Chapters
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Ocellus had seconds to act before the power of the scepter swept over her friend, and did who knew what terrible things to her. But Ocellus had felt its temptations before, she knew how debilitating they could be. If anything, she'd prepared for this exact moment. The wild magic of the crater stole her power away, even if the Thronestone allowed changeling magic to function normally. She couldn't levitate it out of Silverstream's grip. But even if her levitation was still working, she had her doubts that…-
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Ocellus watched from the back of the group as they advanced towards the scepter.Smolder was not the first into the opening. With the Thronestone's powers not working on her, that meant clear danger for her to avoid—it meant the strange magical voice of the scepter could speak to her with every moment, whispering promises of power to her ears.While they climbed, she kept her eyes on Sandbar's back, using the pony's outline to ground her in the real world. So long as she could see something real, she could…
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It didn't take long before Ocellus began to see signs of the ancient city. The ruins resembled Zecrin structures they'd seen on their diplomatic visit so far, save for the obvious erosion and decay. They seemed strangely intact, considering how voraciously the rest of the jungle grew. Almost as though something was protecting this part.They traveled with her chunk of the ancient thronestone open and active, draining the light as they walked. This clearly had a negative effect on the non-changelings…
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Ocellus should’ve been able to use her changeling senses to probe out into the jungle, feeling at the emotions of dangerous predators and leading her group to safety.She should have been able to do that. Unfortunately for her, the emotional senses she had relied on for her entire lifetime just weren't working.As night descended on the jungle, and the sweltering heat of the sun finally passed beyond the horizon, hundreds of voices split the night. Primal screams were joined by guttural howls, the…
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Ocellus took no joy in deceiving others.There were many—mostly ponies who had been harmed in the ill-fated Canterlot invasion—who still thought that changelings were creatures born of deceit, with no desire towards honesty. She had grown all her life hearing the whispers of her own inherent, irresistible corruption.Even in the era of spaceflight, she knew there were still some creatures back home who would always see her that way. It would take generations for those old views of changelings as…
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Ocellus remained alert for any chance to speak privately about what her friends would do next. Even a few seconds would be enough, if only she could manage them. But he didn't give them the opportunity, never leaving their private chamber.Instead of traveling to "make preparations" to go with them, Ha’luu had his slaves visit to carry supplies back and forth. A group of mixed aliens including a few humans, a few Zecrin, and some stranger things she had no names for, arrived together with several heavy…
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"That sounds like a great idea," Sandbar said. "Convince the rest of your tribe to change their ways and be willing to join the war. That's basically the whole reason we're here. But that doesn't mean we know how. That's the hard part. How do we change their mind about magic?""Well..." Even without the ability to read alien emotions exactly, Ocellus could sense his hesitation now. This stranger was unsure about how they would feel. He didn't want them to reject his idea. They were an opportunity to him,…
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Ocellus stared back at the alien, her wings buzzing nervously to either side. Hopefully the alien wouldn't know changelings well enough to read her from body language; they were different enough that she might not have anything to worry about. Humans had some difficulty reading pony emotions without instruction, so the same might be true for the Enti.Unfortunately for her, the alien did nothing to reveal his own feelings—the Enti's mind remained entirely blank to her. It wasn't the absence she sometimes…
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If Ocellus had her way, she would climb back aboard the ship and abandon this foolish mission. The cause might be just—spreading friendship to those who would otherwise be attacking allied creatures in the Stellar Compact—but it was also doomed. Like Cozy Glow, sometimes a creature was so evil they just didn't want to be friends.But Twilight's desperation was palpable in everything she wrote. There was no denying that feeling might be shared by the other creatures of the Compact. Equestria hadn't…
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The next few hours were a blessed relief from the pressure of their initial landing. Whatever else might be said for the proclamations of the Zecrin, they respected their own laws. Her group was treated with dignity, led to comfortable quarters near the periphery of the great pyramid.More precisely, they were led to what Ocellus had to conclude the Zecrin saw as luxury quarters. A single huge room, with domed walls covered in a magical illusion that projected a wild jungle environment. An actual stream ran…
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