It was sunny day with several small clouds in the sky, the smell of saltwater was everywhere. The Aritania had sailed for one and a half day now and Tyler slowly got the hang out of it. He learned the terms of sailing quite fast, but it was obvious that he would never become a sailor, at least not a very good one. As Lily approached him, she smirked.
“You’re not very fit for this, Mr. Jones… But at least you’re not getting sea sick all the time.”

Tyler shook his head.
“Nope, I’m not a sailor. But at least I’m trying to make myself useful. Sitting around isn’t my style. And I take it I would have to pay you more bits for being a passenger than I have with me.”

Lily chuckled as she took note of a fog bank in the distance.
“Well… If you weren’t in a herd, we could settle things in another way…” Tyler glared at her, angered, but she just shrugged. “What? You’re proper for a princess, but too good for a bat pony captain? But don’t worry… You’re not the cheating type and I’m too lazy to seduce a faithful herd stallion… I-”

Lily was now interrupted as the pony in the crown’s nest shouted down.
“Ahoy! Ship at the starboard bow! It is a frigate galley class, probably the Moritia. I saw them earlier in the port!”

The crew looked over to the horizon and also spotted the ship. Lily frowned upon this.
“She’s a frigate and a galley in one? That’s a pretty unusual kind of ship… But then she’s faster than we are…”

Tyler came to her side.
“I would be cautious. There are ponies who want me dead. They infiltrated the Royal Guard to kill me; they could infiltrate a ship as well.”

“Oh, hush up, Mr. Jones! You’re not that important to the world!” Looking up to the crown’s nest, Lily yelled up. “What flag is she bearing?” But the bat pony in the crow’s nest remained silent.

Flying up to the crow’s nest herself, she confronted her crewmember.
“If I speak to you, then answer!” she barked at the bat pony stallion, but he only shook his head.

“She wears no colors, Captain.”

First arching back in surprise, Lily then narrowed her eyes.
“Nonsense! Every ship bears identity! It’s the law of the sea!”

“Law? What law is greater than strength?” This made Lily gulp. Even the privateers and pirates obeyed the law of the sea; it was their code of honor. Whoever was on this ship was either so dangerous or treacherous, or both, that he crossed even this line. Could this ship be really after one of her crewmembers?

Lowering his telescope, the captain of the Moritia shook his head.
“Captain Black Lily… That mare is rumored to not fear anything…” Turning to his own crew, he ordered the pursuit. “Being this slow nutshell, the Aritania will be dinner for the fishes in no time. But let’s give her a chance first, shall we?”

As Lily returned to the bridge, the First Commander, a bat pony stallion, looked through a telescope.
“Captain, they give signal! They say: Aritania! Aritania! Halt and remain where you are! Do not attempt an evasive maneuver or we will open fire!” The First Commander now looked to Lily. “Captain, I think they want to board us…”

A sly grin appeared on Lily’s face.
“I’m not up to run from a bunch of treacherous dogs…” With a short flap of her wings, she jumped up on a crate. “Ponies! I promised you adventure and thrill, now we sail right into it! Honor, glory and gold for each of you!! Everything you get out from the freight hold of this galley we’re about to blow out of the water is yours!!!” Cheer broke loose among the crew and hooves were raised in euphoria. With fueled enthusiasm, the crew now manned all stations and loaded all cannons as the Aritania turned around.

On the Moritia, the Captain grinned. “It seems the rumors are true…”

Turning now to Tyler, Lily looked up to him.
“Mr. Jones… I would like to have a word with you…”

“Yes? What can I do for you?”

“I’ve heard you can use some magic. Do you by any chance have magical barrier spells in your repertoire?”

That question came out of the blue, but Tyler concentrated and looked through the many spells in his mind.
“Yeah… About 40 or so…”

Lily thought about it, hummed a bit in thought and seemed to evaluate the number with the situation.
“Might be tricky, but I think it might work! I want you to shield the side of our ship facing the enemy! You see: Some pony captains have unicorns on their ships for shielding, but the Aritania has no unicorns among the crew. We will take one run at them and hopefully that cripples their defenses.”

It sounded risky, but Tyler knew there was no place to run to from a hostile ship in open water that was faster than their own ship. As the two ships approached each other, both opened their cannon hatches. While standing on deck, Tyler expected the worst. He turned to Lily for a brief moment and gulped. “Captain?” As she looked at him, he looked at the Moritia. “I’m sorry that I brought your ship into trouble…” Lily only shook her head. Either you’re a fool taking yourself way too important, or some really dangerous ponies want to see you dead at all costs…, she thought as she shook her head. Now the two ships were close to each other and the tension was building up for everyone to an almost unbearable extent until the order finally came.

With loud thunder, the cannons of both ships fired as they both orbited one another; smoke was lying heavily in the air as ponies from the Moritia were catapulted over; fierce swordfights between them and the crew of the Aritania began. Three bat ponies, among them the First Commander, defended Tyler, who was focused on maintaining the shields. But while the unicorns of the Moritia created force fields in order to protect their ship with ease, Tyler did his best to catch as many of the enemy fire with his shields, which weakened with every hit. In the long term, the crew of the Moritia would surely gain the upper hand. Already, the ongoing usage of magic took its toll on the human; beads of sweat ran down his forehead. His hands began to glow due to the heavy use of magic until Tyler finally collapsed and fell to one knee. The first commander came to his side and helped him up.
“Are you alright, Mr. Jones?”

