The Bug in The Cave

Chapter 3:The Pony in The Cave

The strange, chitin-clad creature in front of Twilight let out a low, two-toned drone, its voice distorted in a way that sent shivers crawling up and down her spine like an army of millipedes. Its unnaturally glowing blue eyes pierced her soul, making her recoil in fear. Its shredded body, its sharp teeth, the tattered wings flicking this way and that on its back… all of these things and more proved to be the last straw.

Twilight opened her mouth, primal terror swallowing her whole, and she screamed.

The moment she did, the creature immediately began to back away from her, screaming right back at her.

With the aid of adrenaline, Twilight cast aside any concerns about the water clinging to her coat or the wound in her side. She sprung back up to her hooves, her horn flaring up with magic before she let loose a wild, unfocused beam of raw offensive energy. Sadly, in her frightened and confused state, her shot went flying way off the mark, knocking a few pebbles loose from the ceiling and nothing else.

“Ew, ew, ew! Get away from me!” Twilight shouted as she backpedaled deeper into the cave, firing off bolt after wild bolt of magic at the monster that had somehow snuck up on her. She could already imagine it pouncing on her, snarling and snapping violently as it bit for her throat. The idea of being eaten alive by some pony-looking monster drove her fear to greater heights, and tears began to leak out of the corner of her eyes.

But just as she was absolutely terrified, the bug before her had seemingly been sent into a state of fear itself. It let out a few alarmed yelps before ducking back around the corner to hide from her blasts.

Twilight, emboldened by the beasts retreat, drew up more power and made ready to press the attack. She took a step forward, ready to fire off another blast at a moment’s-

“W-wait!” the two tones voice from before cried out, shaking in fear. “Wait, don’t hurt me! I don’t wanna fight you!”

That gave Twilight pause. She drew back her hoof and took a slow, deep breath, not entirely convinced of what she was hearing. After a moment, she held her head high, though she kept her horn lit up with energy, just in case. “W-who are you? Actually, no, w-what are you?!” she asked shakily.

She could hear movement around the corner before the creature poked its head slowly back around, its ears folded back and its body low to the ground. Now that Twilight was really looking at it, and knew it could talk, it… almost looked kind of pitiful, cowering like that. Her eyes slowly widened, and the spark on her horn began to diminish.

“My name is Thorax,” he said after a few more seconds of silence, bravely poking his head further out. “I, uh… y-you shouldn’t be here.”

Twilight took a step back, still feeling a little unnerved by his appearance. She squinted at him as he slowly but surely revealed himself entirely, taking careful mental note of every layer of his appearance. “Uh… again, what are you?” she repeated after a second, her brain playing catch-up. “Are you a pony? I mean, I’ve never seen a pony like you before…”

Thorax glanced down at himself for a moment before shaking his head. “No, I’m not a pony. Er… I’m a changeling. And, uh...” he scuffed the floor awkwardly before looking back up at her with an indecisive frown. “L-look, you’re really not supposed to be here. You’re trespassing in changeling territory, and you need to leave. If any of the others find you, they’ll-”

“Changelings?” Twilight asked, her fear starting to dwindle at the unfamiliar name. Slowly but surely, a gigantic grin began to appear on her face, and she took a few excited steps forward. “Wow! I’ve never heard of changelings before! Why are you called that? Can you shapeshift? Why do you look so much like a pony? Can you do magic? What’s with the holes? Why are you- GHUH!”