doctor was already on his way and as Stan was about to make his way to find him, he bumped into the Doctor.
The two stood in front of each other for a second sharing a stare which was to determine what action each side was to take.
The two looked at each other, neither of them could figure out where the other side stood, will he attack? Or are they both on the same side here?
After some hesitation, Stan decided to be the one to dictate their relationship as he dashed under the Doctor’s legs.
The doctor wasn't going to let him go just like that.

“Found him! And he’s following me, just a few more minutes of stalling!”
Each gallop thumped the pain of the hind left quarter with the added bonus of the screaming of his other wounds.

“Hurry!” screamed Cynthia as the pain was growing in Cynthia’s head, she was pushing all of her evolutionary traits to the absolute limits.
Stan dashed as close to the edge of the camp using the confusion and running panicking cerberi to his advantage, and it was working, the doctor was not very far behind, Stan was afraid that he’d alert the rest which he was trying however his shouts drowned in a sea of screams and orders that everyone else was throwing around in order to save their camp.
Not a second later Stan was already within the woods, the doctor chasing after him, he was smaller and weaker than the other Cerberi so he wasn’t catching up fast.

There it is! Up ahead!
Stan looked up front and noticed the crater from a recently exploded mine, they were where they needed to be.

“You sure you know where the mines are hidden?” Asked Stan

Yes! Now do it! replied the voice
Stan halted at once, The doctor was sue he had him but in fact it was the other way around.
This was going to be a first for Stan he had never done this before as back at home this was considered a crime of the highest level that went in par with murder.
The doctor got ready to grab him but was smacked in the face with Stan’s magic that drained every bit of emotional energy the doctor had… Stan couldn’t hold back, not this time.
The doctor fell to the ground, emotionally knocked out in a near vegetable state
The changeling didn’t have much time left, he had to hurry and climb a tree but first he had to conceal the Doctor.
Stan dragged the body to the nearest tree, laid it on the ground and covered it with nearby leaves and branches, it wasn’t a perfect camouflage but it’ll do.
Now came the tree.

You sure you can’t fly?

“My wings are beyond hope at this point”
Stan used the newly obtained energy to cast a gravity altering spell so that he could just walk up a tree trunk without a problem.
He sat down a branch high up and looked down upon the chessboard that he will be using in a moment.

The mines seem like they were put up fairly recently so they’re visible from a high position
It was as the voice had told him, the mines were visible from a higher angle, they were small patches of grass and other plants that were a bit shorter than all the other flora around, not visible from ground floor but from a more aerial point of view it seemed obvious
Stan was now full, and ready for the next part of the plan.

“Cynthia, I’m ready, bring them in!”

“Bout goddamn time!”
Cynthia gave a loud whistle to attract the attention of all the Cerberi down below.
The whole camp turned towards her who was producing a few more blasts to aggravate the enemy.
Now all she had to do was to lure them to the minefield.
A pack of around 10 cerberi or so came together with abnormal efficiency as if they had been practicing for this very purpose every day and was after Cynthia, one of the Cerberi up front of the pack acting as the eyes and steering wheel for the rest.
Cynthia with all that she could muster zapped towards the woods, where Stan was located, now on top of dealing with everything she had to so far she also had the additional bonus of having various sharp objects thrown her way.
The Cerberi weren’t going to let her get away this time, they came pre-
The Cerberus leading the pack was hit with draining magic and KO’d instantly, not a moment later he was shot with a concussive blast, the thing sliced right through the chest like butter, his body jetted in midair towards a mine that exploded at once, leaving but a crater and a rain of body parts all over.
The pack was ambushed, they fell into the trap.
What came next was a massacre, both Cynthia and Stanley cooperating with deadly precision, doing what they had been born to do, ripping emotions away from each enemy, and transforming that emotional energy into magic used to throw the enemies onto mines one by one.
The pack had no chance, Cynthia was alternating her position, sniping away and the best thing about it all was that they could go on like this for hours, what they used in magic they instantly made up with a quick meal from the next victim.
The explosions shaking the nearby land and trees as if a stomping giant was about to make an appearance, the warm crimson mist of blood expanding, plastering the air with a metallic rusty taste and smell pinching the nostrils of everybody in sight.
It didn’t take long for the enemy to wisen up and cut their losses, they were at a tactical disadvantage, the objective to kill was overcome with the need to survive.
The decimated pack ran with quite literally their tails in between their legs.

You did it, congratulations
But Stan didn’t feel like being congratulated he had just killed over a dozen of living beings and was bathed in their blood, the mist had clung to his skin making it sticky like one’s hands after eating a chocolate bar on a hot day.
The murder scene was unrecognizable, the nearby trees decorated with body parts like some sort of sick tinsel on a Christmas tree, sharp bone parts half buried in the ground and trunks here and there, this part of the woods will surely become haunted soon enough.
Though Stan’s psyche was now in shreds he was at least full and the one great thing about feeding off of emotions is that one doesn’t have a stomach’s contents to present to the outside world in such a situation.
Stan came down the tree back on the ground hot from the constant explosions and body heat from all the guts.
Cynthia also landed, she could instantly tell that this was a first for Stan.

“Are you all right?”

You will be, eventually
Stan just nodded quietly, he wasn’t in the state to think much so it was up to Cynthia to do the next move.

“The quicker we get out of here the better, come on, let’s go”
The two were so focused at figuring out a way to escape that it didn’t occur to them that they’d have to find shelter.
Cynthia looked uphill at the rocky area of the woods, perhaps there was some sort of cave up there.

“Come on, maybe we’ll find a cave up there where we can rest”
Te duo picked up the Doctor’s limp body and began the climb but Cynthia was in a worse state than she had anticipated, her body was fine but her mind was now a goopy mess, she flopped to the ground without a warning leaving Stan with all that muscley weight of the Cerberus that strained his stitches to their limits
Stan’s knees bent but with one powerful push he flipped the knocked out Doctor onto the grassy floor and came up to Cynthia.

“Cynthia, Cynthia!”

She passed out, I had a feeling this might have happened

“This? How come? She was fine!”

Her body, yes, but her mind…

“What about her mind, tell me about her mind!”
Stan was freaking out once again, it was all supposed to be fine now, this shouldn’t happen, not now.

Its her item

“It did that to her?”

In a way, her item gives her and extra sense and a superb vision of things one can’t normally see however this comes at a cost, her body was never designed for such a large sensory input, her mind couldn’t quite handle it

“But that was never an issue before!”

True but the winds here seem quite fickle, my guess is that flying in this area, shooting with precision, keeping hidden and on top of it all having to process all that vision was too much for her, I’m surprised that she managed to hold on on so well for so long

“Why didn’t you tell me, we could have-“

Could have what? there was no other way! If I had told you about this then you might have refused to go through with this!

“Damn right I would have!”

And you would have died!

“You don’t know that!”

In the best case scenario you would have been tortured again

“Well then I would-“

You still need to get your shit together ya knob, what you witnessed before wasn’t torture, it was foreplay, torture takes hours, days, you are still not ready for that

“Oh and you would know better than I about what I can handle”

Yes

“You’re by far the most arrogant…”

Don’t you dare underestimate my capabilities, I have the knowledge of a thousand beings

“Sure you do”

I don’t expect you to understand, not yet at least, this is just the beginning of everything, the well is much deeper than you could possibly ever imagine

“Great, ANOTHER secret, something else you can’t tell me, you’re more trouble than you’re help”

You’re lucky we’re on the same side

“Oh look! he's doing me favors!”

A two year old baby doesn’t comprehend the sacrifice that the baby sitter makes for them

“Just shut up, I’ve had enough for today, I just became a murderer, I’m never going to be able to fly again, I’m in some unknown place or universe for all I fucking know, Cynthia just passed out and I need to find some shelter that’s obviously uphill… it’s a good thing I’m good with magic”

You think you can handle The doctor and Cynthia both at the same time?

“Handle?”

Stan smirked

“I’ve handled stuff way bigger than that in my past, I was even picked on in school for my abnormally strong magic”

Who’s the one showing off now
Stan used his magic to float both of the bodies with ease as if they weighed less than a feather.

“I was born with a condition, it’s called hypermagica, it’s a rare case where my body overamplifies its magical properties”

Stan began the climb

I heard of it, its pretty rare

“Most ponies think that it’s a blessing but it’s actually quite obnoxious it’s like its nearly impossible to hold back, right now I’m doing my best from stopping my magic from crushing their bones”

You’ve must’ve been quite a handful as a foal

“You have no idea, because of my troublesome childhood my parents became quite skilled at magic… they had to I guess, it’s why I never use magic, because every time I do, I’m afraid I might hurt someone”

I think you should use that to your advantage

“Don’t you even start with the it’s a gift you should use crap, do you have any idea how many times I've heard that? The answer is no, I only use it in life threatening situations”

In that case I suggest you start practicing because with the life you’ve chosen you’re going to need it

“I just can’t OK? I don’t wanna talk about it”
The voice didn’t know what it was like, what he went through as a foal, it was… it… Stanley didn’t want to think about it.
Stan stopped, he had found the perfect place to stay, a cozy cave, now he just had to make sure that whatever was living in there was out.

Author's Note

Stanley's little secret has been revealed (some of you might have been wondering why he wasn't using much magic so far, well you'll find out why soon enough in the next chapter)
probably sometime next week after my last exam is done (have to retake it, passed everything else with flying colours) I'll be going to my home town where my writing always goes into hyper overdrive, during that week I'm hoping to write up at least 9 chapters.
See you next week!

CHAPTER 10 (AKA: Intention reading)

Today out of all days, was the most peaceful one yet, it’s as if the world in which Cynthia and Stan resided in decided to give them a break, they found a cave, they had their captor and they were pretty full on food as well given the last 24 hours, they were all rested, or at least their bodies were.
Stan’s mind was like a bath of oil to which suddenly a few kilos of fresh fries had been thrown into out of nowhere, his thoughts were sizzling and whilst his body was ready for action, his mind was most certainly not and Cynthia had noticed.

“What’s wrong with you, don’t like our new crib?”

“…”

You should tell her, its bothering you and with this in your way your mind is in no state to learn intention reading once the Cerberus wakes up
But Stan didn’t want to tell Cynthia, he had a lot of terrible experiences with his condition, he had just managed to get others off his back with this and he didn’t want it to turn a full circle, sure he told the voice about it but that was different, to Stan the voice wasn’t as much another being as it was a extension of himself, so it only seemed normal that he’d share everything with the voice but Cynthia? Whether he liked it or not they had formed a strong albeit strange bond, with his life starting anew he didn’t have anybody else apart from her, and he didn’t want this to get in the way.

“Is this about that argument we had?”

“No”

“Because I- oh it’s not? Then what is it?”

“I’d… I’d rather not talk about it”

“We’re going to be here a while so you might as well tell me, you will eve-“

“NO!”
Cynthia jumped at the sudden violent reaction she got from Stan.

“OK, now you owe me an explanation, I don’t need to feel your emotions to know that something’s wrong”
Stan wasn’t going to have it but neither was Cynthia, he knew her well enough that she wasn’t going to take no for an answer so it was time to try a different approach because this one was the equivalent of hitting his head with a brick wall.

“I… It’s something about me, it’s… it’s… it’s not simple I don’t know how to tell you it in the right way”

“Then just tell me”

“I can’t”

“Sure you can”

“No, you don’t understand-“

“Damn right I don’t understand, make me”

“No, I need to word it right, otherwise…”

“Otherwise?”

“You’ll…”

“Come on”

“You’ll”

“Out with it”

“You’ll...”

“JUST SAY IT ALREADY!”

“YOU MIGHT HATE ME!”
That wasn’t what Cynthia had expected to come out of that mouth.

“Hate…. You?”

“Yeah…”
Stan sighed, she was right, he was going to have to tell her anyway, and there was no escape from this conversation now that it’s gone so far

“I have this condition… it’s called Hypermagica”

“Hyper…”

“…Magica, yes, it’s a condition where the way my body is built, it resonates with my magical abilities and amplifies them to dangerously high levels, I didn’t want to tell you because… because Everybody who finds out about this always ends up turning away from me, my acquaintances, friends I’ve grown up with, even my family, I know they still care about me but it’s the distance that kills me, and… well, I started a whole new life just to get away from that pain, I mean, if I don’t have friends, if I don’t have a family who’s to hurt me?”

“Who do you think I am?”
Stan looked at Cynthia’s enraged face.

“Wha- why-“
Stan didn’t know how to respond to this question, it’s as if she wasn’t even listening and heard something completely different.

“Look, I don’t need to explain myself to you, in the life of every being there are some things that they never talk about, for me this is one of them and I don’t need to explain it to-“
A powerful wholesome slap echoed throughout the cave.
Stan pirouetted to the floor.

“Who do you think I am! You think I’d leave you over something like this? Do you really think that little of me? I know you think I’m too childish, I know you think I have no manners but this… This I will never forgive you”
Cynthia stampeded out of the cave leaving a speechless Stanley, she was the first being that reacted this way, he wasn’t sad or angry, he genuinely didn’t know what to feel.

She likes you

“Yea- what? you think she likes me?”

Do you know what’s the opposite of love?

“Hate, and she hates me, you can tell by the way she bitchslapped me in the face”

No, its indifference, she hates you right now because she cares about you, why do you think it bothered her so much about what you think about her, you know her she doesn’t care about what others think, if she didn’t care about you, she’d just accept the fate you’ve imposed on her but-

“-She doesn’t want to”
Stan’s pain on his face was beginning to transform into a nice warm feeling.
It was probably the pain of the slap wearing off.

A cave, the loud shouts echoing suggested that the Doctor was in a cave, the first thing one has to do when regaining consciousness was to figure out his surroundings, even before moving or opening his eyes, it was Cerberus 101 you never knew who was hiding behind the corner or whether you weren’t in a middle of a trap.
From the sounds he could tell that the two black creatures were nearby.
He tried moving his arm a little but was restrained by what seemed to be some sort of homemade rope.
It appears that this time the roles were reversed, he was at their mercy now, but for some reason he wasn’t afraid, if the creatures wanted him dead or had ill intention he would have woken up in a very different circumstance, if at all.

He’s awake, it’s time

“You’re the one going to teach me, so you lead the way” Announced Stan to the voice

The first thing we need to assess is our relationship with him; we need to make it clear that we’re not here to harm him

“And how are we going to convince him? He’s tied up”

Did you feel threatened by him when you were tied up on the bed in the camp?

“No, I guess…”

Exactly, that’s because of the way the two of you approached each other, the first thing you need to learn is the fact that we’re all animals, we feel these kinds of things, it’s a part of our instinct

“So… other beings can also read intentions?”

To a certain extent, many changelings these days think that reading one’s emotions and intentions is limited only to a changeling but in reality you rarely need the ability to sense emotions to know what the other is thinking or feeling

“And how’s that?”

A being is like an open book, what they feel or think directly influences their behaviour, have you ever heard of body language? Or tone of speech?

“Of course”
The Doctor looked at the changeling in confusion, he thought he had seen him talk to himself back at the camp but now he was sure of it, perhaps the black one was crazy.

That’s just a few things you can use to read one’s intentions, of course depending on the being you’re trying to read, various actions may mean something entirely different than the same actions in another being for instance, Dragons are a proud race and consequently use loud and sharp intonation while speaking however that does not mean that they are irritated or angry, that is simply the way their kind communicates and states assertiveness

“I think I see what you’re getting at with this”

You do?

“So intention reading is reading one’s intention by their actions, tone and everything else one can see or hear?”

For the most part, intention reading goes a step further because unlike with other beings, changelings are able to directly sense another’s emotions, with the ability to read one’s actions along with one’s current emotional state the ability to predict what they are thinking and their intentions reaches practically infallible levels or to put it simply, intention reading is synonymous with reading minds, in fact it often lets you read things ahead and predict what the being you’re reading might do in the close future before they even think of it, in a way it’s a form of predicting behavioural future

“Hmmm… well that sure sounds like a lot of work”
Only the beginning is hard, soon enough you’ll learn to do this instinctively, a lot of it is based on common sense but enough of this chatter, the quicker you learn, the faster we’ll be back home

“Well, what do I do?”
The first approach is everything, remember, the Cerberus is also an animal he can read body language, you need to make sure that your intent towards him is made clear as soon as possible, so how would we get about doing that?

“Perhaps… move slowly?”

It’s a start… and?

“Maybe… when I’ll talk I’ll talk slowly and quietly?”

Whenever you’re in doubt think of what you’d expect from the other side if you’d be in his place

“Well I wouldn’t want anything loud, fast, perhaps not keep eye contact?”

Not keeping eye contact? Interesting, elaborate

“Well… if you think about it, keeping constant eye contact on the other being might mean that you don’t trust them, that you’re afraid of them and in turn that might mean that you have some shady intentions-”

-Very good! See? Told you that a lot of this is based on common sense and instinct

“-But you don’t want to evade eye contact at all costs because that also could mean that you’re afraid of the other side finding out about your intentions, so I guess you’d just have to be casual with the eye contact?”

I don’t know, you tell me

“Hey, you’re the one teaching me, not the other way”

The best form of learning is through trial, error and experience, now go to him
Stan had to do the first step and so he did, he looked directly in the Cerberus’s eyes for a moment but not too long a he proceeded to approach him in a calm manner.

Keep track of his body language and most importantly, look the positioning of his ears

“His ears? What about his eyes?”

Looking at the eyes for too long can create unnecessary tension, besides, with the eyes you can only tell what emotional state a being is in but with the ears you can always clearly tell what the being is paying attention to, do you see them, they work like radar dishes and although one may look directly at you they might not be focusing at you, and you can tell that by the ears
Stan looked at the Cerberus’s gaze that was directed at him, it seemed that he had his full undivided attention however his ears were telling an entirely different story, turning here and there, left and right in all sorts of directions of sounds but his.

“I… I think he’s pretending”

Oh?

“Well think about it, he was in some sort of army, right? Well maybe he is looking directly at me to make sure that I keep alert of him and don’t do anything rash while he scans for his surrounding with his ears, he’s not actually focusing on me right now”

Test that

“Excuse me?”

When in doubt, test, lightly buck a rock or anything that would make a sound nearby and look at his reaction, a somewhat aggressive strategy but sometimes you need to take risks
Stan did just that, a nearby pebble tumbled for about a meter making a gentle sound.
The Cerberus’s ears turned towards the rock for a split second, instinctively no doubt however they quickly returned to the surrounding.

