Today's writing: Changeling Space Program (Patreon)

Well, I've wrestled with it for weeks, and I have to admit it: it's time to start over.

I'd originally intended this chapter of CSP to have only one scene from the viewpoint of Chrysalis. Unfortunately, that version of the chapter just doesn't want to write. The pacing is off, and the motivations don't come through properly from the eyes of other characters.

So, starting over, with Chryssy front and center (as she would insist is right and proper).

* * * * * * * 

Changeling Space Program

by Kris Overstreet

Chapter 17: Mission 23 - The Snack Supplies May Be Starting to Run a Little Low

Contrary to popular belief, leaders do not usually walk in front of absolutely everyone else. A truly important ruler has guards and majordomos to precede them, announce their arrival, and ensure that any attack will be, at the least, slowed down. As a general rule they walk in the middle of a large swarm of subordinates, not to say underlings, at an unhurried, unruffled pace. 

Chrysalis had known this since she was a nymph, and yet she had to grip on to that fact with a bite of steel just to allow two of her bodyguards to precede her into the administration building. She'd been pulled out of simulations on the last day for them- less than forty-eight hours before the pony launched for the moon-orbit test flight Mission Twenty-three- at the request of her fiercest, most despised rival. 

Request? Summons is more like it, she thought. Typical pony princess behavior, throwing a wrench into our preparations when we're on the back hoof, trying to guarantee her victory! The thought put more quick into her quickstep, forcing Cherry Berry and  the rest of the prime and backup crews for CSP-23(461) almost to a trot to keep pace. 

The launch of Amicitas and the successful test of the Chickadee lander and the refueling ship had given notice to the Changeling Space Program that their lead in the space race was gone. Taking Amicitas into lunar orbit had only confirmed the Equestrian Space Agency's lead. Within two weeks of that pink monstrosity's return to Equus, it would be ready for a new launch... and that meant Chrysalis had that amount of time to see the test flight completed and the final landing mission launched, or else almost two years of scheming would go up in smoke. The last thing she wanted was any delays- especially Twilight Sparkle induced delays.

The drones guarding the main Administration doors snapped to a trembling attention and saluted snappily as Chrysalis approached.(462) The guards preceding her went through the doors without looking back, and Chrysalis followed, paying no attention as the footsteps behind her sharply reduced in number after a murmur from Cherry. After all, she and the pony had been the only one summoned(463); no need for all the others to crowd into the room.

The guards led the way to the main conference room, which had two more changeling guards flanking it. Chrysalis allowed herself a brief snort at the sight; had protocol been followed, there should have been two pony guards present as well. Sparkle doesn't even understand how to behave within her station, she thought. Weakness.

Then she and the pony were through the door and into the conference room, where Twilight Sparkle sat, looking nervous and worried, on the other side of the main table. Chrysalis took a seat across from her, paying no mind as Cherry found a chair next to her. The door behind them shut, the guards withdrawing to wait outside.

 "Well, little princess, you know we have a launch in two days' time,"  the queen snarled, not bothering with any greeting.  "Yet you come here saying it's an  emergency and you have to see us at once, pulling us out of vital  simulator work."  She leaned forward in her chair and nailed Twilight Sparkle with her most imperious glare.  "So make it good." 

Twilight Sparkle didn't flinch. She stared back at Chrysalis with pleading eyes and said simply,  "We have a pony stranded in orbit around the moon." 

Chrysalis blinked. She hadn't paid close attention to ESA Flight Thirteen, settling for the daily news briefings and an occasional dose of padded headlines which counted as so-called "television news". And today in particular she'd spent all day in simulations, watching Cherry and her crew two-thirds of the time, leading her own crew the other third. But nothing in anything she'd read or heard had hinted at something as horrible as this happening to the ponies. 