Biting his teeth together, Tyler still tried to maintain the shield, which fluctuated already.
“It’s simply too much… I’m not a unicorn. My reserves run dry!”

Nodding, the first commander looked at Black Lily.
“Captain! Shields will collapse any minute now!”

Lily gritted her teeth, angered. To flee like a coward… It was so against her nature, but it couldn’t be helped.
“FULL SPEED AHEAD!!!” she commanded.

But once more did the cannons fire and the shields collapsed. It was in this moment that the eyes of the bat ponies rushed to Tyler who collapsed as well as the last cannon shot at the Aritania and hit. The detonation took out two cannon teams as one little powder keg detonated.

Tyler was lying on his side, the hands cramped in pain. One could see the dark red and black burns and bleeding in his palms and the bat ponies grimaced at this.
“He’s wounded! Get us some first aid!”

Tyler, however, shook his head while gritting his teeth. The intense pain made him feel nauseous.
“It’s alright… I… I have some healing spells left; I just need a few minutes of rest. The state of his palms frightened Tyler a bit. Never before was a part of his body so close to overcharge than in this moment and his palms gave him a good first impression of what overcharge might do to his body. It almost looked like necrosis. Only slowly the palms regenerated as the Moritia slowly turned around.

But then the crow’s nest yelled down its warning.
“TARTARIC RAIDERS FROM PORTSIDE!!!”

Tyler and the crew looked over to portside and there it was: A black ship with black sails, and from the frightened looks on the crew’s faces, Tyler was sure it wasn’t a good thing. Lily looked through her telescope and sneered at the sight of the ship. It was only more trouble to an already escalating situation.
“I confirm it! These are Tartaric Raiders, and in a light cruiser as well. Good thing we had you on board, Mr. Jones. Otherwise the Moritia might have shot us out of maneuverability and could let us here to get slaughtered by these brutes.”

Shaking his head, Tyler again looked at the black ship on the horizon as he got up.
“Tartaric Raiders? I don’t understand… Who are they?”

With a determined look, Lily shook her head as she looked at the black ship.
“They’re far worse than a bunch of traitors; believe me; a pirate ship of Moranji- a neighboring nation of Zebrica. Its crew consists of Masar, huge bipedal Felines. I think they’re about your height, muscular and claws at every paw. Or so they say… They usually leave no survivors. Such a cruiser not only has 22 cannons, but also, it has an artillery cannon that fires forward. With all that, nothing will make my crew fight! If they catch up with us, we’re doomed.”

Tyler didn’t know much about these new unknown Masar, but one thing he understood: Time was of the essence and they had to act quick as the Moritia now once more was in pursuit and the cruiser of the Tartaric Raiders continued on its intercept course. Two enemies on open sea, the one faster and with all the defenses, the other one with the sheer brute force both in firepower and boarding crews. If only there would be a way to shake loose both of… Then it occurred to him. To lose both of them, they would need to get both of them at each other’s throat. That’s when he turned to Lily.
“Captain! We can’t take on the Tartaric Raiders and the Moritia… But maybe we can outmaneuver them both and lose them in that fog bank over there…”

Lily looked at him, terrified.
“Have you lost your mind? There is so little visibility in there we wouldn’t even see if we are steering into a reef!”

“Yeah… But unlike them, your crew can fly! We will tug the Aritania safely through the fog once we’re in it and speed up unseen by them. And if there is a reef, the ponies ahead can pull the ship out of danger.”

This brought back the smile on the Captain’s face.
“I must say I like your idea, Mr. Jones!” Then the frown returned to her face. “Still, there’s one flaw: The Moritia will catch up with us before we reach the fog.”

Now the First Commander seemed to have an idea, as he jumped below deck and flew back with a rifle, that he handed to Tyler.
“Here! Take this!”

Puzzled, Tyler stared at the rifle.
“You give me a rifle? What do you expect me to do? Sink that ship with it?”

“No, you only shoot its steerspony. A short delay of the Moritia and we’re safely in the fog.”

Blinking twice, Tyler snapped out of it.
“You know… That might actually work!”

With that he took the rifle and tried to find his target. There he was, an earth pony stallion, steering the ship towards the Aritania. Tyler took aim and shot, but his shot hit a pony below the bridge- the bullet dropped quite much.
“You’ve missed!” Tyler now narrowed his eyes and reloaded. Now he took aim again and aimed a bit over the steerspony. As he shot, the bullet hit nothing as it flew right above the steerspony, who listened up to the passing bullet. “You missed him again! Damn it! Pull yourself together, Mr. Jones!” Gritting his teeth, Tyler now focused and let some magic flow into the rifle to stabilize it. “That’s the last shot! Make it count, Mr. Jones!” Holding his breath, he aimed and shot…

And hit.

Now the steerspony, whom was hit in the heart, collapsed and turned the steer, prompting the Moritia to steer hard to port. Fortunately, the officers on deck reached the steer a little too late to correct the course in time, giving the Aritania the time it needed.
“That was one lucky shot! How did you hit him?”

