One would think, on a beautiful sunny day, with clear blue skies and birds singing happily all around, that nopony could feel anything other than joyous. And indeed, many in Ponyville were feeling just that, as mares, stallions, colts and fillies were all going about their day, with their smiles making it seem as if they had not a care in the world. And yet, throughout it all, there was one face amongst those ponies that bore no smile whatsoever. Twilight Sparkle, who, at this point, was standing outside the front door of her home at the Golden Oak Library, was clearly preoccupied with something, as her eyes never left the skies above. She stood there, waiting as minute after minute passed her by, never straying from that one spot. The ponies who saw here merely gave her a glance, but remained silent and walked by, as they knew that, whatever somepony like Twilight Sparkle would just stand around for, it would be best to simply stay as far away as possible. As for Twilight herself, she turned, looking upon a nearby clock tower, and sighed as she noted the time. But, before she got back to looking at the sky, she noted that, beside her, Spike had arrived, looking to his adopted mother with some concern. Although she had a lot on her mind, she nevertheless afforded him a small smile, patting his head gently, which seemed to put him at ease somewhat.

However, that smile soon disappeared for both of them, as moments afterwards, a new sound could be heard. Almost everypony in the streets watched with interest as, through the air, a horn could be heard blowing in the distance. Twilight returned to looking up in the skies, and sure enough, she saw what she'd been expecting. It was a procession of royal guards, a trio of golden chariots in fact, with pegasi and unicorn stallions alike, all flying through the air, straight for Ponyville. Many of the ponies in the streets saw those guards, then looked to Twilight, and put two and two together, before starting to move away. But Twilight stayed where she was, watching as the three chariots began to descend, landing soon afterwards with little incident in front of the library. The unicorn guards departed from the chariots, and it was here that Twilight broke into a smile, seeing one in their number who was clad in the traditional purple armour of the Captains of the guard. Shining Armour, her older brother, who also smiled as soon as he was off his own chariot. The two siblings approached one another, embracing each other in a clear display of affection. Unfortunately, this moment was short-lived, as, when they parted, they both noted the serious expressions they had upon their faces.

"Twilight...are you sure about this?" Shining asked.

His sister kept silent for the time being, simply giving a short nod in response. Having seen this, the older stallion let out a sigh before turning back to his guards. He gave them a nod of his own, and the unicorn guards saluted in response. They turned, gathering around a single chariot, before lighting up their own horns in unison. From the rear area of that chariot, an object was now being levitated out of it. It was an ornate chest, clearly of Canterlot design, but covered in many open holes. Although it looked about as harmless as anything, the guards treated it like it was the most dangerous thing in the world, and carefully moved, step by step, towards the door of the library, with their eyes never leaving that chest. Now moving herself, Twilight stood beside that library door and opened it with her own magic, allowing the guards entry within. She entered soon afterwards, with her brother close behind her, and together they watched as the guards carefully lowered the chest onto the ground. As the lights of their horns died down, they looked to their commander, Shining, who nodded to them once more, leading to yet more salutes. The guards then left in silence, leaving only Shining and his sister. Turning, Twilight saw that Spike was still outside, looking to her with concern. Sighing, Twilight gestured to him with her hoof, and he understood, reluctantly closing the door, with him still outside.

Now alone together with the chest, Twilight and Shining approached it, and saw, within the holes in the thing, a faint glow of some sort. The older stallion narrowed his eyes at this, turning to his sister.

"Twilight...I don't think this is a good idea."

Twilight nodded in response.

"Neither am I. But...I have to make sure."

There was silence between the two for a time, at the end of which, Shining let out a sigh and nodded. Looking to the chest, his eyes narrowed, as did Twilight's, and together, they lit up their horns. The chest became bathed in their combined magical aura, and within a few seconds, it opened. They both braced themselves for what was coming, for after the chest had been opened fully, they began to jointly levitate what was inside it. It was a creature, the same size and general shape of a pony, though that was where the similarities ended. It bore a black carapace, and was more insect-like than pony, possessed of transparent wings and razor-sharp fangs. A changeling. Specifically, a drone, and one that, at this very moment was sound asleep. As the siblings lowered it onto the ground beside the chest, they allowed their magical aura to dissipate, freeing the drone from their influence. And yet, in spite of this, there was still a faint glow, blue in colour, all around the creature. Its chest rose and fell with steady breathing, and it had remained sleeping in spite of everything that had gone on around it. Carefully, the two approached it, their eyes still possessing a tint of worry to them. Shining glanced at his sister, giving her a brief nod, which she promptly returned.

"Alright then...here goes nothing," she remarked.

