This place was terrible. Why on earth an ancient crab would tell you to come here, you don't know. You don't know much about this place, but it was stuffy, had a lack of food, a greater lack of water, and a queen that seemed to want something. There was something about the hive though, something that made you more aware. There was no physical food, but there was emotional food. It wasn't as good, and the changelings were starving, but it was there. Where was it coming from? You get up and your claws puncture the rotting wood as you put your weight on them. You blink a few times, and suddenly you can see the life force of everything in the ent. The golden flames danced with something unfamiliar to you. It had been a few days, and you seemed to be evolving new traits already. Evolution speed was a side effect of the mass breeding that the changeling queens of old used to manufacture your race. Evolution was common in your race, and you evolved based on the conditions around you. The advanced sensors in your brain that allowed you to change into anything that you could see or consume were amplified, and the tips of the living flames danced with different colors depending on the emotions of the creature. There were also different colors of flame all together. Most were gold, but some were black and you had yet to find out what that meant.

"You there." You growl to the nearest changeling.

"Yes?" The shrill voice hurt your ears.

"Come here."

The small creature was half your size and approached cautiously.

"I'm hungry." The words rumbled from your chest.

Your claw lashed out, and sailed through the tendons in the changelings leg. Murky blood sprayed on to the bark and the small piece of living swiss cheese cried out in pain. Another hand flew hand flew out and ripped the black insectoid's throat out of its neck cavity before it fell. The jugular vein severed, its head hung limp, the legs buckled, and its blood stained the rotting bark. The tree shook with a booming laughter, and your jaw unhinged. The eight inch serrated fangs that formed a cage around your head were truly terrifying when they were cutting meat into chunks and crushing bones into shards. The head tore off easily when half of the creature's neck was gone and covered in blood. It was macerated inside your mouth with audible crunching, and slid down your throat with ease as the blood and saliva acted as a lubricant.

"Much better." You belch, and begin to tear the rest of the corpse apart with ripping noises.

"Winter Knight!" An outraged voice yells from the very top of the tree.

You guess that the hive mind let her know. Chrysalis payed a lot more attention than most, and whenever you looked, her flame was black.

"We were planning to march on Canterlot and now you are eating my soldiers! Why must you force my hand?" You cock your head to the side when you hear this.

"You never said anything about Canterlot." You say quietly.

"It doesn't matter to you now. I'll have to kill you. Nothing can eat my loyal soldiers and get away with it easily." Nothing in her voice faltered as she said it, and she doesn't seem to notice the fact that your face is covered in blood.

"You will not march on Canterlot." You growl through your dripping teeth.

"And who are you to stop me?" She laughed maniacally.

A tail started growing from your spine. Bones cracked, splintered, and shot through the flesh. The tail has a large bone mace on the end of it is covered in sharpened scales. You rear on to your hind legs as more bones meet the air and the muscle of your body drags the rest of your impressive form up the protruding shards. Now standing on two massive legs ending in five inch claws, your ribs send tufts of blood stained fur into the air. The cracking is horribly painful and you let out a roar that deepens farther from the extremely low sound of your normal voice. The skin is dragged along your ribs, and your spine dislocates and relocates. You wail into the air more as your skull cracks and becomes larger. Your teeth grow, and an acidic substance starts to drip from them. Your arms readjust themselves with a lot of shattered bone, and the claws on your hands end up being around six inches. The final act of this desperate transformation is the thorn like scales that are growing into a perfect suit of armor.

"You are not the only god of change! I am one of you that was turned into your end! You cannot stop me!"

Everything suddenly burst into flame. Golden boiling blood flowing through the veins of everything. Black fire creeps through the queens blood, and as you look to yourself the gold bursts into shadow.

"You have birthed his horse, and with its help the fourth harbinger shall end it all." The words flow out of your mouth but as soon as they leave you can't remember them.

"Enough of this foolishness!" Chrysalis yells in a panicked voice.

A searing column of magic melts the scales on your arm only to have them regrow.

"I don't understand, why didn't it reverse you?" She asks herself worriedly, and tries again with the same effect.

"You use magic against a natural creature!" You bellow into the suddenly empty hive, "My body will adapt to changes, all you can do is use magic! I will evolve, you will decay!"

You swipe and a claw carves into her body. The blood pours out on to the bark, and the rot is cured. The tree lets out a noise of surprise as it can finally feel that part of itself again. Another swipe and the same happens. The queen is to slow to dodge any of your attacks, so she channels the last of her energy into a single spell. You take another step forward to end the blood caked queen of change, but are knocked through the tree by a brilliant flash of light. You fall ninety stories but at the rate he spell is propelling you, there is no time to grow wings. All of your bones crack, as you indent the dirt with an unearthly thud. It didn't kill you on impact, but the only thing you can remember is the gold flaring into darkness. You get one last vision, and it is of Raven with a pony that wants her just as bad as you. It is the last thing you see as the world around you fades to black.

Author's Note

I don't know how I feel about this chapter, let me know if you like please. All constructive criticism and compliments are accepted.