Looking up quite puzzled from the iron sight, Tyler shook his head. This WAS a lucky shot.
“By aiming at everybody than the steerspony, I guess…” By now the Aritania entered the fog. For minutes it was quiet, almost too quiet.
In the distance, there suddenly was the sound of artillery cannon sound and a few hundred meters portside there was the sound of a splash. Tyler now frowned as he held the reeling and a bit of smear came from his hands. He then realized that his hands might have healed, but the smear of blood and dead tissue and loose skin was still on his hands. Washing his hands with a bucket of water, he looked to portside. “What the hell are they doing out there?”

Coming to his side, the First Commander nodded.
“The Tartaric Raiders… They’re trying to bomb us out! Or to hear if there’s an explosion meaning they have hit us. If that’s the case, they got a signal in form of a burning ship and will try to board us.”

'So in order to get these cats here…' Tyler now nodded and jumped down under deck, only to levitate one cannon out on deck. The Captain’s eyes grew wide.
“Jones! NO!!!” But already did he fire into the fog. The bang was audible surely for a mile. Pulling out her saber, Lily held it at Tyler’s chest. “You just told them our position! Now both ships are coming for us!”

Tyler lowered down the cannon and grinned
“This is exactly what I’m hoping for!” Lily now arched a brow.

On the Moritia, the First Commander turned towards the Captain.
“They’re still alive in there… Shouldn’t we just leave them to the Tartaric Raiders? I mean, they would solve our problem as well.”

But the Captain only sneered at this.
“No! Jones again and again proved himself to be most resilient to almost any situation! I’m only satisfied when I see his dead body in pieces before me! I have orders to be absolutely sure!” With that, the Moritia entered the fog as well.

And while the bat ponies began to put ropes onto their bodies, Tyler levitated himself up.
“Captain Lily? Steer directly into one direction and don’t stop. I’ll catch up with you later…”

Lily looked up to him.
“What are you going to do?”

“I’ll buy us time…”

The crew of the Moritia now looked into the white of the fog, not noticing the sphere hovering high above the three ships.
Then, in the blurry screen of fog there was something, something that was passing in front of the Moritia. The stallion in the crow’s nest pointed at it.
“SHIP AHEAD!!!” This was the cue Tyler needed. Now Trixie… I hope you made good work with these firework spells… He aimed his arm down at the yelling voice and fired. The magic firework bolt flew right in front of the Moritia and detonated in midair, resulting in a hot and bright flare. After the bright and warm light had ceased, the crew of the galley saw that the fog between them and the target had vanished as well… Only that it was the cruiser of the Tartaric Raiders what they saw. “EVASIVE MANEUVER!!! HARD TO PORT!!!”

But it already was too late. The cruiser fired his salve of cannons and hit the Moritia several times that the masts and sails were ripped apart. As the Masar jumped over onto the Moritia, yelling and screaming mixed with roars of battle and gunshots. It became less and less audible as the Aritania built up some distance, but Tyler imagined the bedlam as he returned to deck. What frightened him the most, was the fact that he deemed this cruel fate… well deserved.

* * * * *

Meanwhile the Harmony Rangers inspected the corpses of the two mares from Vanhoover. Rachel, Sam and Twilight were standing around the two tables. All three of them were wearing clinical facemasks.
“Jones was right…” Rachel said with a frown, “…no wounds whatsoever. I was given reports about how casualties on the battlefield looked like when it comes to Changeling bite-marks; nasty stuff actually. But whatever killed these mares… it certainly wasn’t a Changeling…” She now tipped at the horns with a wooden stick. “But these strange scorched marks around their horns… Twilight, could that be part of the cause of death?”

Twilight now inspected the horns with a mixture of curiosity and fear. She never saw a murdered pony and was a bit uncomfortable, even felt nauseous. And the fact that the responsible forensic doctor, a brown unicorn stallion with a scalpel as a cutie mark, was eating some pickles didn’t help much. Concentrating on the horns now, she narrowed her eyes and hummed long and deep, before looking up to Sam.
“Sam? Take a note, please.” Rachel and Sam looked at each other, before Rachel gestured him to do as Twilight asked. He got himself ready as Twilight began to dictate. “Cellular stress at the base of the horn, coat slightly singed. The horn itself is slightly singed as well; a fine film of grime is at it. There are prints of fingers on the horn of corpse A…” Twilight paused a bit and shivered as she realized how she was speaking of the deceased mare like from an object. But a look from Rachel was enough to let Twilight snap out of it. “I’m taking these fingerprints and putting them on this white sheet of paper…”

After she did that, Twilight held up two sheets.
“These are the fingerprints from the murderer… And these are the ones from Tyler…”

Sam took a magnifying glass and compared both of them.
“Not identical…”

Rachel arched a brow.
“But these are human fingerprints… A fifth human on the planet?”

Sam shook his head.
“At least now we know that Tyler didn’t do it. What we’re dealing with isn’t human, but it’s taking human form!”

Rachel shuddered a bit.
“You mean… a shape shifter like in ‘The Thing’? That would be horrifying!”

Twilight couldn’t imagine what exactly they were talking about, but one thing was for certain. Some human was impersonating Tyler and committed crimes in his name. As his herd mate, she couldn’t let this continue to go on. Now, even more than before, she was out to solve this mystery.

* * * * *

On the Aritania, the crew was now pleased with the successful escape and played some music on deck. Forgotten, was the threat of the two enemies that hunted the ship a few hours ago; at least by the majority. Tyler approached Captain Black Lily and the First Commander, who both stood on the bridge.
“Captain Lily?”

