Artex nodded to Alana,
"Very well. You already know the laws which means you are expected to keep to them and be a productive member of society. Do you have any skills that might be useful?"

Alana nodded,
"Yes several, I was training to be a gardener. We grow fungus for food and any and all fungi are familiar staples for us. Our crops of them were tiny, but I can culture dozens of different types and I am familiar with how to grow edible ones and can also identify all poisonous types of mushroom and other fungi. I can sniff out potentially harmful molds and mildews, which are a constant problem for all hives as far as I know, as well as being a serious concern with infants and the elderly plus those with allergies."

Artex smiled a thin smile and nodded his head,
"Good. The same laws that apply to everybody else will henceforth apply to you. You will also be provided the same privileges as anybody else and the same protection. Are you willing to abide by these laws and submit to them in an orderly manner, living as peacefully as you are able with all other residents of New Humansville?"

Alana nodded,
"I am."

Artex continued,
"Should members of your hive come here looking for you, what will you do?"

"I don't know." the Changeling admitted, "I won't be able to say until it happens, if it happens at all."

Captain Joyner spoke up,
"You should know that betrayal of our trust will not end well for you. As Captain of the Community Welfare Guardians I will not look for wrongs, nor fabricate anything against you, but I will take any and all accusations seriously. You do realize that most Ponies will have a strong prejudice against you and may well misinterpret nearly everything you do? My Officers and I will protect you in accordance with the laws. You will not receive any special treatment from us, either good or ill. Are you still willing to accept these conditions?"

Alana nodded,
"I am, but you should know that there are more of my kind in these woods. They are watching us even now." her announcement made for wary eyes as she continued, "They didn't believe me when I said the offer to live here was genuine, some even begged me not to expose myself. They fear the Ponies and what they will do, but your friend, Mario, has been talking to us and sustaining as many as he can. He is a strange one. He admits to being a murderer yet he has so much love to offer. He has spoken well of all of you and has been trying to convince the others to join."

Artex crossed his arms and pursed his lips,
"How many should we expect? How many are out here?"

Alana shook her head,
"I owe allegiance to my own since they are only trying to survive and are harming none and are not violating any laws. There are four who might come forward in the future, beyond that, I will not say."

Joyner scratched his nose,
"Are any of the others, however many there are, a threat to any resident of New Humansville?"

Alana shook her head,
"There are hard feelings against the Ponies aplenty, but all of them wish to live. Some want to be left alone, others are curious about interacting with other species, but not a single one is or was a soldier and one of them refused to participate in the attack."

Alana took a breath and let it out, steeling her nerves for the next part, "For my part in the attack on Canterlot, I am willing to submit to judgement." she stiffened her legs and held her head erect, "If I am to be a part of your culture, I will submit to your laws," she took a shuddering breath, barely holding back, "And I will do so openly. I... I will place myself... as an offering... to... take the... punishments of those... who wish to dwell here with you... they... will be... innocent... place their blame... on... me..." she paused, trying to find the strength to finish and willed her body to stop shaking, "Their punishment... for their crimes... and my own..." she panted, shifting her weight from side to side, "Will be... on my head... and I... accept it."

The Rectifier stepped forward slowly and held up her left hoof,
"Peace, Changeling." she said evenly, "Your crimes are your own, as are those of the others of your kind." she looked sideways up at Captain Joyner then back to Alana when he nodded for her to continue, "Each pays their own price for their own wrongdoing." she then spoke loudly, "The Changeling that did not take part in the attack has nothing to fear from we who are gathered here." she turned her gaze back to Alana, "As for determining your guilt, that is not my place. I cannot even administer any sort of judgement or punishment unless I have permission from the Captain. I have said as much as I am able to guarantee." she shook her head and shifted her weight, "I AM still a servant of... all citizens of Equestria though, and should you come under any persecution, I will find and deal with the perpetrators in accordance to law as persecution, because of one's species, falls under the jurisdiction of Rectifiers." she lowered her head slightly, "The only condemning voice here is your own. Your Queen has much to answer for," the Rectifier said stepping back, "I can identify no others with certainty." she scuffed the ground with her right forehoof, "I will spread word and warning, the Kavim will listen to the word of a Rectifier. I will be of no more use here." she said plainly as she trotted away but halted after a few steps and spoke over her shoulder, "As far as I am concerned Changeling, I saw you do nothing and MY voice at least, will not be an accusatory one against you."

Alana shuffled her hooves against the dirt and sticks that dotted the ground,
"So," she spoke hesitantly, "What now?"

A crackle of breaking twigs came from behind her as a second Changeling stepped out of the woods. The Humans and Pony watched the new Changeling very carefully. Its posture was submissive, head held low but eyes staring upward, shoulders hunched. It was moving very slowly, taking gradual tentative steps toward the group. Alana waited patiently until it pulled up even with her. It looked up to Alana almost as if asking permission for something.

