Waking up, Everything felt sluggish, and looked green. It took a few minutes for my brain to register what what happening before alarm overtook me. Why was I in a pod!? I looked around, and slowly realized that the walls of the pod where thicker than normal, leaving me unable to see anything outside.

-Ribbon!?-

‘I’m here. How do you feel?’

-I just woke up inside a pod!-

‘Yeah… You’re not allowed to eat so much fear. Cloak was going to make those cookies but you wouldn’t really let her make them, so she got one of hunters to sedate you and get you out of her mane. On the plus side, you’ll have a mountain of cookies when you get out.’

-Better not be chocolate chip…. Where are you, anyway? I can't see through this thing.-

‘In my workshop. I’ll come get you.’

I waited, not really able to do much else, until after a while, a horn penetrated the membrane of the pod, and sliced it open, before Ribbon reached in and pulled me out onto the floor. I coughed out the slime from the pod that I had been breathing. “Cookie?” I glanced up at the offered plate, they looked like they were solid chocolate.

I tried one, and damn, that was good! “Ohhhh, that's goood.” I then blushed. “...Just how much of an pain was I hyped up on all that fear?”

“You wouldn't shut up, and you kept hugging cloak every time she moved a muscle. Apparently it took several bites to put you down.”

“Okay, I made a big nuisance of myself.” I looked behind me, trying to see if there were any marks from getting bitten by the Hunter. I didn’t see any. “I don't see any bite marks…”

“We wouldn't be very stealthy if we did.”

“It could have been worse. I could have tried to drag you back here for a round of ‘death by snu-snu’.” I tried to keep a straight face while saying that.

“I don’t think you’d have the attention span needed for that.”

“You’re probably right. So, has that raid happened yet?”

“It should be happening later today. Captain Hardy said he’d handle things.”

“So… What are you going to do now? Everypony thinks you're dead… Aw shit.”

“Then let them think I’m dead. I’ll lock down the hive and put up more patrols and expand the current guard.”

“You do realize I have to lay low too. because if they know about how you keep me alive, and see me around…”

“Right.” Ribbon looked around the room, bored. “I’m going to go play with my potions set, want to join me?”

“Sure, as long as you don't make me trip balls again.”

“Yeah, no more weird potions. It looked traumatizing.” Ribbon got up to walk to the door.

“No kidding. Uh...Ribbon?” Trying to bring the strange box in our room to Ribbons attention.

Ribbon walks past it as if it’s not there. ‘Ignore it. Play dumb.’

-Why?-

‘Don’t worry about it, she’ll probably follow us.’

-Oh. shes trying to be sneaky again.- I hummed to myself and quickly followed after Ribbon.

Sure enough, I caught the box moving at the edge of my vision.

-we really need to get her something to entertain herself with.-

‘I was thinking that. what should we get her?’

-A plushie maybe?-

‘Of who, though.’

-Why not a ‘mini me’?-

‘I’ll have to ask Rarity some time.’

-But, everyone thinks you're dead!-

‘Well, obviously not now!’

-Just send a drone or something.-

‘I don’t need to, that’s what the mail is for.’

“Oh right. isn't she do for another molt?” I caught sight of the little box that was still following us.

“Probably. I should have one too, get rid of all these nasty scars and lines.”

“I don't mind either way.”

“Really? Because you sure seemed to like the ones that you gave me.”

“We can alway fix it afterwards.” Ribbon smiled at my comment and we were coming up the the door to her potions lab. “What do you have planned this time, anyway?”

“Same as last time. I want to copy Twilight’s ‘soul sight’ with a combination of magic and potions. If Twilight can see the past, I don’t see why I can’t see somepony’s soul!” Ribbon entered first followed by me and then the box. “Hello Loveless, ready to give the soul sight potion another go?”

“Sure. Twilight sent more samples of her miasma and I brought some of the crystals she made up here as well.”

“I swear, if I start tripping out again…”

“Don’t worry. I have somepony else I can test on. Loveless, can you get me the poison joke, bitterroot, and the miasma to start with.”

“Oh thank god, I’m not the lab rat this time…” out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Mirage trying to reach for the bottled poison joke. Thankfully Chrysalis got to it before she could get it. How the hell has Chrysalis not noticed a cardboard box having seemingly appear out of nowhere?

-Uhhhh, Ribbon? Mirage was trying to grab some of the poison joke.-

‘Well that’s no good.’ I watched as Ribbon walked over to the box and lifted it up with her magic, she was gone… Ribbon rolled the box over onto it’s side, displaying the little nymph clinging to the top, causing Mirage to make a surprised squeak.

“When did she get here?” Chrysalis asked in confusion, having somehow been completely obvious to a box creeping into the lab in the first place.

“She hid in that box.”

Chrysalis glared at me. “I can see that. When did she come into the room?”

“About the same time as us. She's been following us everywhere.”

“You knew!?” Mirage said in surprise. “But I was being sneaky sneaky!”

“Only reason I knew was because I knew how well a cardboard box works… and your horn was sticking out of the top.”

“Regardless, poison joke is not to be messed with. What were you going to do with it anyway?”

