My consciousness slowly returns, the feeling of the grass on my back, a subtle breeze blowing against my skin. The smell of burnt toast filled my nostrils. Wait, burnt toast? I'm in the middle of a grassland, why for love of god do I smell burnt toast? I prepare to open my eyes to face whatever may be making the smell when I feel a sudden pressure on my chest. I open my eyes; the sun did not greet me nor did Fenrir but instead a rooster with the head of Loki.

"What the fu...."

"COCK-A-DOOODLE-DO!" It screeched into my face.

I grab the Loki/rooster by the neck, making sure to block its wind pipe, "You even act like Loki."

I sit up with the Loki/rooster still in my hand. The grass waved back and forth even though there was no breeze. The bright color of the world around me was strange, a purple hill there,  orange tree with blue polka dots and even a rainbow colored rainbow to make it look rainbowier. How is that even possible? I look in the sky to see no birds soaring through the clouds but flying condiments. Ketchup leading the packed with mustard flying a little ways behind it. I stood up, to take it all in. I look down at the Loki/rooster to find out I was holding a rubber duck.

"Wait, when did he?"

I begin to walk forward, glancing around the landscape. Everything was different than what it would be normally. Saw a cat chasing a dog around the hill, the clouds were raining everything except water and even the earth didn't remain constant by always shifting, raising hills or moving a forest.  I came to an area filled with words, like wake ,papaya, up and moron littered all around it. After the word area I came to a place made of bacon. I think I found heaven. Tears form on my eyes as I begin to nom on the area, taking bites out of a bacon tree. Then a shadow descended on the miniature paradise. I look up to see what blocks out the light, only to glare right at a momentous trout swinging down at the ground. The fish fast approached heralding my death. Before the fish the fish impacted the ground, I said my last words.

"Mother of cod." The fish collided with the ground.

I sit up as I get startled awake. My breathing hard from the surprise of the dream I just had.

"Good your awake, I have been trying to wake you up for some time now. I only just now woke you by slapping you."

I look over to see Fenrir holding a large trout in his mouth. The pain from the slap just now kicked in after the first shock. I place my hand on my cheek rubbing it to reduce the pain with little success. I look back to Fenrir, who had just eaten the trout whole.

"I think your dad fucked with my mind. I just had a dream involving a Loki headed rooster, flying condiments and a land made of bacon."

A wolfy chuckle echoed from Fenrir, "That does sound like my father. Now pack up your bed roll, we should head toward that town soon."

I begin to roll up my mat and making sure the fire was truly dead. I place the bed in my back and hook it back onto Fenrir. I climb on shortly after and we soon set off toward Wethoof. The pacing of Fenrir slowly increasing as we near the jungle. The trees rising almost to the clouds, vines droop down from tops like arms reaching down to snatch any passerby. The howls and wails of the exotic beast that lurk within resonate from the forest. Soon the trees towered over us both when we entered.

We begin to fallow the map by heading south-west from our point of entry. With every stride I hoped no predator may want to strike now, when I am most vulnerable. During the dash to Wethoof, various shadows shifted in the jungle, some fallowed us others simply passing by. The most common shadow looked feline in nature but was bipedal with the way it moved. The sight of a wooden wall peeked through the wall of trees. The closer we came to the wall the less shadows fallowed us or appeared. Soon the tree opened up to a clearing with a rather large town surrounded by the remnants of a wall.

"Go around to the front of the gate, I don't think they will enjoy a giant wolf coming from behind them."

"That would be wise."

We hid in the forest slowly circling the town until we found an entrance. The entrance wasn't anything special but it did have the telltale signs that there was a wall once. Dirt up turned from removing of poles and lumber spread around. We begin to walk out of the forest toward the town. Now that we were out of the treeline airships from the town were visible and workers hauling supplies marched around doing their business. Until I came into view most of the workers stopped and watched me approach the town on Fenrir. With each step I took the guards tensed slightly. We walked into the city with little trouble until the guard finally manned up (ponyed up?).

"H-h-h-halt st-st-state your business!" He points a spear at Fenrir.

I climb down, my wound aches as I reached the ground. "One, I wouldn't point that at him," I step closer and whisper to the guard, "He has a tendency to eat things that point sharp objects at him."

The guard gulped, "D-d-do not tell me what to do, now state your business!" He said with a little more force. Oh little pony has some balls.

"What my business is here? Let me think." I begin to rub my chin and think.

"What are you doing?"