Alana nodded and the Changeling addressed the Humans and Pony in a feminine voice,
"I am... Vaiawa. I disobeyed... m-my Queen..." she trailed off.

"You were the one who refused to take part in the attack, aren't you." Artex stated, it was no question.

Vaiawa nodded,
"There were others... who refused, not many." she looked up at the faces of the assembled Humans, "Am... am I... are we... going to be... safe here?"

Artex crossed his arms and regarded the little Changeling,
"Good question." he turned and faced Joyner, "Will they be safe here?"

Mike scratched his chin for a moment then turned to Darryl and Eduardo,
"What about you two? Any thoughts or feelings?"

Eduardo shrugged,
"If they're covered by law," he shrugged, "We enforce the law. Simple as that."

Mike nodded and looked at Darryl as the Marine took a breath,
"They're starving sir. I've seen people in other countries do some pretty desperate things when they're starving. People will do unusual and uncharacteristic things if they're desperate. I'm not about to withhold food and shelter from anybody if I can help it. I joined the Marines to protect folks. If I protect them by kicking some ass I'm happy as a clam and I've got no problem protecting by giving somebody a good meal and a place to sleep. Bring them on, the more the merrier. Wasn't so long ago we were in a similar spot," Darryl smirked, "Hell at least they'll be in good company."

Eduardo and Darryl spoke in Velensovth so Alana and Vaiawa overheard,
"So what now?" Alana asked again.

"Yes, what now?" asked a masculine voice from behind the Changelings, "You got me curious too."

Artex cocked his head to the side,
"Hello Mario. I wanted to ask you, how did you learn Velensovth? I doubt anybody taught you."

Mario Le Blanch emerged from the shadows of the woods. He still wore the old towel from when the Humans were traveling to New Humansville. He had a thick but unkempt beard, a shoulder bag made out of scraps of fabric, and a thick staff in his left hand. 'All in all he rather resembles Moses.' Artex thought.

Mario snickered,
"Wrong. Somebody DID teach me." he said gesturing to Alana, "Found her out here in the woods. We kind of became friends. She taught me how to speak the language and introduced me to the others as she found them." he crossed his arms, "Taught me about magic too. Not the kind she uses, cause it ain't the same type an' it ain't used the same way, but she knew about how Unicorns and them do it." he held up his left hand and snapped his fingers.

From the shadows crept a small creature. It looked like a lion cub except it had bat wings and a scorpion tail. The other Humans stepped back from the cub as Mario chuckled.

He snapped his fingers and the cub bounced over to Mario and rubbed its head against his left leg,
"Found this little bugger in the woods. He was hungry as hell, but what do you feed a carnivore if the animals are smart? Easy, you feed 'em stuff that's already dead. Can't always rely on that so I trained him to eat grubs." Mario smiled and chuckled, "Guess you know why I named him Simba." Mario straightened up and became serious again, "So, what are yall gonna do with my friends here?"

Artex spoke before Joyner could,
"I need to talk to you Mario. As for what happens to Alana and Vaiawa, they are protected by The Unity Pact. So," Artex smirked, "Let's talk."

* * *

Mike, Darryl, Eduardo, and Razor walked the two Changelings into New Humansville while Artex and Mario talked.

Mario scratched his thickly bearded chin as he and Artex walked around the perimeter of New Humansville,
"I can't do it bro." Mario said, "My opinion of 'em ain't unbiased." Mario gestured with his hands as he spoke, "I fuckin' watched 'em when they was practicin'. I knew that chick had issues but Brandon kept her sane. She been through too much, got a screw knocked lose somewhere along the line." he chuckled dryly, "An' commin' from ME... that's sayin' somethin'. I'm sorry to hear what happened, but I can't say I'm surprised. I picked up a few things from watchin' them 'Sorcerers' practice. I can't be a Judge or Magistrate or whatever you want me to be. My hands already be dirty an' I ain't in no place to be judgin' somebody else on what they did because they head is all fucked up when I'm in the same boat." he turned his head and asked, "Why did you think of askin' me anyway? Didn't you already know about me?"

Artex nodded,
"I did, but I had an extremely limited list to chose from and you seemed like a solid logical choice."

Mario threw his head and laughed loudly,
"MAN! You musta been scrapin' the bottom of the barrel to think of me!" his laughter died down, "Look bro," he said patting Artex on the back, "I appreciate the thought an' all and under different circumstances I would, but I can't; not if you want anything unbiased. This is somebody's future you talkin' about an' you thought I was the best choice?" he chuckled, "Naw man, there's tons better people here for this. Like that chick Ashley an' her... main squeeze."

Artex quirked his right eyebrow,
"Main squeeze? She's in a relationship? A romantic relationship?"

