Chapters
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The chef aboard the train to Agate could not sate Amie's appetite, despite what he promised. But the attempt was admirable, and the conversation was better. Despite her months in Equestria, Amie had met so few ponies in total, and her curiosity for their lives was almost as boundless as her physical and magical hunger. They might be alien equines in a magical world, but talking to them wasn't that different from entertaining a group of fresh campers. Ponies wanted to talk about themselves, and were eager…-
195.0 K •
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After almost a week among changelings, Amie found herself feeling greatly relieved when they walked into Salt Lick just after sunset, and bought themselves a few tickets for the express to Agate. They raised a few eyebrows at the ticket-booth—but it wasn't like it was hard to find an excuse. They were prospectors traveling to a town that was always hungry for new workers. Who didn't want to make their fortune in the goldmines, even with the threat of murderous changelings locked in the mountains.Soon…
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195.0 K •
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By the time noon arrived the next day, Amie was aboard a secret train, cutting sharply across the otherwise empty desert surrounding Sonoma. The expedition was not much larger than the one she had taken on her way out—aside from her brother and herself, she had three companions from the orange tribe. Pachu'a and one other hunter had come this time, a stranger she didn't know yet, to protect the relief shipment.Then there was Natane, the spy armed with Kaya's book of gathered changeling knowledge as a…
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195.0 K •
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Amie followed Albrecht long enough to see where he was headed, and to confirm her suspicions: the cabin he shared with his wife. The lights outside that cabin were still on, shining out at the darkened camp all around it. Stranger still, Amie was positive she saw a pair of patrolling guards circling the building. They each wore one of the camp's many target-shooting .22 rifles.If this were her body, she could think of several ways she could try to get past them, and confront Albrecht alone. She couldn't…
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195.0 K •
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Amie didn't laugh as she turned around. She kept her expression as neutral as possible, levitating the basket down onto the table in front of them. "Why don't you see how much of this you need, Wes. Then you should get some sleep. These bugs are going to push us hard tomorrow. We probably won't get to rest until we're back on a train."They ate in relative silence then. Wes's amusement was soon replaced with suspicion, and a little embarrassment. Amie needed no magic to see what he was thinking, albeit…
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195.0 K •
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Amie dreaded the return to the Elders' chamber.Not because she didn't want to see Wes again—rather, a persistent level of dread remained in the back of her mind, whispering of all the terrible things that must have happened to him while she was gone and unable to help. If any harm came to him, she would have to live with the guilt.She owed Wes her protection more than any other bug in her care. But her new powers didn't care how much she wanted to protect him, she still couldn't feel his thoughts, or see…
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195.0 K •
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Amie was in agony.Her body was small, much smaller than it had been for a long time. Every limb hurt, every inch of her unnaturally soft black coat. This was what it felt like to die.At first she saw almost nothing, only a plain wood ceiling and the steady white glow of LED lights. But she felt something else, motion moving through the cot beneath her and the floor under that. There were others still alive out there, where she wanted desperately to be.Amie inhaled, short and sharp. Her breath brought more…
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195.0 K •
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Amie wasn't sure exactly how long she spent studying underground in Sonoma, surrounded by the gently pulsating eggs of the next generation of orange bugs. Dozens of changelings came and went in the background, tending to the eggs in ways that probably made sense to them, but that Amie did not understand.At no point did she ever feel safe in the presence of Kaya. This was an incredibly powerful, dangerous being, one that could kill her without much effort if she wanted. She might survive because the…
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195.0 K •
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The room was much darker than Amie would've expected. But there were only candles within, none of the electric lights she'd seen elsewhere in the city. They were placed irregularly, illuminating a sloping, downward trail through the stone. It led, eventually, to a huge natural cavern, covered in damp rock. The walls were covered with swirling, living limestone, and sight-lines were broken by many formations. Huge stalactites hung from the ceiling overhead, glittering with moisture in the gloom.In the very…
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195.0 K •
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It was carved entirely into the face of a vast sandstone formation, contained beneath a curved, vaulted ceiling. Its externally-facing buildings were blended expertly into the rock, matching the color perfectly and with very narrow windows. But as they approached, she saw the vast space behind them—many streets and levels stacked on each other. There were few walkways connecting them, but why would there have to be?Now she understood the use of the word “swarm.” She could think of no other way to…
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195.0 K •
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