>One wonderful walk through a long series of tunnels later, and you’re in a large chamber.
>The griffin guard had forced you to your knees the moment you’d reach the center, and left you there.
>In front of you stand three griffins.
>One is wearing heavy-looking gold and blue armor, and has a scar running along its beak.
>It’s spending most of its time glaring at you, and flexing its claws.
>Looks friendly enough.
>The next griffin is old, and has somehow managed to grow a beard out of feathers.
>You’re impressed.
>And not just a little confused.
>The last griffin to your right is wearing a set of very circular glasses.
>His clothes are silk, and he has the largest gut you’ve yet to see on a griffin.
>Not that you’ve seen that many.
>The older griffin clears his throat.
>”Welcome, friend. I trust you found your treatment was kind?”
“Er, yes? Not bad, at least.”
>”That is good to hear.”
>The scarred griffin cuts in.
>”You’re lucky these two are too curious for their own good, or I’d have you in my cells until you talked.”
>”Gareth, settle yourself. I won’t have you threatening our guest before we know anything about him.”
>”Hah! What do I need to know, Don? I’ve never seen a creature like it before. How do we know he isn’t a changeling spy?”
>”A spy being chased by its own comrades?” the fat griffin says.
>”A ploy to earn us its trust. You most of all should know a bluff when you see one, Abban.”
>D: “Gareth, you are too paranoid. I know your warriors have been catching spies more than ever, but your fear will get us nowhere with this human.”
>G: “You think me scared?”
>D: “I don’t know. What I do know is you are not normally so rash!”
>G: “Rash? You think concern for our people is rash?!”
>Gareth has stopped glaring at you, and is now glaring at Don.
>Don meets his gaze, his eyes cold.
>A: “Now, you two, stop this bickering. You are scaring our guest.”
>Don and Gareth look back at you.
>You didn’t feel scared before, but with both of them staring at you, you can start to feel it.
>Those are some intense eyes.
>Abban sighs.
>A: “I am sorry for my fellow council members; they’re often conflicting in how they believe things should be done. I like to think that’s why I’m here.”
>Abban smiles at you.
>A: “I hope you’ll excuse our rudeness. Now, I must ask; who are you?”
“I’m Anonymous, sir.”
>G: “I don’t care about your name, fool! What kind of monkey are you and what were you doing in our territory?”
>Abban and Don glare at him, but neither admonishes him.
>They look to you, waiting for an answer.
“Well, sir, I’m a human. I’m not a species from this world; a while back I fell through some kind of rift, and when I woke up, I was in Equestria.”
>Don’s eyebrows rise, but Gareth glares even more.
>G: “You were in Equestria before you were here? I’ll give you ten seconds to explain why you came to our city, or I’ll cut you down on the spot.”
>He reaches down his side, and unsheathes his sword.
>It’s made out of a black metal, and is curved.
>The hilt is plain, and the blade has many cuts running along its service.
>How often does he use that thing?
>D: “You will do no such thing, Gareth. However, Anonymous, I as well am curious to hear your answer.”
>You clear your throat.
>You don’t see why you should lie.
 
>A few minutes later, and your quick recap is over.
>You left out the part about Greg saving you, simply saying you managed to find an exit from the changeling hive on your own.
>Gareth still looks angry, but he at least sheathed his sword.
>Abban and Don are simply looking at you.
>Abban is smiling sadly.
>“It is a shame that your friends would betray you in such a way. You truly have been through much these past few days. Don, Gareth, I would suggest we allow this… human, as he calls himself, to stay in the city for the time being. If only as a moment of reprieve after so much.”
>Gareth sputters, but Don cuts him off.
>”I see no reason not to. It would be foolish.”
>He puts emphasis on the word foolish, shooting a glance at Gareth.
>”To give up a chance to learn more of Anon’s species.”
>Abban and Don look at Gareth.
>After a moment of glaring, he grunts.
>G: “Bah! It is clear you have made up your minds. The human can stay. For now.”
 
>Abban personally escorted you to your temporary house.
