Aisede

For Rose's credit, the greatest reaction she had to the sudden threat was a widening of the eyes. That was fast, faster than her own reflexes without alchemical enhancement at least. And here Rose was thinking they'd become great friends. Well... This was work, so she supposed friendship wasn't mandatory. She could have probably been more courteous, too. She let her curiosity get the best of her, and that cat has been killed more times than she can count. Maybe that's why, though? Still... Best not to offend her a third time. She'd rather have Hou as a neutral acquaintance than a hostile one. "Oh!" She snapped back to, banishing her musings for now to focus on the matter at hoof. "I've never been royalty, and don't go by those titles. 'Queen' is for aristocrats, I am but a humble scientist." Smiling, she sat down, but similarly chose not to drink. "And I must apologize for my... Less than appropriate antics, it's just been a very long time since I've encountered anything new or exciting." When you live as long as they have, life tends to get a bit dull. "Anyways, the purpose I have called you here is twofold: one-" she gestured between them, and two cases of four vials each appeared in the accompanying space. "A formula I have devised that will, in practice, eliminate the harmful effects of aging. It elongates the telomerase at the end of chromosomes, amongst other things. I'm currently in the process of acquiring the appropriate connections to make it a... 'service.'" she didn't sound too happy about this, frowning down at the cure to old age like it had personally offended her. Rose really was not in-tune with modern politics.

It was another productive day at the spa. One of Rose's sims was tending shop while the mare herself helped Aloe around the workplace. It'd probably gained a bit more attention after that kelpie came by, but otherwise it was business as usual. Right now, however, was downtime. The time to clean, eat, and prepare for the rest of the day until closing. The nascant queen herself was twirling a blue collar around in her aura with a contemplative expression as she inspected the bathtub usually used for mudbaths. It was just so... Strange to her, even after all this time. Why mud? Why not literally any other viscuous substance? "I wonder... What would happen if we had a pet?" Closing one eye, she lowered it until it framed Aloe through the center. Rose smirked. "Or do we even need one?" Rose's horn flashed, and suddenly Aloe had a lovely pair of floppy dog ears. This seemed to amuse the mare.

Rose was stunned. She couldn't believe that Aloe was acting so calm about this... Rose was a monster, even if she changed colors when she arrived. A bit shakily, she returned the embrace. She was shivering, and wasn't sure she could maintain her hold on the wheel and dedicate her attention to the pony at the same time. **** it. The ship wasn't going anywhere, and neither was her double. Aloe deserved all of her attention, and she gave it, wholeheartedly, "No." She hugged her tighter- perhaps too tight. She couldn't let her go. Not now, not ever. "No! You'll live forever, with me, side by side. We'll be together until the last light draws from this plane, and beyond that!" Aloe could feel something wet drip onto her shoulder, and Rose sniffled. "I did it, Aloe... Heh... I actually did it!" Pulling back, she beamed at the disbeliever. Perhaps Aloe could see a glimmer of the madness that took her former self in that moment, as she held her by her shoulders. "I DID find a cure, Aloe! I held it in my hoof- the cure to age, to illness, to death! It was perfect, my magnum opus!" She started to chuckle, and then devolved into full on laughter. This didn't last for long, however, as that dissolved into a sobbing fit. Rose hugged herself, practically fraying at the edges. "And that's... t-that's when it all went so wrong. Everything just went so wrong! I could save him, but he didn't accept it. He refused an eternity with me like... like it was nothing. Like living with death was preferable to living with me. It didn't make sense!" "And then... he died..." There was an odd feeling to the air, now. Nothing overtly magical, but... a feeling, bleeding out of her in droves. Rose tended to 'feedback' her emotions at times, and this seemed to be one of those moments. "I could have saved him... I can save you, too."