“I guess I was right, I don’t think he feels threatened by me, I’ll approach him”
Once Stan Came close enough to touch him he got his full attention.
The Cerberus yawned.

Stan loosened up instantly

“Well if that’s not a sign of casualty then I don’t know what is”
Stan proceeded in releasing the Cerberus from his bonds.

What are you doing!

“It’s ok; I know what I’m doing”

No you don’t!

“Either way, it’s not up to you to decide, we’ve connected before, he knows I’m not going to hurt him, I need to show him that I trust him”

If you release him he’ll run away!

“He won’t and even if he will, he’ll come back”

Yeah, with backup

“No, he is a doctor, he is far too interested in us than to just throw us into the paws of the ones who wants us dead at once, you saw it didn’t you? Back in the camp, he didn’t get along very well with the others regarding what to do with us, I don’t think he’ll go back, see?”

The Cerberus was now free but he was still in his place

“And now I’m just going to turn away and do something else like cleaning or something to show him that I trust him, he’s big enough to kill me in one go so turning my back on him is a clear sign of trust”

It seems like a very dangerous tactic to me

“If he’d have wanted to kill me or run away he would have done that as soon as his first paw was free or the second time I was brought back to the camp, I was unconscious and yet he did nothing to harm me”
Stan turned his back on the Doctor who now sat down on an upright position on his bed that was a pile of sticks with hollowed out waxy thick leaves for a mattress.

I really think that you should keep an eye on him

“Don’t worry, I got this”

So you keep saying
Stan proceeded to dust the area with a broom he had made earlier; he turned to the Cerberus and pointed at another ready made broom in the corner suggesting that he help out.

Giving mixed signals there… he might think you expect him to be your slave and do your work for you

“That’s why I pointed at the other broom instead of giving him this one, this way I’m showing him that I want the two of us to do this together… you’re being exceptionally negative as for the one who kept telling me that experience, trial and error are the best methods of learning”

True, but I didn’t expect you to jump into deep waters like this; it’s not like you to do that

“It isn't but for some reason I feel confident with this, I actually trust him and I feel that we can both benefit from this, he doesn’t have any reason to throw away this opportunity”

Oh and I suppose the fact that you’ve killed his friends from the camp yesterday is irrelevant?

“It is irrelevant because he never witnessed it, what the eyes don’t see, the chef gets away with, besides by the time I tell him-“

Woah, woah, woah, wait a minute here, you’re planning on telling him?

“Well yeah, eventually, if we’d become friends I’d rather he hear that from me than from someone else”

You’re getting way ahead of yourself here, he’s not your friend, they’re our enemies! Or do I need to remind you about that time they tortured you?

“The others in his camp did, not him, besides do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?”

You’re playing with fire here

“I know, so far I’ve played with explosives, torture, mines, secrets about my family that I never knew about, and of course how could we forget about the all time favourite, time travel! At this point, this isn’t even an issue it’s part of my everyday life”

…point taken
The Cerberus, though still a little confused as to whom was Stanley conversing with, got up, took the broom and began sweeping alongside the changeling as if signing a silent agreement between the two.

How good are you at making holograms with your magic?

“No magic”

Then how do you intend on learning their language?

“I thought that the reason I’m learning intention reading is so that I don’t have to know their language”

You’ve barely begun to learn intention reading, you’re going to have to understand what he’s saying to you before you understand what he's thinking.[/i

“I don’t mind learning his language, but I’ve already told you, I’m not going to be using my magic unless it’s a life or death situation”

If you don’t learn their language fast enough with the aid of holographic projections you’re going to have plenty of those “life or death” situations to many of which your magic is going to be useless anyway

“No”

This isn’t much of a choice, now that you’ve rested you might not be as aware of this but your lives are still in just as much danger as they were this entire time

“The only reason why I’m still calm is because of the Cerberus next to me”

I understand how hard this must be for you but you can’t run away from your problems, this hypermagica of yours, it’s a problem and its still there, it will always be there and-

“You think I don’t know that?”
Stan was growing tiresome of this pointless babble.

“Every time I ever see somepony use magic, every time I see the sun and moon rise with magic I’m reminded of this, I’m reminded of all the times that I-“

-You want to put it behind you, I understand, trust me if anypony would know anything about past life of regrets it would be us but if you don’t do anything about this now, you’ll hurt the ones you love in the future, do you want to hurt them again?

“So what do you expect me to do?”

What does a species do when its faced with extinction? it doesn’t run away, it adapts, your hypermagica can be either your curse or a gift, it’s your choice what you decide to do with it

“I don’t know, I’ve tried so many times and always failed”

If you want to break down a wall but you keep failing because you keep banging your head against it you don’t quit or try to bang your head against it one more time, you bring a sledgehammer

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

You say you’ve tried many times to deal with this issue but how many times have you dried different approaches?

“…”

You see now? Heck if you want to get to the other side of the wall you don’t even need to break it down to get to the other side, you can climb over it, you can walk around it, the possibilities are endless, the only issue is looking for those alternative ways of achieving what you want, and sure, you don’t know what might work so you have to keep trying all sorts of things

“And what do you suppose I do then?”

Practice
Stan burst in laughter, in response the Cerberus jumped as if he were on springs.

“You think I haven’t tried practicing?”

Well, how did you practice?

“Oh, I don’t know, levitating, cans and stuff, of course it never worked, at this point I can barely levitate someone without crushing them to death”

Your problem is with the strength of the magic you cast, you’ve tried levitating and various physical spells but have you tried with magic holograms?

“It’s the same, they become too big and vivid, I can’t control them”

But they didn’t hurt you, did they? And one cannot expect practice to bring instant results, it hard work you know

“So you think I could do it with the holograms?”

Well sure you could, no matter how many times you’d fail you’ll never hurt anybody, that’s your problem isn’t it? Hurting somebody? You can’t go wrong with this, you can only go up from here, and with learning his language you’re going to have plenty of practice when you’ll need to explain something to him

“I don’t know…”

Trust me
Stan gave it a thought

“...I’ll think about it, all right?”

All right, it’s a step forward
The rest of the day Stan and the Cerberus spent on silent chores, there was a lot to do in the cave before it could even be considered a place to live, they’ve both had a lot to take in with this new relationship forming between the both of them, the foundations had to settle before anything else could be put on top of it.

The nighttime winds had come to reap across the island’s already violent attitude, it was time that Cynthia head back into the cave.
Cynthia really didn’t want to go back, she was really hurt this time, it was strange this was bothering her more than she thought it ever would, she didn’t like him until recently and now that he’s become tolerable this happens.
The waves were swaying across the beach as she sat there contemplating over her mix & match of emotions until she saw a figure emerge along the beach to the far right of Cynthia.
For a brief moment she assumed it was one of the Cerberi and was ready to flee but on closer inspection Stan had revealed himself.
Cynthia moaned in complaint, of course that’s what would happen now of all times.
The least she could do now was hide behind the bushes closest behind her where the beach ended.
Cynthia was about to leave and go back to the cave however her plans had been interrupted by what Stan had done.
His horn flashed and sparked with magic, and an explosion of an incredibly vivid spectrum of colours and shapes had replaced the very reality they both stood on.
Cynthia gasped in awe, it was the most amazing thing she had ever seen in her life, all of her issues and problems suddenly became irrelevant in comparison to this living painting she found herself in.
She looked at Stan, she didn’t see somepony who had hurt her anymore but somepony who was hurt and lashed out in return, she wanted to make things right, she didn’t want them to be like this.
Stan heard the oncoming hoofsteps, he knew it was Cynthia, he had a lot of time to think about the things he said and he wanted to make things right between them.
Cynthia sat down next to Stan and marveled at the show.
It was time for Stan to apologize.

“I’m so-”

“Don’t ruin this by apologizing”
The two stood there in silence for what seemed for eons until Cynthia broke the silence.

“It’s beautiful”
Stan turned his head to her in surprise and saw her expression agape with wonderment and smile

“You really think that?”

“Of course! Do you know what I’d give to be able to do that?”

“It’s just a hologram spell; trust me, you wouldn’t want to have Hypermagica”

“You know I’ve never told you this but I’m pretty weak”

“Weak? You’ve kicked my flank like a million times; you were incredible back there on the minefield!”

“I just know how to fight, that doesn’t mean I’m strong”

“Yes it does”
Cynthia sighed, he really didn’t understand, did he?

“I was born prematurely and because of that, my body… it never developed properly, you know? The doctors said that I can’t strain myself… normally I’d spend most of my life in a bed but… well you know what life is like for us… I shouldn’t even use magic because my body can’t handle the strain”

“Cynthia, I’m… I didn’t know”

“You know what? No, I can’t do this; we always argue over stupid stuff, I don’t want to argue with you anymore”

“…”
Cynthia looked at Stan who reciprocated the stare.

“Let’s make a promise”

“What kind of promise?”

“I want to know you… promise me that you’ll tell me everything about you and in return I’ll tell you everything about me so that we don’t have to argue ever again”
Right now there was nopony else in the world to whom Stan wanted to be closer to than Cynthia.

“Deal”
The changeling extended his hoof ready for a hoofshake to close the agreement.
Stan’s magic had burst like a bubble by a kiss to the cheek.

“Deal”

Author's Note

HNNNGGHHHHHHH SO CLOSE TO FINISHING ALL THE CHAPTERS!

got about 3 chapters left to do, of course I'm not talking about the chapters I've published so far, I'm talking about the chapters I've finished and that are waiting on my computer until everything is done and ready to go one after the other, I just decided to post this to let everyone know that I'm still working on it.

CHAPTER 12 (AKA: A word among friends)

This was it, this was the day when Cynthia and Stanley find out what the hell is happening on this island, this was the day of answers, it took Stanley over a month of hard work but it was finally going to pay off.
The Doctor, or as the changelings like to call him: Banka (which in his language meant “glasses”) knew enough of their language to barely communicate and Stan knew enough of his language along with intention reading to be confident enough to take this step.
It was a crazy month for everybody, Banka settled down and got used to the peaceful day to day life he had with the changelings, he wasn’t going to come back to the camps anytime soon, they didn’t send any search parties after him so they must have assumed that he had died on the minefield along with everyone else, he lived from day to day, hunting the little rodents across the island for food, for the changelings it was a feast of emotions from the rodents whereas for the Cerberus… well he liked his grills, life gave him everything he needed, he didn’t even have to go too far away from the cave (Stan made sure of that)
The Protective spell that was set around their hideout wouldn't last more than a few days at a time so Stan would regularly top up the mirage spell he had set up around the cave so that they wouldn’t be bothered by Cerberi or by any other intruders whilst using the opportunity to work on taming his condition… he was still rough but considerable progress could be seen compared the first time he set up the spell that was so powerful they couldn’t find their way back inside.
Unfortunately, not everybody was getting along right away, at first Cynthia had some trust issues with Banka but those issues wavered as she got to know him better... she found that he wasn’t like most Cerberi on this island, certainly much more mild and civilized in his manner of behaviour
After the changeling duo opened up to eachother, they began to get along considerably better and would spend most of their free time discussing and enjoying eachother's company though Stan never got an answer to that kiss on the cheek that night on the beach, it’s as if it had never happened and he wasn’t too fond of that because now, he didn’t know what he stood on, he had no idea where they were headed, were they still just friends? or wey there something more... but making an advance on her based on a wrong presumption would only ruin everything they built thusly in their friendly relationship... besides, is he really into her? she always seemed like sort of a jerk and somewhat ill-mannered but now that he began to undertand her better, more and more of her behaviour began to makes sense... she was like that because she never learned how to act in front of others due to her past (One could only assume how "normal" one could end up being raised by the god of chaos himself) and she acted tough because she always felt intimidated by others.
Stanley had to know about that kiss, however every time Stanley try and steer the conversation towards this topic, Cynthia would steer it away, of course intention reading didn’t help too much here as a changeling can’t sense another changeling’s emotions (that’s how changelings knew who was a pony and who was a changeling in disguise in the past) and he had far too little experience in intention reading to figure this out by sheer body language.
All in all, everybody was much happier than when they had first been dumped on this island.

So how do you want to do this?

“Well, considering we’re in an entirely different world altogether asking Banka where we are, isn’t going to tell us much… I think we’ve got a lot of other questions to ask as I’m sure he does too”
Stan and Banka gathered for the conversation.

Maybe ask him who they are first.
Stan began with his broken cerberian and replacing the parts of the language that he didn’t know with his own, hopefully Banka’s broken up knowledge of Stan’s language will fill in the blanks.

“We need to talk” began Stan

“Yes” the Cerberus replied.

“We were stranded on this island”

“Yes, I understand, we thought you were secret people…”

“Spies?”

“YES! spies”

“Why would we spy?”

“You don’t know?”

“We don’t”
Banka sighed, he factored in this situation and now he was a little hesitant in revealing to the changelings what was going on, despite being against the methods of his kind he did agree with their goal.
Stanley sensed the hesitation, but he knew that Banka doesn’t have any bad intentions.

“This place different from where you from? It is because you come from other world”

“You know about us from another world?”

“No, we don’t know anything about your type but we know the world you are from, we lived there”

“What?”

“it’s have to for every Cerberus to know our heytage and history-“

“Heytage?”

“Yes, heytage”

“I don’t understand”

“You know like history, where you from”

“Oh, HERITAGE, yes I understand”
“Much time ago, we lived in your home, but, we argue with other creatures that don’t want us in home, they are scared of us, not like other animals we are strong, fast, killer… some think that there is no place for us at home so they trick us and throw out us here with all others they don’t like”

“It sounds like you’re talking about Tarta- are you telling me this is Tartarus?”

“I do not know what you call this place, we call it prison world”

“That sounds… horrible”

“The land is difficult the soil empty and the things living here… for the first time in our lives we understand that those that throw us out feel like with us, we’ve had to live here, for many generations, trying to come back… until not long time ago we have to live here, after many difficulties we got key, it will let us come back”
Stan could tell that there was a but coming soon.

“Buuut?”

“But, those in high don’t want to live together anymore”

“So a war?”

“More like takeover”

“You mean invasion?”

“Yes, invasion but I don’t want invasion”

“Me too”

“But how can we fix?”

“I think we can only do one thing”

“???”

“We take the key, the three of us go back home and convince everybody to bring you all back”

“But my kind wait for war”

“I… I don’t know your kind, I don't know how to convince them for no war, I can talk to my kind, you talk to your kind”

“They don’t listen to me, I am not high, I am small”

Their kind probably have a hierarchy, he must be pretty low in the ranking

“Hmmm… and you said you’re going to get back to our world? When?” asked Stan

“We plan going soon but I am doctor and you have me, they cannot go without doctor I think it takes longer”

“Need more time, need to stall them”

“Stall?”

“Make them wait longer”

“Oh, maybe the key? We can take key, go to our home talk to your type to let us in, then we go back and talk to my type”

“Risky”

“Yes, some want revenge very strong”

“You know, we have stories about group of friends, could turn any enemy into a friend”

“Maybe we can use those friends for help”

“…”

“What?”

“It’s not…”

“Not what?”
“we’ll go get key, go home and talk to everybody... and if there is going to be a war...”
“Then we have problem, my type is very good in war”
“Ok but after my kind togetherness with many kind, we have many species of animals on same side, ponies, changelings, griffons, dragons... I think this will be bigger problem for your kind than my kind”

“What? Dragons with Griffon? That is problem, my type only want revenge on griffon”

“Griffons? they sent you here? they have no magic”

“Yes, they trick unicorn to send us away, we find out because griffon type so proud, they tell us everything before we are throw away because they want my type to know it is them to take credit”

I don’t doubt it, griffons are so proud they can’t even stand each other without some schmancy idol to keep them together.

“So what is plan? Idea?”

“I have a few, you no go back to camp because they think you dead”

“Dead, why?”

“Because they did not find your body, last time they see you it was on place with boom, it is obvious they think you dead”

“So plan?”

“Capture Cerberus guard, take control of Cerberus-“

“How control?”

“Ah ok, you don’t know my kind, I forget, we are able to use magic to control other life, we can change, look like other life”

“Wow, very good for much use, so if you can control, you control guard to take in you, friend and myself stay and look at camp if any problem”

“And I change into Cerberus, he will take me to the place where key is and I steal it”

“Good plan”

And how do you suppose you’ll handle transforming and using manipulatory magic if you’ve got practically no experience?

“I’ll have to rely on my instincts”

Author's Note

Wow boy did finishing this take a while, not this chapter in specific but the next one, I found it really hard to put my idea into motion, it just didn't stick no matter how I wrote it, must have done at least a dozen versions of the last chapter but today it occurred to me that the reason why I couldn't get it to stick was because I needed to change the ending and not the way I wrote it, the end result is the same but it will give me much more to work with for the next upcoming book which I'm currently working on.

CHAPTER 13 (AKA: Back home)

The cold winds of change grazed the rough island with a pink boring morning, the sky covered with a consistent blanket of gentle salmon clouds, one wouldn’t even know about the winds if it weren’t for them announcing themselves loudly with a whistle.
The atmosphere was as generic as one could possibly imagine, however things were different for two changelings and a Cerberus who were hiding behind the thick thorny tree trunks waiting for a pair of guard Cerberi to show themselves by the outer wooden wall of the camp.
Stan was going through the plan over and over again to make sure that they didn’t miss out on anything, the plan itself was pretty straightforward, they grab a pair of Cerberi guards, one is knocked out while the other one is taken over by Cynthia, Stan then transforms into the other Cerberus and the two go into the camp, to the leader’s tent where the key is located.

“So they key is?”

“Helmet” replied Banka

“Like a…. helmet helmet?”

