Chapter 25: Fall
“A mask tells us more than a face.”
― Oscar Wilde
“So let us go over this one more time…”
In my gold-colored magic, I lifted the lengthy scroll of paper that represented one of the greatest diplomatic achievements in my tenure as Equestria’s Princess. Luna, Cadance, Blueblood, Chrysalis, Simulacris, and Belladonna all listened as I read through every term, every article. It was the final, private meeting between the Equestrians and Changeling Queens, where we’d vote on whether to accept the treaty. Thus, no guards were present and the room was locked and sound-proofed, so the voting on whether to accept the treaty would be done in complete privacy and confidentiality. The only methods of communication to the outside world we had were the queens’ link to their hives outside and my scroll-sending magic.
There had been a lot of haggling, a lot of bargaining, endless discussions and debates, but also a lot of compromises, agreements, and constant nodding. The result, the First Equestrian-Changeling Non-Aggression Pact, was completed. The complex articles could not all be directly enforced, but they laid down a dialogue that would exist forevermore between my sisters’ hives and Equestria .
Most of the articles dealt with when and how a changeling could collect love and wear a disguise. For example, changelings would have the right to wear disguises inside Equestria’s borders, but all of the pact’s queens must inform the Equestrian government of the number and living location of every changeling living outside a hive. Changelings living in Equestria or otherwise collecting love would be given special visas that they could show to prove they were registered.
Changelings could collect love in disguise, but they were forbidden from causing emotional distress to ponies and, if caught doing so, faced severe punishment under Equestrian law. Ponies on the other hoof were not allowed to hurt or kill a changeling except in self-defense, and instead would be expected to treat changelings that produced a visa as they would any other foreign national. Changelings that did not wear the badge could be reported for misdemeanor, but no harm was to come to them unless it came in self-defense.
Changelings were also allowed to work for Equestrian employers and organizations as long as they registered themselves with our government. In return, all Equestrian organizations were mandated to treat changelings fairly. An overseeing committee of changelings and ponies was to be set up to facilitate this monitoring and take complaints. The same body would also encourage workplace integration between changelings and ponies. I was already seeing the potential for changelings in the entertainment and fashion industries.
Several of the articles also dealt with damage compensation. Chrysalis agreed to a public apology and to pay reparations for the damage she did to Canterlot. In return, Equestria was providing counselling for ponies affected by the changeling attack on Canterlot and would spearhead the funding of all changeling integration measures and programs that were mandated in the treaty. I also promised to cover and reimburse my sisters for the damage their hive members had suffered from Equestria First and their “changeling-hunts,” which covered Lamia’s medical treatment and prosthetics. And, after a rather fierce debate, we had convinced Belladonna that she needed to pay Chrysalis reparations, not for inadvertently causing Chrysalis to attack Canterlot, but for the damage the Shadow Empire had done to Chrysalis’s infiltrators and love supply. While provoked, even Belladonna, though rather reluctantly, came to agree that there were other channels she could have used to seek justice.
Speaking of Equestria First, the Royal Guard and the Royal Equestrian Intelligence and Naval Service had arrested most of the organization’s members. Not including the roughly one-hundred and sixty militia members, thirty enlisted military ponies, and ten non-commissioned officers that had been either captured or killed at the battle, the organization had composed of an additional fifty commissioned and non-commissioned military officers, a hundred enlisted members of the military and almost three hundred civilian and militia members. Despite the numbers, this was but a miniscule percentage of the total Equestrian military establishment, confirming Shining Armor’s initial assessment. There were still a few members of the organization on the loose, but law enforcement officers were closing in, and the many that had given themselves up were providing valuable information.