"Thinking, I understand if you don't do it much but I need to." A few snickers were heard from the guards.

That got him angry, he pushed the spear toward me. I caught it before he pierced my body and snapped it like a twig, "Play nice, now as for my business, I am here looking for some medical aid."

"Medical aid?"

"Yes, well you see being me, I get into some 'arguments' and sometimes in these 'arguments' the other guy tries to kill me."

"What kind of arguments?"

"Oh you know the usual, who drank the last bit of milk or stole the last piece of cake." More snickers from the guards.

Another guard runs up to him and whispers into his ear, "The mayor would like to see you."

"Alright lead the way."

He points toward Fenrir, "He can stay here until we get back."

"Fine, Fenrir stay here, if they try to take anything, treat them like the diamond dogs."

"Fine." Most of the guards jumped when Fenrir spoke.

The guard led me through the town, passing buildings with thatched roofs held up by poles and connected by rather large suspended walkways. I look around and spot a few taverns and a blacksmith. Ponies walked around doing their business. I look over to alley seeing a small unicorn huddled against the wall. That's strange.

"Hey, guard guy, who is that?" Pointing over at the child.

"Why do you care?"

"Oh, I don't just curious."

The guard sighs, "That is Twitchy Tale, he moved into town not too long ago. He says his parents abandoned him but he refuses any of our help." Hmmm, something doesn't add up but what? I'll talk to the kid later.

We continued down the street to the barracks of the town. It was quite large and quite a ways from town. The building was made of stone and was clearly sturdy. Outside of it ponies either trained or lazed around in the shade polishing weapons while chatting with their fellow comrades. We entered through the common rooms. The room was deserted and eerily lit by a few windows and torches. Tables spread all around the world with the telltale signs of lunch just happening. We passed through the room into another field. The grass was trampled, making the ground have an uneven level. In the center of the room was table, filled with a literal shit ton of paper. In the middle of the mountains of paper was a huge charcoal unicorn. This guy was as big as or bigger than Big Mac.

"Sir, we brought you our 'guest'." Saying the word with minor annoyance. What's got his jimmies in a twist?

"Thank you, Sword Lunge, you can return to do duty." The pony Sword Lunge trotted back to the entrance.

"Please sit," I sat down on the chair, " May I ask your business in our town Mr. Celt?"

"You know my name, I'd like to know yours."

The pony leans forward, "Baritone, now I'll ask again what is your business in my town?"

"I'm just looking for someone or somepony to clean my wound."

"Fine, you can find a medic over in town to help you. If you need supplies, buy them. If I hear a single word about you stealing I will call Canterlot and tell them where you are." His tone was threatening and firm.

"Really? Your just gunna let me go as long as I don't cause trouble?"

"If you want I can call Canterlot anyway."

"No no, you don't have to do that."

"Good now leave, this paperwork won't fill its self out."

I walk back out the where we came passing by more ponies. I made my way over to the bulk of the town in search for a medic. The streets were abuzz with all the working ponies rushing from one building to another. I search around the town until I finally find a sign with a red cross on it. I enter the building, looking for a doctor. The room I entered looked somewhat like a waiting room you would find at any other clinic on earth, a bored nurse at the desk and chairs with various magazines around them.

I walk up to the desk, "Excuse me, I'm looking for someone to clean my cut."

"Doctor Sore Spot will be right with you." She didn't even look up.

I took seat, while I waited for the doctor but instead when I sat down I broke the chair. I sat on the remains of the chair and began to read a magazine. Snake pony eats a foal. Wow these are like the tabloids back at home. Full of shit. I continued to read the magazines until the doctor arrived.

"You wanted some help?"

I look up at the pony, "Are you a doctor?"

"Yes, I am doctor Sore Spot what can I do for you?"

"I need you to help me with my cut."

He looks at my side, "Alright, come into the other room and we'll see what  I can do about it."

He leads behind the counter into a small room with examining table in the middle. The room was extremely clean, everything was labelled and in its proper place. Twilight would love this place.

"Alright hop onto the table and we will check out that cut."

I climb onto the table like he asks. He uses his magic to unwind the cloth covering the cut, each time it made a full circle pressure release off my side. He removes the cloth and puts it to the side. He begins to inspect the cut making hmmms and Huhs.

"Well the cut is fairly deep, if you hadn't wrapped it when you did you would have bled out. Hold still while I clean the cut." He pulls out some cotton and wets it. Slowly he dabs around the wound cleaning up the wound. Next he takes a bottle off the shelf and pours it in the wound. The liquid burns as it touches the cut making me cringe. Then he takes a cloth and washes the remains of the liquid out of the wound.