“Yes, key is something magic from Equestria anything magic”

“I have so many questions right now, you said that it-

“No time, explain later”
Surely enough, a pair of three-headed Cerberi graced the area with their presence signifying the start of their plan.
Banka revealed himself from his cover, walking up to the two guards as if it were the most casual thing in the world, the guards were just about to demand answers as to how come he’s even alive but they never got the chance to as Banka grabbed the nearest one with a judo throw and slammed him onto the dry mud, Cynthia timing her shot perfectly so that it knocked out the guard before his body even hit the ground.
Before the second guard got to react, another blast hit him straight in the face, the blast weak enough to stun him momentarily while Banka grabbed him from behind to hold him steady for what’s next.
Cynthia approached the guard who was now writhing trying to shout something but Banka was making sure that no air was getting through his larynx as he was blocking it with a headlock and choke
Cynthia focused, she knew what to do, she had considerable practice in it but doing it in the field was a whole new thing.
Cynthia released a blast of manipulatory magic right at the guard.
Taking over a Cerberus it didn’t feel normal, it’s as if the consciousness was one but fragmented, no doubt an individual consciousness for each head and it was harder than Cynthia had anticipated it would be, it was like trying to take control of three beings at the exact same.
Eventually, the changeling felt the guard’s will slip away into a flabby mush.

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” asked Cynthia

“No but if what Banka said was true we don’t have time for practice”

“Banka, stay here and keep an eye on Cynthia, she’ll need to use all her focus to make sure that everything is going smoothly, Banka let go of him and Cynthia, give the guard orders”
Banka wasn't sure of this but now wasn't the time for hesitation.
Banka slowly and gently released the guard from the headlock... after a moment of tension the guard did... nothing... he just stood there like a motionless robot idling for the next command from its master.
Cynthia turned her attention to the guard.

“Do your job, guard this one” Cynthia pointed at Stan “Protect him and make sure to let him into the tent so that he can steal the key”
Banka was confused.

“How he understand Female if he don’t speak language?”

“The orders are given through the mind in the form of ideas that’s how the one being controlled doesn’t know he’s being controlled, talking is a practice used by changelings to make it easier to give precise orders, things are clearer when you say them out loud”

“So insertion of idea?”

“Yeah, insertion of ideas, a sort of… inception”

“My bit is done, your turn Stan”

“Right, right…”

“Well?”

“Gimme a second, alright? I’m a little stressed here”

I’ll link everyone

“We’re linked, we can now hear each other from any distance”

“Change already! I don’t know how long I’ll be able to keep controlling him”

“All right, all right!”

Try to imagine what it would feel to have the body of the one you’re trying to change into

“Ok, let’s see… large body, thick fur all over, claws, bad breath”
Stanley’s horn was being coated in green magic

This is going to hurt

“Wait, what?”
There’s nothing worse than being told that something will hurt just as it’s about to happen.
A symphony of cracks crunches and sounds of moist wet meat shifting played as Stan’s physique gradually changed, Stan himself barely holding back screams of pain.
A tortuous moment later, it was done.

“Holy Molestia did that hurt! What the name of Tartarus was that? I thought we transform in just a flash, lies all lies I tell you”

We do, it’s just the first time one transforms the body needs to adapt its physiology to the transformations

“Only the first time’s like that, I thought you knew that” Butted in Cynthia

“Gee, thanks for telling me now, Cynthia”

“Don’t blame me for not knowing common knowledge”

“How the Rus am I supposed to-“

“Stop conflict!”

“You know Banka’s right, we haven’t got time for this, let’s just get on with what we’re supposed to do, you stay here, we’ll go into the leader’s tent and get the key”

“He has name”

“Who?”

“Our, leader Rangu”
Cynthia gave the order to the guard to do what he was told to do whilst Stan followed after him.
Banka and Cynthia retreated further away from the wall to keep watch on the overall situation, Cynthia activated her item, her vision bursting to a phonebook of new visual stimuli, an A-Z of things to see, movement, heat, magic you name it.

“How are you holding up?” whispered Stan as he was getting close to the entrance with the guard

“Somehow…”

“Somehow… What?”

She can barely talk that’s how, let her concentrate

“Hey I’m just worried”

“I’m… OK”

“Banka?”

“All, right”

“Sure?”

“Yes”
They were through the entrance, the place writhing with Swiss organisation, full of things to do, not a single Cerberus was still, there were no slow ones, there were simply fast, and faster individuals.

Keep moving at their pace if you want to blend in, don’t flinch for even a moment
The guard was leading the way, he was the only one besides Banka who knew the whereabouts of the main tent.
For the first time, Stan actually paid attention to how the camp looked like, he never had the opportunity to have a calm and collected look on the whole thing.
The structure of the camp was rather interesting, though at first it seemed chaotic, everything had a reason for why it was in the place it was in, the weapon stands were strategically placed next to each tent but none were close to the entrance of the camp, the tent where wounded patients are treated is in the very middle of the camp so that the patients are close to anything they need but at the same time if the camp is attacked the tent with the wounded is protected by the entire camp.
The tent in which all the operations are decided and where the leader resides in is no different than any other tent so that if one would ever want to assault the leader or infiltrate the tent they would have trouble finding it.
The wooden walls themselves were at 50 degree angle facing outwards, this was a characteristic for Cerberi camps, the walls are at an angle so that if the camp is under attack from outside the Cerberi can just run up the walls into any direction they need to instead of having to squeeze through one common gate making them easy and predictable targets for attack.
The fabric the tents were made of was an entirely different story, the tents were all white but with a pattern of overlapping horizontal and vertical thin black lines, the overall effect was overwhelming, because of the pattern it was hard to figure out at which point a tent ended and another started, it was next to impossible to find where the turns were however as Stanley noticed every Cerberus moving was looking down at an angle to not be effected by the pattern as they focused ont he ground in front of them, clearly every Cerberus in the camp has memorized every conceivable path as no one looked far ahead, if it weren’t for the guard, Stan would have ran into one of the tents long ago.
Left, right, left, right, right, left, it’s as if they were trying to put in a videogame code, in reality there weren’t many tents in this camp however they were all tightly packed together in all sorts of random combinations which made the illusion that the camp was much bigger than it actually was.
Over a solid minute of walking later, they finally reached the tent, it was not being guarded by anyone outside which was bizarre to Stan but he was sure there was a good reason for that, and he found out that reason once he entered inside.
Inside the tent stood the leader of the camp Rangu, the one he saw once before, it had never occurred to him until just how big he actually was.
If one is so big, strong, massive and intimidating there’s no need for guards to protect him.

“What now?” Banka questioned but the guard answered that for him.
The guard’s orders were simple, protect Stan and let him steal the key that was somewhere in this tent, and the leader was in the way.
Without a thought the guard intercepted the Leader but the leader was the big boss for a reason.
The guard was smaller in stature but Cerberi tend to focus on speed and endurance over power.
As the guard ran up to striking distance, instead of taking Rangu on, he first fell to all fours instantly, mobility over a pair of free paws... the guard could not defeat Rangu with power so he had to defeat him with agility and control of the field.
The guard power slid under Rangu, grabbed his left leg and tug it to go along with his body’s momentum in order to throw Rangu off-balance but Rangu was ready, just as his leg was about to go he kicked it in the opposite direction with all his might.
The guard’s hand flew with the leg, the rest of his body followed by making a sharp 180 degree turn.
Rangu attempted to stab the guard’s back with his claws at full force to snap his spine or at least damage it but the guard was too fast as he rolled to the side.
Rangu’s hand dug itself wrist-deep into the fabric covered dirt.

Look for the key!
Stan snapped out of it

“R-right”
Thankfully, Rangu was too busy with the guard to take notice of Stan but everything came at a price, the insane brawl threw the tent’s contents into an utter state of flux and chaos.

“Helmet, helmet… ah found it!”
Stan picked up a golden plated Cerberus helmet that was lying next to a makeshift shelf

You sure it’s this one?

“What?”

There are at least 5 more helmets lying all over the place here
Stan looked around, the voice was totally right on that one.

“Banka, what does the helmet look like?”
The fight between the guard and Rangu was still very much alive, the noise must have interested some of the Cerberi from outside by now, Stanley had to hurry if they were to have a slither of a chance at this.

“Banka?... Banka!”

Not answering?
Stan dodged the two entangled Cerberi, this time Rangu noticed Stan and gestured for him to do something.
Stan freaked and ran out of the tent with the golden-plated cerberus helmet in one of his paws.

What are you doing!

“He saw me, we need to get out of here!”

So what if he saw you

“So what? so what?!? he just saw a changeling in the tent!”

IN DISGUISE
It took a few seconds for Stan to realize what the voice meant and then, his thoughts became heavy with the realization of what he had done.
Stanley stopped the helmet at once to grab his head and squat in shame

“Ohhhhhh, no… nononononooooo…”

STOP BEING A WHINY BITCH, NOW THEY KNOW WHAT YOU’RE AFTER, RUN!
The voice, as usual was spot on, Rangu was charging from inside of the tent and the changeling was in his way.
Stan grabbed the helmet and bolted.
As Stanley began to run, he realized just how different and bizarre everything felt when he was in a different form.
The body of a changeling felt... well, normal to him but this was much different, he noticed that his body had much more weight to it given all the muscle mass and sheer size in comparison to the size of a changeling, that however gave him considerably more momentum, one would think that the body being heavier would make it harder to manouver but much to Stanley's surprise, the muscles made up for their weight with the sheer power they offered, it was as if he always was a jalopy and now he is a supercar, massive, powerful and nimble and his entire body felt tightly packed in its skin as he ran.
Stan had just barely mastered the run in this new body and he was already being tested to his limits, but he’d rather take his chances with running rather than with Rangu, the only problem was, he couldn’t remember his way back through this maze of tents.

“Cynthia, what’s the way out?”
Left, right, to the end of the alleyway of tents, right again but no sign that he was getting anywhere close to the exit, there was just no telling and the tent’s patterns were just adding to the confusion as he couldn’t look straight ahead without getting a headache and losing awareness.

“Cynthia, a way out, now please!”

We have a problem.

“Why isn’t anyone answering me? Cynthia, Banka!”

Cynthia’s out I can barely feel her

“What? why!”

And Banka’s… WATCH OUT!
From behind the closest tent corner a hairy giant menacing fist came right at Stan who had barely enough time for his reflexes to kick in, he tried to shield himself with his arms and the helmet but the punch was packed with a megaton of pain that travelled right innto the helmet that instantly turned into a projectile smashing into the changeling’s face.
Stan heard a jaw breaking crunch, a green flash announcing the end of his transformation and a thump on the muddy ground.
It took a moment for the nerves to kick in, the first thing Stan felt was pain in the form of hot exhaled breath that stung his nostrils and then the rest of the pain slowly coming in like an increasingly screeching sound as blood pumped through his skull.
Then came the moaning, Stan would scream if he could but his broken jaw wouldn’t let him so instead he moaned like some comical novelty cow.
Once the pain subsided enough to let Stan open his eyes, he found the perpetrator of the wallop pointing at him trying to say something but the Cerberi around him surrounded the perpetrator and threw him to the ground next to Stan, it was Banka.
About a million things were going off in Stan’s mind right now, he couldn’t even figure out how to prioritize them let alone deal with them.

“Y..youuu whyyyyy???”

“Apology, need talk”
Stan’s anger erupted, He didn’t know Banka for a very long time but he never thought that he would have betrayed them like that, him, a changeling, one who can sense emotions, something that was once even compared to mind reading, didn’t see this coming.

Stan, Cynthia…
But Stan was too angry to even listen, this was their chance and it was just thrown away for no reason at all
A group of Cerberi grabbed and immobilized both Banka and Stan, each Cerberus grabbing each limb.

She’s dying.

“Need talk!”

Are you listening? She’s dying.

“They put to us to pieces”
There was so much clutter, so much noise and no time.
Stan needed time.
He needed peace at least for a second.
The Cerberi started with Banka, who was writhing in desperation, he saw others being dismembered before and it wasn’t pretty.

“Get away, I need-“

Use your magic, you need to use-

“Magic, yes”

Kill them
But Stanley had something else in mind, he needed to get away, him and Cynthia… and Banka, he needed some questions answered before Stan dealt with him.

“No, teleport”

Kill them now!

“We go home, NOW”

No! you don’t know how! If you do that-
Electric sparks filled the area, Cerberi began to float up in the air, for a normal changeling it would be impossible to teleport over long distances let alone across worlds but for a changeling with Stanley’s condition…

Listen to me! don’t do this!
Gravity gave way to the magic.
The Cerberi were trying to grip air, attempting not to float into the unknown, Stanley’s eyes flashed as the powerful magic in the form of a wind began to blow away every tent in its wake.
The changeling ascended high up into the air, above the Cerberi who were looking up at him from down below as if they were witnessing a deity.
His gaze wandered across the nearby land, looking for Cynthia.
There she was in some obscure ditch lying motionlessly.

“Cynthia”
Her body just picked itself up with Changeling magic and floated to Stan like a cheap ragdoll her head slouched downwards, her face obscured by her head.
Stan flipped her on her back to see what was wrong, her limbs and neck bent back as if she were a doll, Her eyes rolled back, stained red by a nosebleed that was dripping from her head.
Stan used his magic to squeeze her slightly, she twitched with a bare moan.
She was alive, barely.

Don’t do this I-

“Shut up, and you…”
Banka felt a thunderous pain initiate from every part of his body at the exact same time as he floated up to Stan’s eye level.
The Cerberus really wanted to say something, he had a damn good reason for doing what he did but the shifting of his guts in his body and his jaw biting in on itself simply wouldn’t let him.
Things went quiet for the both of them, their minds simply blocked out all unnecessary things in this world, that is, everything, apart from the changeling and the Cerberus.
Banka was expecting something violent, shouting, screaming, anything but Stan smiled, exhaled, lowered his head and shook it in disappointment, he was past angry, he was just disappointed but that was fine, he learned his lesson, Cynthia nearly died.
Stan had to try, his best wasn’t going to cut it this time.

DON’T

“Shut up”

“Silence”

THIS

“No”
Stan thought about the best place for Cynthia, a hospital, home.
A ball of energy came from within Stan’s horn and engulfed him, it began to eat up all of space.

I WILL NOT ALLOW FOR THIS
The sphere engulfed the entire camp and kept on expanding all manner of animals trying to pointlessly flee from the wave of fear.
And then, nothing.

Tick
Tick
Tick
T
The contraption sighed its last breath in unison with the age old changeling.

TO BE CONTINUED

Author's Note

I can't believe that i finally finished this, it took forever.
The next story will come out sometime net year and this time it's not being uploaded here until every single chapter is done and dusted, period, no exceptions.

Reality split - CHAPTER 1 (AKA: Ripples after splashes)

What happens when a changeling dies of hunger?
A few years ago nopony knew, and nopony cared about that but these days saying something like that would label you as ignorant and racist.
The Canterlot tragedy changed it all, everypony thought a war was the worst thing that could have happened but nopony for a moment stopped to think that there could be worse things out there than war.
Although a taboo topic, it is debated whether the tragic mass murder caused by none other than a changeling called Mark was a horrible deed or whether it was justified on the long run but one thing was for certain, it was a wakeup call for everypony who were given a push to coexist.
At first it was a big challenge as ponies knew little to nothing about changelings and as new systems & laws had to be implemented into Equestria to include changelings.
Abrasion was seen among Changelings and ponies, but those were growing pains.
A newly released book called “A thing or two about changelings and their habits” released by a young changeling proved to be the lubricant needed to smooth things out enough for the new Equestrian machine to keep on turning in the right direction, the book was in instant success, mostly sold towards ponies as a tool to help understand their new neighbours.
The biggest problem of all was the reveal of changelings in pony society, of course ponies knew that there could be changelings living among them but nopony could have predicted such large numbers.
The first to go were friendships and livelihoods which promoted further unwanted separation among both sides as the new civilization was going in the direction of apartheid.
Thank god Equestria was a monarchy, Celestia and the other royals (along with the changeling royals of course) had enough power to quickly implement laws that would hopefully prevent another disaster before it occurred, there was some opposition but the royals weren't considered as dieties for nothing.
As for the changelings, given their hive-like way of life, there was little resistance met with Chrysalis's orders.
It didn't take long for laws such the equine rights laws that encompassed ponies and changelings who were technically partially equine required everypony to be treated fairly were passed and updated accordingly.
Of course some ponies tried to find and exploit loopholes to their advantage as to either not hire changelings or pay them less than they pay their non-changeling employees but after a year or two, Equestrians discovered that there were some jobs at which changelings excelled at such as investigations or undercover work not to mention that they could not only fly but also use magic, something that before their reveal was limited exclusively to alicorns.
Because of the sudden employment boom among changelings there was a sudden drop in the mployment rate of griffons who were a great source of manpower but were always very expensive to hire (due to their greedy nature) and as a result, both ponies and changelings began having issues with griffons who were angry that their job opportunities were being taken away by changelings and pony employers who wouldn’t want to hire them over a changeling.
Slowly but surely, due to a gradually decreasing standard of living, a large number of the griffon population were forced to retreat back into the griffon kingdom that would later bloom into a powerful fruitful kingdom due to the massive influx of workforce within it but was currently at an appalling state.
20 years later and things have managed to settle down, the new civilization that penetrated into a golden age of expansion; there were even talks about about renaming Equestria into something more fitting.

The hustle & bustle of an early aftertnoon in Ponyville, straight after half-past noon, the time when one realizes that it’s the afternoon! Time to relax! But wait, you’re working right now and you still have at least 6 more hours to go… The air was filled with that crappy-I couldn’t-care-less-about-the-rest-of-the-day feel.
There wasn’t much happening in Ponyville these days, after all it was a village and villages are very different from cities.
Cities always have something happening in them, no matter what the date and time is you will always find yourself amidst an event of some sorts whereas towns were the exact opposite, rarely anything ever happened and although some ponies will argue that the uneventfulness is itchy to the point where one can’t take it anymore, others decide to live in towns for that exact reason... there are silky screamish neon shirt ponies but also itchy warm and fuzzy sweater ponies.
Because cities always have big events, one is desensitized to said events which in turn numbs life for some, it loses its edge and that can become a spiral into depression however in towns, oh boy when something finally happens in a small town it’s such an amazing experience! And a big event was in fact nearing itself to Ponyville.
Next to the Everfree forest, a safe distance from the town an arena of sorts was being built.
The construction was none other than a trisport arena and it was the first official arena to host this newly discovered cooperative competition.
In the last decade trisport has become something more than just a sport, it became a symbol as it was something that all ponies and changelings could equally experience and participate in regardless of their species.
There is a lot of running involved that catered nicely to earth ponies, then there was flying that lay nicely among pegasi and of course last but not least, magic was required for certain players which is where the unicorns came in and as for changelings, they could freely pick any player role on the field considering they could do all three things.
Essentially, the trisport tournament is to Equestia what Eurovision is to Europe, somewhat silly but important in its symbolism.