Approaching the still-sleeping drone, Twilight began to concentrate, causing her horn to light up once more. Lowering her head, she pointed that horn towards the changeling and, moments afterwards, a short magical spark was shot towards it. But, rather than cause harm, this spell merely caused the blue aura around it to fade, leaving it completely free of any magical influence. With that done, Twilight took a step backwards, watching as the moments passed by, and the changeling continued to sleep. However, after much time had passed, there was activity at last, as the drone began to open its eyes. At first, it seemed groggy, as one would expect from something that had slept for as long as it had. However, when the drone took in its surroundings fully, its eyes snapped open, and its wings began to buzz furiously. Getting onto all four hooves, the creature looked from Twilight to Shinning and then back again, baring its teeth in an aggressive manner. With his usual big-brother instincts kicking in, Shining's horn lit up, no doubt ready to attack the drone if it made any move towards his sister. However, a raised hoof from Twilight causing him to stand down, albeit in a reluctant manner. Now looking to the drone, Twilight took a cautious step forward, speaking softly as she did so.

"Hello. My name is..."

"Twilight Sparkle!"

The drone’s words were harsh and full of venom, as it narrowed its eyes at the young mare. But Twilight stood her ground, doing her best to not appear in any way hostile or aggressive.

"Yes. I am Twilight Sparkle. And I've brought you here so we can talk."

Those words caused the drone to hiss menacingly.

"Talk?! Talk?! Your kind are vermin! Our food! You brought down my entire hive! My Queen!"

Taking a step forward, the changeling glared angrily at the young unicorn before him.

"Where is she?! Where is our Queen?!"

Twilight narrowed her eyes at that.

"Chrysalis is not here. This is about you, not her. We brought you out of your sleep to give you a chance. You don't have to live in a limbo state, like she does. You can have a life, you can have friends! I know you can be more than the monsters my people see you as. Just...let us help you!"

The drone stood in silence, seeing the honesty in Twilight's face, and its eyes darted about somewhat, thinking over what was being said to it. Twilight watched, hoping deeply that this creature would accept what had been offered. In that silence, there was, for a brief moment, a spark of hope that, just maybe, it would. However, that spark was soon snuffed out, as, without warning, the drone let out an ear-piercing screech and leapt forward, its fangs bared in a blatant attempt to strike at Twilight. But, before either she or the drone could react, the latter was struck in the side by a powerful magical blast. Twilight watched with shock as Shining's attack blasted the creature all the way across the room, slamming it violently against the wall. It took a moment, but the drone recovered soon afterwards and turned to Shining, ready to attack again. However, no sooner had it let out another screech when the stallion shot it yet again, once more forcing it against the wall. That magical blast lasted for some time, causing much pain and distress for the drone, until, finally, Shining relinquished his attack. Now flopping to the ground, the drone panted heavily, and watched as Twilight approached it slowly, a sympathetic look upon her face. But, for the drone, all it could muster was a look of utter disgust as he saw her.

Seeing this, and knowing in her heart that this drone would not change, Twilight sighed, and soon afterwards, her horn lit up. The drone’s eyes widened at this, and it tried to get up, but it was too late. For it was once more bathed in the blue aura of the spell that had encapsulated him before. The moment that happened, it found its eyelids heavy, and fell to the floor, once again breathing the steady breaths of a magical sleep state. Twilight never took her eyes off the now-sleeping drone before her, and so did not turn as her brother walked beside her.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

Staying silent, Twilight simply nodded, prompting her brother to speak further

"Twilight...I don't doubt your commitment to this. But...how many drones is this now. Eight? Ten?"

Twilight shook her head.

"Thirteen."

Shining let out a sigh.

"Sister...I know you want what's best for them...but none of them have ever felt or shown anything but hatred for you. For all of us. Every time you make your offer, they reject you. To them...we're the enemy. That's what they'll always view us as."

Twilight turned to him, frowning slightly.

"No, brother. I can't believe that. I won't believe that. I just know they can be helped. We...we can't just leave them as they are. An entire race...asleep forever. We have to do what we can to help them."

Shining frowned in response to that.

"And then? If they all say "no" to you? If they all choose to keep to their path and not stray to yours? What then, sister?"

Twilight's expression softened considerably, and she looked once more upon the drone.

"Then we try again...and again...and again. We can be friends with all people, Shining. I just know it. We just...have to try."

Shining heard his sister's words, seeing and hearing the honesty and determination with which she'd spoken them, and let out a sigh. He took a step forward, holding her close, and as he did so, sadness filled her eyes even further.

"Oh, brother...how am I going to help them?"