Lily looked at Tyler and shook her head.
“You should be down with the others, Mr. Jones… When we’re close at port, the crew will hold a funeral ceremony to give last honors to those who have fallen in this battle. Thanks to you, these losses are at a minimum.”

Tyler frowned at this.
“Or maybe without me there wouldn’t have been any losses at all…”

The First Commander arched a brow.
“This again? Do you really think we’ve been followed to kill specifically you?”

“I do, commander…” Tyler replied. “I spat into the soup of these Descendants of Tacitus more than once. I wouldn’t be surprised if I would be among the top five list of their blacklist.”

Lily hummed; the bat pony mare wasn’t experienced with this topic and looked to the First Commander.
“Will… What do you think?”

“I think we should get to the nearest port in Zebrica and repair the damage. If Mr. Jones wants to leave the ship for our sake, so be it. Otherwise you are welcome to stay, Mr. Jones. You handled the shielding part quite good for someone who isn’t a unicorn.”

Tyler gave this a nod and a smile.
“I’ll think about it. For now, I think I’ll hit the bed.” With this, he went below deck and slept in his hammock.

But merely two hours later, shortly after nightfall, before Tyler could even begin to dream, some clouds formed up on the horizon. Lily gave this an instant frown.
“This is strange… There were no signs of a storm in these waters, and these clouds are moving against the wind… ALL PONIES ON DECK!!!” Within a matter of minutes, the crew was assembled on deck, Tyler among them.

And while every bat pony manned a station, Tyler looked up to Lily.
“Captain, what’s going on?”

“A storm is brewing… But this storm came without sign!” With a grim look at the storm, Lily then turned at Tyler. “I had my doubts about one ship in hostile waters… But a storm that comes without warning and without weather patrol? Smells like it fabricated from unicorns!”

“You mean this is a magic storm? But who should fabricate such a thing?”

Lily’s facial expression darkened.
“Oh, once set in motion, a storm can work on its own… Maybe some ‘friends’ of yours truly want to see you dead at any cost.”

It was then when the crown’s nest yelled again.
“LAND AHOY!!!”

The dark shadow of a coastline now appeared in front of the ship. And Lily gave this a grim smile.
“That’s the Zebrican coastline! Thank Celestia we’re facing land… Now we only have to tug the ship into the safety of a port.”

But just as the bat ponies had put ropes on themselves, the First Commander raised a hoof and pointed behind the ship.
“CAPTAIN!!!” Behind the Aritania, a whirlpool and a twister began to form, quickly approaching the ship.

Black Lily yelled over the deck.
“ PULL YOU FOOLS!!! PULL FOR YOUR LIVES!!!” Now 20 bat ponies pulled the ship with all their might, hoping to tug it away from its certain doom. Tyler ran up the slippery deck as he helped Lily to steer as the twister came closer with every second. “ WATCH OUT FOR REEFS ON THE COAST OR THE ARITANIA WILL SHATTER ON THEM!!!” the determined mare yelled over the deck, unsure if her crew even heard her.

But then it happened.

The ship was lifted from the ocean and whirled above, and the bat ponies, pulling the ship before, were now pulled themselves as the ship was tossed into the sky. The big and strong masts broke away as if they were weak twigs. Climbing at the railing Tyler tried his best to reach the bow, but he only made a few meters in a minute. Lily yelled over to him.
“ WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?”

“I NEED TO PULL THEM IN AGAIN!!! WITH ALL THE OBJECTS FLYING OUT THERE, THEY WILL BE BATTERED TO DEATH!!!” But just as he reached the ropes, a mast took ten of the ponies with it. Tyler gritted his teeth, cursing this storm in his mind. “Oh God…”

Looking over the railing Lily shook her head.
“ THE STORM IS LIFTING US RIGHT INTO THE LAND!!!” Looking around, the usually brave mare seemed frightened. “Oh, my poor girl, this will break your spine…” One by one, Tyler pulled five bat ponies back on board who helped him now. Just as the last rope with the last two bat ponies had its turn, Tyler noticed that the rope was in a bad state and was about to tear apart. Pulling faster, he hurried as he saw the rope tear.

In the nick of time, Tyler grabbed the rope and tried his best to hold it. But the pull was simply too strong. Within the fraction of a second, the rope slipped his grasp and he injured his hand once more due to the friction. But he wasn’t paying much attention to his hand as he stretched it out as if he could will them to come back to him. But the two bat Ponies were gone, blown away into the darkness of the storm. By now, the Aritania was a complete mess as the mighty storm hurled her through the air. As the ship was free from the mighty winds, it fell. Black Lily only shook her head.
“This ship has lost its worth! EVERYPONY ABANDON SHIP!!!” The bat ponies nodded and jumped from board. Tyler could only think of a magical sphere to save himself as the ship was smashed somewhere beneath him, he fell slowly and landed on the ground as hurling sand buried his sphere within seconds.

* * * * *

“Jones!” As Lily looked back and forth, searching the wreckage of the Aritania, she slowly gave up hope. “Tyler Jones!!!”

Three other bat ponies approached her.
“Captain… We have to face it. He couldn’t fly without wings. We lost so many ponies already; we have to get to the coast before the sun gets burning hot!”