There was still a lot of work to do in order to finish the building and among the construction workers and an old familiar face was supervising the whole thing.
A changeling in his early thirties made his way to the oval coliseum-esque structure.
For many, this building was a vision of the future but for this changeling it was in fact... a future fact.
Monty knew that the foundations of this new world were still fresh and that now of all times, Equestria couldn't rely on a future possibility, it has to rely on a future certainty to let the foundations harden before they change for the worse and plans upon plans were being implemented to make sure this fragile scaffolding of relationships doesn't fall apart.
Trisport was being made into a poster child of unity and cooperation under the guise of a sport, it may not seem like much but its aim is to create new friendships among fans of teams and the sport itself regardless of one's species or origin.
The memories of the war were still fresh in Monty’s head, a 20 year-old scar, a scar in a muscle, constantly reopening again and again which seeped into his determination to make this coliseum work as soon as possible.
It wasn't Post traumatic stress disorder, nothing of the sort, but some things linger... like a bad incense you regretted buying long ago until one day you realize, the stench becomes a part of your life.
Monty looked ad the coliseum.
The outer wall comes first, it was imperative that this stadium's spectators could come and enjoy watching the sport soon as possible, even if the field wasn't fully ready.
One of the worker changelings, approached the shuffling Monty to report on the most recent events and the progress.

"Sir, most of the outer wall is done however the east side still needs some work"

"When will we be ready to put in the benches?"

"When the rest is done"

"When, give me a timeframe"

"Well if the weather plays nice, we should be done in about a month or so"
Monty's mouth contorted in a dissatisfied direction.

"There's no way of putting them in earlier?"

"I'm afraid not sir, we can't put seats on something that doesn't exist yet"
Monty looked at the east side of the stadium, there was nothing but scaffolding and a few basic supporting wooden beams.

"You're talking about the east side?"

"Yes"

"What about the rest? can you put the seats on the finished parts?"
Monty pointed at the rest of the stadium that seemed to be happily ready to accept the benches.

"Technically we can but that would only delay the completion of the stadium on the longer run"

"I don't need the stadium to be fully completed, I just need it operational enough to host a game with some spectators"

"But sir-"

"I understand you are worried about delays but I need this stadium as fast as possible, if you can't finish it by next week then don't, I just need it to do its job once"

"I don't know if the rest would agree to do that sir"

"That's all right, tell them that if they manage to put seats in at least half of this stadium then everypony will get a free seat for the opening match, once the match is over, you can finish the stadium at your own pace"
The worker pony was rather reluctant but after all, Monty was his boss and if the boss says so, the boss says so.

"If you say so, boss"
Monty blushed in embarrassment.

"Please don't call me boss, Monty's fine, I'm not used to ponies calling me boss"

"You pay, you call the shots"
Monty turned his back to the pony, he came for a quick inspection and update on the stadium and that's what he did, time to move onto other things he needs to do today

"It's all planned out already anyway, I've managed to get two teams to play but the only time they can both make it is next week which is wh-"
A loud scream from behind interrupted Monty as he turned around to have a look at what was going on, one of the workers was falling from what was supposed to be the scaffolding of the east part of the outer wall but was now nothingness

"What the-"
The gray pony announced its arrival to ground level with a loud crunch only for it to be followed by shrieks of agony.
Everypony galloped to aid in hope that the crack was the sound of no life-threatening significance.
Unfortunately it was too late, the pony had lain on the ground all motionless but his eyes wide open in fear and looking at the makeshift group of ponies surrounding him ready to aid
One of the ponies carefully came up to him

"Hey, Bricks, are you all right?"
The body lay unresponsively, only the eyes looked at the speckled pony trying to help.
The victim's eyes began to blink as if trying to convey something

"Can you move?"
The eyes began to turn left-right-left as if signalling a no
The gray pony had never been so terrified.
He couldn't move
He couldn't breathe
He couldn't speak
He could only look in desperation asking for help as he suffocated surrounded by a pile of confused ponies, all he had to do is tell them that he couldn't breathe, saying it would be so simple and yet...
The pony's eye's rolled back, the stiff body gently slackened along with his life as it left him.
Monty looked in horror.
Half of the stadium was gone, just like that, no rubble no nothing, it was there one moment, then it was gone as if it had never had been built in the first place, where there was originally dirt and scaffolding there was now grass and plants with a few trees that had been growing there for decades which shouldn't have been there.
Something was very wrong and chills met Monty's back, he had this deep feeling creep up in his mind that somehow this event was all related to him.

Tick
Tick
Tick
The Contraption's glass dome vibrated in tandem with time being toyed with
Reality was beginning to bend, it was stressing to its limits... bad things were going to happen if things keep unfolding as they do...
Tick
Tick
Tick
Crack

Author's Note

I am back after a very long hiatus!

Had to figure some important things out in my life, among other things I found the love of my life, I moved to another country and I finally got a job giving me financial stability!

I struggled a lot in these last 5 years or so with finding a job, a place to live and fighting my own issues... it has been very hard for me to the point where it would impact my writing and I was very embarassed and ashamed that despite deciding to commit to regularly writing and publishing new chapters I failed... I had a lot of issues that I needed to get over with before I got to the point where I can finally commit and stick to my commitment... it took a while but I got there.

Before I decided to continue publishing new chapters I decided to reread all the previous chapters and fix any mistakes I might have made and thank god I decided to do that because a lot of things had to be fixed and I don't just mean spelling errors but also things such as Monty's name changing somewhere during the story (to this day idk what I was thinking, throwing consistency out the window), clarifying Mark's relationship with Pacifica (was he her great-grandfather, her great-uncle, etc, it needs to make at least some sense within the story so that was updated and changed accordingly) and some minor editing issues.

The good news is that due to the nature of my profession I will now have a considerable amount of time to focus on my writing and publishing new chapters and stories as a part of this saga.

You deserve a good story with effort put into it and that is exactly what I am going to give you, I am sorry for disappointing my readers thus far, I can only hope that people are still interested in the saga despite my fuckups in the past.

All the chapters have been updated and fixed and now its time for new chapters along with new beginnings.
Let's start anew, I put my life into place, time to do the same with my creative work.

CHAPTER 2 (AKA: Where crossroads meet)

Numb
A bit of pain
was it there this entire time, the pain?
hmm, the numbness is going away, its so peaceful right now I don't want it to end...
wait, the pain is getting closer
wait
wait!
Stan opened his eyes as the pain seared back into his jaw, the pain was numb enough to be a few days old but it was still very much there.
The changeling looked around, he was in some sort of hospital so that was good news.
Stanley tried to formulate a word to call out to a nurse but all that came out was a syllable followed by a yelp as Stan felt a crunch and soon after what felt like a jackhammer to his face.
Stan groaned in pain, his jaw was going to be out of commission for a while.
The changeling moved the rest of his body, it felt like a worn out battery, rather weak but nothing else hurt enough to stop him from getting up which was exactly what he did.
it was of utmost importance to find where Cynthia is, as for Banka... well he should at least get some answers from him.
As Stanley hopped off the bed and stood on all fours, he realized that the wounds he had between his ribs were barely noticeable, thankfully they had ample time and treatment to heal but now he was branded with scars on each side marking his past encounter with Cerberi.
The new scars also meant that he must have been out for a while... either that or this place had some impressive medical treatment methods.
Despite the jaw being in an appalling state, his predicament could have been worse, Stanley thought as he began to cautiously trot towards the hallway outside only to be stopped by a white mare with a pink mane and a nurse's cap with a red cross

"What are you doing up like this, you should be lying in bed"

"..."

"Get back to bed, you still need to rest"
Stan shook his head in disagreement and pain

"Sir, if you don't take the time to rest your jaw might never heal"
But Stan just shrugged, he had far more important things to do than rest and heal his jaw.
The changeling rudely pushed the mare aside as he entered the hallway, on the right, the exit to sweet, sweet freedom.

"Where are you going sir? please get back to your bed" began the mare as she hovered around him, clearly concerned but unwilling to be forceful, he was a changeling after all and the hospital didn't need a lawsuit on their hooves, they already had taken a risk bringing in a passed out unknown changeling into their care without anypony's consent.
Stan unfortunately didn't listen to the nurse, instead, with a newfound determination he swished open the hospital doors as if they were made of paper and took a step outside.
The clean Ponyville air tickled his nostrills as the changeling scanned the surrounding area, he didn't know where he was, or how long he was out, he needs to get answers and those answers were hopefully provided in the scenery.
Stanley scanned the area like a newborn who is seeing the world for the first time in their life
it seemed to be home... his home, Cynthia's home, they were back! the familiar trees, ponies trotting about in the town below, sounds of familiar life...
As much as Stanley expected the ease of relief to set in, that isn't what happened, far from it... instead of relief coming to the rescue, the vines of unease and fear began to creep up unknowingly for the changeling, he was looking at home, by all accounts he should feel at ease but... but why, why is this terrifying him? its as if he were thrust into a world of the uncanny valley his mind not being able to figure out whether it should be at ease or alert of danger...
Stan had to get to the bottom of this, as much as it terrified him there must be a reason for it, there has to be something.
...Unfortunately for him, Stanley was right.
As Stanley peered at the town down the road, he began to notice that some things weren't like home, in fact everything was not quite like home.
First of all, the houses... they seemed old-fashioned, and by old fashioned he meant the sort of old fashioned you see in history textbooks, pre-unification era so that would be a solid few hundred years, the stands looked outdated, in fact the stands themselves were outdated, nobody used them anymore and of course, small colorful specks that were ponies could be seen everywhere, reallocating themselves across the town with a sense of purpose.
The town was as if it were infested with a rainbow of tic-tacs and yet no gryphons, dragons and barely any changelings could be seen which was simply out of place, as if the entire town had segregated all racial diversity and had thrust it aside to make way for ponies with an occasional changeling here and there.

"What the-" thought Stanley but didn't manage to finish that thought as it were knocked out of his head by a couple of burly stallions who tackled him.
Before his confusion settled to make out what had happened he was already dragged back into the hospital.

The stale air over Ponyville awaited after a long and tiresome night for its morning sunshine to sweep it away under the rug and replace it with the fresh morning batch of morning zephyrs and breezes waking up the residents of the small town... but the sun hadn't come just yet, the night hadn't given up and it wasn't over, it had still an hour or two to go and it was at work making sure that hour was going to count before dreams fade away.
A changeling mare living on the outskirts of the town, bordering the everfree forest was rebelling and had gotten up before the time of rise for most.
The wake-me-upper clock ticked away until the time of strike...
Tick, tick... zap
A small harmless but obnoxious stream of magic found its way onto the mare's horn zapping it
Nothing
Zap
The changeling mare Began to rustle in her bed
Zap
A minorly unpleasant stinging sensation had woken the mare up
As the mare's mind receded from the dream realm and onto reality as if a computer booting up each and individual process, she began to realize what was happening
Bed
Zap
Husband by her side
Zap
Wake-me-upper
Za-
As much as the wake-me-upper wanted to continue, the mare parried the next zap with one of her own, rebounding the stream of magic back at the clock, turning the alarm off.
The mare groaned, she would much rather have a standard alarm clock but her soundly sleeping husband doesn't take well to sounds, he is a light sleeper after all so they had to buy this Horsepoop alternative that wakes up the user with a silent burst of magic tot heir horn, that way only the ones who want to wake up wake up.
Pacifica looked at Monty
He never quite grew up but that's what she loved about him, she was the mature one and he was the crazy spontaneous one that kept spicing up the relationship.
The only thing that grew up in Monty was his looks.
A stallion in his early thirties, much like herself, a strong jaw, strong powerful legs... who could have ever figured that he would end up looking like this, he was just a fragile colt when she had first met him but all the action over the years had forced his body to muscle-up and adapt to their lifestyle.
Pacifica sighed, she could stall all she'd like but work was work and she had to go.
Why can't the sun rise earlier? commuting in the dead dark of the morning is such a pain and Pacifica really needed the sunlight to kick-start her day, though what kind of changeling gets up at 4 to go to work on a daily basis, Pacifica highly doubted that Celestia was going to raise the sun for those two or three ponies or changelings who get up extra early to get the worm.
Pacifica got up from her bed at a glacial pace knowing that she would have to deal with... "him" when she gets to work and she really doesn't want to today.
Pacifica however got up anyway because beggars can't be choosers, besides Pacifica had a pretty good job all things considered, respect, money, even power and she wasn't going to risk it all just for a sleep-in day.
She looked back at the bed one last time, Monty sleeping nice and sound, at least he gets to sleep properly these days, given his hobby and all...
Pacifica made her way into the bathroom and looked at herself... she aged pretty well too, she was no longer a young teen filly, she was a full-blown mare in her early thirties, her flank filled in nicely when she hit puberty but she had to change her style somewhat to a more formal one if she wanted to get into the political business, she pinned her hair in a bun, put on her formal dark blue suit with pants (A skirt was a pain in the flank)
The one downside of wearing said pants is that the pervs would often catcall at her but something told her that it didn't matter whether she wore pants or a skirt, pervs are pervs.
It was getting late, the Train to canterlot was going to leave in just 10 minutes so she hastily decided not to eat breakfast, grabbed her pendant from the bedside shelf and off she went to the station.
It was a cold night, the low mist nibbled at the mare's ankles, a chilly 8 minutes later, Pacifica had finally reached the station, and just on time too as the train was already waiting.
The changeling sluggishly trotted into the train heading to Canterlot... if she hadn't formed such a bond with Ponyville throughout her teen years then they would have moved to Canterlot long ago instead of having to commute there every damn day.
Speaking of them, as Pacifica entered the train and sat down on the nearest seat, she began to wonder what she and Monty are going to do next month for their anniversary, its been over 5 years of marriage and she really wanted to come up with something special for Monty given how stressed he has been lately about that new hobby of his.
Pacifica giggled, she would have startled the passenger next to her if it weren't for the fact that at this time of night, nopony travelled and so she had the whole cart to herself
Monty could be so childish sometimes and it was so cute, she loved how his face would light up whenever he would talk about the Trisport tournament and what he had planned for it... nonetheless she had concerns about this new hobby, it had been taking up more of his time than it should and he had responsibilities, big responsibilities.
It was time to have a certain talk with her husband about the irresponsible way in which he's been acting and what that is doing to his career.
Pacifica sighed, she knew this wasn't going to be something easy to talk about but it had to be done, perhaps if they had been normal changelings, she would let things slide but the two of them are far too important to the changeling-pony relations to be allowed such an extravagance.
Before Pacifica even realized, the train had already hissed its way into the Canterlot train station, it was time to start work.
As usual, the Mare took her time arriving to the Castle for her daily meeting with other representatives and ponyticians and discuss any other changes or updates that need to be done that day.
Truth be told, this whole representative thing was new to Equestria compared to its previous history.
Equestria has always been a monrachy and the system worked, but now, things are somewhat different, now the land needs to be shared among two kingdoms and two monarchies, both of which have been already challenged by its foalk.
As a result, it has been decreed that a number of representative individuals elected by the foalk of each kind be put in a position where they help the monarch establish more appropriate laws for them.
Not an ideal system, but things had to change, and they had to change fast... and this seemed to put the power of the commonfoalk on the table of monarchy as the last thing anypony wanted was another revolution.
It was up to her, this committee could go both ways, it could either become a puppet for the monarchs or it can thrive and be a source of invaluable input of the common pony and changeling to make a change, and she was the one in the middle of it all, the poster child of this entire committee and Pacifica knew it, she had to be strong, she had to be unwavering but most of all, she had to be kind.
The castle as golriously majestic as usual, now with an added west wing extension exclusively dedicated to the new system which was where Pacifica was heading to.
The 15 year old wing glistened in its white and gold glory, still had that chalky fresh drywall-esque look to it in some areas.
Pacifica dove into her saddlebag for her I.D on a leash (not that she needed it given how popular she was) and whipped it onto her neck.
The doors opened as if by an invisible hand to let her into the wing.
The inside of the wing was a completely different world.
The castle's interior matched its outer shell however this wing was something different entirely, the only time Pacifica had ever seen such a disparity between an outer and inner building was when she had first entered into the TARDIS.
The inner reception hall, unlike with the rest of the castle wasn't grand and echous, instead it was quiet and professional.
Almost every sound was quickly absorbed into the dark chesnut wooden themes and accents making the reception seem more like an uneventful library.
The floor of course carpeted as there is nothing more annoying than the sound of hooves constantly clooping, the carpet a homely red, not a royal one.
On each side of the reception hall, double doors, of course born of chesnut, an engraving of a changeling on one door and an engraving of a pony on the other, shaking hands, holding the doors closed in their friendship.
At the end of the reception hall opposite to the entrance, a set of stairs splitting into a t-junction of even more stairs that cut off from the entree's vision by the only stone thing in the entire building, the wall.
The first thing that Pacifica was met with was a pair of security doors that were magically charged with a spell that is used to detect all forms of malicious devices or cursed objects.
The device, as usual, set off beeping like a maniac announcing everypony in the wing that she had arrived.
Pacifica sighed

"Everyday, I swear to god..."
A buff smartly dressed earth pony stallion approached her from the small desk to Pacifica's left.
The stallion presented a small plastic tray

"If you could just place any magical objects or items into this tray please?"
Pacifica looked at the pain in the ass.

"Really?"
The stallion unphased, just pointed at the tray silently.
Pacifica rolled her eyes, she's been working here for years now, the old guard was much more lax on this, he knew her, she knew him and they had an arrangement, the only magical item she ever had with her was the pendant and she even had an official permission from Celestia herself to allow her to bring that item with her without the need of inspecting it everytime she entered the wing... Everything changed however once the old guard retired, Once mr. coolio wasn't around anymore, pricksworth mcgee came trotting in as if he owned the place and she had a feeling that he was trying to assert his dominance over her... maybe he had a power complex or maybe he was just sexist... she didn't know and frankly she didn't care, the fact that he managed to get this job in the first place and seep through the cracks of quality control was a joke.
Pacifica took off her magical item that was in the form of a pendant and placed it on the tray, she didn't like parting with it even if it were for just a moment, it was a very powerful item that could spell a lot of trouble if one were to get their hooves on it and figure out how to use it.