 "One of the refueling valves malfunctioned earlier today," Twilight continued. "It probably got damaged days ago during the orbital refueling we did. Anyway, the valve wasn't properly capped after refueling, not that cap would have held under pressure anyway. It leaked  fuel into the mid-deck, and in the process the loss of pressure caused  the engines to malfunction. They lost power until they eventually flamed out, and the remaining fuel either vented through the pumps or into the  compartment." Twilight's voice squeaked a little as she got to the end,  and she stopped, swallowed, and got her composure back before continuing, "We have a stable orbit, but the ship has zero fuel, zero oxidizer, and not enough power in the thrusters to break orbit and  return home before food supplies run out." 

A quiet noise squeaked out of Cherry Berry, and Chrysalis, her own head spinning slightly, leapt into the gap before the pony could say something either foolish or soppy.(464)  "You had better fill us in on the details," she said in a brisk, sober voice. "How many days of food does Rainbow Dash have left?" 

"At full rations, nineteen days, not counting today," Twilight Sparkle said. "After the multiple rescues your space program performed back in spring, we doubled down on packing food supplies for emergencies. Rainbow launched with a thirty days's supply. But we don't have the rocket parts we need-"

"We'll come back to that," Chrysalis interrupted, raising a hoof. "Your steering rockets-"

"Maneuvering thrusters," Cherry muttered.

"Reaction control system," Twilight muttered at the same time.

"Whatever." Chrysalis dismissed the interruptions with a flip of the hoof. "As I understood it, they're rechargeable, just like the spacesuit thrusters. How long would it take to get home on those?"

Twilight shook her head. "The current generation of RCS batteries require time to recharge," she said. "We're still working on batteries efficient enough to provide steady thrust. With the weight of Amicitas and the thrusters on board, we can't do better than twenty meters per second of delta-V per day. It would take thirty-two days to escape the moon's gravitational sphere of influence, and then even more to drop our periapsis down to Equus atmosphere."

"What about the get-out-and-push thing?" Chrysalis asked. "Like Cherry Berry did."

"Rainbow Dash wouldn't even get half a meter per second of delta-V by getting out and pushing," Twilight said. "We already did the math. Three pushes in twenty-four hours, about 1.3 meters per second total. It might shave about two days total off the return flight. That's still longer than Dash has, even on half rations."

"I see," Chrysalis said, nodding her head in understanding. "And so, with one of your closest friends- and, might I add, one of the mares most vital for the defense of Equestria from people like me," she added, unable to prevent her fangs from showing as she said the last three words, "in horrible danger, you have come to us for aid." She put on her most judicious fascade, steepling her forehooves together. "What, specifically, can we do for you, princess?"

"All we need are some rocket components," Twilight Sparkle said quickly. "I have a list here, but the main items we need are a probe core, some fuel tanks, and a couple of Swivel engines. If we get those in ten days, we can launch-"

"Are you CRAZY?" That was Cherry Berry's voice, and Chrysalis couldn't help flinching at the outburst. "Anything could happen in that time! And we're going up there ourselves with a ship big enough to haul Rainbow Dash back!"

Chrysalis heard in her head what the pony's next sentence would be. No. No, no, no, NO. Think fast-

Twilight's eyes widened. "But won't that-"

In three seconds Chrysalis had split the difference between analyze all the options and I need something right the buck now and decided on action. "It won't be any trouble at all!" she said loudly, cutting off all possible words from both that pony and her pony. "We can perform the rescue as part of our shakedown flight. We won't even need to change the rocket!" A hoof struck the table as the queen finished, "In fact, I shall personally fly the mission and guarantee the safe return of Rainbow Dash!"

"That's righ- whaaaaa?" 

Chrysalis felt Cherry's head snap round to look directly at her for the first time in the conference. She herself kept her eyes on Twilight Sparkle. Calm, poised, in control, that was the look she wanted. 

"Now hang on just a-"

"After all," Chrysalis continued, reaching a hoof to the side to firmly push Cherry back in her chair, "the Changeling Space Program is the preeminent organization where it comes to in-space rescues!  And we have a reputation to uphold!"