What they had told my officers was surprising. Equestria First had been formed as a sort of clandestine movement of non-commissioned officers who wanted to set Equestria on a course to become the strongest nation in the world. However, the clandestine nature of the club as well as its too-wide agenda had attracted more fanatical elements who usurped the movement, and allowed it to spread beyond the non-commissioned officer membership to include extreme civilian political groups. These more fanatical elements had been the ones leading, orchestrating, and volunteering for the attacks. Most of the original members had left as those fanatic elements entered the organization, but there were a few that remained out of fear. Once the usurpers had achieved a majority in the Equestria First, they had enforced their rule with a massive internal “self-disciplining” mission that had taken place throughout a single evening. It had used tactics had ranged from “social visits” to plain and simple murder. The frightened few that remained were the ones who had turned themselves in to the authorities after most of the extremists had been subdued.
Thank the hive mothers that I had managed to make sure the Non-Aggression Pact left the sentencing of these ponies not to the Equestrian court, but to a special tribunal of Equestrian military and changeling chevaliers operating under a specific set of clauses. This solution had been the only way to satisfy Chrysalis and Simulacris, while working with Equestria’s existing judicial practices. This way the truly innocent would be sorted from the guilty. Most of the serious cases would pay some form of compensation to the changelings, and would be removed to secure and state-of-the-art facilities that would try to counsel and deal with their root social and psychological problems, as well as keep them away from the changelings they tried to harm. The other less serious ones, or those who actually regretted their actions, would likely be assigned community service duties linked to the changeling integration programs, which would serve to help these ponies acclimatize to changeling presence.
But the greatest achievement of the non-aggression pact was the fact that it created a firmly-worded peace between my adopted country and my sisters’ hives. To do this, the treaty had to first recognize that the hives in Equestria were independent sovereign bodies. There were a few kinks to be worked out as to whether the hives owned the land they were established upon or whether Equestria did. For now, the temporary agreement was that the hives were currently borrowing the lands they had been established upon. We had all sworn off any military action against each other and my sisters had agreed to establish embassies at Canterlot, which would allow communication between myself and their hives in times of crisis and of peace. The diplomat for Chrysalis’s hive would be Cyndra.
“Are we all in agreement?” I asked my sisters.
Belladonna nodded, smiling. “Yes.”
Simulacris glanced over her copy of the document and nodded as well. “It is in order.”
I turned to Chrysalis who continued to read her copy. For a moment, my smile wavered.
Chrysalis hadn’t been angry at me. In fact, she’d been extremely grateful that I saved her life, and had thanked me several times over the past few days. I knew, though, that she was suspicious of how I had convinced Belladonna and Simulacris. Yet she wasn’t giving me a single clue as to how wary she was of me. She merely held herself back.
Speaking of Chrysalis, she’d been understandably furious at Belladonna. The two hadn’t spoken to each other outside of the treaty-making process, and it often fell to myself or Simulacris to act as the go-between. As much as it pained me, I told myself that the wounds they inflicted on each other would eventually heal through time.
To my relief, Chrysalis placed her copy on the table and nodded. “We agree to these terms,” she said.
Luna, who was sitting beside me, nodded serenely. “Excellent. The Equestrian delegation agrees to the terms of the treaty, unanimously.”
“I declare the First Equestrian-Changeling Non-Aggression Pact drafted and ready for signing,” I announced, placing the scroll onto the table. There was a small patter of tired but relieved clapping.
Cadance spoke up, a clipboard in her magical grasp. “There will be a public ceremony in Canterlot where the treaty shall be signed. Queen Chrysalis will read her apology there, and then the signing will commence. After that, there will be a brief reception at Canterlot Castle, and then after that, you can leave after your embassies are chosen.”
“I am assuming we are travelling together?” asked Simulacris.
This time it was Blueblood who nodded. “Yes. Equestria will provide a special train from Baltimare to Canterlot. It will leave in a week.”
“But in the meantime…” I grinned and got up from my seat. “I think this calls for a small celebration.”
I trotted toward the nearby cabinet in the meeting room and unlocked it with my magic. Opening it, I produced a sealed bottle of wine and enough glasses for those seated at the table and placed them on the table. Simulacris narrowed her eyes as she studied the bottle.
“Gryphonian white wine…May I?” I indicated with my hoof that she could examine the bottle and she did, lifting it to the light of the window, while reading off the label. As she came to the name of the vineyard and date, her jaw dropping open and she gasped. “By the Great Mothers! How did you come by this jewel?”