"Anything else to declare ma'am?"
Pacifica looked at him
Then at the tray with the pendant
Then at him

"Anything else t-"

"No"
The stallion put the tray onto the nearby table for later inspection and returned with a dung-eating grin and a piece of paper that Pacifica knew all too well.

"Oooook then I will need to you to fill in this form here"
Pacifica wasn't stupid, everyday she came, she had to fill in this goddamn form ever since this d-bag had been around and it shaved off a clear 15-20 minutes of her time, he was the reason why she had to take the early train and not the later one, he was the reason she got up those 15-20 minutes earlier... she is a patient changeling but you mess with her sleep then you are going to regret it.
Pacifica dug into her saddlebag and retreated an already filled out form, she knew he would do this so she got an empty form to take home from the receptionist, filled it out during her spare time and then just used magic to make spare copies whenever she needed it.
Clearly her plan worked as his smile faded.

"What's this?" he asked
Pacifica did her best to recreate his famous dung eating grin.

"Since you keep losing important documents to the point where I need to refill this form on a daily basis, I decided to make your work easier and pre-filled this form before I arrived to work"
The stallion gave his usual stunned carp look as he inspected the perfectly filled out form.
Just as Pacifica was about to shout her victory call in her mind his dung eating grin disgracefully came back.

"I can't accept this form because I don't know where you got it from"
Pacifica had enough of his games.

"Hold this" she began as she threw her saddlebag onto his hooves, the confused guard had no time to think so the only thing he could do was comply to her order and hold her saddlebag with both hooves including the one he was holding the filled out form with, trying not to drop either one of them.
As the stallion was busy trying to figure out a way to hold both things, the mare just clopped around him, grabbed the pendant, put it back around her neck just in time for the stallion to turn around.

"What the-"
But the stallion didn't get to finish that sentence as Pacifica's back was already facing him and as soon as the saddlebag appeared in his hands, it had disappeared and was now on her

"Thanks" Replied Pacifica as she calmly trotted away

"Wait! I need you to fill in the form!"

"You have the form" replied Pacifica already on her way to work

"I can't-"

"Take it or leave it!" Pacifica's voice echoed as she had already disappeared up the staired t-junction and around a corner
This whole form thing was horse-melarchy, never in her entire career did she have to fill in that form more than once, she knew the system well enough to know that after the form is filled out there are no requirements stating that it needs to be filled again, instead, they are archived and referred to later on when the same pony or changeling arrives through that gate with the same item.
The guard had nothing on her and he knew it, they both knew it.
Perhaps it was time this guard retired early (with some generous help from Pacifica of course) but right now there were more pressing matters to focus on.
One thing always shocked Pacifica and that was just how fast a day can go by when doing something one is passionate about... most would stay that a day spent on discussing the intricacies of laws and making minor seemingly insignificant changes and updates to laws would seem boring however Pacifica didn't see it that way... to her, it was building a new system for this current world to thrive in and frankly its new and uncharted waters, what they are doing now will influence the next 500 years, she knows it, she remembers it from her time of childhood, how things were, perhaps that was why she felt as the right one to apply for this position and it was great that the commonfoalk liked her enough to elect her.
Despite the bright future, to Pacifica, this place was still the past and here, things were a bit more... old-fashioned, what was obvious to Pacifica was often an absolutely new and nearly incomprehensible idea that would be met with controversy by her peers but be often backed up by the populace.
There was a lot of work to be done to get things to the way they are going to be in the distant future, some ideas, the populace isn't ready for, for example changelings in the police force or special ops given their notorious reputation for undercover work, ponies weren't yet ready to trust changelings enough to allow such a thing to happen... for now.
Pacifica could have spent the rest of the evening thinking about this as long as it wasn't going to be at work.
it was time to go home.

The carbon-fibered darkness overwhelmed Ponyville and a bathbomb of stars exploded into the night sky which happily glistened and winked with its thousands of eyes, one of them winking directly at a small and peculiar house-shaped tree located just next to the outskirts of the everfree forests not too far away from Fluttershy's sanctuary for wounded animals.
Within the novelty house, Monty was cleaning, it was a hectic day and he needed to get his mind off of things.
The changeling couldn't wait for the return of his wife, he had to tell her everything about what had happened earlier today, he really needed her opinion and advice on what to do, a solid third of the stadium is gone as if it had never existed further delaying finishing it and increasing the amount of bits they are going to need to invest into it.
it seemed like it was going to take forever but eventually, the doors opened and an exhausted Pacifica burst in.
Monty jumped, after all these years he still couldn't get used to his wife's entrance

"Hi there dewdrop"

"Hey" Pacifica exhaled
They were finally together at last, it was a friday night so they can relax and let everything go until monday.

"You wouldn't believe what happened today"

"?"

"Hard day?"

"..."
Monty knew her like the back of his hoof, she changed a lot in these last 20 years, she had become much more open, talkative to others... a part of Monty missed the days when she was the quiet type and only talked to him, made him feel like they have a really special connection but this was good too, he was happy to see her blossom with others and that's what meant most to him.
Still, there were times when Pacifica would revert to her old quiet self, most often if she were mad or tired, in this case he could tell she went on silent mode because she was too tired to be her open self.
The best thing to do during her quiet modes was to just continue, a problem for most since she wouldn't reply but he knew her well enough that he might as well be reading her mind, each little reaction each tiniest twitch on her expression, it all meant something and he knew it all.

"There was an accident at work today"

"!!!"

"Oh, don't worry dewdrop, I'm fine"
Pacifica ran up to him and hug him only to gave him an angry look a moment later

"Ah sorry, shouldn't have scared you like that"

"..."
Pacifica went to their bedroom to undress

"You know..."

"?"

"I'm a bit worried about the accident"

"?"

"I went there for the usual inspection and update and guess what, just like that, out of the blue, an entire third of the stadium just disappeared! like it was just erased from existence, like there were plants and actual adult full-grown trees where the stadium was, it was weird"

"?"

"I don't know, I didn't actually see it happen, I just turned away for one second and next thing I know its gone, in fact a builder that was on the scaffolding fell and died"

"!"

"Yeah, I was shocked too"

"..."

"Yeah, it does worry me, like a lot... for starters this is a huge setback for our project, not only is the completion of the stadium delayed but we are also going to have to invest-"

"Wait, you want to invest more of our money?" Pacifica wasn't sure whether she heard that right, she had taken weeks to muster the courage to talk to him about selling the stadium and focusing his career on something more meaningful and now she hears that he wants to invest even MORE into all this? surely that was a joke, she must have misheard it.
Monty jumped in response to her reply, his wife rarely ever broke her silent mode when she was in it and it was almost always a bad thing.

"Well... yeah, we can't just leave the stadium like that, its needs to be finished"
Pacifica Gave Monty that "yeah, about that..." expression
Pacifica inhaled, this is going to be hard on Monty but she needs to say it, she has been putting it away for too long.

"I've been wanting to talk to you about this for a while but... I want us to sell the stadium"
Monty didn't register what that meant, not yet at least.

"Sell, you mean like, in the form of shares once its finished?"
Pacifica sighed, this wasn't going to be an easy talk.

"I think we should sell it now"
Monty was finally beginning to figure out what Pacifica was trying to convey

"What? but why, now is the time when we need to invest more into it not sell it"

"I know, but... don't you think its time to move onto more important things?"

"But... I am... this is me moving onto important things, the stadium must be finished as soon as possible"

"I mean things that really matter"

"This does really matter"
It was going to be about his book, wasn't it

"But what about your book?"
Yep, it was about the book
Monty had heard that argument once too many times, how many times does he need to explain it to her

"Not this again, I told you, that's already done, ended, finito, I wrote the book, published it, heck it is even used in schools!"
Pacifica needed to make him understand, the book wasn't just a book

"What you wrote was more than a book, its a crutch for our new society to thrive, you are now an important part of that society, it needs you, just getting the book published isn't good enough for this to work, its just a thing, a lifeless piece of paper, it won't fix things, ponies do, changelings do... we do..."
Monty gave Pacifica a gentle hut, her favourite.

"I know how much that book means to you, it also means a lot for me too, heck I wrote it! but... there is more than one way to keep this new world together and trisport... is another way... the book is already there, don't you think we might need something else to keep this world together too?"
Pacifica knew he won't like her answer

"I do but... you can't neglect this... not this"
Stan unexpectedly let go of Pacifica ans scoffed, she just didn't understand, he might as well be talking to a brick wall... he hated when she was like this

"I thought you would be more supportive of this"

"I am but-"

"But you don't want to support me in this exact thing"
The two looked at eachother in silent bewilderment, neither was willing to let go or budge and both knew that this time, this might end up as more than just the usual bicker... and it was scary.
Seconds dragged out into minutes which in their mind's eye might as well have been a lifetime, either one of them was too afraid to do or say anything.
Their love was strong
their relationship stable
it could survive almost anything
but this?
the suspension bridge of their relationship came to a rocking swing.
Somepony had to take a first step.
Pacifica decided to be the first one, as much as she loved her husband, he did have a way of messing up with words and this was one screwup she wasn't willing to risk.

"I love you..."

"I... I love you too"

"...And you mean the world to me but you have a really important role in this world, please, don't neglect it, we worked so hard for all of this"

"You're talking as if the fate of the world depends on this book"

"It might... this is a new world, your book is a tool we can use to make sure it grows in the right direction, do you really want to leave this tool in the hooves of someone who would misuse it? what we do now is going to define this world for the next 500 years"
There it was again, every once in a while she would say something about the future as if she were completely certain of it, it was an irritating feature of hers to say the least

"Nobody knows the future"

"I do"

"How?"

"..."
Some secrets should be kept from everyone, even her husband.
Monty silently nodded in disapproval.
There was no winning this argument without telling Monty the "big" secret
Monty gave a soft stomp with his right hoof.

"I will use my funds from the book to finish this stadium"
Pacifica's eyes began to glisten with a sad reflection of Monty as tears were preparing to trickle down her face.

"...Our funds" replied Pacifica in a heartbroken tone
Monty had said something he shouldn't have and he had just realized it

"...I-I meant our fun- I mean-"
But there was no getting out of this one
Pacifica needed some time for herself, time to deal with the pain... how could her own husband say something so selfish, they shared everything a life, their house, the money and it wasn't even about the money to begin with, it was about him willing to disregard everything they had built together and risk it on what, a fantasy?
if only he hadn't been a fan of this stupid sport.
Pacifica couldn't take it, she had to get out of here, she needed a pause button on this

"Dewdrop, wait!"
Monty reached out to his wife but it was too late, her back already turned to him ready to leave this home, her eyes in tears barely able to make out what is laid out in her way out.

"Please!" Monty shouted but that only sparked Pacifica's will to escape even more as she galloped to the door leading to the fresh and new outside.
A green flash of magic opened the door and Pacifica made her way to freedom.
Unfortunately for Pacifica, fate had a very different plans for her as she smacked her face against a brick wall and fell to the floor
A hot trickle tickled The mare's nostrils in the form of a nosebleed.
Monty rushed to the rescue but as he tried to help Pacifica lift herself she slapped his hoof away, she didn't want him to touch her, not yet at least.
The two looked at the open door and the wall on what was supposed to be the outside as if somepony had walled them in.
Pacifica looked back at Monty, a question in her expression or at least from the part of the face that wasn't obscured by her hoof trying to hold back her nosebleed.
Monty simply replied with a silent shrug, his guess was as good as hers.
Monty slowly approached the wall and caressed it with his hoof, yep it was real
the two shared a glance yet again, just a moment ago this thing wasn't there

"Windows" suggested Monty

"!"
The couple set their squabble aside to begin scavenger hunt to inspect each and every window.
Not two minutes later the two reunited to update eachother on the state of the house

"It seems like only the windows facing east are walled up but... why?"

"Outside"

"Indeed, we need to see this from the outside"
The changelings entered the kitchen, opened up its window facing west and the duo hopped out to dash around to the other side where the wall should be.
Sometimes weird things happen that seem to defy all reason and logic and quite often they have some explanation that simply eludes the bystanders, this however, was not one of them.
Pacifica and Monty's house was no longer alone, its as if it had found its beloved partner in a random cottage and the two were now closely kissing wall-to-wall.

"What the buck?" exclaimed Monty, he had never seen such a thing before and he has seen many things in his lifetime.

"..."

"Yeah, I'm speechless too, dewdrop"
Pacifica pointed to the mysterious cottage's lively chimney

"Smoke"

"hmmm... I suppose someone is inside then"

"Knock"

"You think?"
Pacifica rolled her eyes and flicked her head in the direction of the door signifying Monty to just do it.
Monty gave in, it was clear which one of them wore the pants in this relationship

"Ok, ok, I'll knock"
Monty approached the door with caution.

"As if this day can get any weirder..."
As Monty was about to find out, he was not good at premonitions.

Author's Note

Man it has been a while since I have written a story so forgive me if the writing seems a bit dry.
edit: I had added some text for flavour, but in essence nothing in the story has changed, its just less dry, I apologize for the inconvenience.
In this particular story, besides the characters themselves I also want to focus a bit on worldbuilding and social commentary, seeing how things develop and progress in a natural way, however I don't want this to be the focus of the story, rather I will try to intertwine this into the background somehow, perhaps mix up some scenery descriptions with this? I am not yet sure but I think it would add much more flavour to the story and set the stage for future sequels ad well as set a deeper understanding in the way in which societies in that world work and interact.

One thing I had realized whilst writing this chapter is just how much needs to change for this unification to occur, for starters there was a paradigm shift with the rulers, monarchs are no longer seen as absolutes, the commonfoalk must have realized that their land can be run in different ways and it's something that will need to be addressed and expanded as this story progresses.

Another thing I am curious about is whether the ponies and changelings are going to share the same attitude towards this change... I wonder...

CHAPTER 3 (AKA: Reality's demention)

It was already a hectic evening for Monty and Pacifica, they had some serious relationship issues that they needed to resolve right away and then this happens, a cottage just shows up uninvited and latches itself onto their house making some sort of siamese abomination of estate... truly, a realtor's ultimate horror.
As bizarre and out of place as this event seemed to be, it had one silver lining... Both, Pacifica and Monty were glad this event had transpired.
The whole thing was a saviour in the form of a last minute distraction that might just have saved their marriage.
Of course neither of them wanted the other to know this.
The two needed some time to cool off and gain distance to the problem and this was the perfect excuse
Monty knocked on the door but there was no response.

"Again" ordered Pacifica
Monty knocked again.
A muffled voice replied in a foreign accent

"Do not knock, so that I may unlock"
The changelings recognised that voice
A familiar zebra opened the door and the usual whiff of musky condensed stuffy smell of unknown potions spilled out onto the changeling's nostrills.

"Zecora?" blurted out Monty

"Yes, it is I, You came to greet me, may I ask why?"

"..."
Zecora's attention turned to Pacifica who was still holding her nose to stop the bleeding from smacking her face against the unexpected wall.

"I apologize for the scent's content, I imagine to you, its quite potent"

"What is it?" asked Monty in Pacifica's name

"A brewing healing potion, the soul's easing lotion, I have two who are badly pained you see, I could not simply let them be... they need help that a hospital can't offer so I stepped in with a generous offer"
Monty leaned to the side to see the patients but all he could make out is a familiar sleek outline of a changeling and a big ball of unidentified fur lying in two makeshift beds before Zecora parroted Monty and covered his line of vision
He could have sworn that he saw the changeling somewhere but he just couldn't remember where.

"It may seem somewhat rude, but I do not wish you to intrude, my guests do not seem to want to be bothered, I don't want them to be smothered, have you come with an issue, friend? or perhaps for some idle time to spend?"

"Well... your house... it just popped right next to our house"

"Of that I am aware, the house has always been there, that is why I do not understand what you are saying, surely you are playing"

"Zecora, you always lived in the forest" Explained Monty to a puzzled Zecora

"That is not true, why do you say this out of the blue? we have always been neighbourly yet, this you say to me?"

"I-I'm sorry I didn't mean to offend it's just some weird things have been happening in Ponyville lately, stuff began disappearing and now it seems like your home has been moved right against ours, we're not blaming you, I'm sure you're just as clueless as we are"

"that is funny, I remember living here since times long past yet what you are telling me, seems to contrast"
Zecora gave Pacifica and inquisitive glance, Monty wasn't so well versed and wasn't exactly known for his good judgement, Pacifica however, was usually spot on so if she backs up her husband, something must be afoot
Pacifica nodded in agreement, it seemed that something was indeed afoot

"it seems like you aren't lying, your wife agrees and she is not known for falsifying"

"Do you have any idea what is going on?"

"Much would explain a spell of magic though the amount of energy needed is quite tragic"
Pacifica began to think

"Group spell" Pacifica nosed out

"Perhaps, but in that magic dominion, we shall need a second opinion"

"Twilight?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, but if what you said is true, we are short on time"

Caves of silence
A name given to the crystal caves deep down below Canterlot where nopony was allowed to enter anymore, a hallowed ground, taboo to all, housing the infernal machine locked away for good.
Every now and then the echoes of clopping could be heard traversing among the complex structure of the crystalline maze.
A changeling approached the machine and inspected it.
The machine was never this lively before, it was as if it were in pain or trying to say something...
Every now and then in the past, the changeling could hear an odd voice here and there coming from the machine in the form of a faintly whisper but if it were to try and speak again at this time, the whisper would drown in a sea of unhealthy clinks ticks and whirrs.
No good is going to come of this, the machine was trying to keep this reality together but something had fractured it and now, like a glass window it was beginning to crack, the machine was somehow holding it all together stopping it from falling apart but the machine itself wasn't designed to take such a monumental amount of stress, the changeling knew it wasn't going to hold out for long, after all... he designed machine himself.

Author's Note

When I published the chapter before this one I realized that it would be best to first write the chapter, then take my time to write the next chapter, let my mind move onto other things and then after I am done with the next chapter, I go back to the previously finished one, reread it make updates or changes and then publish it.

The last chapter needed quite a few changes (not to the story but to the style of writing) and I don't want to release bad quality content for you guys to read, however I also don't want to publish it and have you guys reread the chapters just because of some changes as that wouldn't be fair of me to do so and I'm sure it would be frustrating to you guys.

I'm sorry for the constant updates on the previous chapters, just goes to show how much I still need to learn and I am grateful that you are patient enough with me to keep on reading.

Hope you enjoy the resto of the troy that is to come.