Mario nodded his head,
"Yeah man, didn't nobody know? She an' that guy always be sneakin' off to the woods at night to kiss an' erething. First time I thought they was runnin' away so I watched 'em for a little while, then when they started kissin' I knew what they was up to." he shrugged, "I ain't interested in watchin' or nothin' so I just left 'em alone."

"Do you know who it was?" Artex asked, "Her boyfriend I mean."

Mario nodded his head,
"Jason." Mario said plainly, "Same dude who lead those folks to attack the village then had an attack of conscience." Mario shook his head, "Tell you what though, that Unicorn who's always following her around don't like him. I think he's jealous. I think he's in love with her, or he's at least got feelings for her."

Artex leaned back his head and groaned,
"Oi." he brought his head back up, "Well thanks for your time, and your honesty, and thanks for taking care of the Changelings."

Mario shrugged,
"Ain't nothin' brother." he held out his hand to Artex, "I meant what I said, Jason or Ashley would be a good choice, Jason especially. He's been there an' he might be able to do a better job, besides almost nobody talks to him anyway. People still don't like him after what happened." Mario paused and looked around quickly before he leaned in toward Artex, "So, how long you been with that Unicorn bro?"

Artex wasn't paying attention to Mario's demeanor and just shrugged,
"About since I woke up in that hospital, why?"

"Damn bro!" Mario exclaimed, "You into some freaky shit right away!"

Mario's tone caught Artex' attention,
"What?"

"You tap that yet?" Mario asked conspiratorially.

"What!? No! It's not like that!" he threw his hands over his eyes, "JESUS! Why would you even THINK that!?"

Mario held up his hands,
"Woah, take it easy bro. I just thought with the way she was lookin' at you that you were... you know... were into her."

Artex looked askance at Mario,
"Dude, not cool. That's... I don't even know how to describe how... wrong that is to even THINK about. I'm married for God sake! Give me some time to grieve then throw a HUMAN woman at me."

Mario stopped and took a look around,
"I don't see your wife around anywhere. Besides I heard you got changed on the inside, so you can only get it on with one o' the locals." he held up a hand to forestall any arguments, "Look, all I'm sayin' is we don't know WHEN we're goin' back or even IF we're goin' back. If we're stuck here till we die, do you really want to be a bachelor for the rest o' your life? Me? There ain't a woman in this town who'd even give me the time o' day, hell most probably wouldn't piss on me if I was on fire. You though, you got a chance. I mean yeah, tryin' to see one o' them 'that way' is gonna take some gettin' used to an' all, but you got a chance to make a life here. Why are you wastin' it?"

Artex groaned,
"Gee, I don't know, maybe because I'm not into bestiality, you sicko! I don't exactly find HORSES to be sexy."

Mario crossed his arms,
"Can horses talk?" he asked seriously, "Can they feel emotions? Can they fall in love, or cry, or laugh, or do anything the Kavim can?" Mario shook his head, "They ain't animals bro, they're people, just in a different shape. I like white girls just as much as black girls or Latino girls..."

"That's Latina." Artex corrected him.

Mario frowned,
"You're missin' the point bro. The only difference between us an' them is the way they look. White people used to use my people as slaves because we looked different."

Artex let out a frustrated sigh,
"You know, there were quite a few Irish folks who were taken as slaves too. And besides I'm a Christian, I don't engage in sexual acts with animals."

Mario punched Artex in the arm,
"You're right but, QUIT CHANGIN' THE SUBJECT! My point stands, CRACKER, the Kavim are us just in different bodies an' don't pull all that religious crap neither. All that 'every creature after its own kind' bullshit. If you can make a baby with them, you can marry them. Here's a new perspective for you. Is God still God here?"

Artex rolled his eyes,
"Yes."

"And God has control over what happens to you right?" Mario continued.

"Yes." Artex answered patiently.

"Then it was GOD'S will for you to end up here and only be able to have a family with a Kavim. If you were waitin' for a sign, I think THAT was pretty obvious." Mario crossed his arms smugly, "What was God's first command?"

Artex rolled his eyes having heard the same from Catholics before,
"Be fruitful and multiply."

Mario slapped him on the back,
"That's right! And what was the Great Commission?"

"Go forth into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." Artex said, "That verse meant mankind."

Mario shook his head,
"If that's what God meant, that's what he would have said. He used the word 'creature' for a reason. We're among 'creatures'. Look man, quit fightin' this, you know I'm right."

Artex was more than a bit upset,
"Well if that WERE the case then why am I not attracted to them? And why would I listen to you anyway? You said yourself that you're fucked up in the head!"

Mario pursed his lips and nodded,
"Yeah I am. Maybe I'm wrong, but maybe I'm not. Look, you can't argue that I have some good points. Just think about what I said." Mario looked toward the treeline where Simba was waiting patiently for him, "I gotta go man. Stay safe, an' if you can't love her, let her down easy. She seems like a nice person."

