private To change a changling

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

Ticktock's head still hung low. But when he began to speak there was anger in his voice "Oh please the reason you did this was to get pay back on me. And never say I an a changeling I will never be like you. And all that aside even if I was ok with this you have no reason to take me with you." Ticktock then went back to staring at the floor and looking dismal.

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

@, Cicada shrugged. "So, what are you going to do then, stay here? Not an option. Unfortunately for you, I cannot reverse the spell as I used all my love energy. The only way to get more would be to return to the Hive. Of course, you already said that you don't want to do that..."

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

"So my options are stay here and eventually get found or to go with you to the Hive and then you will reverse the spell. And just for I second pretend that I would go to the hive how can I trust you, as far as I know you will just take me to the Hive where you will just brainwash me into being a soldier."    

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"If it comes to that, how do I know that I can trust you not to backstab me the moment we get outside?" replied Cicada. "It goes both ways, remember that. We could always swear an oath; as changeling Commander, my word can always be trusted for I swear by the life of my sister the Queen."

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

Ticktock cocked an eyebrow (if changelings even had eyebrows) "Well then that would be stupid on me the guards wouldn't believe me all they would see was the monster not the pony behind the mask..."

 

Ticktock looked up at the changeling "Very well. I Ticktock Starblast swear one my life and that of my...'brother' Oblivion Darkness to not stab this changeling in the back and that I will work with 'it' to achieve our common goal." 

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

Cicada frowned at the "it" but didn't say anything about it. Instead, she swore on her sister's life to not betray TickTock either on the journey or at the Hive.

 

"We will have to go in disguise," she added. "You can change your shape to that of your pony form and I will take a nondescript pony form to travel. We can take basic supplies now but will have to go to the nearest town to stock up fully as it wouldn't be safe to do so in Canterlot. The nearest town to Canterlot is one named Ponyviille. I have visited it before."

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

"Fine.". Ticktock then walked up the stairs to the library which over looked the living area "Although a couple of rules, one we do nothing illegal, two we move quickly and three we don't talk to anypony unless absolutely necessary understood?" Ticktock then just stared down at the changeling waiting for a response.  

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"I would have to agree on your definition of 'illegal' before I agree," Cicada replied. "But I do agree that we should not speak to anypony for any longer than is necessary. We will need to travel quickly and without hindrance."

 

She glanced out the window; darkness was falling over Canterlot. "Which," she added, "Will be a lot easier to do under cover of darkness so we ought to leave soon."

[ThatBlazingPony 11]

Wildfire wipes her brow as it is starting to get a bit hot in her workshop. "Wow." She says, wiping her brow a second time. "I really do need some proper ventallation that aren't the doo... Doors!" She facehoofs at the realisation. "I am so dumb." She trots over to the large doors of her workshop and swings them open, letting the cool evening breeze waft into the room. "Ahhh." She sighs. "That's better." She then returns to the workbench where she is building a new engine for her project and continues with that.

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

"Agreed." muttered Ticktock "And my definition of illegal is brainwashing ponies to get there love."

 

"Dont worry we can go soon i just need to get three things." Ticktock went even higher up into his tower and grabbed two pictures and a bottle of pills before coming back down. "Well i'm ready to go so we will leave at your order commander." Ticktock made a joking smirk at the last bit of his sentence.  

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"Oh, there's no need to brainwash ponies to get love," Cicada replied. "That is only needful when great power is what we want. We can go now, but you had better shapeshift before we leave the tower. That will mean that we do not arouse suspicion when we go out on the streets of Canterlot."

 

Cicada changed as she spoke, taking the shape of a grey unicorn mare with a long teal mane and tail, and a clock cutie mark. This was a form she had used before, when she had gone out of the Hive to scout out pony towns for her Queen.

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

Ticktock stood still for a number of minuets seeming to need so say something "Um I...I don't know how." Stated Ticktock. Ticktock did however see a point there for him to insert a joke "Well m'lady once I am ready how about we go for a night on the town just you, me and the moon." sniggered Ticktock. 

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

Cicada smiled. "When we get to Ponyville, feel free," she replied. "As for how to change, it comes naturally to a changeling. Just think that you want to change and visualise the shape you wish to take in your mind. Then it will happen. I generally take a unicorn shape so that I can use my magic, but if need be, I'll be a pegasus. An alicorn would attract too much attention, unfortunately."

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

Ticktock blushed in embarrassment a bit and smiled back "You know I might just take you up on that."

 

Ticktock then went to focusing on transformation, he imagined himself as he always was smart looking with a top hat and suit and then green flames engulfed him and when they dissipated he looked like him again. "So" chuckled Ticktock "How do I look?"    