"What I was looking for..." Rose, for perhaps the first time since Aloe had met her, sounded truly lost in that moment. Her eyes glazed over as she thought on it, and in the haze of corrupted memories she couldn't really give a straight answer. There was only one thing that could suffice, though. "Immortality." She spoke the word without passion. "Before I met you, before I came to this world free from the malignant force that gripped the mind of my former self, I fell in love with a colt. His name was John Dough, and he was a simple pony. The son of a baker. I met him soon after my adoptive father passed, and in his kindness, I grew to enjoy his company. His laugh, his eyes... " She trailed off. "... I couldn't lose him. I couldn't lose another pony in my life. And it wasn't just a matter of increasing his lifespan- a long lived pony is nothing compared to the relative eternity that is the life of a queen. No, I had to make him truly immortal. We would be together... Forever." The way she said 'forever' would send chills down the spine of even the most hardcore guards. It was a word tainted by ill-deeds and manic need... She sighed, letting that invisible tension go slack before she continued. "My intentions were noble enough in the beginning. During my crusade I would share my findings with the world. No creature deserves to suffer through the pain of loss just because of something as trivial as time or the inefficieny of nature. Creatures deserved to live long, happy lives. As long as they wanted. That was the goal." "But... Something went wrong. I can't say where, or when, or how. I commandeered the ship I had been raised on- when I first left [port], and used it to gather resources for trade. Maybe I could use them to find the answer? To create the cure for mortality. It quickly became apparent, however, that I would need to explore less... Legal options to aquire the regeants I needed. It started small, and then... I don't know. A mania gripped my mind. It was no longer about curing everyone- I needed him to live. I needed him by my side. With every passing day, my fear grew and grew- the fear that, at any moment, I may lose him. I may be too late." "That's when I became the the Scourge of The West. Scylla, The Pirate Queen. I killed and plundered, stole and lied. I would dominate the seas if It meant safer waters for me and my beloved. Nothing would stand in my way..." She was quiet for a moment as she let this all sink in, looking back over her shoulder to make sure Aloe was listening and not gaping at her in mute horror.

Rose perked up as she sensed the spatial disturbance, turning an interested gaze upon the emerging pony. She had to admit, seeing her all geared up was enough to make her arch a brow, but she suspected that she was treating this as an 'emergency', so it made sense. Rose never really had a need for equipment, not to mention she wasn't very knowledgeable on runes or enchantments that don't sustain something. "Well hello, Hou, or should I call you Jade?" She shook her head, putting down her teacup (Filled with rum), and rising to her hooves to greet her guest. "You're just in time! I was about to reveal a new alchemical formula to my acquaintance here, Mr. Shooting Star." She gestured towards the unicorn... If that's what he wanted to go by. Honestly, she wasn't sure what to make of him, but decided not to comment. "Oh! What is that?" Curiously, the mare brazenly approached the mare to study the archaic purple weapon, horn already flickering with her favorite analytical spell. "Hmm... Unique forging methods, probably not extraplanar... Oh, also you may be using your soul magic a little inefficiently. It'd be better to poke a hole and teleport through it. Conserves mass and energy." Mentally, she shrugged. That's just how she'd go about it, but Hou probably knew what she was doing.

"My, you're an inquisitive one ~" the voice purred. "Think for a moment," a light flickered to life in the distance, growing closer by the moment. As it did, it swirled and coalesced into a pale sphere- a familiar one, at that. "The answer will come to you." Suddenly, the sphere 'blinked' and a white, glowing eye was staring directly at her. "Or are you looking for a hand me out like that little friend of yours? Such an impressionable youth, and yet all you care about are your artifacts."