"Well, that's the best I can do. I don't know any healing magic and that cut won't heal for several months."

"I wasn't looking for a complete healing. I just wanted it clean until I can get to someone who can."

The doctor gives me an unsure look, "Alright I'll rebandage it up for your trip but if it's not healed soon and it's not cleaned you risk an infection."

"That's alright, I know the risks. Now what is your fee?"

"20 bits should be fine." I reach into the bag I brought with me and handed him the bits.

I was about to leave when I remembered that kid from earlier, "Hey, can I ask you something?"

"I suppose, what did you want to know?"

"You know that kid, uh.... Twitchy I think was his name."

"Oh, you mean Twitchy Tale!"

I cross my arms, "Yah him, anyway what do you know about him? Sword Lunge only told me his family abandoned him but do you know anything else?"

"Unfortunately no, any of the times I offer to help him, he just refuses. If you mention his family he won't say anything other than they abandoned him. May I ask why you are curious about Twitch?" He looks back at me with a questioning gaze.

"Just curious is all." Something is not right about that kid and I intend to find out what.

I leave the clinic, the sun was still high in the sky. I begin to search for the kid, asking a few ponies about him or if they had seen him. The only information I ever got was he was abandoned by his family and refuses all help offered to him. No pony knew anything about him, he had only shown up about a month ago aside from that information, I learned that I'm not the only strange thing to show up in the past year. Apparently a pale bipedal creature showed up and a diamond dog that couldn't speak.

Let's see, the kid was abandoned by his family and refuses any and all aid. No one has seen him eat or drink. Let's see with the way that they protect their food here, there is no possible way he could steal some. The local wild life would tear him to shreds. So what is he surviving on if not food? Wait, there is one possibility but I'd have test him first to confirm it.

I go to a cart and buy a rotten apple for when I find the kid. What? A rotten apple is way cheaper than a good apple. I continued searching the streets for the kid. I reach an area where the lumber of the old wall was piled up. Sitting against the logs was a small unicorn foal. His coat was a metallic grey, his hoofs were a darker shade of grey. His blue and black mane waved side to side with the subtle breeze. On his neck hung a normal compass. I began to walk towards him making sure he did not notice me. I was a few feet away from him before he spoke.

"You can stop trying to sneak up on me. It's not working." His tone was bland with little emotion at all.

"Oh, so I'm not as sneaky as I thought."

He didn't move at all, "No, you’re not."

"Can I ask you something?"

"If it's about my parents all you will get is the same answer the rest of the town gets."

"No, nothing of the sort," Time to see if my guess is right. "I was just curious what your cutie mark meant."

He looks up at me with surprise, "My cutie mark?" He looks at the picture of a compass and a map on his flank, then back toward me. "Oh, yah it means, uh, it means....."

"Don't ponies get their cutie marks when they figure out their special talent?"

"Uh, yah they do." He gives a nervous laugh, "My talent is um, mapping! Yah, my special talent is mapping." He said while a nervous smile crossed his face.

"Mind showing me one of your maps?"

"My what?"

"Well, if your talent is mapping then you would have had to do some mapping before."

"Uh, well you see, my maps are, uh...."

"Non-existent and you’re not who you say you are?"

"What? Pfff, don't be ridiculous. I'm totally who I say I am. I mean come on who else would I be?"

I lean forward, "A changeling."

"A-a-a-a changeling?" A bead of sweat goes down his forehead.

"Well, you could be since all the joy around here is so easy to feed off without anyone noticing but if you were a changeling then you couldn't eat normal pony food right?" I pull out the apple I bought earlier.

He eyes the apple nervously, "Go ahead take a bite and prove you’re not a changeling."

He takes the apple in his magic and eyes it nervously, "Oh come on, and it’s just an apple. It's not going to kill you."

"Yah, of course it won't." He takes a bite into the apple and begins to chew. "Mmmmm, it's delicious!"

"It is?" He shivers at my grin, "Why not swallow and take another bite?"

He gags before he could swallow, "I can't do it."

"Oh come on that is a good apple why couldn't you do it?" I take a moment for a dramatic pause, "Ah, so you are a changeling?"

"Yes, I am. Please don't tell the town." He looks at me pleadingly.

"Fine, I won't but how long do you think you can keep this facade up? Eventually they will make you accept your aid and who knows what will happen when they find out."