CHAPTER 4 (AKA: The art of speaking)

The dead night slumbered across Equestria like a darkened slug oozing its dreams over to its diurnal victims, falling helplessly into the sea of the impossible and nonreal... one being however, was fighting off the sandy wind of sleep for he had other things that just couldn't wait.
The changeling in question was none other than Stanley himself, a changeling, who escaped from a malicious world only to find himself in another sort-of-but-not-quite-like-home home.
The almost hospital was keeping him prisoner (Stanley was heavily debating whether that statement was literal or figurative at the moment) and the almost bed was actually quite pleasant and almost comfy (it was a hospital after all so a comfortable bed would have been out of place)

Stan's mental gears began to spin and whirr, Cynthia and Banka had to be found (albeit for two very different reasons) but to achieve that, certain other tasks had to be completed and they had to be completed in a certain order.

The thing about life, as Stanley realized during his stay at the island, is that doing things in life is much like getting Ponea furniture.
Getting Ponea furniture isn't as simple as just buying it and taking it home oh no, you see, the thing about Ponea furniture is that it is cheap but at the same time it is cheap because the customer needs to put it together.

As a result, in order to get a piece of Ponea furniture in your home you would have to go to the store, purchase the furniture, take it back home, open up all the boxes, read the instructions, assemble the furniture, realize that this piece doesn't fit why doesn't it fit there, you look at the manual, everything seems fine, you look at the furniture, you can't figure out what's wrong, you get frustrated, you decide to disassemble the furniture then you reassemble the furniture, you notice that you missed some tiny almost unnoticeable step, you realize that you didn't need to disassemble the whole thing to fix this, you get angry because you wasted 20 minutes that you could have spent with your girlfriend Sharon instead, you finish assembling the furniture in rage, you put the furniture in its place but not without being a bit too rough and breaking a small piece of it so its just a little bit damaged and then and only then, you have got a piece of Ponea furniture in your home.
Life was much like that and Stanley knew it.

In order to find Cynthia and Banka he would have to first be able to speak again, figure out where he is, ask the pendant if it knows anything about what happened, get some cash to travel if he needs to and then he can start searching for the missing ones.
Stan attempted to speak, his vocal chords are fine so he could make sounds without a problem, however molding them into words and phrases was a Sisyphusian task.
Despite his current condition, he had no excuse to keep putting it off, Stanley didn't care, the pain, the crunching... he could handle all that given just how much he went through in the last month or so.
Ever since Stanley woke up in the Hospital, not once had he talked to the voice.
A part of Stanley felt bad about disregarding the voice's advice before everything went blank and he felt that the voice might not want to talk to him again and right now, that terrified Stanley.
Unfortunately, Stanley didn't have much of a say in the matter as the voice was the only source of help for him at the moment and a bleak one at that.
Stanley put on the pendant.
The room was silent apart from an occasional snore or rustle from the other patients in the room.
It was time to learn to speak all over again.
it felt degrading, as if the Changeling had taken a million steps back to his infancy.
Stan tensed his jaw muscles to test the pain which came rushing in at once as if ordered by a nearby sadist.
It was going to hurt... immensely.

Sometimes it is better to do something fast, especially if one knows it is going to hurt, for example, when one needs to wax themselves, they do it fast so that there is as little pain as possible.
Unfortunately for Stanley, this wasn't waxing as he was going to find out very soon.
The changeling mustered the courage and decided to start with opening as wide as he can to see the extent of how much he can open.
A stupid thing to do no doubt.
The changeling began slow and his mouth opened up minutely, enough to give out a partially muffled vowel.
Stan had to open it more if he wanted to be treated as something more than a sucky ventriloquist but the more he tensed his jaw muscles the more they pressed against whatever was hurting and soon his focus on opening the jaw more and holding back the pain was at an equilibrium, making him unable to prevail.
No budge, this wasn't going to work, the muscles are the problem, if only he had some sort of way of moving his way without muscles.

Stanley began to think, how could he move his jaw without... well moving it? its not like he can use his hooves to move it...
Stanley grunted in rage, at this rate he will get nowhere.
It is a well-known fact that the harder one tries to think of something or remember something the harder it is to remember or come up with said thing... we start to think of solutions and we begin to categorize, file things away in boxes... and unfortunately in life, you need to think outside the box... that's where letting things go come into play.
I cannot begin to count the amount of times when I had to solve something and couldn't, ending the situation in a fury and frustration only to force myself to pause things, relax a little and let my mind wander... only to have a solution pop into my head not 2 minutes later.

Stan was angry, he was frustrated but most of all, all of this has exhausted him, he just wanted to take a break... its not as if he can think of anything else to do right now so the best thing he could do was rest.

Stan lay down on his bed, eyes wide open, far too awake to let his mind pass away into sleep.
Stan looked around the room he was in... the place seemed clean enough but it seemed so... backwards, this couldn't be his home, their healthcare was much more advanced.
Normally Stanley wasn't much into healthcare and such however back at home he had a buddy who happened to be a doctor and he would often tell him about all of the behind-the-scenes happening in the medical field.

Just A while back, his friend was overjoyed about a new series of prosthetics being released that were so advanced that they essentially became a perfect replacement of a lost limb or body part... something about a magically sensitive material letting the user move the limb with magic with pinpoint precision? as if that mattered, its not like Stanley had a fake jaw he could move with his magic.
...or did he?
Sure he didn't have a prosthetic designed to be moved by magic but that doesn't mean he can't use magic to move his jaw.
It was going to be risky, doing something that requires as much precision as controlling a jaw is going to be dangerous to a changeling with hypermagica.
Stanley focused, he had to be extra gentle.
The changeling's horn began to wrap itself with a gentle hazy slither of magic that travelled into his horn and down to his jaw, leaving a light greenish tint in its path.
It was time to give it a go
Stan focused
gentle
geeentle...
Stan's jaw began to open agape
it was working
it was working!
Stan was overjoyed, something was finally going his way, he finally felt like he had a chance to figure out what is going on!

As Stanley was about to give out a scream of joy, his horn preceded him with a powerful joyful surge that smashed his jaw shut with a deafening chitter of teeth, his face numb with pain, his brain rattling sloppily in his head, his eyes rolling to the back of his head and his head falling back to the pillow as the rest of his body ragdolled.

According to the Bible (and some of its fans), everything starts with darkness... now whether the Bible is right not not is up to debate however the only thing on Stan's mind right now was the primordial darkness surrounding him, the ancestral void of light permeated through him to the point where he couldn't even see his body, or in fact, feel it.
it was as if The changeling himself existed as an entity, not a physical body.
Where am I Thought the changeling.
Not a sound was out but a thought, the silence was deathly however Stanley knew what he had said, its as if the words were spoken in a soundless tone, they were just... made into existence without any physical being, a familiar feeling for Stan, one identical to when he "hears" the pendant talk to him.
A faint grunt came into the void
It wasn't Stan
What was that?
This time, a moan began to needle its way into the void and grew into a hellish shriek of a being in searing pain, expanding in the darkness making Stanley feel somewhat cramped
What the-

But the changeling didn't have time to be confused as another shriek crammed itself into the tight compact darkness, knit closer together than the finest silks in all of Equestria.
It was just the beginning as Stanley was about to find out.

A torrent of shrieks screams and wails forced themselves into the already humble darkness, more and more cramped, squeezing Stan's existence into a tinier and tinier space, swishing and moving, bumping around like a gas particle in the world's most unhealthy and gross cigarette
Each shriek filled Stan's head, one voice was plenty but a thousand...
Stan's head felt like a supernova of nerves, the pain long overtaken his sanity as he became yet another screech among the sea of agony.
And then, as soon as it had all started, it stopped once Stanley opened his eyes, drenched in sweat breathing heavily as if he had just ran a marathon... on needles
His heart racing faster than he ever imagined were possible, trying to break free from his chest like a scared necromorph
He needed to calm down, whatever that was, it was not a dream, it couldn't have been, his head was still pulsing from the pain in the dream, much like a balloon that was stretched beyond its limits and then deflated to the point of uselessness, likewise his head felt thinned out and wrinkled from all those voices crammed inside not moments ago.
Stan feared what the dream might have been about, he knew it but he refused to acknowledge it.
The changeling lay motionless, too terror-stricken to close his eyes in case that thing came back, Stan doubted if his mind could take anymore strain than it already has.
It seemed like time was being maliciously malleable extending itself into endlessness like a tragic toffee of malice and anticipation.
Eventually, even toffee has its limits and Stanley had to face his fear and suspicions.

The voices he experienced in the dream felt in the same way as he had always experienced the voice from the pendant... perhaps the pendant was trying to communicate with him? and who were all those voices? are there others like the pendant? perhaps it was time to finally ask the pendant what the hell it is in the first place, Stanley has gotten so used to the voice being a helpful watchful tone over him and so much chaos ensued from the moment they had first encountered that he hardly had the time to ever think about the real questions, ones he was supposed to ask on day 1.
Stanley took the pendant from the nearby desk and gave it a close look.

The gold item was as smooth and flawless as usual, perhaps its magic kept it clean and pristine.
How could such a tiny thing hold a voice? thought Stanley, his head still ringing from the dream.
Perhaps it was magic, but again, how could so much magic be stored in such a tiny thing, surely it would break or crack under the magical surge, especially when he uses his magic on it, if he could crack diamonds with his blasts like it was nothing then zapping such a tiny thing would surely melt it instantly or vaporize it... and yet, it never has.

It was time to get some answers, he didn't care how or why, he already figured out how to move his jaw and it will probably take him the rest of the night to formulate a single damn sentence but he is going to get to the bottom of this.
Stan carefully put on the pendant.
Silence
Stanley decided to give the thing a zap
As soon as his magic blast touched the pendant, as if by a switch, the torrent of voices returned, all at once like a truck to Stanley's head, who instantly threw the pendant off his neck and onto the ground as if the pendant itself were made of hot magma.
The pendant, was useless.
Stanley could only rely on himself.

Author's Note

This chapter, for some reason took forever to write, I don't know why, perhaps my mind was on other stuff.

In any case, I thought that its best if I upload a chapter per week, every wedenesday.

A thing or two about changelings and their habits - PRELUDE (AKA: chapter 0)

Life is unfair... really unfair, that was the one and only thing going through Mark as he barely trotted along the path into the unknown.
He was not hungry, no... hunger is something you describe when your tummy rumbles and you want some food, this was much, much worse, his body was wafer-thin, you could not only see his entire ribcage but also all the veins and what one would call muscles although calling them that would already be stretching the definition of the word "muscle" to its very limits.
Mark barely could keep his form let alone orient himself with the surrounding, as far as he was concerned, he wasn't even walking in any direction, he was just... moving, he was too tired to make sense of anything.
He fell and darkness overwhelmed him.

It's not easy being a changeling you know, not only everypony hates you from the day you are born (well, maybe except your own kind) but there's not much you can do about it either, as you have no choice on the matter.
Ponies aren't the only ones that always hated changelings... all creatures hate changelings and why? all because of that stupid habit they have to change into other's loved ones and feed off their positive emotions.
You could say it's unfair, sure but would you blame a wolf for killing a fluffy rabbit? would you blame a bear for hunting cute seals? would you blame dragons for eating rare and precious gemstones? and besides it doesn't have to be this way, sure love is the most filling emotion of all but there are also others like, joy, compassion, or even friendship which is the next best thing.
Of course for emotions to nourish a changeling they must be directed at him (or her) directly, but who said that changelings have to pretend to be somepony else? why can't ponies be friends with changelings as they are? that would surely work, after all changelings are like any other pony once you get to know them better... and it's not like the changelings actually drain these emotions, they only feed on the emotional energy that has already been given off, which nopony else needs.
One would say that this makes no sense as the changelings could simply live off their own emotional energy, however it is most unfortunate that they are unable to feed off the energy of another changeling.
As for death... it is not as simple for changelings... when you die, sure you go to heaven or hell but you still exist, and normally the same would apply to changelings when they die of any cause apart from hunger.
Normally a soul of a being (be it dead or living) emanates a form of emotional energy that enables them to simply continue to exist in some way or another, (which explains ghosts and other apparitions) but in the case of changelings its a whole different story.
Changelings for unknown reasons are born into existence with more emotional energy than any other being, however they are unable to emanate this energy which means that at some point, if they run out of the energy, they will simply cease to exist.

Author's Note

Feel free to comment, I will also gladly answer to any and all questions whenever I can.

One more thing: this is my first fanfic I had ever made, just putting that out there right now so that you know for future reference.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER 18 (AKA: Family values)

Pacifica wasn’t too happy about all this, she knew what Mark was hiding, after all their link works both ways.

“Can’t wait to see your uncle again, huh?” Mr. Cake replied, attempting to strike some sort of conversation of this mundane sea of silence

“…”
That wasn’t the answer that Mr. Cake was expecting but that he wasn’t going to give up just yet

“Been to maretropolis before?”

“…”

“Crazy weather today, huh?”

“…”
A few minutes later the Stallion finally subsided and left Pacifica to herself who was now going through a lot of things right now, the attack, her going to Maretropolis, Mark and Celestia working together… this most certainly won’t end well, if the masses find out about this, he will end up as a punching bag for them… if he’s lucky.
Pacifica humphed, she was still mad at him for not letting her stay with uncle Discord, she hasn’t seen him lately and she was missing him badly, after all, he was the only family she ever had for a while now.
The train was slowly inching its way across the numerous landscapes like a small red vein revealing itself across the green lush skin of this world’s cusped hands.
Eventually the train arrived, the fields having long ago been replaced by concrete.
The skyscrapers surrounding Pacifica weren’t just buildings, they were works of art, the organs of this city making it seem even more alive than it already was.
The train stopped, they have finally arrived, the trip was mental torture to Pacifica, but it was almost over.
Bigmac and Mr. Cake Began their escort mission through the city.
They were in the belly of the beast, the city slowly breathing in and out with constant rush hours and the insane mix of emotions was even more overwhelming than at Discord’s shack.
This city was the ultimate cure for any overblown ego for one would have to just stand in the streets for a few minuntes to truly feel insignificant.
Pacifica was taking in the city as they were crossing the zebra crossing, leading from the train station to the main square, surprisingly the family flat was not far off, in fact it was no more than 5 minutes… The Price of the flat must have been outrageous with such a location.
Mr. cake looked at the door
Then he looked down on the paper with the address
Then on the door again… He approached it and knocked.
Some shuffling and hoofsteps could be heard
A red-coated mare with a high blond curly mane opened, Pacifica could tell she was a changeling… changelings know these sorts of things.

“Ma’am” began Mr. Cake

“Yes, how may I help?”

“I have been requested by Princess Celestia to escort this little lady”
The Mr. cake pointed at Pacifica in her disguise

“To this address”

“Princess celestia?”
The mare was surprised by that statement

“Yes, it is my understainding that you are this filly’s family”

“Family?, from who’s side?”

“I think this letter will explain everything”
Pacifica handed her the letter, the mare opened it and began reading it.

“Oh, Mark, I see… I didn’t know he had kids, well that’s fine sir, we’ll take it from here, come on in Pacifica”
The mare opened the door and let Pacifica inside

“You wait here for a moment, I’ll call Percy”

“???”
But the mare was out of sight already, how rude, she didn’t answer her question and so Pacifica didn’t know who this Percy pony was.

“WHAT???”
Pacifica could tell whoever this Percy pony was, they’re not going to get on the right foot, and indeed moments later, a grown stallion, in changeling form trotted up to Pacifica and before she could introduce herse-

“Out”
Pacifica looked at the towering stallion who now changed into his pony counterpart, a buff stallion, with a coat of mad orange and shortly cut opal mane

“???”
Percy opened the door and pointed outwards

“I said, out”

“Percy dear, there’s no need-“

“No, I’m not having any of it, we already have one mouth to feed, we don’t need another freeloader on our hands”
The couple was now in a clash, and the Mare wasn’t doing too well on her part.
Pacifica decided to step in

“My guardians already left, I can’t go back now”
The cherry coated mare plastered a fake smile on her face

“Ha ha! I guess we have to take you in now!”
Pacifica was quickly pushed from the corridor into the main room.

“Oi! I ‘m not finished!”
The doors shut.
The 2 storey flat was wrapped with a wallpaper containing gross pink flowers in a puke yellow background and of course the floors were carpeted with red.
A small coffee table could be seen beside the stairs leading to the second floor in the tight corridor.
Strangely enough, no pictures could be seen hung anywhere, and this was one of those flats where one would expect heaps of tacky family pictures hung on the wall and set on the mantelpiece right next to the white china decorations.
Pacifica was seated at a chair opposite some colt who seemed to be roughly her age.
Percy joined the family and sat down in silence.
And awkward moment jammed itself through.

“Well isn’t this nice? Let’s introduce ourselves, shall we? My name is Shelley and I’m your aunt, this is my husband, Percy… he’s your uncle”

“…”
Shelley gave a commanding look at the colt who was shyly looking down on his uninteresting schoolbook.

“Come on dear, introduce yourself”
Only the colt’s eyes uneasily looked towards Pacifica

“…Mongtgtrr…”

“Speak up dear”

“Montgomery” replied the colt without taking his eyes off his unattractive homework.
Pacifica could tell, this was a family with secrets, things were happening under the table and the wrong was seeping through Shelley’s polyurethane mask with that luminescent smile of hers, the son’s eyes on the other hand were contorting in every possible direction in order to not look at anypony, again a mask.
It was sickening, everything, the seemingly happy go lucky attitude of the wife and this whole “family time” charade, they were changelings, and especially her family if any of the things Mark told her was true.

“So, you’re his daughter?” began Percy, his tone ordering a reply.
Pacifica nodded too afraid to play the quiet one.

“…and he can’t take care of you?”
Once again a nod.
Percy gave a little disapproving shake whilst smiling slightly and returned his attention to the food outside the window.
Pacifica would give him a piece of her mind if she weren’t so scared of the consequences

“Tell me, what do you think of this whole… incident at Manehattan?”
Pacifica couldn’t think of anything but to shrug

“You know, Shelley, I heard those changeling pioneers are recruiting members, you think our son could do with a little elbow grease?”
Percy burst out in a wholesome laugh, despite telling a joke that was uncalled for, Montgomery shrank further into his homework.

“Dear!”