At this correction, Rose turned her attention to the small mare by Niilavin's side. Her expression could best be described as 'clinical curiosity' as she studied her form, posture, and emotive state. Namely, she finally paid some modicum of attention to how she felt towards the sphinx, and realized that no other creature could possibly be a fit. The Mayor sure didn't feel this strongly towards Niilavin, although... She did have to wonder if she'd still be up for a transformation. She also noticed that there was some kind of spell linking Bluebelle and the sphinx. Subtly, she analyzed the magic while the two secretly conversed, filing it away for future study. "A true homunculus has no need for external energy. They generate, process, and expel energy at the same rate as the creature they are based on." She turned a disapproving frown on the ignorant little pony. "I should know, I am a homunculus myself, possessing all the magic and memories of my predesessor. Well... Most of the magic. The original Rose turned herself into a lich- but I digress," she waved a hoof as if to dispell that topic. "We do not need a link for the sort of transferral I have in mind. The living spirit of a pony can be manipulated much the same way as the very magic in the air. For instance, I could remove your soul and place it within a hermetically sealed jar while still keeping your body alive. In the same avenue, I could transplant it into, say, an empty vessel." Finally slowing down, she took a moment to process what he said last. "Although I suppose you do have a point regarding permanency. Enbarr, dear, do you wish for this change to be permanent or temporary?"

Rose hummed in thought, watching the sails, the lake, and Aloe herself. She trotted away at some point, hooking her hooves over the railing of the ship's rear and gazing back the way they came. "How about you think of something? You definitely deserve a reward if you're able to pick this up." Absently, she reached for the astrolabe around her neck, clutching it in her hoof as they rode the waves. Aloe was no Tail Wind, but she did try. "Aloe... I've told you about my former life as a captain, right? I used to sail the seas, me and my crew, searching for... Searching for something very important. Do you ever wonder what it is I did? Where it was I went? If you have any questions, you can ask them." There's little else to do out there. She still kept things interesting for Aloe, though; anytime Rose felt they were getting a bit too comfortable, she'd suddenly and sporadically change the wind's direction, forcing the earth pony to keep on her hooftips.

Rose at least had the decency to look properly offended by Niilavin's comment, but took it in stride. Creatures like him are commonplace where she grew up, so she knew how to handle him. "For your information, Mr. Niilavin, I have made strides to bring much good to Equestria. The preservation and propogation of life has always been my chiefest concern." It seemed that this was the time for a proper appraisal, aided, of course, by a more in-depth scan. She initiated the spell without much of any warning, undaunted by the magical beast, and shifted her attention to Windwright as it went about its invisible work. "Rose Compass, also an alchemist. Former captain, too." She smiled a little nostalgically. "And I've actually already formulated a few solutions to this problem. It's hardly as daunting a challenge as you may presume: I have two propositions, in fact; one," she raised a hoof. "We create an artificial host body using Niilavin as a template, deactivate the male sex chromosomes during conception, and then transfer the Mayor's consciousness into the body. It won't truly be her own body, however, which may cause her some distress. It would also severely limit the gene pool, and may potentially cause... Complications in later generations." She mused on this aloud, looking off into the distance. "The second option is to use true transformation- as in, a spell, potentially aided by an alchemical catalyst, but by and large initiated by magic and not alchemy. Both options require a genetic sample from Niil here." By then, if it hadn't been interrupted, the scan should have completed. She leveled a scrutinizing look on the sphinx.

Her reflection giggled- an odd sound coming from her own voice, no doubt- and then, without warning, suddenly seized her forelegs and yanked her forward. It was like diving headfirst into a pool, only there was no splash. No ripple. Just a sudden sense of vertigo as the warped gravity reasserted itself. Her reflection had vanished in-between the transition, but her echoing humor could still be heard. "Where is a good question, but I have one better: why?"

It hadn't been long since the good Mayor had tasked her with the arguably possible task of reviving a species from functional extinction that Rose began to prepare her labs and supplies. She had a plan, a clear idea in mind, and she wouldn't need much more than a basic genetic sample from the sphinx to begin her work- specifically, she needed access to his sex chromosomes and a basic sample of DNA. Once she had those, she could begin reconstructing the organism as a ponunculus. There, she figured, she could go one of two routes- spiritual transplant, or true transformation. Luckily, Rose was a pretty decent mage, so she could make it work. With this in mind, she'd appear in traditional spontaneous fashion mere feet away from the Arch chancellor, parallel Windwright, saddled with her regular alchemy saddlebags just incase. "Good afternoon ~" She'd greet him... Her... Cordially, a light of interest sparking upon recognizing what had happened to the prince. "Fascinating... " With a flick of her horn, she gave the genderbent pony a rudimentary scan. "Hmm... Not how I'd go about gender change, but it appears to work for the most part. How is everybody this fine day?" Casually, she'd hoof over the note the Mayor gave her.