“It’s a bottle of wine, Simulacris,” said Belladonna in a slightly snarky tone.
Chrysalis gently took the bottle from Simulacris and her eyes widened. “Not any bottle of wine. A 901 Gryphonian Elmo’s Fire Riesling!”
I couldn’t help but grin a bit as Belladonna’s sarcastic smirk vanished and she stared at me. “You’ve got to be kidding me. That wine was only produced on the banks of the Cokorado River in Gryphonia, which has been dried up for a hundred years! It’s said to have a kick like fire, but a silky texture as ephemeral as a ghost! How the blazes did you get your hooves on something like this A— Celestia?” I glared at Belladonna who coughed apologetically. Yes, sister, it was a once-in-a-lifetime bottle of wine, but it didn’t mean you had to almost drop my identity! Luckily, Chrysalis hadn’t caught that, since she was too shocked at the treasure she held.
“Every time I conclude a major treaty the signatories usually grant me a gift. A bottle of wine was the traditional gift. In return, I’d serve the signatories with the wine their predecessors granted me, usually something that I kept for a long while.” I uncorked the bottle and poured an equal amount of the pale white-green liquid into each glass. Taking a small sniff from my glass to savor the scent, I raised it in a toast.
“As we all know, though, there has been no treaty between changelings and ponies in the history of our races. This bottle of wine is one of the last of its kind, but it cannot compare to the import of what we have achieved today.” I paused, glancing at my glass to see the white-coated features of my mask reflecting back at me. “Perhaps the effort that took us to this point will be forgotten, but know this: your actions have laid a new, more peaceful course for the future. Thank you all.”
My sisters, both adopted and biological, as well as Cadance and Blueblood, paused for a solemn moment, then raised their glasses as well. “Here's to that,” said Belladonna, clinking her glass against mine.
“You really do enjoy waxing poetic, Celestia,” said Simulacris.
Chrysalis tapped her glass against mine, a slight nod her only reply. I guess that would have to do. I raised my glass to my lips and took a sip.
It really did taste as good as I had thought it would. It caressed my tongue with subtle flavours, all brought together by a warm, fiery note characteristic of this wine.
“A most excellent beverage, sister. I know this is a rare delicacy, but do you have more?” asked Luna, smacking her lips.
I chuckled. “I’m afraid that was the only one of two bottles I have, and there are only fifty or so left in the world. So you’re going to have to wait for perhaps a couple hundred years before I open its brother.”
“By the way, Princess Celestia, I have heard that you put love into my daughter’s pancakes. In light of the occasion, would you mind obliging this queen a small snack?” asked Chrysalis, raising her glass.
I shrugged. Why not? Pointing my horn at Chrysalis’s glass, I zapped the wineglass with my magic. Although it was a changeling spell, my crown’s enchantments disguised the color of the spell and the love-transfer. Chrysalis’s eyes widened momentarily, and she examined the glass for a second, before taking a sip.
It was then that I noticed Luna, Cadance, Simulacris and Belladonna staring at me wide-eyed with worry. I wanted to ask them why, but I continued to smile.
“Hmm. So it is true,” said Chrysalis, setting down her glass, her eyes half-lidded, as if she was mulling over something.
“What is it, Queen Chrysalis?” I asked, wondering why the attitudes of my sisters had changed so suddenly.
“Did you know, Celestia, what makes a changeling queen different from a normal changeling?” asked Chrysalis
I frowned. “The ability to communicate with the hive, stronger magical and physical strength, and the crown antenna, amongst other things. Why do you ask?”
Chrysalis took another sip from her glass, swirling the wine within it in a slow, laconic fashion as she explained. “When they were created by the Allmother, The first duties of the Great Hive Mothers, the first changeling queens, were to guard the changeling young. To protect them and contact the rest of the hive when they were in danger, and also to feed them. But love cannot be stored inside a changeling’s body for long before the changeling ingests it, so the queens were granted a unique and ingenious ability.”