Lily gritted her teeth, but nodded.
“You’re right! No need to risk the few left of us as well for the sake of one. What a shame… He was rumored to have a big herd back before his banishment. And still... If he would be alive, I would kick his sorry human ass! No doubt this storm was meant for him!” In her mind, Lily already bit her tongue as she began to believe that Tyler was someone important. This saddened the mare a bit, for important folks it always meant opportunity for big adventures. It was a pity this one was over before it began... Caressing a plank of the wreckage, Lily shed a tear for her ship. “Goodbye my girl… You served me well…” She then turned around and spread her wings. “Come on, let’s fly…”

Several minutes later, Tyler’s head ascended from the sand and he spat the sand out of his mouth.
“What the serious fuck! Alright… Every pony alive? Captain?” As he looked around, he saw the wreckage of the Aritania. There were no other survivors with him. “Great… This is just great…” All around him was an endless sea of sand and the sun began to rise. Did they abandoned him or were they thinking that he was dead? But anyway, they weren’t here and he couldn’t wait for rescue in the middle of nothing. As he started to go into one direction, he shook his head. “Alright… here we go!”

And through the burning Desert of Brakal wandered the man, who was surrounded by his friends days ago, alone and abandoned. Fallen from the tranquility of the fellowship of his friends, Tyler was now struggling through the lifeless oven of this barren wasteland. Every breeze became a curse, whipping the tormented soul with the raw touch of sand. Thus he got pressed onwards. Always pressed onwards from a will to survive Tyler never felt before, into a land he doesn’t know. Behind every pebble death was lurking. Like the desert snakes he avoided and the mirages trying to tempt his mind. And in the nights there was nothing more for him than the cold embracement of solitude. Or so he thought…

On the first night, Tyler was standing on the meadows of Ponyville. As he wondered a bit, he soon realized that this must have been a dream. As he looked up to the moon, he smiled.
“Coming here to comfort me, beloved?”

The sound of hooves approached him and Luna stepped beside him.
“Tyler…” After sharing a passionate kiss, he grabbed her cheeks and looked into her eyes. How she was helping him with this… strengthening his will to return to her despite all odds. “Thou are far away, Tyler… Reaching thy dreams sure takes a bit of effort… But I will accompany thee to strengthen thee on a mental level.” Tyler was very touched by this, but decided not to tell her his dire situation. He just indulged himself in her comfort as he drank her kisses like sweet wine.

But during the day, the burning thirst of his body couldn't be quenched and neither the scorching heat of the sun. He couldn’t even damn this cruel game fate plays with him, for he didn't dare to give up. Not for his sake and the sake of others. But he knew that it was worse to live in this desert than to die. And in his dreams, he grew weaker with every passing night, torturing not only himself, but his beloved as well to saw him weaker with every dream.
And finally, at the end of all human sanity and strength, the hero collapsed into the burning hot sand of Brakal on the third day of his fight against the desert, ready to receive the deliverance of death.

I’m sorry, Luna…

But fate wasn’t ready to kill Tyler that easily…
When Tyler came back to his senses, it was cold, very cold. And his limbs were stuck in something; he couldn’t move his fingers at all but felt they were still there. He felt the urge to bathe and to shave; his beard must have grown over the days. He smelled his own sweat, an odor now working as some sort of smelling salts, bringing him back to consciousness. How long had he been unconscious? Hours? Days? Weeks? Vague memories occurred to him, someone gave him water. And there was the gentle touch of a hoof, the caring voice of a mare... But if he was rescued, why was he in this dark pit, unable to move and all alone? As he listened up, he recognized that he wasn’t alone in this darkness.
“Who’s there? Show yourself!” His voice was hoarse from the long journey through the desert.

A female giggle now became audible, when a familiar voice spoke up that sent chills down his spine.
“Imagine you were dying…Imagine you were afraid, a long way from home, hated by everypony and in a terrible state… Just when you thought this was your end and death was coming to get you… You looked up… and saw the face of a beloved enemy…” As Tyler raised his head, perforated hooves stepped into the light and Shiria appeared out of the darkness. “Hello, Tyler Jones…”

His eyes widened.
“Shiria…” He then looked hastily around. His limbs weren’t stuck in the walls, they were cocooned. “Release me!” he demanded.

With a cruel giggle she approached him.
“Why the rush? I want to spend some time with the one individual who’s most promising… Actually, I wanted to see you before, but you are a difficult human to catch, so I used Sam in your absence…”

Tyler now struggled against the cocoon.
“You damn bitch! You raped Sam!”

“And what is it that troubles you with this? That I took the seed of someone to get pregnant by force or the fact that you might have prevented this misery in simply giving me YOUR sperm?” Tyler scowled at her. With a playful giggle she raised his chin with her perforated hoof, seeming eager to enjoy having him being her prisoner for a change. “You’re always so defiant, Tyler… I like that in my prey...” With this she pressed her lips on his. He was surprised at first, but didn’t revolt against it. Obviously she was trying to tempt him to love her, a gesture he wouldn’t give her. While she kissed him more vehemently with every passing minute, her voice was merely a whisper now. “Curse you, Tyler Jones… What have you done to me to cause me to want your love? Not the love for any pony I could impersonate but to love me as Changeling?” While she licked over his face and beard, she indulged herself in doing so with closed eyes while his hands slowly accumulated enough magic to break his arms and hands free.