As soon as she left the bed, it vanished. Not immidiately, in a puff of smoke or anything. It was a more discreet disappearance, the kind that makes you question if it was ever there to begin with. One moment it was real and present, and then, as soon as her attention was off of it- nothing. It was gone... Gone... The thought felt invasive, but that shouldn't be her most pressing concern: there was something... Off about her reflection. Wait, reflection? Had the floor always been this reflective? There, just below her hooves, was a perfect copy of herself. If she dared, they'd meet gazes. Her reversed doppleganger would mirror her every move. And then it blinked, and suddenly she had diamond eyes... And a slightly disquieting grin. "Well hello there ~"

The spells were a little resistant to tampering, but nothing beyond his ability to toy with. Luckily, he wouldn't be waiting for long. He could feel her coming before she even arrived, like a mouse racing through a funnel, before she spilled out of a spell that had actually managed to stay hidden. She could have teleported the regular way, but she liked showing off, and this also made it more difficult to track her for outsiders. "Good evening, Mr. Star." She inclined her head, smiling cordially as she took a seat. "Thank you for coming. We should have one more arrival on the way, but in the meantime..." Her horn flashed, and a tea set appeared between them. Ironically, she summoned a bottle of Luna Rosa for herself and poured some into her own dainty cup. "I've discovered a new breed of zap apple in a temple some distance from here. Naturally, I experimented with it a little, and even tried making tea out of the leaves. It's surprisingly mellow for what it comes from." she took a sip

"Giant squid," Rose corrected. "And don't forget that that's also me out there." As if to prove her point, a single large tentacle roughly as tall as her ketch was long rose out of the water to wave at her, before returning below the rippling surface to continue its leisurely cruise. "A real kraken would have snapped this boat in half in one moment, then swallowed it in the next. Usually you just avoid them if you can, or try to kill it before it kills you." She explained this as if it were the most normal thing in the world, idly scanning the horizon for any more vessels. None so far. Good. "Anyways, steering a vessel in a straight line isn't always an option. The winds have a will of their own, and they can turn against you at a moment's notice." Just like that, the wind left her sails, and Aloe found her momentum quickly bleeding off. The squid moved, slowly, farther away... But not too far. Not yet. "Now, I want you to go with the wind, but still try to follow the squid. If you lose sight of it, you lose." A grin slowly formed on her lips. "And you know what happens when you lose ~ the squid gets you." She chuckled at this, and the wind began to blow to the east. She could feel the wind pressure against her side, trying to dislodge her from her spot. Although Rose kind of acted like a windbreaker. "Wind will never lead you straight to your destination, but that doesn't mean you can't get there with some patience. Give it a go, follow the currents and don't let that sea monster out of your sight!" She gave Aloe a good slap on the rear to drive the point home, as if she were some coach pony who needed encouragement.

It felt like forever since she invited Dox to her secret lab so many months ago. Since then, Rose had found love, created life, and made friends with the most powerful being in this world. She'd made a lot of progress as a pony, and no negligible amount of progress on her alchemy. She was sure that ponies would appreciate what she had to contribute to the communities of the world. But that's not the purpose of this expirement. This is for something a little more... Selfish. She'd contacted Dox about a week back, sending him some magical mail explaining that she had something of great importance she wished to share with him, and to keep the meeting private. It was someplace innocuous, and out of the way. Someplace in Technotitlan that the natives had long ago forsaken. She still hadn't arrived yet, but her magic perfused the place extensively. Some kind of spell to keep it hidden from prying eyes, and resistant to scrying. She really did want this to be private. Coincadentally, she also burned that copper stuff Hou gave her.