"Actually, I'd prefer Cherry to fly the rescue, if you don't mind," Twilight said quietly. "In fact I was going to ask her to help with-"

"Oh, no, I insist," Chrysalis said hurriedly. "After all, Cherry will be needed to fly our actual moon landing. And besides," she added, deciding it was safe to drop the persiflage and pretend to admit the truth, "if the pony flies a rescue mission for another pony, the world will see it as one pony rescuing another. For the sake of my children," she concluded firmly(465), "I must insist that the Changeling Space Program be seen as doing its duty, in the eyes of the world, for fellow astromares in distress."

 The purple princess's eyes went from pleading to thinking, then to resolve. Despite herself, Chrysalis approved; firmness was a trait you wanted to see in rulers, even enemy rulers. "I understand your point," she said quietly. "But if you're going, then I have to go too. Because otherwise everypony will think you've replaced Rainbow Dash with a changeling."

"Oh, really?" Chrysalis asked, raising an eye ridge. "I don't remember seeing you in any of the joint astronaut training exercises. To the best of my knowledge, you went up in Flight Eleven on less than a week's total training if that. How do I know you won't be dead weight on the flight, princess?"

"I know every system on Amicitas nosecone to tailfin," Twilight replied, not giving an inch. "I designed the flight systems in your EVA packs, the locking seals on the helmets, the life support systems. I created the spacewalk training systems themselves. And I designed the docking system you're going to need to link up with Amicitas when we get to the moon!" She leaned forward over the table, eyes locked on Chrysalis. "Plus I know every aspect of space flight theory just as well as Dr. Goddard and Dr. von Brawn. I've studied all their work cover to cover and applied it to my space program. There is no pony more likely to be useful to you on a rescue flight than me."

"Ahem."

"No offense, Cherry," Twilight added quickly, "but it's true. I was wrong about not accepting you as a pilot, but I'm not wrong about this."

"So you're a scientist and an engineer," Chrysalis drawled. "Which is all well and good on the ground. But will you know what to do in an emergency? In a space capsule? With deadly vacuum outside and nothing but your wits and a few switches inside? A pony who panics at the first drop of a flower petal has no business in space, princess."

It was Twilight's turn to raise an eyebrow. "I think," she said quietly, "that the list of enemies I've defeated over the years speaks to that. I'm no filly anymore, Chrysalis." She rested her forehooves on the table and leaned a little farther forwards. "And I am going. I am going to see my friend rescued for myself, and you're not going to stop me."

Chrysalis let the expression of intent pass by like a bullfighter dodging a charge(466). "Stop you?" she said, smiling broadly. "Why, dear princess, we are here to help! Nothing could be further from our minds than hindering in any way the rescue of Rainbow Dash! After all, what fate is more horrible than being stranded in space, all alone? And who truly understands that aside from astromares?"

The expression of confusion on Twilight Sparkle's face that followed warmed what passed for Chrysalis's heart. Good, good, she thought. Let the enemy be confused. 

"But now that the key point has been decided," she continued, "I believe we should take a short recess. You will need time to prepare a detailed briefing on what we need to know for the rescue. And my chief pilot and I," she said, putting a hoof on the trembling shoulder of a pink pony ready to explode at any moment, "need to assess the changes we will need to make in our flight program to include the rescue."

"Er... thank you," Twilight said, "but I already have some briefing-"

Chrysalis arose from her chair, giving Cherry a subtle hint by pulling back the pony's chair a little with her magic. "Guard!" The door swung open, and one of the space center guards poked his head in. "Twilight Sparkle is to have run of the space center," she continued. "Remain with her and see to it she has everything she requires. We will reconvene here in..." She glanced at the clock above the wall. "Well, it's just time for lunch now anyway, isn't it? Two hours. We'll meet back here in two hours. Until then, princess!"

The door shut behind her and Cherry Berry, and instantly the pony's mouth was wagging. "What the sun-forsaken BUCK do you mean-"

"Outside," Chrysalis said, drawing the pony's mouth shut again with a brief flash of magic. 