Dread slammed into my body with the weight of a fully loaded freight train. Oh no.
“The Allmother granted the changeling queens the ability to transfer love into solid objects like food. It is an ability only changeling queens have.” Chrysalis set her glass on the table softly, but the sound stretched through the silent room.
Oh horsefeathers. How in my mother’s name had I forgotten this? Now that I had been told, I vaguely remembered learning about this fact. Chamelia was very thorough in her teachings, after all. Yet somehow I never actually remembered it. I wracked my memory for an answer, but I couldn’t recall it, try as I might. Why couldn’t I...
The answer hit me and I nearly swore aloud. Even in hibernation, Celestia was still causing trouble for me. Or at least her bleeding memory was.
I’ve mentioned to Twilight that on occasion I’d have trouble sorting out my memories from Celestia’s, and it manifested itself with Luna when I recalled her mother’s name. The problems that come with sharing Celestia’s memories are incredibly inconsistent and I’ve tried various solutions to deal with them. Howevr, the only solution that had ever worked was to mentally organize them using mental exercises, meditation, magical mental blocks, and repression.
A changeling queen is essentially immortal as long as they receive a substantial amount of love, but while their brain and mental capacity develops to handle the extra memories… mine also had an extra millennium of Celestia’s memories. I could give a thorough explanation about mental-magical power and brain development, but basically, ever since I took Celestia’s place I’ve always had too many memories for the brain I had, forcing me to compensate.
So when sorting my memories, I had resorted to purposefully repressing some of them, both my own and Celestia’s, storing them away.
The fact that only changeling queens were biologically capable of transferring love into solid objects must have been one of the memories I repressed. It was such a mere clarifying point to the fact that queens could transfer love from living beings that I must have locked it away, thinking I would never need to remember it
And now it was biting me in the flank. Hard.
Chrysalis slowly swirled the wine in her glass. “If I follow this logic out, Princess Celestia, I arrive to an answer that fits very nicely to what I have learned about you during this treaty-making process.” She placed her glass down and crossed her hooves.
“Are you a changeling queen?”
The conference table was silent as my sister and I met each other’s gazes. I wanted to run, to flee from the room, and my hooves were planted firmly against the table and floor in case I wanted to do so. Yet, that same fear held me still.
Luna slammed her glass on the table. She did it in such a natural fashion that for a moment, I thought it would convince Chrysalis. “What you are suggesting is preposterous! We would know if our own sister was a changeling queen!” Inwardly, I thanked Luna for trying to maintain this charade.
Frowning, Chrysalis pursed her lips, and spoke in a considering tone. “Indeed, Your Highness, but perhaps you don’t know. Or perhaps you do know and are a changeling queen yourself.” Chrysalis narrowed her eyes. “At this point, I’m willing to believe anything if Princess Celestia herself had been replaced by a changeling, which I’m quite certain she has been.”
“That can’t be true, Queen Chrysalis. Besides, there is no evidence to indicate such a preposterous thing,” said Cadance, stammering only a bit, but I was certain Chrysalis had noticed, for she only narrowed her eyes further.
“You are wrong, Cadance. There is evidence, and there have been too many coincidences, too many near-misses, too many times where something inexplicable has happened.” Chrysalis turned to glare at me, at my hopefully emotionless features.
“Ever since you visited me in the hive, I’ve sensed an odd fear from you, a fear I cannot understand, which you choose to keep hidden from me. It was as if you were afraid of me doing something to you… maybe you were afraid that I would discover you. At the time I decided not to think on it too much, but now… You’ve always known a lot about changelings and proved to be remarkably accepting of our kind, as well as prepared for our unique cultural habits. In fact, one would say you were incredibly well-versed in our ancient traditions, but for some reason not the more recent changes to them.
“In addition, from the start of this whole crisis, you’ve also had a very good understanding of changeling abilities. I think that even without what Cyndra told you, Equestria would have been able to implement measures that would make it incredibly difficult for changelings to collect love, but you also used that knowledge to allow us to survive.