"I-i-i never thought of that...."

"Of course you didn't. No one ever does. Now I have an offer for you my insectoid friend."

"A deal?" He tilts his head.

"Yes, a deal, you can either stay here and wait until the town finds out you’re a changeling and face their judgement or you can come with me."

"Why would you want me to come to you?"

"Well, you’re a changeling, you have a hive which is probably the 'family' that abandoned you and in the hive is usually a queen, correct?"

"Yah, there is always a hive queen."

I take a seat on one of the logs, "Well, I happen to need a hive queen and since your hive abandoned you, you probably don't like them much, do you?"

"N-n-no, not really. Why do you want the hive queen?"

"A potion I am making needs one, nothing special."

He starts to open up his body a little, "Ok, you take me with you and all I have to do is show you where the hive is?"

"Maybe help set up camp or a few small errands as well but nothing huge."

"And if I do those you'll basically take care of me?"

"Eyup" I said doing my best impression of Big Mac.

"A-a-alright, I'll go with you."

:"Are you sure? I'm not taking you with me just for you to ditch halfway through." I look at him with seriousness in my eyes.

"Yes, I'm sure. Like you said the town will eventually figure me out and there is no definite on what they may do."

I smile and jump off the logs, "Good, now come along, we have something to do before we head off."

He begins to fallow me into the middle of town, "What is it?"

"We're going to go to the middle of town and you’re going to change back into your original form."

"Wait, what?!?! Why do we need to do that?!?"

"Multiple reasons actually, one if they see you running off with me they might think I foalnapped you. Two, I want to make sure you don't just come running back here if it gets to hairy. Don't worry, I won't let them hurt you but I have to make sure you won't backstab me."

"Fine, but you have to promise you will keep me safe from them and anything we might meet."

"I promise on my honor." If the kid is smart, he will know I have no honor to swear on.

"Not good enough, swear by something important to you."

I turn around and face the small disguised changeling, " I like you kid. I swear by my real arm I will keep you safe from anything we may face. Happy?"

"Very much so."

We continued back toward the town, getting a few gazes from the working ponies. All of them in shock the foal that refused their help for so long was following the monster that just came into to town. Most of the workers got over their shock after a moment or two just thinking that the kid was curious about the creature. Even then, they all watched me with suspicious eyes just in case I try something with the kid. God, I feel like a vegetable in a fruit basket... We came to a large open space that was used as the town center from what Twitch told me. I stood in the middle of the square and shouted.

"Attention residents of Wethoof!" All the ponies turned toward me and Twitch, "Twitchy Tale would like to tell you something!"

Twitch stepped in front of me, "Hi everypony, I know you have all been very nice to me over the past month but I have been lying to you all. You see, well..." His disguise vanishes, showing his insect like body to all the ponies, "I am actually a changeling."

The crowd was silent as they gazed upon the changeling until one pony stepped forward, "It's another one of those changelings that attacked us!"

Another pony stepped forward, "Yah! Let's teach it a lesson."

Soon all the ponies began to converge on me and Twitch. Twitch continued to back away from the crowd until he bumped into me. He looks at me, with pleading eyes. Better get out of here before the guards show up. I release a sharp whistle that travels across the city, all the way to Fenrir. Soon the earth shakes as the wold rushes to me. Fenrir leaps over the crowd and faces them. He snarls at the crowd halting their advance.

"Took you long enough Fenrir."

"I am sorry but there was traffic." I grab Twitch and throw him on Fenrir.

Fenrir notices the new weight on his back, "Who is this?"

"I'll introduce you two later but for now," I climb on to Fenrir, " Let's get away from the angry mob that wants us dead."

Fenrir strides forward, weaving between the ponies still on the road and those in carts. Some ponies attempted to climb on top of Fenrir but were quickly kicked off by me. I look down at Twitch holding onto Fenrir for dear life with a face of pure fear. How does he grab things without fingers? I begin to chuckle as we leave the small town. The voices of angry citizens slowly fading away. We get a bit of distance between us and the village before Fenrir stops in his tracks. I look down at the leviathan, wondering what was the matter. He violently sniffed the air in search of something.

Twitch hides behind me, "What's wrong with your wolf?"

"I'm trying to figure that out myself," I lean over Fenrir's head so my eyes met his, "Yo, Fenrir what's wrong?"

"I smell it."

"Smell what Fenrir?"

"I smell Tartarus again."

Baritone belongs to Rust.

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