Within split seconds, Tyler had grabbed her neck and rammed her into the ground, her throat in his tight grasp and the other hand raised and clenched to a fist. As several Changelings stormed in to the rescue, she raised a hoof at them, prompting them to halt. She then looked up to him with a look in her eyes both pleading and commanding at the same time. “When my Changelings brought you here…” She gasped for air. “…you were on the brink of death! Without my swarm, you would be dried meat right now!” As Tyler choked the Changeling Queen, he gritted his teeth as he realized that she was right. He owed her his life, so it was only proper to spare hers as well. For now that is.

So he loosened the grip around her throat a bit.
“Tell me why I shouldn’t harm you as you harmed my friends! You raped one of them and scared several of them half to death!”

"There’s… there’s a reason why my Changelings brought you in from the desert… I…” she then choked a bit again. “I need your help!”

“Help?!?” Tyler sneered down to her. “And why the fuck should I help you now?”

“Because my problem is your problem as well… He betrayed me… and framed you…”

Suddenly Tyler’s grasp loosened completely and he took her jaw instead.
“What did you beget with Sam, girl? What stupid shit came to your mind this time?”

Recollecting herself, she looked up to him.
“You will see…”

“When?” he barked at her.

“Soon enough!” she hissed back as she shook free from his grasp. “But in the meantime, I have another problem of my own… I found the Descendants in this desert… And they’re a threat to my hive. A threat we can’t fight on our own!”

Tyler rolled his eyes.
“Is there actually a place on this planet one CAN’T find these suckers?” He then let go of her and eyed her with wary glances. “I came to find the thing that’s causing all the sandstorms from Saddle Arabia and what do I find? A Changeling hive… If you know who framed me, then I need that information… and if I know you correctly, which I think I do… You won’t give it to me that easily. So I’ll help you with your problem. But if I’ll have to harm anyone for this… you are going to regret it!"

Shiria now arched a brow.
“Believe me you won’t hesitate to help me with this. So… for the time being, we are… I must admit this feels strange… allies?”

He nodded.
“As long as we’re fighting the Descendants that is… The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” For now that is… Tyler knew that Shiria would stab his back at the first chance he would offer her and he had to watch his back very carefully here within the hive, all alone by himself.

Shiria nodded as a Changeling drone approached her.
“My Queen! The latest batch of eggs is about to hatch!”

She then looked at Tyler.
“Come… I think you should have the privilege to witness the wonder of a Changeling birth… Consider yourself honored to be allowed to.”

Tyler rolled his eyes. 'Lucky me…' He was curious, no doubt, but her making it sound like an over the top exclusive moment was ridiculous in his opinion. But then again, maybe Changelings don’t trust outsiders of the hive very easily. For now, it was a great opportunity. As they entered a big hall, countless masses of eggs were on the floor. Tyler arched both brows.
“The hatch room, eh? Reminds me of a movie I once saw…“

Shiria held her head up proudly.
“Inspecting the new hatchlings is my greatest pleasure. I prefer to give all of my Changelings an inspection at birth. Thus, they learn to know their mother, Queen and mindset in one go…” In front of them, a Changeling egg broke apart and forth came a little hatchling, which chirped as it climbed out of the egg. It seemed fragile and weak in this early state of its life.

As Tyler lifted the little hatchling up, careful not to hurt it, he thought of Appleseed.
“Shiria… I never asked you this, but how do you feel when your Changelings suffer losses in battle? They are, after all, all your children.”

The Changeling Queen looked at him, seemed to analyze his intentions. Was she expecting some emotional trap again? Then she closed her eyes.
“It’s always infuriating. I never forget when someone harms my Changelings. I am connected with each one of them, so every pain and agony they feel, I feel as well in a small extent. I can feel it... right behind my eyes... It was different from mother’s Changelings. Their deaths didn’t touch me in such a way and I couldn’t care less about them. But my Changelings are a part of me. So in order to keep agony from myself I keep agony from my Changelings.”

Tyler nodded and inspected the hatchling in his hands.
“So they are, in a way, an extension of you with this collective hive mind…”

“That’s correct. Wherever they are, I am with them, watchful and caring that they don’t hurt themselves.”

Tyler now arched a brow. The perfect control paired with the perfect self-preservation. One mind was there to control all Changelings in order to sustain them all, and in doing so, sustaining itself. If these creatures really were fabricated, what demonic and cruel mind would forge so many individuals together?
“At least one could say that you care for others as you care for yourself… You’re not a heartless bitch like they rumor you…” As he inspected the little hatchling, he arched his brow anew. “Is this another drone?”

Shiria gave the little hatchling a brief look before she chuckled.
“No… This is a female… She will become a princess and later a queen…” Tyler gulped. In his hands rested a further threat for the whole of Equis and he had this one chance to end this. A sudden quick move and the neck would be snapped. But thinking this frightened him as well from himself. Killing an innocent creature just because of its origin and nature… No, Shiria was different from Chrysalis and maybe this little creature would be different as well. But would it be different for the better or for the worse?

As he placed the hatchling back to the nest, Shiria smirked.
“You played with the idea, didn’t you? But you couldn’t end such a young and innocent life… This is why you are my favorite enemy! Personal, but not needlessly cruel…”

Tyler glared at her.
“Enough of these games! You said you needed my help before you want to help me with MY problem… Or rather our shared problem… whatever that is.” Shiria nodded and lead him through the hive. Tyler looked around as it was the first opportunity to see the hive from the inside while not in combat. It was quite interesting to see the Changelings at work. The big brute ones lifted weights too heavy for the drones. After a while, Shiria lead Tyler to a passage way in the outer regions of the hive. On the wall was a narrow window-like hole, small enough to peek outside.