“I initially decided that you simply had a lot of exposure to changelings in the past. After all, my mother had said she was thinking of talking to you. I also foolishly accepted that you could perform a love-energy transfer spell, since Princess Cadance appeared to have performed one with Shining Armor. However, your ability to put love into foods and drink…” Chrysalis sipped her glass again and nodded as if to confirm her own theory. “I was suspicious, but initially thought it may have been a skill that we perhaps shared with alicorns, or that you developed some spell. But then you interceded for my life, and somehow convinced my sisters. My sisters, one of which recently began negotiations with Equestria, and the other who has allegedly only met you about seven hundred years ago. A meeting I suspect never happened as according to the limited information Simulacris passed on to me from Belladonna, she had been in Gryphonia giving their folk hero Warbeak an honorable demise for killing her daughter.”
My mind flip-flopped, briefly distracted from the crisis at hoof. Wait, what? Warbeak killed Belladonna’s daughter, and Belladonna had taken her revenge for it? Twilight was going to have a field day with that. I better not mention it to the Gryphonian ambassador though.
“Another final clue, my first one in fact, was that while I was being blasted out of Canterlot, I heard a telepathic scream. I thought it was a phantom or something brought by my pain, but I recalled that what I heard was… interesting. It screamed I’m sorry, Twilight!.” Chrysalis raised an eyebrow. “Now why and how would anypony close to Twilight Sparkle say that, unless she wasn’t a pony, and was a changeling about to get hit by a wall of love, and was lamenting on the fact that she was about to fail her precious student in every way possible?”
I swallowed, hard. I did not expect anybody to hear that mental scream, but apparently being hit by a love shield made me project my thoughts wider than I thought.
“I’ve thought it over long and hard, and the only possibility that fits the facts would be if she was one of my kind, a changeling queen herself,” concluded Chrysalis. She leveled a hard gaze at me, but while I forced myself to meet her gaze, I couldn’t speak a word. My mind was blank.
“Does your silence imply a yes?” asked Chrysalis.
I didn’t respond. I knew that my sister would pick up any lie I would try to tell. So I said nothing. Chrysalis sighed and closed her eyes for an instance. She opened them again, and they were... softer?
“Celestia, or whoever you are, I’m not going to tell anybody you are a queen.”
I blinked. I must have misheard something. Did Chrysalis say she would not tell anybody I was a queen?
“You saved my life after all.” Chrysalis briefly shot Belladonna a glare. “You also have done more for our races than any other pony or changeling has ever done in history. My decision to attack Canterlot was stupid, and you’ve not only saved my hive from any further reprisals, but gave me the opportunity to seek justice for the crimes committed against my hive.” Chrysalis smiled a bit. “I’m actually beyond impressed that you managed to impersonate the mighty alicorn ruler of the sun herself, and somehow get the highest ranking figures of Equestria on your side. I am in your debt.”
I was gawking. This was crazy. This was a result I could have only dreamt of happening.
But to my despair, Chrysalis didn’t stop her questioning there. After coughing into her hoof, she met my eyes again, her eyes narrowed. “What I do want are answers. An explanation for, let’s say… for why are you so protective of the ponies to the point you’d interrogate your own kind just to get more information on my hive? I assume that it was a deal that got the Equestrians on your side.” Luna and Cadance bristled at that statement, making Chrysalis swallow nervously. “Okay… maybe the situation is more complicated than I first thought, but I still want answers to that, and for why you couldn’t drop your disguise and tell me you were a queen? After all, we are of the same kind, and you did the same for my sisters.”
I glanced at Belladonna and Simulacris, praying they wouldn’t react, but they did as Chrysalis’s gaze settled on them. Belladonna had stiffened, her lips curled into a furious snarl, but her false anger wasn’t fooling anybody as her tail was swishing back and forth. Even Simulacris, who had pulled a solemn mask over her features, couldn’t completely suppress the fear she was emitting.