“Oh, what now! A stallion can’t make a joke in his own house? So how is my wonderful brother? Is he still thinking of opening that restaurant of his?”
A specific emphasis could be heard on the word “wonderful” as if it were an insult.
Pacifica did not grace her uncle with a reply, she may be scared but her anger was currently prevailing.
Mark’s brother didn’t seem to be the last bit worried about him, after all it was the family that pressured Mark into joining the army (or at least that’s what Mark told Pacifica) during the assault on Canterlot so Percy most likely knew about all this and he seemed to be indifferent to the fact that Mark may have died or been injured.

“I don’t know what kind of manners Your dad taught you but in this house its rude not to answer a question”

“…”

“Well?”
Shelley decided to disarm the situation by pulling out the family album that was closest within reach of the nearby bookshelf.

“So, Pacifica, do you know much about our family?”
Pacifica took the chance as gladly as she took the album from Shelley but Percy wasn’t intent on letting go anytime soon.

“Not now, mare”

“Oh, but it’s just a little fami-“

“I SAID, NOT NOW!”
Everypony’s masks fell off.
Montgomery jumped for a second yet his gaze didn’t come off the schoolbook, he seemed to be used to experiencing these kinds of scenes on a weekly if not daily basis.
Shelley stood in place giving off that sort of smile you tend to see on a person’s face for a split second before they burst into tears, yet the aunt was too afraid to start crying.
Somepony had to break the tension.

“I think I’ll go to bed now, thank you” said Pacifica
Percy whipped Pacifica with his eyes.

“You’re not going anywhere until you answer my question”

“Monty, show your cousin where she’ll be sleeping”

“What?”
Percy was stunned at his wife’s reaction

“B-but mum, I don’t know whe-“

“NOW”

“Montgomery, don’t you dare go to your room”

“Go, sweetie, I need to talk to daddy”
Monty had no idea what to do and so Pacifica aided him in making the decision, she grabbed his hoof, took the album and rushed out before “daddy” could say anything,
Perhaps Shelley finally snapped.

“Upstairs” whispered Monty but Pacifica already guessed that.
The two little changelings stopped at the corridor.
By now they could hear two sets of screams and shouts coming from downstairs.
Seconds later Monty realized that the reason they were standing in place was because Pacifica had no idea where to go from this point.
It was obvious to Montgomery that Pacifica sure as hell won’t be staying at dad’s and mum’s room and they didn’t have any spare room for guests so the only option left was his own room.
Monty pointed and led his cousin into his room.
The room was nothing special, generic at best and that was what made it stick out like a sore horn.
Generally speaking, a pony’s room always has something that made that room unique, much like every pony has a cutie mark, every pony’s room had something one of a kind in it… with the exception of this room.
The room had dark-blue walls, though at this point they were more dark than blue.
Right opposite the door, stood a window looking out to a building considerably taller than the dwarf house they were in.
To the right of the window, in a corner, lay a bed with neatly folded bedsheets (a rare and unusual phenomenon in a colt’s room)
To the left of the window, side by side, stood a generic PONEA white DIY shelf full of toys (mostly action figures) and right next to it a wardrobe big enough to fit in an entire lion and a witch with room to spare, possibly for another wardrobe?
Monty approached the wardrobe and with a determined look failed to open the doors.
Montgomery let go of the one door he was attempting to open, and the full force was now focused into throwing him onto the closest wall.
The spring-loaded hinged door mechanism shut whatever was open moments ago.
Montgomery got back up with ease, he also seemed to be accustomed to being hit here and there every now and then.
Monty resumed his attempts, but this time with his cousin’s help.
The doors gave way this time, much more easily.

“And now the second one”
The doors revealed a plethora of bedsheets and linens.
On the inside of each door, Pacifica could make out hundreds of pictures and art posters of the ponies, that Monty’s action figures were supposed to represent.

“???” Pacifica pointed at the collage on one of the doors.

“Oh, these guys? They’re the Rumbling Stampedes, do you know them?”
Pacifica gave Monty one of those “I thought the answer to that was obvious” stares.

“They’re awesome! They’ve won the world trisport tournament!”

“…”

“Three times!”

“…”

“In a row!”
That still didn’t tell Pacifica anything, she had no idea what a trisport was in a first place.
Pacific shrugged.

“You know, the Rumbling Stampedes?”
Another shrug

“Third year champions of the trisport tournament?”
Yet another shrug
Monty was running out of options and so he decided to ask, with a begful tone, one last question.

“You know… the trisport tournament?”
That one last shrug killed him off

“Oh come on! How do you not know about the trisport tournament! Its only the most awesome and incredible thing of all time!”

“…”

“Nevermind… I’ll tell you about it tomorrow” Monty finished off as he rolled out the futon that was effectively muffling the sound of the argument that was seeping through the floorboards.
Montgomery was about to signal Pacifica to get into the futon but she was already in her bed…
In
Her
Bed

“Hey that’s my bed!”
Pacifica gave Montgomery a cat’s indifferent look

“Come on!”

“…”

“Get off my bed! I’m not sleeping in that futon!”
Pacifica’s gaze continued.

“Well, I’m going to sleep in my bed even if I have to sleep with you in it!”
Before Pacifica could silently protest, Monty was already having his way with the bed.
Almost instantaneously light grunts punches, shoves and kicks ensued and eventually the two reached an impasse and had no choice but to share the bed.
Despite the argument below, the two barely teen changelings eventually fell asleep each going into their own universe, every problem seemingly so far away that one just couldn’t focus on anything but on the wonderful world of dreams.

Author's Note

Expect the next chapter this week folks!

CHAPTER 30 (AKA: Mission implausible)

Canterlot… now spiked to the teeth, a new mountain face risen, swarmed with the wonder and pride of Equestria, the army.
It only stood to reason that the most guarded and safe place in this world wouldn’t pose a challenge for Discord, needless to say, He had graced the castle with his presence along with a few new visitors.

“I’ve always liked flashy introductions, don’t you? Let’s see how flashy we can get”
Amour reinforced hoofsteps clanked across the hallway and made their way into the royal quarters.

“Your highness! There seems to be a commotion on the lower castle grounds”

“Thank you, you may leave”

“What are your orders, highness?”

“I shall deal with the matter personally”

“Yes, your highness”
Meanwhile, in a secret dungeon, Mark was getting closer to his limit, he wasn’t sure how long he could last with all this so when Celestia told him that Pacifica is back, he left behind the semi-pile of glass, metal, cogs and pendulums.
Of course, Queen Chrysalis was also informed.

“Pacifica!”
Mark’s heart thumped with relief when he finally saw Pacifica who was still clinging onto Uncle Discord and refused to let go.
Something about Mark seemed off and Pacifica could sense it.

“…”

“You have no idea how worried I was about you, was she all right?”
Discord conjured a large spatula and with extreme spatula-bending force he managed to unglue Pacifica from him.

“All right? She was more than all right, you should have seen what they did to the timberwolves”

“Ti-timerwolves?!? Just what were you doing Pacifica?”

“…”

“Travelling?!? On your own?!? Are you crazy? What if something happened to you? something DID happen to you!”

“…”

“And just who was with you all that time?”

“…”
Mark looked at Monty, he had only known about him from the casual conversations he overheard in his family, not that their family was renowned for being generous in that department.

“…”

“Rose? Who’s Rose?”
Mark’s attention turned towards the changeling mare.
She seemed in pretty bad shape but Mark just couldn’t get his eyes off of her.
Rose hoof-pumped in her mind, not only she found a pair of kids that she always wanted but they also had a pretty good looking changeling stallion who will probably be VERY grateful to her for taking care of the kids.
She came up to him in a slow manner, showing off every part of her body and coming at breath’s distance before finally introducing herself.

“Hi, my name is Rose…”
Her wound let itself be known as Rose cringed in pain, she had forgotten about that little detail.
Queen Chrysalis noticed the spark between them and used this chance.

“Mark, take her with you and find medical attention at once”

“Yes, my Queen”
Of course that was just an excuse for Mark to make an impression on Rose, she was kinda cute.
Of course that was just an excuse for Chrysalis to have Mark out of the way and have a little chat with Pacifica, but that wasn’t going to happen just yet.

“Why if it isn’t my favourite queen, Chrissy!”
Discord gave Chrissy a requited hug.

“Discord, how have you been?”

“Oh, you know me, swings and roundabouts really… say, we should catch up sometime!”
No words could describe Celestia’s surprise at this moment, she had no idea that they knew each other, in fact they seem more acquainted with each other than Discord was with her… and they had one heck of a history together..

“You two know each other?”

“Know each other? We’re practically family!” Replied Discord as he wrapped his shoulder around Chrysalis who didn’t seem to mind at all.

“What’s the meaning of this, Chrysalis?“

“My dear Celestia, there are many things that you don’t know about-“

“-Us” finished off Discord.

“I would have felt safer knowing this beforehand”
Discord had an idea.

“Oh but to reveal such… private memories?”
Discord grabbed Chrysalis’s snout, as if he were about to share a lover’s kiss.
Chrysalis was playing along nicely, it was winding up Celestia, driving her crazy and they loved every second of it.

“!!!”
Discord stopped his little role-play.

“Oh, we’re just having a little fun, that’s all” chuckled Discord
Chrysalis nodded whilst covering her snout barely holding back the laughter, a faint giggle here and there.

“Chrysalis!”

“A Queen also has needs Celestia, and considering there is little to no entertainment around these parts, we will have to make do with who we have”

“Well, I hope this doesn’t become a habit”
Chrysalis's warm expression died to make way to a stone cold one

“Now, to more pressing matters, I have something to discuss with you, Pacifica”

“???”
Pacifica was taken by surprise, out of all changelings in this world, the Queen wants to speak to her, what could she possibly have to say?
Celestia humphed, so this is why she told Mark to take care of Rose…

“And I suppose that having Mark go with Rose was just a coincidence?”

“I don’t question your methods Celestia, don’t question mine”

“Thinking that way, you will never become a appropriate Queen for your kind”

“Need I remind you which one of us is Queen, Princess?”
Things were getting a little heated and that’s the last thing anypony wanted right now so Celestia decided to give her this one

“I am sorry Chrysalis, However I would like to discuss the matter with Pacifica myself first”

“She is of changeling kind and therefore my responsibility”

“And your kind is in conflict with mine, therefore it is also my responsibility”

“Oh?” Chrysalis didn’t expect that answer, Celestia was slowly learning the hardships of being Queen despite not having earned the title yet.

“Fine, I shall allow it but if you don’t persuade her, I will”

“That won’t be necessary”

“We shall see”

“Wait!”
Monty caught up to Celestia and Pacifica who were already on their way

“I’m coming with Pacifica”

“I’m sorry…” Started Celestia before she realized that she didn't know the colt's name

“-Percy”

“-Percy but this is a personal matter, I’m afraid that you will have to wait-“

“He comes” Interrupted Pacifica

“Yeah! I’m coming too!”

“So be it…”
The Princess and the changelings retreated to a more personal area with stone walls and a steel-reinforced door.
Chrysalis had slipped in without anypony noticing, after all she wasn’t called the Queen of changelings for nothing.
Celestia , lined the room in a magical fabric, successfully cutting off anything going in or out.
Now they can talk.

“How has your trip been? I heard that you ran away from your family in Maretropolis?”

“Yeah! There was this like big march and everything and we ran away and then we were like in the middle of nowhere and-“

“I often find that tea helps to relax during such conversations, would any of you care for some?”
Celestia sipped on her tea, little by little as she listened to the whole story as told by Monty, Pacifica was being quiet and evasive for some reason, especially about what happened back in Maretropolis.

“I see… and tell me, what do you changelings think is happening”

“Uprising” jotted out Pacifica

“Yes, unfortunately, our history with your kind had always been stormy and that had never been so apparent as it currently is, if we stand idly by and let natural progression take its course I’m afraid that we might not like the outcome, however Myself and your Queen, Chrysalis have come to an understanding”

“Understanding?”

“Yes, we have managed to put our differences aside and work out a mutually beneficial solution to this problem”

“?” asked Pacifica

“The summit”

“That won't-” Started Pacifica but was interrupted by an unexpected voice

“This is pointless”
To everypony’s surprise, Queen Chrysalis was in the room all along, except just now she had made herself present.

“Chrysalis? But-

“-What kind of changeling Queen would I be if I couldn’t slip by unnoticed? Now listen to me carefully Pacifica, The rebels are acting like wild dogs and therefore shall be treated as such, we need to put them down but we’re not going to go to war this time, of course the rebels don’t know that the army we set up in here in Canterlot is just for show, when they will be busy getting ready for war, you will infiltrate and retrieve any valuable information, the size of the army, weapons and plans of attack”

“Wait, so you’re going to send her to the enemy?” asked Monty
Celestia tried to take over

“Well, not exa-“

“Yes”

“Chrysalis!”

“No! what if they catch her, I…” butted in Monty

“It’s OK Monty, I’ll go”

”But-”

„If I don’t do this a war will start, do you want to go to war?”

“No but-“

“Then I’m going”

“Fine, then I’m going with you”
Celestia protested

“Endangering one of you is a risk large enough-“

“He shall go with her”

“That is too much of a risk”

“We can defend ourselves” began Pacifica

“Yeah! We have the pegazooka and the rumble suit!”
Chrysalis and Celestia looked at each other puzzled, now that they mentioned it, Pacifica did seem to be wearing some sort of outfit and Monty was carrying a large gun strapped to his back.

“They’re magical items, we defeated the timberwolves with these”

“And how exactly have you obtained them?” asked Celestia.

“We found them, in a cave” replied Monty
Something felt off to Celestia, there is nothing more dangerous than an unknown magical item, and such things do not simply lie around in caves.

“When do we infiltrate?” asked Pacifica

“We made our move already, now we wait” their Queen replied.

“In the meantime, you two rest, I would also like somepony to have a look at your items”
Celestia was right, it had been a long day, the timberwolf attack, finding the items, and now this mission all of a sudden, everypony just needed a day of rest to tackle the sheer magnitude of things.

Author's Note

Originally, I wanted to include more in this chapter but I just can't get into it today, additionally I'm a bit pressed for time this week, been doing stuff for my youtube channel for a change.
Also:
After some thinking I came to the conclusion that it would be a better move to have the next fanfic about Pacifica's parents...
I just spent about 30 minutes writing and re-writing my reasons for choosing to do the prequel first and couldn't manage to write it properly without giving anything away so here is the nitty gritty of it:
Time travel is complicated, and due to a number of reasons which I can't give away without any HUGE spoilers of the entire series, I will most likely have to write the prequel first despite the fact that it happens in the distant future and there's going to be a LOT of stuff happening in the prequel.

CHAPTER 8 (AKA: The extent to which one is immortal)

Stan was awoken by the loud and excited dialect flowing across the air mashed with Cynthia’s screams.
The first thing he had to do is figure out where he stands right now, or in this case, lies.
A cage.
A rusty cage big enough to fit at least a dozen of his kind was holding him back from freedom and keeping him in place for his impeding future.
Now that he knew what and where, it was time to see where Cynthia came into this picture.
Much like Stanley himself, she was caught and roped though she was not giving up without a fight.
The Cerberi were stronger and at this point, quite annoyed with her and so they decided to fix this problem with a strong punch to the chest, all it took was a single hit and she was conveniently unconscious and thrown into the same cage as Stan.
The changeling looked at the other, she wasn’t badly hurt or anything, the best thing right now was to leave her be for the time being, the way things were going right now, he was going to need her at 100% if they want to stand a fighting chance (not that they had one in the first place)
Where muscles fail, the mind shall prevail.

“Hey, you there?” Whispered Stan to the voice

As always

“Any ideas?”

“Well unless we come up with something, we’ll die”

Nopony will die

“Oh really? I don’t know if you’ve noticed but we’re being held prisoners by a bunch of bloodthirsty killers”

You won’t die yet, not until you two have a child together, remember?

“So what?”

So… don’t have a child
Stan knew exactly what the voice had in mind.

“What? No! god knows what’s about to happen to us and you really think we’re going to do it? Jeez! And besides even if we’d have the perfect situation there’s still no way I’d do it with her, we don’t exactly get along”

All I’m saying is that stress makes ponies do all sorts of crazy stuff, just remember that not having a child right now is the only thing that guarantees either of your lives

“Well, that’s the one thing we don’t have to worry about, now get thinking”
The cage was rough with rust, it was pretty cold but at least there was plenty of food to go around, and judging by the emotions surrounding them, Stan knew that the cerberi weren’t going to go easy on them.
A few hours passed as Stan went through practically every possibility.
Zapping the weakest bars with magic and escape.
Creating a diversion.
Play dead.
Bargain.
Within that time Cynthia had woken up but this time instead of being her annoying usual self, she was unnervingly silent.

“Cynthia, hey Cynthia”
Cynthia looked silently at Stan who ticked his head sideways once, gesturing if she knew how to get out of here but she was still hurt from what he had told her earlier that day.
Stan was past the line of feeling sorry, maybe what he had said was harsh but it was true and if he hadn’t told her now, somebody would have told her later.
More than anything Stan was still pissed off at her, one would think that something like that would push her towards self-reflection, but apparently she’s just too a thick brick wall.

“I’m not going to apologize so stop wasting our time with this silent crap, we either live or die, and I’m not going to just sit around and wait for it”
The sudden change of the general emotional atmosphere signified that something was about to happen.
One of the Cerberi opened the cage door, grabbed Stan with his claws like a puppet and took him out.
Stan was tied to an upright wall made of stumps so that he was pinned on it, his limbs and head in a star-shape, he was like a fish on a cutting board, he felt that the next few minutes or hours are going to be unforgettable.

I’m 90% sure that they’re going to torture you

“WHAT?!?”
Look at the way they tied you, only your limbs, it seems like they want as few ropes to get in the way of your body and that means only one thing
Stan had to get out, this was bad, real bad and it was going to get painful too.

“Come on, help me, I need to get out right now!”

I’m sorry but I can only help so much, all I can tell you now is that there’s a slim chance that they’ll be interrogating you, if they do, you’ll have control over how much you’ll be tortured so let’s keep our hooves crossed

“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”

Compared to the other option, yes, yes it is
The most aggressive Cerberus came up to Stan, he could tell that he was the leader, that’s the way it goes among such creatures, alpha and omega and all, he was by far the biggest, meanest piece of work of them all, three heads, scars everywhere, clearly an experienced warrior and of course, what else, three heads.
The Cerberus spoke... by the tone, Stan could figure out it was a question, but not much else.

