"H-hello? Anyone here?"
Silence answered the soft, hesitant call.
"Q-Queen Chrysalis? Storm? Shade?"
Again. Silence.
A shadow appeared from around a rock, it's form illuminated somewhat by the eerie green light cast by the Changeling cocoons. It's head turned from side to side, bright green eyes glowing in the dark caves as they searched for anyone nearby. They turned back to look forward and gazed at a wall of rock many paces away, illuminated by a stronger, yellower light.
Cautiously the shadow crept forward, tail flipping anxiously and ears twitching to every hoof-beat it made. A drop of water fell into a puddle with a loud "Plop!", making the shadow jump and stare at the water. After a moment passed, the shadow continued, head sweeping left and right with the fear of being caught.
Finally the shadow reached the light and, with one last look around the large cave, jumped up and flew through a bright hole into the world. The light blinded the changeling, making her blink several times before she grew accustomed to the dim sun. Her shadow was cast blurrily on the rocks below, unorganized gaps in the legs and a larger blur for the wings. She looked, pain in her eyes, at the shadow before turning away and flying rapidly away from the rocky cliff face, murmuring things about not getting caught and flying far away from the Nest. The Changeling sped through the air, dodging between the sparse greenery and the plentiful boulders and rocks to remain relatively hidden from any guards flying about higher in the eternally darkened sky.
She was done living here in the Changeling Nest, caged up with nothing to do or anywhere to go. She was done following the rules and being the perfect princess. She was going to run away and make a new life with fun and friends. How she would do that? She had no idea, but, frankly, didn't care. She would think of something once the time came to make that decision. For now, the border was a mere bound away, and she didn't hesitate to jump through and hide in the suddenly greener plants.
"Never going back... never going back..." she hissed, silently walking through the bushes and trees away from the dead Changeling mountains. Her hooves thudded kindly against rapidly thickening grass, not making an echo in any way as they had done in the caves. The air around the changeling princess grew brighter the farther she walked and the plants taller, greener, and closer together. Everything smelled green and fresh, unlike the old, damp air inside the Nest, and sang of prosperity. The Changeling took a deep breath, relishing the new smells. "Hmmm... this is even better than the stories! Everything is so... so... alive!"
The day passed uneventfully as the Changeling walked farther and farther from her old home, and closer to a new life. Before she knew it the sun was sinking and the sky darkening to reveal the stars and moon between the tree branches above her head. She debated whether to pause her travel and sleep, but her eagerness to be as far from the Nest as possible kept her from stopping. Her target was a place she had been told about by a Changeling royal guard. A place where every pony lived happily and with hardly a care in their lives. Ponyville sounded like a paradise to the Changeling and she wanted nothing but to reach it and see what a paradise it really was.
It was going to be a long trip if she continued on hoof, but the changeling didn't want to risk being seen, even at this distance from the mountain. Flying would come after dawn.
The changeling didn't change her pace for the entire night. She didn't feel the least bit tired. She was finally away from the nest and there were so many things to keep her attention. Her green eyes moved from the trees, to the ground, then back up again, and higher to the sky, then back down to the ground... the cycle continued for the entire night. Trees. Sky. Ground. Trees. Ground. Sky. Trees. Sky. Ground. Bushes. Ground. Before the changeling knew it, the sky was turning a light blue and morning dawned.
"Finally..." she whispered, bounding forward before launching herself into the air and flying out of the trees, her insect-like wings buzzing slightly. Now she would reach her new life faster.
Crickets chirped. A breeze sang through the leaves. The moon sent it's light down to the world below, covering everything in a blanket of silver. Everything was peaceful. Everything was quiet.
The changeling princess struggled to keep her eyes open. She could feel her wings falter in their flapping. She couldn't stop now, not with a dark, menacing forest below and lights shining ahead, but two days of travel was taking its toll. She was exhausted. Her vision was blurry and the world spun below her. If she didn't stop now, she would crash down and hurt herself, postponing the trip even more.
Reluctantly, she half flew half fell through the trees and to the forest floor and collapsed where her hooves touched the ground. She gulped in air with ragged pants and started to tremble violently from exertion. Silently she curled up, wrapped her aching wings over her flank and head, and instantly fell asleep.
Growling.
That was the first thing she heard. A deep, throaty growl.
She raised her head, groggily blinking away sleep while looking, unfocused, around her. Flashes of red, white, and brown was all she could see.
Then pain lanced through her right wing and any leftover grogginess drained, leaving the changeling to grip what was happening.
Wolves-a whole pack of them-surrounded where she lay. One still had its teeth sunk into her wing and was starting to pull viciously at the appendage while other jaws snapped at her left wing.
Panic rose withing the changeling and she struggled to get to her hooves, kicking the best she could at the wolf that held her wing while trying not to tear her wing more than it already was. Mid-kick a wolf snapped her left leg in its jaws and held fast, pulling against the changeling's attempts to free her leg.
"Let go! Let go you animal!" the changeling shouted, baring sharp teeth at the wolf while solidly hitting its muzzle with her free hoof.
With a snarl the wolf released its grip, but another wolf quickly took its place.
Fully in a panic, the changeling wriggled her hooves under her and shoved herself up, gritting her teeth when an audible rip sounded in the air and her wing suddenly felt on fire as part of it was left behind in the wolf's mouth. She couldn't spare a second to see what was left of her wing. Already the wolf pack was converging on her, biting, scratching, and headbutting her without mercy.
"G-get away! Leave me alone!" she screamed, futility kicking every direction and punching out at anything that came in front of her. Teeth sank into her front leg which was quickly followed by her tail, then her uninjured hind leg. She was overpowered, and no amount of struggling would save her, not without using magic...
"Get off! GET OFF!" The wolves ignored her, only biting harder and making sure the changeling was in as much pain as possible. "I said GET OFF!" Her uneven horn started to glow a sickly green and she glared at the wolves, green eyes getting brighter as her magic grew. Many pairs of red eyes met hers and she willed them to continue staring. "You WILL leave me! I-"
She hesitated when hoof-beats crashed through the bushes not to far off. Someone was coming. She had to make the wolves leave.
"I control you... you are mine! I order you to LEAVE!" As one large body the wolves released the changeling and backed away form her, red eyes now glowing green, all the while letting their heads bow down in respect to their new ruler.
The changeling grimaced at the action. She hated being treated like royalty. "GO AWAY!" The wolves immediately turned tail and ran, not looking back at the changeling princess.
Once the pack was gone, the changeling let her magic go, the glowing vanishing to leave her lying, bleeding, hurting, and drained on the ground.
Hoof-beats. They were within moments of coming upon her. She had to change. She had to disguise herself.
With what consciousness she had left, the princess focused on patching the holes in her hooves, the unevenness of her horn, the raggedness of her mane and tail, and, lastly, the holes and transparency of her wings. Her horn glowed again, this time the magic spreading over her entire body until she was surrounded by a green aura. Her body tingled. The wounds burned more intensely. Only once she knew the transformation was complete did she stop the spell.
Energy drained, and with pain lancing through her body, the changeling made one last spell, creating a white cape that covered her entire flank and fastened under her belly so no one could move it.
Wings covered and looking like a normal pony, the princess fell into darkness, vaguely seeing two figures, one purple and the other black and white, crash from the bushes.