Rose paused and raised a hoof, summoning a sphere of regular water that hovered just above it. Her horn flashed, and the sphere took on a greenish glow for a couple seconds before returning to austerity. When she dropped it onto her hoof, it retained a perfectly spherical shape, albeit warming like a ball as it rolled around. "It's a spell that'll prevent you from being assimilated by liquids, or evaporate. It's temporary, though, and you may find it an unusual experience."

Rose graciously accepted the note, glancing over its contents before porting it away to a safe location. "Ah, the lucky stallion." She bowed her head, adopting a more formal tone. "It will be done." There was a beat of silence, and Rose promptly decided that, yes, attempting to elongate her time here would become decidedly awkward. Turning back into a regular unicorn, she righted herself, gracing the pinkish pony with a small smile. "It has been a pleasure conversing with you, Mayor Rich. I look forward to our next meeting, for there are still topics I wish to broach. They are not pressing matters, though, and I am aware that ponies other than myself seek your time today." Then, just for laughs, she summoned a tricorn hat and tipped it to the mare. "Good day ~" Energy gathered at the tip of her horn, but she paused just before teleporting away. "Oh, and this should go without saying, but if you experience any adverse affects of the potion I implore you to seek me out at my shop. I'll be able to fix anything that goes wrong, but I'm fairly confident nothing will." And then she was gone.

Rose snorted. "It'll catch you... When we're through with the basics, at least." She took a moment to simply study Aloe's posture, gauged the wind, and track the massive shadow carving an easily followed path of ripples in the water. "Y'know, funny thing, this is actually probably the third time I've been on a ketch. I know how to steer it because it's a basic model for a sailboat, but in my past life, I only ever had eyes for my beloved Luna's Rose." She breathed out softly as she was transported back to the past, her gaze a thousand miles away from where they were. "It was called the Queen's Ketch, and belonged to a rival changeling queen inhabiting Port Málaga. She got the bright idea to open a brothel, exchanging pleasure for love. It was very clever of her."

A tall task for any mundane mortal, perhaps, but not for the greatest alchemist to ever live. "I see," she said with some warmth in her tone, smiling. "You're right to assume this is more challenging than a temperary transformation, but it's definitely not beyond my ability to accomplish. I will, however, need genetic samples and time. Sphinxes don't exist where I come from," or, rather, she was never aware of them. "So I'll need to gain a firm understanding of their anatomy first." She paused after this, eyes narrowing in thought as she brought a hoof up to her chin. "Maintaining that form long enough to come to term will also present unique challenges... It'd probably be easier to use true transformation, and then turn you back whenever you choose."

Rose blinked at that, pleasantly surprised by both the inquiry and the denial of her offer. She was just so used to ponies agreeing to whatever she proposed that a pony actually turning down an offer was a rather novel experience. Still, it wouldn't set her back any, so she banished the orb. "Funny you would ask that. As it so happens, I do happen to be an expert in that field." Suddenly, she was engulfed in turquoise flames and re-emerged as a classical unicorn. Not much of a transformation, but enough of a change to get her point across. "And that expertise extends past my own proficiency." "I would request extra details, however." That vague jocular tone of hers was quick to give way to something more business-like. If the Mayor wanted something, she'd need to be specific. "Alchemy is, after all, changing one thing into another. I could change your appearance- coat color, eye color, supernatural aura, etcetera. Or, what seems to be the more popular option, I could turn you into another species entirely... Albeit temperarily. I have one potion that turns you into a sea-pony that Aloe enjoys quite a lot, but the thing about potions is that they wear off given time." "Minutes, hours, days, months," she rolled her hoof. "Anyways, yes, I am quite proficient in transformation. Whether I'm turning a pony into a shark or a tree. Or a rock this one time. And a talking one at that, funny story ~"

