Chrysalis and Twilight ran as quick as they could to where they heard the sound. Smoke was everywhere, and changelings descended on the scene, picking up a limp Fluttershy from the ground. Both Chrysalis and Twilight coughed hard from the smoke.
"This smoke…it's different!" Chrysalis said as she began to lose her grip on reality. She began to see things. She saw Sombra taking over Equestria. She saw everypony who retaliated against him die. She saw a war…without end.
"Chrysalis! Chrysalis, snap out of it!" Twilight said as she shook the changeling queen up. When she awoke the smoke had cleared, and all the changelings from before were gone.
"What…what happened?" Chrysalis asked. Twilight nodded her head when she gestured over to Fluttershy, who lay on the ground limply. It seemed as though the pegasus was lifeless. Chrysalis walked over to Fluttershy and gritted her teeth.
"They took Fluttershy," Chrysalis said sadly. Twilight gasped.
"But she's right here!"
"This is but a changeling. Show your true form, traitorous servant," The queen demanded. At that, magic surrounded the pegasus and it transformed back to the changeling it was before. It hissed and Chrysalis used her magic to trap it in midair.
"Speak now and I might spare you,"
"Chrysalis-"
"Hush, Twilight. Tell me, fool. What is my ex up to?"
The changeling hissed and chuckled.
"Sombra is going to take over Equestria! There's nothing you can do to stop him. He'll rip the foundations of ponies' minds and make them his loyal, good-for-nothing servants. He'll kill you and your little new friend there as well," It said evilly, a hiss with each word. Chrysalis threw the changeling hard into a thorn bush and took him out roughly.
"That's not what I asked. What is he up to? Why did he take Fluttershy?"
"They can talk?" Twilight gasped. Chrysalis looked back, and Twilight sheepishly giggled. "Right. Hush. Sorry,"
"Now where was I? Oh, yes? Answer those questions and I might spare you," Chrysalis said with a hiss in her voice.
"You used to be strong. Now you're weak. Even if you had the power of every princess on your side with friendship you couldn't beat him,"
Chrysalis hissed angrily at the changeling and used magic to pin it to a tree. She used her magic to create green fire that surrounded and spread slowly to him.
"Answer me or die!"
"I'd rather stay quiet and leave the rest to you,"
"Chrysalis, this is going to too far! Don't kill him!" Twilight shouted. Chrysalis turned angrily to Twilight.
"Aren't you mad that he took your best friend?! Fluttershy was the first I had and they took her from me! My own kind turned on me! He's less than a problem after I kill him!"
"That's true. I may be mad, but I'm not angry enough to force somepony to death for answers! It's not worth it! You're doing what they want you to do! You said you were stronger…prove you're stronger than him! Don't kill him! The one that shows mercy is stronger than the one that kills recklessly!"
Chrysalis realized Twilight was right. With a single flash of her horn, everything returned to normal. The thorns making the changeling bleed slowly disappeared, and he fell to the soft grass.
"Well done…for a stupid queen," The changeling smirked.
"Argh!" Chrysalis angrily shouted. She shot a magic that put him in a bubble. He was moving his mouth, but nopony heard a thing. The changeling queen sighed and turned to Twilight.
"You don't have to be upset. You just did the right thing,"
"I want to know why they took Fluttershy…I need to know,"
***
Fluttershy awoke slowly. She felt so tired. Her limbs had fallen asleep, and the world was spinning around her. She felt heat rush to her face, like she was hanging upside down, or on top of a volcano. When she opened her eyes wide, she gasped.
"Oh, dear," Fluttershy found herself hanging on top of a lava-filled pit. She screamed and hollered. "Please, no! No, no, no! I don't want to die, please! Somepony help!"
"Nopony is going to come save you…at least with my evil black fog surrounding this castle," A stallion voice said with an evil chuckle. Fluttershy looked to see none other than King Sombra, ancient evil king of the Crystal Kingdom. Changelings filled the entire area like ponies at a stadium.
"You're a real meanie for betraying your own wife!"
"Thanks. I take that as a compliment. It's not easy trying to trick somepony into being your fool,"
"Why did you take me? It has to be more than just…" Fluttershy gulped and whimpered. "Killing me," Fluttershy whispered terrified. Sombra laughed.
"You're smarter than you look. You pose as my greatest threat. Your mind doesn't work the same as other ponies. Instead of your mind being lost and destroyed by my fog…something else happens. You lose your memory, little by little. It intrigues me really, because even though you might forget who you are, you can still retaliate against me,"
A changeling hit Sombra's hoof.
"I don't think she can fight you or pose a threat, sir. She's…I don't know. She seems like a wimp to me,"
Sombra laughed wildly.
"My servant here says you don't look like you pose a threat! Take him and kill him, would you boys?"
"W-what? No!"
Five changelings grabbed a part of him and flew out a window. They hissed as they left.
"You're just a big meanie! Who kills their own servants?"
"I kill them if they aren't of use. After all, there's just so many more of them than this. There's thousands of them now, thanks to Chrysalis. So as I was saying, you pose a threat. Even though you may be a wimp now, there will come a time when you truly forget who you are, and you will have the will to retaliate against me for seeing how I'm such an evil ruler,"
Fluttershy gasped and gritted her teeth.
He did not just call me a wimp! I'll show him and use the stare!
"I. Am. Not. A. WIMP!" Fluttershy angrily used the stare on Sombra, who couldn't look away. Fluttershy's stare immediately took effect, and Sombra gulped. Her stare had new skills, and it made Sombra stumble back to a button that unlocked the chains on Fluttershy. Changelings angrily flew up at her, and she smirked.
"Just try getting me!" Fluttershy felt fear leave her, as she no longer knew what it was. Sombra was right…her memory of fear was gone. Fluttershy used her stare at the wide radius she was at, and slowly made her way to the nearest window.
"That's right! Now attack your leader!"
At that, a magic wave burst, sending several changelings out the windows and made them hit the floor hard. Sombra let out a burst of magic at Fluttershy and she gasped. The world became black to her as she stopped flapping her wings and fell to the ground with a thud. Sombra walked up to her and gritted his teeth.
"I guess you are more trouble…but there has to be a way to use you…maybe killing you isn't the way to go,"