Sand from outside had come in. It was at this hole where Shiria halted.
“My problem… and yours as well… is this thing up there!” With this Tyler peeked through the slit. There it hovered high up in the sky, a large object looking like a big hunk of mountain with a big sturdy fortress on top of it.

The dark stone and bricks of the fortress didn’t match the bright stone of this desert. They looked more like coming from a volcanic area. This thing came from someplace else. Tyler didn’t know much about magical fortresses, but this thing had ‘Military’ written all over it. It also looked quite intimidating and able to hold several hundreds of ponies as it hovered over the dunes of the desert, slowly rotating. With a disbelieving shake of his head he looked at Shiria.
“What the hell is that thing?”

“They call it a ‘war citadel’. This one in particular is called ‘Sagarod’. My Changelings tried to infiltrate it, but the security on this flying fortress is quite tight. Several losses occurred and now the security is even tighter. But this is no wonder due to the storms it can produce…”

Now Tyler looked at the Changeling Queen with open eyes.
“That thing is responsible for the massive storms recently?”

“It is… Since we’re monitoring it, it never moved, but the storms it sends all go into the north. Except the last one... That one went north-east and was pulled back. I guess that was your ride into the middle of the desert?”

Tyler nodded at this.
“So... Saddle Arabia lies in the north, I suppose?”

“Yes, that is correct. Saddle Arabia lies around 387 miles from our current position.” The Changeling Queen answered with a nod.
His expression got more terrified now. “That citadel can send devastating storms with a range of almost 400 miles?”

“Our latest reports state that there are estimated 200 unicorns on this citadel… They can accumulate quite some weather magic.”

Tyler looked at Shiria. If only she could use her talents and hive for good. His look returned to the citadel.
“Where is the nearest city or settlement?”

“That would be several zebra settlements on the way northeast of here in approximately 134 miles distance. They live on the edge of the Brakal desert.”

As they went down again, towards the exit, they came across a hall where plenty of zebras were cocooned at the wall just like Tyler was before. Looking angered at Shiria, Tyler’s face showed massive disapproval. But the Changeling Queen merely shrugged.
“What? If we don’t invade countries, we need to ponynap some ponies or zebras in order to feed from them!”

Disgusted, Tyler only shook his head as he began inspecting the zebras.
“Yeah, yeah… Old habits are hard to break, I know…” Maybe he could get someone out of this hive. But more and more his hopes dwindled, the zebras all seemed out of their mind.

But before he had lost all hopes, a male voice called out for him.
“Stranger, you can’t help these zebras anymore! They’re far too brainwashed and weakened! But you can help me!” The voice was mixed with a bit of a growl like that of a lion.

As Tyler and Shiria saw the origin of the voice, Shiria nodded.
“Oh yes… This being… Species 326, a cat-like being… They call themselves Masar. Species 326 is one of the species we cannot imitate… Just like humans and minotaurs.”

Tyler gritted his teeth when he heard her talk like that.
“You will set this one free!”

As Shiria saw that Tyler was pointing at the Masar, her eyes became big as plates.
“What? But this is a Masar! A wild beast! No, he will tear through my hive!"

Tyler and the Masar glared at each other.
“No… He won’t! Because I will get him out of this hive! I am responsible for him as I am responsible for you…”

With an angered glare Shiria looked at him.
“You don’t have authority over my hive!”

“And YOU know what kind of mess I could do to your hive if you don’t comply! Far worse than he could!” Tyler barked back to her.

Turning her head away, the Changeling Queen wrinkled her nose.
“Tsk! Have it your way then… The Masar is of no importance to my hive anyway.”

As he approached the Masar, the beast growled, obviously as some sort of warning. It was an impressive being, surely two meters in size if standing on two legs and had a long dark mane. Wearing trousers of leather, the upper body was sheer muscle mass. Tyler was sure that if that beast would tackle him, he wouldn’t stand up so fast. And although it may have had hopes for freedom through Tyler, it still was wary of him. So Tyler held up his hands to comfort the big beast.
“I’m not going to hurt you… I will take you out of here just like you asked, OK?” As the growling slowly ceased, the Masar stared at Tyler and nodded in silence. Tyler more and more ripped the cocoon apart that was holding the Masar in place. As it got free, the cat-like predator fell to his knees; the muscles must have weakened over the long imprisonment. Shouldering one arm of the Masar, Tyler carried him to a corner where water was stored so the Masar could drink to his heart’s desire.

Once the Masar was done drinking, he looked at Tyler and bowed his head to him.
“My name is Grinko Khass’ra … Son of Tass’kra!”

Replying with a nod of his own, Tyler smiled.
“My name is Tyler Jones. I’ve heard about your kind before, but never had the chance to see one of you…”

“Under normal circumstances I would fight you as my prey… But these are not normal circumstances, are they? This Queen of these ‘Changelings’ is a powerful being… If she obeys you, you must be an even more powerful warrior!”

Tyler cocked his head at this.
“Uh… I’m not that kind of warrior if you mean that… However, I once defeated her mother in a fight one on one.”