>It was in a rundown part of the city.
>He’d also given you a small badge to place on your shirt.
>He’d said something about how no one in that part of town would dare harm you as long as you wore it.
>It was silver, with some kind of hammer and sickle engraved into its surface.
>You made sure it was safely fastened, and had begun looking at your new home.
>It was fairly small; not even half the size of your Ponyville house.
>But hey, at least it wasn’t a small cave.
>And no one wanted to kill you.
>Except maybe Gareth.
>But no ultimatum this time!
>Only good times ahead.
>There is one problem, however.
>It’s boring as hell for you right now.
>Abban had mentioned that you were free to stay for a while until you departed, unless of course you wanted to join their society.
>He had said if that were the case, to come back to the palace and ask for him.
>You weren’t really eager to stay though.
>You were kind of hoping you’d find a place where you weren’t likely to die.
>You know, survival instincts and all that.
>Of course, you don’t really know anything about the city.
>Perhaps you should go out and explore…
>”Phew! That was close, eh Anon?!”
>HOLY SHIT.
>You fall back as a pen falls out of your pocket and turns into a changeling.
>Oh right.
“God dammit Greg, you scared the hell out of me!”
>Greg looks at his feet sheepishly.
>”Sorry, Anon. I was just happy we made it through all that.”
>Bah.
>He’s too cute to stay annoyed.
>Curse this world.
“It’s all good, Greg. Just be a bit more careful when you decide to come out. Wait, you can talk while in inanimate forms?”
>”Yeah, what makes you think I can’t?”
>You think about the fact that most inanimate objects don’t have lungs.
>Or mouths.
>Or even brains.
>Greg cocks his head slightly.
>Nope, too adorable.
“Don’t worry about it Greg.”
>He cocks his head the other way, looking confused.
>After a moment, he simply nods.
>”So, what’s the plan now? Are we going to stay here, or what?”
“I don’t know, Greg. I don’t really like the idea of you having to hide all the time…”
>”Oh no, I don’t mind at all! I slept for a good part of it, and it was fun hearing everything happen!”
>You stare at him.
>He smiles at you.
>You shrug.
>Seems genuine enough.
“Well, then, I guess we don’t really know anything about this place. Why don’t we explore?”
>Greg’s smile widens at this, and he turns back into a pen.
“Er, Greg? Don’t you want to see the city as well? You won’t be able to in my pocket.”
>”Oh, well, I guess that would be nice.”
>You pause.
>He sounds unsure.
“What’s up, Greg?”
>”Well, I don’t really want to intrude on you or anything, that’s all. I’ve never had a friend before, so I don’t want to be too pushy or anything.”
>This changeling.
>He’s really growing on you.
“Don’t worry about it, Greg. Just turn into something that will let you see things as well. Like a hat or something.”
>You tap your head for effect.
>You wince; you had forgotten it was still a bit burnt.
>Greg thinks for a moment, then shifts.
>He takes the shape of a small hat.
>You pick it up, and the form shifts a bit as you position it.
>After a moment he settles, and the hat fits snugly on your head.
>Well, that’s convenient.
>You make sure the badge is fastened, and head back out into the city.
 
>After a bit of wandering, you find yourself in some kind of bazaar.
>Merchants yell from all sides.
>Some notice you and give you strange looks.
>Some try to sell you things.
>Most ignore you.
>One notices your badge and quickly backs away, almost bowing.
>Hm.
>Oh well.
>Feels kind of good, to not be too much of a freak for once.
>At least, compared to Ponyville.
>You turn bitter at the thought, and focus on distracting yourself.
>You look at the wares.
>Silk seems to be popular.
>One stand has meats of all kinds, smothered in salt to stop them from going bad.
>Another, a bunch of seasonings.
>You try to ignore your stomach growling, and move off to another section.
>After a bit you see an actual stone building.
>Above it is a symbol you recognize even now.
>A test tube and a beaker.
>You’ve found yourself a chemist.
>You walk in and gasp.