Footnote:

(461) Prime crew: Cherry Berry commanding; Leonid the yak, backup pilot; Dragonfly, engineer. Backup crew: Chrysalis commanding; Fireball the dragon, backup pilot; Gordon the griffon, engineer.

(462) Under most circumstances fear makes people stupid. In certain select cases, however, fear is an effective reminder to people that now is the time to be extremely careful and correct in everything they do. It only took a moment's glance at Chrysalis's face for the door guards to realize this was one of those times. It didn't hurt that the guards, like all changelings selected for duty in the space program, were significantly more intelligent than the average changeling... but it didn't take much brains to know that getting your head literally bitten off by an angry changeling queen would not look good on a resume.

(463) Twilight had only asked to speak to Cherry Berry about an emergency. Chrysalis hadn't been asked for. Chrysalis knew this, but she felt that she should have been asked, and therefore she would act as if she had been, just to demonstrate to Twilight Sparkle that she wouldn't permit anyone to go behind her back. That was how you started sprouting daggers, after all.

(464) If Chrysalis had known what a Venn diagram even was, she would have had the field marked "soppy" as a circle entirely enclosed within "foolish".

(465) "For my children" was a lie that, for all the many times she'd used it, never failed to weaken pony resolve. Chrysalis did things for herself, like a true queen should. If the rest of the hive benefited that was a happy bonus, but she wouldn't hesitate to feed every last one of them into a woodchipper if it advanced her ends. After all, the hive was hers, her possession. If the ponies wanted to make more of her reasonable interest in the well-being of her primary asset, well, she'd keep using that tool until it broke.

(466) Bullfighting is indeed a sport in Equestria, though it is more popular in other lands around Equus. Unlike the brutal and senseless so-called sport known on less civilized worlds, Equestrian bullfighting does not involve bladed weapons of any kind. Even the bull's horns (minotaur or bovine) are covered to prevent accidental goring. Instead the sport is one of agility versus endurance, pony skill versus bovine strength, as each opponent seeks to hurl the other out of the bullring. Bulls are famed for the number of ponies they can throw out before they tire out and leave themselves vulnerable to a well-timed kick or jiu jitsu throw, while ponies are considered heroes even for taking on a bull casco a pata, let alone winning.

Cherry Berry steamed as she walked out into the middle of the space center complex beside Chrysalis. Only the fact that she really didn't want Twilight Sparkle to see her lose her temper again had kept her mouth shut in the conference room. Now that resolve was being aided by a soft but very firm magical grip keeping her jaw shut. That was fine by Cherry: it gave her time to pick which bad words she was going to use first. 

Because she was just about ready to use them all.

"Right," Chrysalis said, stopping at a point almost equidistant from all the other buildings in the space center but well off the walkways connecting them. "Let's get this over with."

The magical grip released, and Cherry opened her mouth wide, taking a deep breath. "Now you listen here, you-"

"No, you listen here, pony." Chrysalis said firmly. "You heard everything I did in there. All Twilight Sparkle wanted was some rocket parts so she could conduct the rescue herself. Rainbow Dash would probably have been just fine cooling her hooves for two weeks waiting for her ride home. And that ride home would have left the pony spaceship abandoned, in orbit, around the moon, while we had a wide open road to victory in the space race. Sparkle was ready to accept all of that, pony." The changeling queen bent her head down, lizard eyes glaring into Cherry's with a stare designed to inspire mortal fear. "And then you opened your big mouth and threw all of it away."

The stare might have worked on Cherry three years before. Here and now, she'd been around Chrysalis too long(467) for it to work on her. "Things happen in space," she said, putting as much snarl into her squeaky voice as she could. "And we agreed that I call the shots on anything space-related. How dare you take my flight away from me-"

"We also agreed," Chrysalis interrupted again, "that you would keep out of political affairs. And you have skirted that line once or twice, as you well know. Well, this is political now, pony. This is me salvaging some sort of advantage out of your monumental well-intentioned blunder."