Grinko bowed down to Tyler.
“I owe you my life, Tyler Jones! For honor’s sake I shall accompany you until the day I repay this debt.”

Now Tyler’s eyes popped open.
“What? No, there is no need for this!”

Hearing this, the Masar shook his head.
“Oh yes, there is! We are still deep in the Desert of Brakal, even though this hive must be closer to zebra settlements.”

Arching a brow, Tyler cocked his head.
“How can you know this?”

Shrugging, the Masar smiled, showing his fangs.
“Because these insects bring zebras in once in a while to feed upon their love. Once the zebras were sucked empty of all emotions, they handed me the carcass.”

“Why were they even sustaining you? They can’t imitate you and there is no way for them to feed from you if you resist them.”

"My guess is as good as yours… Maybe curiosity compelled them to research a way to utilize me in any way…”

This was a thought that frightened Tyler a bit. Changelings researching God knows what. As he brought the Masar to the entrance of the hive, Shiria stood there.
“Fine… Take that thing out of my hive. That way I don’t have to dispose him.”

Grinko gave her a warning growl, but Tyler held him back.
“Shiria, you better tell me where to get to the nearest settlement, possibly with some unicorn ponies.” The Changeling queen growled a bit, but sighed in defeat. If he was supposed to help her, then she had to help him regain strength as well.

Pointing into one direction, she turned to Tyler.
“Follow these mountains and pay attention not to get sighted by the war citadel. They will open fire upon you the moment they see you.”

Tyler nodded and he and Grinko left the hive and went into the open desert, only armed with some bottles of water. As they were only tiny specks in the desert, one Changeling looked up to Shiria.
“My Queen? You didn’t tell him about… you know… ‘him’?”

Shiria only shook her head.
“There’s no point in telling him anyway. By the time they meet each other, the decision will be made. Hopefully Jones will be the victor in this.”

“Why is that, my Queen?” asked the Changeling.

Shiria now gulped as the two specks at the horizon vanished out of sight.
“Because Jones knows the concept of mercy…”

* * * * *

Meanwhile in Equestria, Luna had summoned Rachel to her chambers in Canterlot.
“Rachel Higgins… I must ask you of a favor. Tyler is growing weaker and weaker with each passing night. And last night there was no dream from him. I fear for his life.”

Rachel nodded.
"We will take the next ship towards Saddle Arabia. Our findings during the autopsy were most valuable. They give good reason to doubt that Tyler wasn’t the perpetrator of these murderers. Whoever was that has to be some sort of vampire.”

Luna’s eyes widened.
“A vampire? But there were no bite marks!”

Shaking her head, Rachel waved it away.
“No, I don’t mean a bloodsucking vampire. If we’re correct, this was the doing of a vampire sucking magic and emotions, until the victim suffers a deadly catatonia, a deadly stupor or whatever. Twilight knows more about this stuff.”

Luna gave this a brief nod.
“I shall await her report with eagerness.” Rachel bowed a bit before she turned around and was about to go, but Luna raised a hoof. “Rachel Higgins! Wait!”

Turning around, she looked back to Luna.
“Yes?”

What she didn’t expected was the sudden embracement from Luna.
“I thank thee for doing this for mine beloved Tyler… I know thou have thy differences with him once in a while…”

Rachel smiled a bit uneasily, not sure how to react in this situation.
“Uh… Sure…”

Luna now gave her some space and cleared her throat.
“I would also like to talk with thee… About the nightmare you once had.”

Now Rachel was stumped.
“You what? You know about my dreams?!?”

Raising a hoof, Luna shook her head.
“I am a princess, not a peeping tom. I would never invade your dreams. But it is my duty as the princess of the night to fight nightmares. Normally I would approach thou in thy dream, but in a dream where a world is ending… I deem it better to approach thee while thou are awake and fully aware of thy surroundings.”

Rachel glared at Luna.
“You know? I should slap you for watching my dreams… But in that case, maybe you can help me…”

Both now sat down and Rachel began to tell the dream she once had in detail. Luna remained silent the whole time and listened closely, nodding once in a while. After Rachel had ended, the alicorn nodded with a smile.
“Thy fear is change, Rachel… And since thou saw the dangers of this world, thou are afraid that these dangers could have dire consequences for thy home world.”

Rachel looked up to the Princess of the Night.
“What must I do to overcome these fears?”

Putting a hoof on Rachel’s shoulder, Luna shook her head.
“Thou are already doing it, Rachel. Thou are a Harmony Ranger. Thy choice to face these dangers with bravery and determination shall make thee overcome them. But while overcoming them thou must not forget to maintain thy humanity. Thou have a big heart, Rachel. Thou love this land and its inhabitants as thou love thy friends, both humans and ponies.”

Rachel nodded and gave Luna a long and tight hug.
“Thanks, Luna… that really made me feel better…”

Resting a hoof on Rachel’s back, Luna smiled.
“Always a pleasure…”

Standing up now, Rachel harrumphed.
“Alright, I should be on my way now. I have to get the boys ready. We will find ponyfu- I mean Tyler for you…”

Luna arched a brow with a sly grin.
“That’s a habit thou should work on as well… I know thou like him as a friend as thou like Flynn and Sam…”

“Me? Liking Jones? Fat chance!”

Proofread by OpalBerries