>Chemicals and testing equipment fills the shop.
>It feels cluttered, but at the same time, it’s organized down to a fault.
>You wander through, examining the different chemicals.
>You recognize most from your work in Twilight’s lab.
>One of them is a key ingredient in your flying ring formula.
>As well, some are the same from Earth.
>Mercury, liquid nitrogen, etc.
>But there are ones you’ve never heard of before, in either world.
>”Quintonium.”
>”Enevera.”
>”Lin.”
>…
>Lin?
>You wonder if that’s the name of the person that discovered it…
>One chemical catches your eye.
>It’s a deep blue, but that’s not what interests you .
>It seems to be sitting at the top of the vial container.
>You lean in, trying to figure it out.
>It’s quite literally rejecting gravities pull.
>You reach for the vial.
>You hear something clear its throat behind you.
>You snatch your hand back and turn around.
>An old griffin is looking at you.
>He doesn’t look angry, so that’s a plus.
>He looks amused.
>”I see you’re a curious one.”
>You nod.
“Well, yes. I’m curious about that chemical behind me; how does it float like that? I’ve never seen anything like it.”
>"You’re not the only one who has been confused by it. It is liquid magic; magic in its purist of form. Very difficult to make, and very potent."
>Liquid magic.
>Well then.
>You look back at the vial.
>The idea of magic in a physical form astounds you.
>If you could figure out its properties…
>There’s no telling what you could do.
>You look back to the shop owner.
“So, I’ve got to ask. Aren’t you curious about what I am?"
>The old griffin smiles.
>”I already know what you are. A fellow chemist, and that’s all that really matters.”
>You smile back at him at that.
>You think you hear Greg make a soft ‘awww’ sound, but you aren’t sure.
>You stick out your hand.
“The name’s Anon.”
>The old griffin sticks out his claw and grasps your hand.
>Too be honest, you weren’t sure if handshakes were customary for griffins.
>But you figured they could grasp things, so it was worth a shot.
>Clearly, you were right.
>”Arthur.”
 
>After talking to Arthur for a bit longer, you told him you weren’t sure if you were going to be in the city long.
>He nodded at that, and told you that if you did stay, you could always work with him.
>He put accent on the word with.
>It felt good.
>You head back outside to explore more of the city.
>You enter a different section of the city.
>Its pristine, many of the houses adorned with silver.
>They seem big on silver here.
>You see a couple of griffins marching towards you.
>They both have heavy looking armor on, coloured silver and blue.
>One is glaring at you.
>The other is simply walking with its partner, appearing bored.
>The angry one seems to be female.
>”Hey! What’re you doing in here, ape?”
>Haven’t heard that before.
“I’m just exploring the city. What’s the problem?”
>”What’s the problem? I’ll tell you what the problem is! Commander Gareth doesn’t like it when potential spies are free to walk around the city, and neither do I!”
>Ahhh.
>So Gareth told his underlings about you, it seems.
“Well, I wasn’t aware I had been told to stay put, either”
>The bored griffin perks a little at this.
>The female one, on the other hand, only gets angrier.
>”Well, you do! Now get out of here, before I cut you down right here!”
>Ooo, you can see Gareth in her.
>Probably not a good idea to make her angrier.
“Alright, alright, calm down. I’ll head back, ok? No need to get so upset”
>Her partner chuckles at that.
>The female whirls on him, glaring
>He only laughs harder.
>”Shut up, Ron!”
>She turns back to you.
>”You think you’re clever, huh?”
>She unsheathes her sword.
“Whoa, whoa no! I’m trying to avoid conflict here, not start it!”
>You put up your hands to try and get your point across.
>Ron decides this is a good moment to intervene.
>”Gilda, don’t be too hasty. Commander Gareth said to watch him and stop him from doing anything suspicious. The council voted to let him stay as a guest, and we can’t go against that. You know this”
>Gilda takes a deep breath.
>She sheathes her sword, and you breathe out in relief.
>You didn’t even realize you had been holding your breath.