“Any idea what he’s saying?”

I know almost all known languages yet this one is foreign to me
The Cerberus asked the same question again, but Stan had no idea what the Cerberus wanted from him.
A moment of silence followed, but the Cerberus wasn’t keen on silence.
A powerful blow to Stanley’s ribs swung him left and right like a feather, the pain was warm, somewhat ticklish and the feeling was going down his body.
Stan looked at where the Cerberus hit him, he was bleeding, the Cerberus had sliced 4 cuts with almost surgical precision right in between his ribs.
Then the shock.

Whatever you do, don’t scream
Keeping his sanity at times of pain wasn’t anything new for the changeling, he had plenty of training recently in just that but this was different, before he was used to moving, constantly doing something, and it had just occurred to him just how easy it is to deal with pain when you have something to distract you from it, be it running or fighting back.
Stanley had now understood the real meaning of the word torture, nothing else before had been so incredibly difficult and mentally draining, he couldn’t move, he couldn’t do anything but watch and focus on the only thing that he was aware of right now… pain.
The Cerberus asked once again the question.

If you start screaming they’ll think you lost it and you’ll be useless to them, they’ll dispose of you
The difficulty of it all had suddenly risen, screaming was the only thing he could do to get away from the pain, at least momentarily but that wasn’t something he could afford to do, he was barely thinking, keeping his tone was going to be hard enough let alone formulate words or coherent sentences.
Stan attempted to open his mouth, but his mind was now split between screaming and keeping shut… he tried again, this time his mouth opened gently for a moment and then closed again.
Third time’s the charm.
This time with voice, doesn’t matter what he’ll say, they won’t understand him anyway.

“S…”

Try again

“St…”

Once more

“Stanley”

Success!
Now he had to actually say something this time.

“We… g-got thrown in here”
But that wasn’t the answer the Cerberus was looking for.
A slash followed by a gentle gust of wind cut between his other ribs.
This time it was worse, before at least he could bend one way to sort of close the cuts to minimize the pain but now, it didn’t matter which way he tried moving, either way one side hurt more than the other.

Hey, how are you holding up? hey Stanley!
But Stan’s sanity was already gone, there was only pain and there was no way at this point that he will be able to talk at all, his body acted on its own and locked him down inside.
All Stan could do right now was gasp and scream whilst trying to hold it back, his mouth muffling his own screams.
There was a moment of silence from the crowd until of the Cerberi said something to the one who was torturing Stan, there was a brief vivid exchange of words and then it was over, Stan was untied from the wall, he would have felt relieved about this if it weren’t for the spikes of pain that are caused every time he was moving.

A light breeze woke up Stanley and he felt… comfortable, and that made him uneasy, the last thing he remembered was his body being sliced like some sort of… well, meat cutlet.
Stan shuddered at the thought of somebody eating another living being and having to kill every time they feel hungry, how the hell do they keep their sanity with that? Especially if the prey can talk.
Stan looked around what seemed to be the innards of a tent, a draft coming from the entrance was refreshing the air inside.

Oh good, you’re conscious again
Stan moved only to be cruelly reminded about the pain on both sides of his body... it was bearable if he didn't move at all... he was trapped for now.
Stan hoped that speaking won't be as painful... though something told him he already knows the answer to that and he won't like it... His breathing was small and shallow, anything above that stabs his brain with the pain of the wounds having to stretch open and move with each inhale, and if that hurts... well, one can only imagine what taking would be like.
Stan moved his head around, the only thing he could move that would not slap him with suffering to get his bearings but to no avail, he had never see the inside of this place, maybe if he were outside he could look around but those were ifs and buts.
Perhaps the voice knew what had transpired during the time of his unconsciousness... he had to ask and as painful as it was going to be to speak he just had to bite the bullet.
Stan slowly inhaled some air, perhaps if he inhales a lot of air slowly and then speaks whilst exhaling it won't be so painful... his sides began to expand, like a baloon... the pain slowly creeped itself into Stan and to his pleasant surprise, it wasn't as bad... it was just as strong but it wasn't as sharp, the pain was blunt... which made it more bearable, much like an old bruise... you can feel it still hurts and the pain is still just as big but its not as intense so you can deal with it better.
Stanley got ready to talk, of course in a whisper

"I can’t believe I’m saying this AGAIN today but where are we?" began Stan in one massive exhale

In the exact same place as we were before, except this time it’s in a tent The voice responded as if it were obvious

“Well gee… I applaud your ingenious deductive skills”

Humour, good… that means that the pain isn’t getting to you enough to stop you from thinking
Stan tried to have a look at the details around the place.
The tent was full of instruments, saws, needles and other things that would easily be used for torture, and of course for a novelty scare effect, there was an occasional splat of blood here and there.

“Why do all these places have to always have blood? It’s like torture and being sanitation don’t get along”
With much pain, Stanley slowly sat upright to walk around, discover the place but the leather straps with chains attached to his appendages stopped him however a least they gave him enough freedom to move a little, then the pain… it was was still there but now it was a more of a numb pain than it was before so it was still manageable, Stanley moved away his bedsheets to discover that somebody had treated and stitched his wounds.
It became clear to Stan as to his whereabouts, all the various tools and objects in the tent, he had assumed that he was in some sort of torture tent or something but he must have been in fact in a Doctor’s base of operations.

“You could have told me this was a doctor’s tent”

You were going to figure it out eventually

“This has to stop, you really should start helping me”

I AM helping you

“No you’re not, how is not telling me stuff helping me?”

If you want a changeling to fly then you let them learn on their own, I’m helping you but as little as is necessary otherwise it’ll defeat the whole point of coming here in the first place, you said you wanted to become stronger, to learn to fight, didn't you?

“Yeah but so far I learned nothing but how to get my flank kicked”

Just because you know how to fight doesn’t mean that you know how to survive, and there’s no point in knowing how to fight if you don’t know how to survive, getting your flank kicked is the first thing you need to learn how to handle

“So what, all I’m supposed to do is just endure all of the time?”

For now yes, look it’s not like I haven’t been thinking, tell me do you know how to escape from these Cerberi?

“Um, no”

Do you know how to get off this island?
Stan pondered, he was reluctant to answer

“N-no…”

Exactly, and I’ve been thinking and I think I have found the solution on how to find a way out of this island

“How?”

Have you noticed anything strange about these cerberi?

“Well… I guess that they… no, no I haven’t… why, is there something strange with them?”

You’ve seen those cerberi, right?

“Huge muscular bodies, teeth that could crush anything and claws like scalpels? Yes”

And what about the island? What do you remember about it?
Stan was thinking intensely, there wasn’t much to remember about this island, nothing apart from a few bushes and a barren land with just a few tiny rodents.

“Hold on… I think I know what you’re getting at here”

Do you?

“Yeah, the Cerberi are predators, predators like them need a lot of meat and you can’t have meat without prey”

And?

“And on this island there’s not a single animal apart from a few small rodents, there’s no way that so many Cerberi could live on this island”

That’s because they don’t, think about it, this island's barren ecosystem is incapable of supporting such beings and that means that they must have come here
Something in Stan clicked

“And if they came here they must know how to get out!”

Bingo

“So all we have to do is find their ship or vessel, steal it and get out of here”

Not quite, even if you’d find away to escape and find the vessel there’s no guarantee that you’d know how to pilot it, and it’s probably manned by more than just one being at once so you’d need quite the coltpower to pilot it not to mention that you’d need somebody who knows their way across this sea

“Well I can only think of one thing to do, kidnap one of the Cerberi and get them to tell us everything except I don’t understand a single thing they say”

I told you I’d help, didn't I?

“You understand their language?”

Of course not, but I know a way around this problem and I’ll teach you but one thing at a time, let’s worry about getting out of here and rescuing Cynthia if you feel we need to rescue her

“Hey, she might get on my nerves but that doesn’t justify leaving her to fend for herself”

You sure about that? She didn’t seem to be too eager to be anywhere near you

“Well she can blame me as much as she wants, somebody needs to take care of her and if it’s not going to be her it has to be me”

Be careful, heroism like this often has a high price

“Oh shut up, I know I can’t die yet and with the life I’ve chosen for myself now I probably won’t die a gentle death so I might as well make the most of this”

It’s your life, I won’t argue

“Good”

You’re becoming more and more strict these days you know?

“I’m not strict, I’m simply more assertive and frankly, I’m getting tired of feeling scared and helpless and having everybody telling me what to do all of the time”

Well, sorry for helping you at all

“No, not you, you’re OK, you seem to be the only one who actually helps me and not tells me what to do all of the time, there’s a difference and it seems like you’re the only one that knows that… thanks”

I’d blush right now if I could
Stan chuckled, but very, very gently, mindingg his wounds.

I suggest that right no-
But the conversation was interrupted by a Cerberus who came in.

That’s the one who patched you up

“I recognise him, he was the one who took me down from the wall”
This Cerberus only had only one head, he was shorter than most of the others in the camp and he had a pair of small Pince-nez glasses and no armor on whatsoever and no scars to show for any past battles, his shiny mahogany fur gave off a soothing feeling.

“How cliché”
This Cerberus was a little different from the others, he was giving of a more calm and educated aura, after all, he had to be educated to be a doctor.

I don’t think he means us any harm

“Yeah, I think that too”
The Cerberus grabbed a chair and sat at a safe distance from the Changeling, by the emotional aura in the atmosphere Stan deduced that the Cerberus did that so that Stan could feel safe… and he did.
An awkward silence befell upon the tent which skewed either being’s perception of time, however short the silence lasted, it felt much too long.
Finally one of them decided to do something and the Cerberus pretended to fix his glasses on his nose even though he didn’t need to do that.
Stan didn’t jump or flinch, this was a good sign, the Cerberus wanted him to feel that way, he always believed that being humane is much more effective in making someone talk than plain violence, besides if you mistreat someone and they get away or survive they might want vengeance and that would be plain troublesome for the future, perhaps that’s why he was the only one with no scars or scratches, he just got along with everybody and still got what he wanted in the end anyway.
Stan pointed at the glasses.

“Pince-nez”

“???”

“Those are pince-nez glasses”
Stan mimed an invisible pair of his glasses on his snout.
The Cerberus understood at once what the prisoner meant.
It only seemed fair that he would tell the changeling the name of those in his language.

“Banka”
It was great that the prisoner was cooperating so much but it made the Cerberus a little uneasy, he had never come across any other being that was so willing and calm before, it usually took a day before he could even get close to the prisoner, but this one was different.
The calm was stirred by the outside, the Cerberus ears like radar dishes turned towards the sounds and distant words.
They wanted the prisoner back and there was no arguing with the leader, the Cerberus doctor had already asked for a favor as is when he let him treat this prisoner.
The Cerberus just hoped that this won’t jeopardize the relationship he had just established with the black one, it’s not like he had a choice, If only the prisoner knew that.
The Cerberus came up to Stan and tied him with the detached chains.
Stanley didn’t fight back or tried escaping, there was no point, he wasn’t going to get out of these chains and he most certainly won’t be able to run fast with them on... though eve f he were free to run it was doubtful whether that was a good idea given his wounds
The outside was now much darker, perhaps it was now nighttime in this place’s standards and not 30 feet away stood the wall he was trapped to some time ago with another fresh one erected adjacent to it.

“Ugh… I really don’t want to go through this again”

Instead of complaining, look for an opening, you might have an opportunity to get away
The voice was right, this was no time to get depressed, this was time for action, if he wasn’t going to do something now, he will never get out.
Stan's attention was dragged to a commotion where the cage he was previously in was located.

“Cynthia?”
Cynthia was being dragged to the other wall, it was clear to Stan that they were going to be forced to watch each other being tortured.
Cynthia was fighting with all her might, jerking like a bucking bronco forcing not one but two Cerberi to move her, one up front and the other at the back.
Stanley’s Cerberus began unstrapping him from the chains in order to get him on the wall.

When all the straps are off, zap him with magic
Stan was ready and not a moment later the opportunity had arrived.
Stan focused all of his magic into one single KO blow that he pumped into the Cerberus’s face knocking him out instantly.
The other Cerberi were shocked, they didn’t know that the black ones could do that.
Cynthia caught on as she did the same to the one holding her front, the Cerberus fell holding its face with cusped paws but she was still being held from behind so she derped flat out on her face.
Stan was in aid, at full speed and with a ripping sound he had rammed his full body onto the Cerberus who was swept off his hind legs and fell to the ground on his back, no longer keeping Cynthia in check.
Some of Stanley's stitches broke.

RUN!
Stan recovered instantly, the pain was immeasurable but it was being overwhelmed by a flood of adrenaline, Cynthia was already up in the air beyond the reach of the Cerberi who were now attempting to catch her in their nets but she was too fast.
Stan was surrounded by default, the Cerberi had formed a circle around the walls long before Stan managed to break out.

“I didn’t think this through, did I?”

Beats being tortured
Stan had to come to terms with his fate.

“At least she got out”
But Cynthia Disagreed with Stan’s expectations, a magic bolt slammed onto one of the Cerberi, breaking up the circle.
Stan gasped, he didn’t expect Cythia to... well, help him

GO!
Stan happily obliged and a moment later he was already off into the distance, following Cynthia.
Cynthia already had some experience with the fickle winds and Stan was the one that had trouble keeping up with the pace, his wounds slowly opening up one by one and being stretched to their limits.
The commotion and confusion the two caused at the camp gave them enough time to gain a significant advantage whilst escaping which gave them a running chance.

“Cynthia! At 3 o’clock there’s some woods, let’s hide there!”
The changelings changed their tactics and decided to use those woods.
A minute later they were both inside the sea of sharp spiky trunks and huge thick waxy leaves.
The sounds of the Cerberi was getting closer.

“We have to-“

STOP!
Stan automatically screeched his hooves across the gravelly soil and a meter later came to a halt.
CLICK

Don’t move
Cynthia looked back, why was Stan still? Now wasn’t the time to stay motionless.

“We have to go no-“

You’re on a mine
This was the last thing Stan wanted to hear right now.

“What are you doing Stan? We have to go!”

“I can’t, If I move, I die”
Cynthia was still hurt about what Stan said before, she wasn’t going to give him any favours anytime soon.

“I’m not carrying you”
Stan shook his head in disagreement, she didn't understand what he is trying to tell her

“I’m on a mine”
Cynthia gasped, they had no time to think or figure anything out and the enemy was getting closer every second.
Stan had to make a decision.

“You go”

“…“

“Go now! I’ll manage!”
Cynthia had no choice there was no point in both of them getting caught again, if she runs now at least she’d have time to figure out a way to rescue Stan, maybe he was a jerk but nobody deserves to die, he’ll just owe her big time.
Cynthia dashed in between the canopies and was gone not a second later.
Stan was now all alone, with hope far ahead and fear right behind him catching up quickly.

Whatever you do, don’t panic

“Shut up”

Look, I know you’re upset bu-

“SHUT UP!” erupted Stan, he wasn’t upset, in fact he was perfectly calm, he was going through his options right now and he needed to focus.
He moves, the pressure switch activates the mine.
He needs to get away far enough to survive the impact of the blast.
Disabling the mine?
He doesn’t know how to do that.
Running?
No, not enough time.
No matter what Stan thought of, he never manages to get far away enough from the blast to survive.
But wait.
Maybe he’s barking up the wrong tree, maybe he doesn’t need to run or disable the mine.
Yes, there was one way out, it was batshit insane but when one's life is threatened, the line of sanity just doesn’t exist.
All he had to do now was wait for the enemy to find him.

“HELLO?”

What are you doing?
Stanley knew perfectly knew what he was doing.

“IS ANYBODY THERE?”

Do you want to get caught?
That’s exactly what he wanted.
The Cerberi were now incredibly close and as the changeling looked back he could see the heads, few by few, surrounding him.
The leader of the pack ordered something.
A Cerberus came up behind Stan ready to grab him.
This was the moment that Stanley was waiting for.
The Cerberus attempted to grab and pick up Stan from behind but The changeling was ready for that and with every single bit of strength in his body, Stan locked one of the beast’s arms with a hug, tilting the Cerberus’s body forwards, Stanley spun on the one hoof that was on the mine’s button until gravity took over for him.
The Cerberus was jerked towards where Stanley was positioned a moment ago, the Cerberus fell, changing the direction of his fall right beneath the mine, Stan’s body was now on top of the falling Cerberus, his hoof still on the button.
The very instant the Cerberus fell on most of the mine, Stan got ready for pain and lifted his hoof from the button activating the mine.
The mine activated.
There was an explosion, The Cerberus’s body took most of the impact, throwing Stan into a forwards aerial flip, simultaneously throwing him away from the incoming damage, most of the explosion was redirected to ground level, spreading the shattered armor shrapnel onto all surrounding legs of any living being that were on the ground, then the rest of the bodyparts followed, a mist of instantly evaporated blood expanded into the air, hot guts slapped onto the incapacitated enemies and bones serving as more shrapnel fatally wounding those around the blast.
Stan fell to the ground, unconscious.

Author's Note

I have to admit, these chapters are getting longer and longer… that’s a good thing, right?

CHAPTER 11 (AKA: A changeling and his machine)

“You’re being exceptionally lively today aren’t you?”
It’s coming.

“So it finally happened?”
You know how they are, hard-headed as always, we too had been young once.
The changeling chuckled.

“Me? oh no, as somepony had told me once, I was born with a top-hat and a cane, heh!”
The chuckle had now become a weak cough; he didn’t have it in him to even muster a proper cough.
Still hanging on, as always.

“I’m afraid my body isn’t what it used to be, but I’m not leaving until it’s over”
Don’t worry my dear old friend, it’s almost over, soon enough we’ll be on our way, all of us.
The cogs of fate were coming to a close as the ticking soothed the changeling to sleep.

Author's Note

This chapter is a very short one, the reason for that is that I couldn't think of a way of incorporating it into the future chapters through a gentle and smooth transition whilst keeping it relevant to the topic of the given chapter so I decided to dedicate a whole chapter for it.
Also, I didn't forcefully expand this chapter to make it longer because well... I don't feel this chapter needs anything more right now, after all, quality over quantity.
The next chapter is out on Monday and some shit is going to go down because it's time to sew the pieces together.