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"Convincing, just how you looked before," Cicada replied. "Time to go."

 

The changeling commander led the way out of the tower on hoof as befitted her guise as the grey unicorn mare. Outside the tower, there were palace guards and others who were clearing up Canterlot after the invasion, but none took any notice of what was seemingly two unicorns.

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

Ticktock followed the grey unicorn out of his tower walking next to her. "So how are we going to get to ponyville?". Eventhough Ticktock seemed ok with this plan he wasn't he was following the changeling commander through Equestria into the changeling hive. Ticktock had a bad feeling about this and it showed.

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"There is a train station in Canterlot that stops at Ponyville," Cicada replied, thinking it over. Ordinarily, she'd fly, but that wasn't practical what with being accompanied by TickTock who had never flown in his life before. "The first train goes early in the morning; if we head there now, we ought to get to the station just in time to take the early train. That should save a lot of time; walking to Ponyville would take far too long."

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

"Ok said Ticktock "Where exactly is," Ticktock leaned in close to the changeling commander and whispered in her ear "the hive?". Ticktock was still feeling unconfutable but now it was because he was leaving Canterlot the only place he had been outside of the capital was his home town.

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"The changeling Hive," Cicada replied in a low voice, "Is situated in the Equestria badlands. Only changelings are permitted to enter it; any pony would be attacked and captured, unless there were special circumstances allowing their presence in the Hive."

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

As the two were walking the amount of guards seem to increase. He then leaned into his companions ear and began to whisper to her "The guard patrols are getting more common we need a story in case they question us... I know we are a couple who are leaving Canterlot for a few days while everything returns to normal. But of course that means, and I don't believe I am about to say this, we will need to act like a... a happy couple which means we will need to pretend to be in love with each other." Mentally Ticktock was hitting him self for saying that but as far as he could tell it may be their only chance.    

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"That's a good idea," Cicada replied. "Especially since it is you carrying the bags and not me; I have observed than in mare and stallion couples, the stallion carries the bag. Perhaps we could stop at that bench over there and appear to rest for a few moments, talking to each other there? A couple acting the way you suggest would not be in a huge hurry to leave the city. We could even, when we get closer to the station, go to a cafe. There are also a few other ways to make our act convincing."

 

Noticing a pair of royal guards looking over in their direction, Cicada gently kissed TickTock on the cheek and whispered, seemingly romantically, in his ear. Her actual words were, "There are two guards checking us out" but obviously the guards couldn't hear. In any case, they were satisfied that this was a young couple and turned away.

[Skylord Nexus 527]

@@Pripyat Pony,

Ticktock blinked for a minuet "Wow you know much more about love than I do. That might make us late although I suppose a bite to eat at the cafe might not be so bad I am I bit peckish."

 

Ticktock quickly blushed at the disguised changeling planted a kiss on his cheek, he then gave a discrete nod when she explained herself. He then gave her a kiss on the cheek back just encase the guards were still looking. "Gees I must be quite the charmer if I already got a kiss." Whispered Ticktock trying not to laugh. 

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

Somewhat wistfully, Cicada explained in a whisper. "It is necessary for us to study love, since we require it to live and reproduce. We don't have to brainwash a pony in order to feed off their love; that can be done simply by passing by, and the pony feels no ill effect. Otherwise, we could not have survived so long." She smiled, sadly. "For a pony, you're not so bad," she added in response to his last comment as she led him towards a vacant bench.

[Skylord Nexus 527]

Ticktock shrugged "I guess that makes sense. So you try your best not to harm ponies then?"

 

Ticktock went to sit on the bench and returned the sad smile "You know what I never thought that I would ever meet a pony who liked me. And to this day I still haven't. But for what little it probably means your not so bad yourself."

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"Thank you," Cicada said, sitting down on the bench next to TickTock. "For a pony, you're not so bad yourself. And no, we generally try to not harm ponies when we take their love. Otherwise, we would soon find ourselves in a situation where there were no ponies to feed from, and our eggs would not hatch, and we changelings would eventually fade away."

 

Cicada sighed heavily. The fact was that the changelings had once been very different. They were not so very different from ponies, save that they had beautiful, iridescent butterfly wings and could be very powerful when they all collected together. They were the Flutterponies and most ponies never even saw them; their home was in a lovely valley, situated where now the Equestria badlands was. When Discord had taken over Equestria, the Flutterponies had rebelled against his rule, and he had punished them with a curse which turned them into changelings, unable to breed or gain power unless they fed on the love of ponies.