>Gilda glares at you again before turning away.
>”The council may have let you stay as a guest, but watch yourself. If you take one step out of line, I’ll gut you myself.”
>With that she stalks off.
>Ron smiles at you lazily before following her.
>You sigh and turn around.
>So, don’t spend time in the silver section of the city.
>Not exactly a friendly warning, but at least that Ron griffin saved you.
>That Gilda though… she’s almost a clone of Gareth.
>You don’t really know much about griffins, but you’d say they look more alike than most other griffins.
>Not that you’re one to judge.
>The sun is starting to set at this point.
>You head back to your temporary home.
>Greg pops back into his normal form and curls up into a ball in the corner.
>"I think, next time, I'll be something more in the shade... I can't stand the heat"
>You laugh, and Greg smiles, curling up tighter
>He's out like a light moments later
>There’s no bed, but there’s a mat on the floor and a small blanket.
>You look at Greg in the corner.
>You hear him whimper suddenly.
>You smile sadly, and drag the mat over to him.
>You take the blanket and cover both of you the best you can.
>You turn away from him lay down your head.
>You fall asleep thinking of how your friends back in Ponyville are doing.
 
>You are Fluttershy.
>You’ve convinced your friends that perhaps they were too hasty with their banishment of Anon.
>It was hard to believe they fell for it so easily.
>One moment you’re convincing them it was for the best with tears in your eyes, the next you’re saying it was a mistake, and they instantly believe you?
>This whole “element of kindness” thing really works in your favor.
>You smile as Twilight gathers everyone close for the teleportation spell.
>A moment later, you’re all in the wastes again.
>It’s deathly silent, not even a wind is blowing.
>You get a hold of your bearings for a moment and begin to look.
>After a moment, you catch them.
>Anon’s footprints.
>After a bit of sniffing, you manage to get just a bit of his scent.
>You head out, your friends following you.
>They don’t even question why you have such a good sense of smell.
>You’d spent days memorizing Anon’s scent.
>You knew it better than you knew your own.
>Normally you’d use Twilight’s magic to track him, but Anon wasn’t from this world, so he didn’t leave a signature.
>At most he’d leave a small trail from his clothes, but Twilight couldn’t track that little.
>It would just mix in with the rest of the residual magic.
>Whatever that meant; Twilight tended to yammer on with her explanations.
>You walk for what feels like ages.
>Twilight and Rarity use their magic to keep everyone at a stable temperature.
>Twilight keeps most of the group and herself at just above room temperature.
>Rarity keeps herself at just below.
>You stop following the tracks after a moment.
>The smell has gotten faint.
>There’s too many other smells mingling in with them.
>You don’t know any other smells that well, so you aren’t sure what it is.
>Rainbow Dash suddenly flies down from where she was looking out for signs of Anon.
>”You guys won’t believe what I just saw. Follow me!”
>She leads the way, going the same way you were following Anon’s scent.
>After a few minutes, you see it.
>A massive mountain in the middle of the wastes.
>It’s filled with holes.
>You hear Twilight gasp behind you.
>You hear a loud buzzing; the sun has begun to set.
>A black cloud bursts from the mountain, filling the sky and making an early night.
>”The Changeling Hive…” Twilight whispers behind you.
>The cloud churns for a moment, and then part of it splits off.
>It zooms towards your group.
>Rarity screams, and Twilight yells for everyone to get close.
>A burst of purple later, and you’re back in Ponyville.
>Without any preparation time, the teleport dazes you.
>Twilight recovers first.
>”Fluttershy… Anon’s tracks were faint, but he was headed towards the hive…”
>You begin to hyperventilate.
>This wasn’t part of the plan.
>You were supposed to save Anon.
>He was going to love you.
>He wasn’t meant to get himself killed by the Changelings.
>You hear a sniffle behind you.
>Rainbow Dash is starting to cry.
>Her, of all ponies, is crying first?
>You follow suit, and soon all six of you are weeping.
>Twilight sits down hard.
