previously: >>937185
 
“In terms of cultural achievement in the underground world beneath the Badland desert, none could parallel the attainment of the Hive-Kingdom Venusia, or so it claims. It lies on the plains to the south, by the north shore of the Lake Cortina. At center of the hive-kingdom was the city of Rhine, the Shining Pearl of the Under-realms, where southern most side of the city etches on the shore of the lake. A series of open magma ducts on its west shore let loose a constant flow of scorching lava flows into the lake body, heating up the surface water while fresh, cold water well up in gushes from the bottomless abyss underneath the lake. This created an appearance of roiling turbulent on the surface hence giving its name yet the water itself does not scorch flesh. As a result, the water had long been rich in sulfur and minerals, thus becoming a hotbed for microbes. This organic soup in turn coursed through the plains in the lake’s out-flowing river, nourishing an overabundance of fungal life, setting the foundation for civilization. For generations, changelings of this hive cultivated stalk fungi and fruit bodies in farms and plantations of these fertile plains, and tamed underground beasts to harvest meat, hide and precious pheromone extract. Centuries of relative stability created a hive flourishing in art and culture.
 
Like their cousins in other parts of the Under-realms, changelings of this hive-kingdom is too marked with a distinct anatomical feature. Generations after generations, they worked the land, sowing spore and sweat. Many types of flora and fauna were reigned in and domesticated as sources of food and types of spices, including a specie of fungus that are purple in color and spicy in taste. In wilderness, they grew in massive colonies on the plains, and would release all their spores in unison every summer. The massive cloud, mixed with seasonal mist rising from the Lake Cortina, would produce a hazy violet mist that could cloak the plains for weeks, creating a beautiful spectacle when viewed from afar and a natural barrier against any forces of incursion from outside the hive-kingdom. A volatile specie in nature, and coupled with the extreme adaptivity of changeling biology, it resulted in a curious symbiotic fusion years of cultivation and consumption of this fungus, while living and breathing in its spore mist, had melded the spores with the flesh and blood of this hive-kingdom’s denizens, eventually reflected in very visible traits on their bodies. Under the jaws of every changeling, a sac of skin grew, forming a reservoir for the spore, from whence it traverse through their veins and arteries; the skin of their cheeks splintered into gill-like folds that filtered every breath, withholding and releasing spores for a stable bodily concentration; and in moments of danger, they were able to spew out a cloud of spicy spore from the ducts beneath their tongues, clogging their enemy’s vision and send them gasping for breath. To outsiders, this fungus may simply be a volatile spice, but to the denizens of Hive-Kingdom Venusia, it had became their lifeblood. Honoring its importance, they named the spore Venusium, after their hive-kingdom. Any changelings of this hive-kingdom has to ingest Venusium on regular basis in order not to waste away in a slow and painful illness. Because of this, many that reside outside the boundary of Venusia wear a muzzle-mask specially designed to deliver Venusium stored in detachable canisters efficiently into their bodies, while visitors from the outside would wear the same type of mask, sans canisters, to filter the air in order not to constantly cough and gag. Like many things, the mask had long been incorporated into their clothing as a part of fashion statement.
 
The royal family of this Hive-Kingdom Venusia is well-known perhaps notoriously for its penchant for luxury and decadence. Its lavish lifestyle, the result of years of stability that cultivated a rather hedonistic view on life, had became the admiration and pursuit among the rich and the noble. This created an ever-growing appetite for arts and crafts, and in its long line of power the royal family and the noble houses granted generous patronage for many brilliant artists and artisan. The current monarch, Queen Miasma, pushed the royal family’s lavish even further by building up an impressive collection of beautifully designed and carefully crafted clothing articles, and is steadfast on her way to lead the fashion trend of the Under-realms. Although Queen Miasma has a reputation for being extremely vain and is lacking the true sparks of genius of a great artist, nevertheless she is a genuine patron of the arts and culture, while being a skilled diplomat and charismatic leader who could traverse the often hectic and even toxic political climate of the hive-kingdom with ease. She would often draft her policies with an emphasis on culture development ,catering to the interests of many artist communities, while still be able to appease the common and salt-of-the-earth. As such, the city or Rhine is truly an amazement of grandiose and splendor, its dark marble sculptures and bas-relief the envy of all Under-realms, even that of Metamorphium, and its Royal Academy for Arts and Literature with its corresponding gallery produces the finest artists and craftsmen of hive-kingdoms, and one of the best among the worlds above and blow.
 
Queen Miasma herself had a warm personal relation with Queen Chrysalis of the Hive-Kingdom Metamorphium. It is said the latter often visit her to discuss not only the important matters of governance, but also culture of the arts and trends of fashion, sometimes showing affections to her like that from an elder sister, or even borderline maternal love. Despite close ties between the two monarchs, many more cynical voices expressed doubts to Queen Miasma’s warmth. Some believes so that it is only because she quietly feared the military might of Hive-Kingdom Metamorphium, which all it did during the Unification was simply marching itself onto the field before the city Rhine and brought Venusia into the fold, and at the same time using her charm and diplomat skill for favors, securing a bigger wedge from the multiple trade agreements with Equestra that was spearheaded by Queen Chrysalis.
 
It is rumored that Queen Miasma played a pivotal role in the management of the changeling network in Equestria. After all, those gorgeous articles of dresses no one had ever seen before could not simply be invented over night, no matter how talented the artists of the hive-kingdom were; and the network’s low profile and continued existence was the largely the result of spies and charasmatic diplomats-in-disguise who were so very familiar with Equestria’s culture and whose handling was exquisite and subtle in its political affairs, not to mention the many rare artifact from the lands above, both arcane and of high artistic value, that kept flowing into the royal coffer as well as around the Under-realms’ markets for the luxury and the shady, well after the treaties for dismantling the network had came in effect. It seems that after all, one’s nature is hard to change, even for a changeling.
 
Contrary to the common stereotypes, many Venusians are hard working farmers, miners and humble laborers their hive-kingdom was founded upon agriculture and its bountiful harvest. However due to their unique physiology, only the relatively wealthy would have a chance to step out of their natural habitat, thus creating the common perception of rich and decadence.
 
Common stereotypes: A rich but generous merchant of spice and luxury goods, a decadent and borderline hedonistic poet or painter, a meticulous mistress of a chateau and its plantations, or a sculptor who is proud of her works. Every single one of them is dressed to impress.”
 
Tl;dr: an entire race of shape-shifting, love-draining, hedonistic Rarity.
 
Next, aquatic changelings of Queen Myxine’s domain.  
>>985594