The Equestrian Hive, Twenty-Two Years After Immortalis’ Fall

The moon displayed its stunning beauty and might high in the skies of Equestria, its soft but firm rays lighting up a vast landscape of fields and trees for miles around. Beneath the surface, however, Equestria’s changeling hive continued on as normal. Throughout the great underground expanse, many changeling families had turned in for the night and let sleep take them to the realm of dreams, while others defied the call to rest and walked both the halls and the large atrium sitting at the very heart of the Equestrian Hive.

But for one small nymph, no matter how much she too wished to defy her need to sleep, her mother was having none of it.

“It’s late, Avia,” Queen Twilight Sparkle said to her ten-year-old daughter. “Sleep.”

Princess Avia sighed, her yawn betraying how tired she truly was. “Okay, Mama…”

“I’ll tell you more stories another time, I promise.”

That got the nymph to brighten up. “Okay! Night night!”

The older royal changeling smiled. “Goodnight.”

Twilight kissed her child on the head, the nymph laying her head on the pillow and quickly allowing sleep to claim her. The Changeling Queen stood up, examining her daughter for a moment. She shared her mother’s lavender chitin, sparkling eyes and deep blue mane. If she had a pink stripe, she might have been considered a clone.

Though, she did have her father’s pale blue gossamer wings.

“Twilight,” the changeling stallion in question, Façade, called from the doorway. While most of the changeling species had been changed by the Elements of Harmony, taking on varied pastel colourations akin to that of ponies, Façade had retained the original look of a typical drone. “Is she asleep?”

“She is, honey,” Twilight quietly confirmed, turning to face her husband before exiting the room with him.

The couple had been married for years, a path set by their introduction during the crisis that had struck both changelings and ponies many years prior. But from that war had arisen a new age of the changeling race, one where they had all emerged from the shadows and, in the new forms gifted by the Elements, created a strong alliance with Equestria that was still going strong twenty-two years later. A world where the hives walked among ponies as equals, no longer having the desire to stay hidden and steal love energy from the unsuspecting ponies. Now love was collected by a mix of passive collection, and extensive trade agreements with the Crystal Empire.

A world where Friendship truly was Magic.

And that was the world Princess Avia had been born into.

A nymph who, despite both her body’s demands and the words of her mother, re-opened her eyes and held off sleep yet again.

“UGGGH!” she complained, throwing her hooves in the air dramatically before letting them flop down to the sides. “How can I sleep when the Summer Sun Celebration is starting!?”

The Summer Sun Celebration was celebrated by ponies every year. Something Avia had heard so much about but never experienced for herself with how little she left the hive. But this year was different, this year it was going to be held where her aunts and her mother’s fellow Element Bearers lived, Ponyville! Better yet, they were taking Avia!

Her excitement to finally see the town, and the celebration, could not be adequately stated.

She gave a huff and rolled over, scrunching up in her blankets. Then she rolled the other way, and then back again. Then she just splayed herself out in whatever direction her various limbs fancied, before giving another indignant groan.

“I can’t sleep!” she shouted and no one in particular, throwing off her covers and bouncing out of bed. “I need books!”

Avia fluttered her wings, hopping over to one of the many bookshelves filled with texts both fictional and factual. She didn’t want a story, it was always better when her mother was the one reading them. So research it was!

She looked between all the non-fiction texts. There were spell books, science books, history books…

“Ah!” Avia squeaked as she saw one that caught her attention, snatching the book up in her cyan magic.

She then ran over to her little desk, hopped on the stool and opened the book at page one. She then began to intently examine the page, invested in each word and picture presented.

The night had to end eventually, and all the way up in Canterlot the sun was raised into the sky by Princess Celestia herself. All the sleeping changelings in the hive began to wake themselves for the day ahead, seeing to their own morning routines and that of their families. So too did Twilight Sparkle awaken nice and early, for it was to be a busy day ahead.

With she, and other changelings, all heading for the Summer Sun Celebration that was to take place the following night she had a great deal of organisation to do.

Fortunately, that was one area the Queen particularly prided herself on.

The first thing she did was begin the preparations for their escort to her old home alongside her husband. There was the carriage to prepare, the guards who would go alongside them, and all kinds of small affairs to set in order. But, at the same time, there was also a very particular and quite excitable thing that Twilight had to take care of.

After calling forth and meeting with their escort, Twilight left Façade to oversee final preparations while she went to wake their daughter.

The stroll through the hive was brief and jovial, the Queen passing by many drones who all either bowed or simply nodded to her as she passed. She had gotten used to the bowing ones over the years, but the small-town librarian inside her would always prefer the friendly nods the others gave. It was always more of a comfort to the Queen than any awkward posturing would ever be.

But the doorway into her little nymph’s royal chambers soon came into view, and Twilight grabbed the handle with her magic and pushed her way inside.

“Avia, it’s time to-”

She wasn’t in bed, which caused Twilight a brief flash of worry. However, a quick scan of the room did prove the young Changeling princess to be present. And, with Twilight adopting a rather bemused expression, it seemed the nymph had fallen asleep at her desk with her face all but glued to the book beneath her.

It really was unnerving how much she took after her.

But then given how Twilight’s own mother was as a filly, perhaps it was a genetic thing?

Shaking her head, Twilight approached her daughter and gently shook her on the shoulder. The nymph’s eyes slowly blinked open, and she gave a sheepish look up at her smirking mother.

“…Am I grounded?”

“I think we can make an exception for today,” Twilight said with a chuckle, bopping her daughter on the nose. “This one time.”

There was no point in getting the day off to a bad start. The excitement around the Summer Sun Celebration emanated through the air itself, and she would not be caught putting a damper on it.