News of this sea's taming was certainly new to Rose. But, then, everything was new to her. This world was so much more peaceful than her own, at times it's easy to forget she's even in a world like her own. Or time? Whatever Rose Prime did, it probably involved both. Weather control? Rose snorted at the mere notion, having transformed into some kind of orange serpent- before changing back to her original form. "The only control you should be exerting over weather is the wind itself. It's bad luck to spite the spirit of the sea." Grinning, she suddenly turned into a many-fanged sea creature of some kind. Or else it'll get ya! This time, she turned into her sea-pony self after hearing Twilight's confirmation. Balancing on her tail, she clapped her hooves in delight. "Excellent! Perhaps we will find a sunken ship, or lost artifacts of an ancient society!" With a flash of her horn, a flask appeared between her hooves, its purpose obvious once Rose asked her next question. "Oh, should I use the spell or are we just diving out the porthole? It's so much fun to dive from great heights, and with my potions, I don't have to worry about breaking every bone in my body!"

Well, somepony sure was excited about the future. One benefit of being a changeling: you know exactly how a pony feels. Mayor Rich would feel a blossoming warmth within her that only lasted a couple seconds, accompanied by a rather bitter aftertaste. "I actually already operate out of a potion shop. Rose Compass's Cure-All's And Curios." She chuckled. "I also dabble in enchantment and artifacts, but they're secondary to alchemy for me." "I have managed to created functional automata before, though, incase you ever need an assistant that never tires or complains ~" Judging by the humored look on her face, she wasn't entirely serious. About the suggestion, of course. "But I digress. I'll see about setting up a private practice and do my homework on Equestrian government. Thank you for your advice." Bowing her head, she made the appropriate show of appreciation. "Oh! I had one final topic I wished to broach, but before that..." Raising her hoof again, a dark green sphere roughly the size of a tennis bass materialized upon her frog. "There's a spell I've been expirementing with. It's meant to be autonomous and, in time, be able to cast spells on the users behalf. However, right now its only function is to gather data and feed this information back to the user. Put simply, it needs experience. To learn. Mind giving it a whirl?"

"Not much," she'd respond. Narrowing her eyes, a little bit of magic to enhance her sight let her see the distant form of no the land bordering this admittedly modest lake. It might as well be an ocean to a sailboat, however. Especially a ketch. Peeking up, she got an idea. Without warning, she promptly duplicated herself. The copy grinned and threw a foreleg over Aloe's back as Rose prime summoned a bottle and downed the contents in a single shot. "Ah! This will be fun." She laughed (almost maniacally) before leaping into the waters. If Aloe bothered to look over the side, she'd see a distant flash of greenish-blue that seemed to light up the lake itself. Then... A large, foreboding shadow. When it moved, she could feel it dragging the currents behind it, rocking her boat just a little. Not enough to be worrying, but still enough to move it. The shadow moved ahead of the ship, a ripple of water tracking it from the surface of the water. "Hehe," Rose-from-her-side giggled. "You would not beleive how many a sailor mistook a giant squid for a kraken. Trust me when I say the latter are much larger than they imagine. Now, let's try to follow her ~"

Rose nodded along excitedly. She didn't really react any differently than if she'd met a regular hoof when greeting her- she'd seen far odder things- do there was that. "Yes, right this way!" Oh, this was going to be such an educational experience. "Oh, would you like something that will help you stay a little more... Sure of shape?" Subtly, barely more than a flick of light, she'd scan the strange being to get a better idea of her composition. It shouldn't be too hard to allow her to keep her shape in bodies of water or... Mud. Like a watery layer of skin.

Rose snorted, raising her nose up at the mare. "I can assure you, no mortal of this realm can achieve my results." She was just as quick to revert to a more humble façade, however. "But I do understand. Start off small, and work my way up from there." Glancing down at the bottom, without so much as a gesture it vanished in a dim flash of light, and was replaced by four carefully measured vials arranged in a row. The label had been readjusted to fit them- courtesy of a replicate taking heed of the Mayor's advice. "I'm afraid I am still quite unfamiliar with Equestria's legal system, however. The only government mare I know to any significant degree is Twilight, and I'd hate to bother her over something so trifle." That's not to say she wouldn't bother her over it, though. "Where I come from, medical practices are also more... Archaic, in comparison to your own. Apothecaries are common, and the majority of medicinal practices are tied to the Church."