>”I… I didn’t want him to die. I just wanted him gone from where he could cause harm… and now…”
>She sobs.
>”I… I betrayed him…” Rainbow Dash whispers.
>Before anyone can tell her otherwise, she flies off, leaving a streak of rainbow behind her.
 
>You are Anon.
>You’ve woken up to knocking on the door.
>Greg shifts besides you, still asleep.
>…
>Oh shit!
>You nudge Greg in the side.
>He mumbles.
“Wake up, Greg! Someone’s here!”
>Greg’s eyes open, and he stares at you for a moment.
>His eyes widen as he realizes what you just said, and he quickly turns into a chair.
>You leave him in the corner and open the door.
>It’s… Gilda?
“Uh, hello Gilda. What brings you here?”
>Gilda snorts.
>”Don’t get so chummy with me, Ape. I’m just here to escort you to the council.”
>She turns around and walks away.
>You suppose you’re meant to follow her.
>You rub your eyes and jog after her.
>You make your way through the city in silence.
>The sun has barely risen, and the merchants in the bazaar are only just setting up their wares.
>Wait, the bazaar wasn’t on the way to the council room last time you checked.
>After a bit, you realize where you are.
>You’re in the silver part of the city.
>Gilda is starting to look nervous.
>What’s going on here?
>You open your mouth to ask, but suddenly you’re jumped.
>Several claws pin you to the ground.
>Your face is pushed down, and you can’t see anything.
>You feel a weight push down on you, and hot breath caresses your neck.
>”Human, Ape, I don’t care what you are. All I care about is whether or not you are a spy.”
>Your blood runs cold at the voice.
>Gareth.
>You try to crane your neck to look up.
>You see Gilda looking at you.
>She almost looks… sad.
>A claw pushes your head back down into the dirt.
>”Don and Abban may be so inclined to allow every suspicious creature into our city, but they are not tasked with its defence. I will do anything it takes to keep our people safe.”
>The weight lifts, and you’re lifted up to your knees.
>A large brazier is in front of you.
>A claw is clasped around your bald head, piercing the skin.
>You resist the urge to cry out.
>Gareth’s voice returns.
>”There’s one thing I know about changelings. It’s that they hate fire. Oh sure, they have their green flames for effect, but it is cold as ice.”
>”They hate it so much, that they have troubles maintaining their transformations under high levels of heat.”
>Oh no.
>”I can’t risk leaving you alone in my city to wreak havoc. We will find out if you are changeling or not, right here, right now.”
>With that, you feel the claw begin to push your face towards the fire.
>You try to cry for help, but a second claw grips you around your neck, cutting off your windpipe.
>You close your eyes against the heat.
>You push against the claw, but it’s much stronger than you.
>After a moment, your exhaustion catches up with you.
>You lose all your resistance at once, and the claw pushes your face straight into the fire.
>There’s no hair to lose this time.
>Your mouth opens uselessly to scream as you feel your skin char.
>This only makes the flame enter your body another way, and you feel your throat burn.
>The claw pulls you back quickly, but the damage is done.
>”So, you were telling the truth. Welcome to My City, Anonymous. Gilda! Take him to Don’s hospital. Tell him he had a mishap and fell into a brazier.”
>The claws let go of your head and throat, and you gasp in a breath.
>It stings your throat, but at least you can breathe again.
>Gareth leans in behind you again.
>”Now Anon, don’t tell anyone about this. I do this for my people. Don and Abban would not understand the burden of protection I bear. If I am thrown from the council, the city will come to ruin, and I will have been right all along about you.”
>His voice lowers to a whisper.
>”And if you destroy my city, I will destroy you. You can count on this.”
>You try to nod, but the pain of moving your head is too much.
>The other claws release your arms.
>You black out before you hit the ground.
 
>You wake up to darkness.
>You can’t see anything.
>You feel some kind of bandages on your face.
>You try to move, but your body refuses to listen.
>You hear a girl’s voice whisper beside you.
>”I’m sorry”.
>You fall back asleep.
 
End