"It is NOT a blunder to help a pony in distress!!"

"You could have helped by rushing their parts order!" Chrysalis snapped. "You could probably have even given them a Mark 2 capsule, and I would have put up with it! I would have been seriously annoyed, but that's nothing compared to how I feel right now!"

"But we are able to help, here and now!" Cherry insisted, pawing the ground. Even in her anger she knew that was dangerous- a pony openly challenging a changeling queen- but she didn't care. "And you cannot possibly tell me that you really think, in the privacy of your own head, that you're a better pilot than me!"

"I am as good a pilot as you," Chrysalis said, which part of Cherry supposed would be as close as the queen would ever allow herself to admitting Cherry's point. "But as I said in there, you are not a changeling. And I want Twilight Sparkle in my debt, pony. I want something I can hold over her. And, by extension, Celestia as well."

"The Mark 2 isn't flight-tested," Cherry said. "I fly all experimental ships."

"Not this one," Chrysalis said. 

"You're breaking our deal!!"

Chrysalis narrowed her eyes. "Consider your next words very carefully, Cherry Berry," she hissed. "For purposes of publicity I have to fly to the moon with a pink pony. Whether it is the real pink pony is still up to my discretion."

The words you wouldn't dare died on Cherry's lips. Chrysalis absolutely would dare. To be honest, a moment's reflection made her wonder why she hadn't made the swap long, long ago. A second moment's reflection brought the answer. "You're not going to do that," she said quietly. "Because you really want me to fly that ship."

"I would prefer you to fly Mission Twenty-four," Chrysalis corrected. "If circumstances force me to do otherwise... I will be mildly disappointed. But I will still fly. Do I make myself clear?"

"I think so." Cherry didn't like it, but she understood. "Now explain to me why it absolutely has to be you."

Chrysalis rolled her eyes. "Didn't you listen to what I've been telling you, pony?" she snapped. "Twilight Sparkle is a princess of Equestria. If she'd actually thought for a moment, she could have legally ordered you to fly her rescue mission. She has that power, legally, do you understand? She wouldn't owe you anything. Not favors, not respect, nothing. It would be expected of you- by her, by Celestia, by the world!

"But nobody expects anything good of changelings, do they? If you fly the rescue it's normal. But if I fly the rescue it's something special. It's a gesture of trust. Of generosity. It. Is. A. FAVOR." Chrysalis settled on her haunches and looked at Cherry, no longer glaring or intimidating, almost on an equal basis with her. "If we were both ponies there would be no question of taking your flight away. But we're not. And that difference is why I have to fly."

Cherry thought about this. On the one hoof, it was such a selfish point of view that she very nearly couldn't understand it. But on the other... this wasn't just Chrysalis wanting to fly for her own glory, was it? This was about all changelings. This was about a feared species proving itself worthy- as it would probably have to do for many years to come. Put that way, she could almost accept the reasoning.

But she couldn't leave it at that. "I know you're still plotting something."

Chrysalis gave a snort of laughter. "When am I not plotting something, pony?" she asked.

"Well, I'm pretty sure you're not plotting anything when you're reading those trashy romance novels."

"Figure of speech, pony."

"And I'm pretty sure you weren't plotting anything on that first spacewalk of yours," Cherry continued. "I remember how you looked on the screen when you were scrabbling to get back into the ship."

"Point made, pony."

"And then there was your first actual flight," Cherry pressed on. "I'll never forget the look on your face when-"

"Drop it right now," Chrysalis said, "and that's a royal command."

"Fine," Cherry said, and she dropped all of it. "So, let's figure out where this leaves Mission Twenty-three, hm?" She waved a hoof at the astromare center and added, "By the way, not it for telling Leonid and Dragonfly they're not going up."

Footnote:

(467) Or, some outside observers would say, not remotely long enough.