“I didn’t even know what it was. What does it do?”

“Well… I don’t know, it’s different every time. The last, and only, time I touched it and learned about it, my chitin turned white.”

“Damn, that must have happened before we met. how much trouble did that cause?”

“None, but it was embarrassing. Loveless, go ahead and grind up the poison joke and leave the bitterroot by the extracter. And you.” Ribbon giving her full attention to Mirage, who suddenly sat up strait. “Go to your room, you should know better then to take random things from a laboratory.”

“Awww...” Mirage hung her head and slowly left the room.

“Jeez, I think you frightened her a little.”

“Isn’t that supposed to happen when you get scolded?” Ribbon said, walking over to what I assume is the extracter.

“Yeah, but she didn't know any better, it just seemed a little over the top…. My god, where bickering like an old married couple!”

“We are? Then what happened to my ring?” Ribbon said as she turned away from the bitterroot as it was crushed to look at me.

“Funny.”

*Attempt number one*

Once the potion was finished it came time to convince Chrysalis to drink it. “I’m not drinking it! Make Chitsuki drink it like last time!” Chrysalis was very persistent.

“I already told her she didn’t have to drink it this time. It won’t kill you.”

“Then you drink it!”

“... You can either take it from me, or I’ll let Chi give it to you.” Chrysalis glanced at me and I smiled at her, telling her that I liked that idea.

“Give me the bottle.” Chrysalis snatched the potion from Ribbon and drank the whole thing. A few seconds later, her eyes went big and her breathing slowed way down.

“Uh, you okay?” I poked and she wobbled a bit. Nothing. I gave her a light shove and she toppled over. Still nothing.

“We should probably keep an eye on her.” I nodded in agreement.

*an hour later*

After the first half hour, after Chrysalis took the potion, she just sort of fell asleep. Now she was up and still a bit groggy. “So how do you feel?” Ribbon asked.

“Weird.”

“Can you be a bit more specific?”

“Everything was echoy and slow, I couldn’t move and felt like I was sitting there for for hour. Then I was on my side for the longest time. I tried to go to sleep but I couldn’t, apparently I did, eventually. How long has it been?”

Both me and Ribbon looked awkwardly at each other before I told Chrysalis. “It’s only been about an hour.”

“But, I felt like it’s been a month!” Chrysalis yelled in disbelief.

“Yeesh, that must have sucked.”

“You have… no idea.”

*Attempt number two*

*BLUUUGGGHHH* “Ugh, why does my throat burn!” Ribbon yelled in pain, her voice sounded like gravel.

*Attempt number three*

“Ok, this is the first potion we made, the one that Chi drank. This was probably the closest we got to getting it right.” Ribbon and Chrysalis stared at the little bottle in hope.

“We can probably dilute it and see if perhaps a weaker reaction will give better results. We’ll start with 1 to 100 mixture and go from there based on the reaction.” Chrysalis a few drops and put them in a different veil with water and hesitantly downed the bottle, before making a gagging sound. “Gah! this taste disgusting!”

“Tell me about it. at least you're getting the diluted version…” I said rather bitterly.

Chrysalis shot me a glare. “And at least you weren't offered as a sacrifice to someone's hallucination.” She paused, looking confused. “Why is everything all fuzzy?”

“I thought it was going to eat me!” I exclaimed defensively.

“What do you mean by ‘fuzzy’?” Ribbon asked worriedly.

“I mean everything is blurry.”

“Well, it's better then last time.”

“Agreed. Alright, if a 1 to 100 mix was to weak I’ll try a 1 to 50 mixture.” This time, Ribbon took several drops of the discolored potion and mixed it in water, before downing it quickly. “Ok, it’s not real. Remember it’s not real.” Ribbon begun muttering to herself that it’s just a hallucination before opening her eyes. “I think a 1 to 40 mixture is what we need. But it’s not quite right. Maybe more of the miasma?”

“Maybe more of the crystals? Charged with Twilight’s magic instead of your or mine. What do you see? I’m still blurry.”

“Very colorful, blurry things. We’ll also drop the blood crown mushrooms. That might be what’s causing the hallucinations.” Ribbon paused, before sighing. “Of course she complains about that after I send her to her room. Mirage is itchy.”

“Oh. Shes ready to molt, isnt she? Weren't you planning on molting too?”

“Yeah, I wanted to get rid of my scars.”

“Do you need me to walk you to a pod? you said everything was colorful and fuzzy.”

“I’d appreciate that, thanks. I’d probably be stumbling all around the hive looking for the pod storage.” walking over to her, I draped a wing over her side.

“Okay, just walk with me.” Ribbon and I walked around the table and nearly tripped on the box Mirage used to ‘sneak’ in. I pushed it out of the way.

After guiding Ribbon to the pod storage area, I let her slip into a pod. “I’ll be out by tomorrow, all shiny and new.” Ribbon gave me a smile and settled into the pod as it resealed itself. I walked around to see a few others in their own pod, including Mirage who was already in hers.

With not much to do. I decided to go into my shadow and play around with the abyssal essence and improve my control over it. I wanted to be able to make it as hard as a rock and stay that way.