Artex watched Mario walk back to the edge of the woods and disappear into the trees. He shook his head then set off to find Jason Campbell.

* * *

Alana and Vaiawa were having some trouble already. As they passed through New Humansville in their native forms Ponies and Humans alike stopped their tasks to stare at the Changelings. The Ponies especially began whispering and muttering amongst themselves. Words and phrases like 'unwanted' and 'vile insects' circulated wildly through the observers. The Ponies began to form up into a crowd following the two Changelings, three Humans, and one Pony as they made their way to the Town Hall.

Beacon and Ashley followed the crowd and listened to the angry mutterings therein. The consensus was obvious, the Ponies did not want the Changelings there and some even spoke of how to be rid of them. The crowd stopped, surrounding Town Hall when Eduardo and Darryl escorted the Changelings inside. Captain Joyner stayed outside to deal with the crowd while Razor slipped away quietly.

Beacon and Ashley left the crowd and snuck around the back of a nearby building to watch and listen. The crowd consisted almost exclusively of Ponies but a few curious Humans intermingled with them. Unbeknownst to the crowd, the Human and Pony members of the C.W.G. had taken up positions around the crowd, just far enough out of sight to be unobtrusive.

Joyner raised his hands into the air and the crowd quieted down,
"I'm sure you all noticed that there are two Changelings in Town Hall. They say they wish to live here with all of us and there are laws in place to ensure they are given that chance."

The crowd began murmuring again.

Joyner cleared his throat,
"Quiet down please. These two Changelings are to be treated as normal citizens, unknown but not hostile. They will be protected by the same laws as anybody else and afforded the same privilege. They will receive no special treatment and do not expect any. I do not want to hear reports of anybody abusing or persecuting them. Now, I understand that many of you remember and feel strongly about the attack on Canterlot when the Changelings invaded. One of them has surrendered herself to arrest and judgement and the other claims to have refused to participate the the attack on Canterlot. They also claim to have skills that they will use to benefit the community and are willing to teach to others. I expect every one of you to at least be civil when dealing with them. I'm not going to ask that you be friendly and go out of your way to make them feel at home, but they are here and they are willing to try to make a life with those who they have wronged and I do expect you all to be gracious enough to let them try." he crossed his arms and looked across the crowd, "So, are you going to give them any trouble?"

A mare's voice rang out from the crowd,
"What if they start replacing Ponies?"

Joyner nodded his head,
"Am understandable concern. I can ask them to stay in their natural forms or wear a type of identifying clothing but nobody is going to demand they cease using their natural magic."

"What if they start sucking the life out of everypony?" another mare's voice asked.

Joyner arched an eyebrow,
"Since when did they suck life? Last I heard they consumed love. How about you ASK them how that works? They said they can survive on normal food so why would they jeopardize their only chance to live with us?" he crossed his arms and looked down at the crowd, "I don't expect this to be smooth or streamlined, but we can try to be neighborly. That is all I ask. Understood?"

The crowd stayed silent and looked at each other murmuring quietly.

Beacon turned and addressed his partner,
"There will be trouble. The crowd is placated for now, but things are going to be rough for a while. We need to be on the lookout for trouble before it arises."

Ashley looked quizzically at her partner,
"Weren't you there when they attacked Canterlot?"

Beacon nodded,
"I was," he turned and gazed out over the crowd as he spoke, "But I was not the same then as I am now. I've learned a few things." he gestured to all of New Humansville with his left forehoof, "We put aside our animosity for one another and look, the town is blooming beautifully." he lowered his hoof and cast down his vision, "I once worked against you. I only saw more foreigners, more threats to us, just like the Changelings were." he looked up into Ashley's eyes, "And I was wrong. I was wrong then," he looked out over the crowd, "And they are wrong now." he clenched his jaw, "I'm not going to let anybody else make the same mistakes I did. If we can accept a species from another world, do we not owe that and more to a species from our own world? Who's to say that long ago some Changelings didn't try to make peace with us and we reacted poorly and drove them away because of how they looked. No, there has been enough strife here. I plan to give peace a chance," he glanced up to Ashley again, "Care to join me?"

Ashley affectionately scratched the Unicorn stallion behind the ears and Beacon leaned into her fingers humming contentedly as Ashley replied,
"I always do."

The two of them stood and watched as the crowd dispersed.

New chapter! Unless something drastic occurs, I will be hosting the second Live Character Q&A from 4:00 pm - 11:30 pm Eastern Standard Time on Saturday, October 18, 2014. Any and all readers are welcome to participate. Rules are:
1 question per post please,
Ask questions to individual characters,
Please allow the writer time to respond
Have fun!

Oh, and uh... ANNIHILATE THE TYPOS!