“Simulacris, Belladonna, what exactly aren’t you telling me?” demanded Chrysalis rising to her hooves, her eyes narrowing at my sisters, but Belladonna and Simulacris only pressed their lips together. Chrysalis glared at them for several long seconds and sighed in a dejected manner.
“Donna, Simulacris, I know… I haven’t been able to do anything quite right lately, but why can’t you trust me with this?” asked Chrysalis. My teeth clenched tighter and I could feel them grind against each other. I just couldn’t tell her! For most of my life I’ve kept my identity secret so Chrysalis would never find out. How could I tell the changeling whom I had once plotted and planned against who I really was?
“It is not our place to tell you,” said Simulacris, her tone level.
I saw Chrysalis tremble in frustration and groaned inwardly. She never did like being kept out of the loop. Not to mention that when it came to her daughters, Chrysalis would do anything for them, including seek the reason for why a changeling queen had got her own daughter to reveal hive secrets.
“But aren’t you my sisters? She is an unknown queen that has been pulling the strings behind the scenes for this entire treaty-process! I do not begrudge her for protecting her own interests as she has served mine equally well, but she has committed inexplicable acts that have affected my hive and my family, and I want an answer for them!” shouted Chrysalis. “Is that so unreasonable?”
Belladonna sighed. “It is not a question of whether we trust you or not. It is whether ‘Celestia’ trusts you, Chrysalis.”
Chrysalis, shaking her head, fell back down in her seat, hard and looked at me with exhausted eyes.
“By the Great Mothers, I’m signing your treaty, so why can’t you tell me who you are, ‘Celestia?’”
Scrambling for a reason, I spoke the first thing that came to my mind. “Forgive me, Chrysalis, but I’m not so eager to reveal my identity to a queen who stabbed her own sister in the stomach.” I swallowed. “As much as I understand your reasons for your coup, I still do not trust you enough yet to reveal my identity to you.”
Scowling, Chrysalis grunted. “Fair enough—”
Suddenly, Chrysalis’s eyes widened and she slowly turned to stare at me. A cold feeling seeped into my stomach. I realized I had said something wrong, but what did I say?
“How do you know my sister was stabbed in the stomach?” whispered Chrysalis.
I continued to silently swear at my stupidity again and again, which didn’t help with the mind-numbing terror that coursed through my veins.
“We told her,” said Simulacris quickly, but far too quickly.
Chrysalis rose to her hooves. “You’re lying, I can sense your emotions as clear as day. You…” Her head slowly turning, Chrysalis eyes passed over everybody seated at the table like a searchlight. “All of you are afraid of something. Celestia knew how my sister, Alternia was injured, and if Belladonna didn’t tell her then…”
As she reached her answer, Chrysalis shook as if she had been hit by an invisible hoof. Her eyes fixed on me, she gawked, eyes wide, and shook her head.
“No... that’s… impossible. You’re…”
Chrysalis opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She tried again, almost spitting the single word out.
“Alternia?”
The muscles in my neck were stiff as cable car wire. My eyes battling between the need to look Chrysalis in the eye with a clear and honest gaze, and the desire to turn away.
“But she’s dead. I killed her. I threw a spear right through her gut that nearly severed her spine. She would have died even if she did teleport away,” said Chrysalis, she was smiling weakly, in a vain attempt to reassure herself. I nodded along with her.
“So… why do you all look as if I’ve landed on the right answer?” whispered Chrysalis. I didn’t even had to glance at the room. Everybody was paralyzed, their expressions mixed between fear and dismay.
The room stayed frozen like a painting in the art museum for several excruciating seconds ntil I broke away from Chrysalis’s stare and slumped down into my seat. Slowly, I took my crown in my magic and set it on the table. As I did so, the magic aura changed from golden-yellow, to bright green.
“You’ve won this one, sister.” I closed my eyes and let go of my mask, allowing it to crumble into flecks of green flame.
As I opened my eyes, I heard a chair crash as Chrysalis sprang to her hooves and backed away from the table. She was blinking her eyes rapidly, hooves shaking so violently it seemed as if she was almost going to fall over. Her lips were pressed in a thin line.
For a long moment, she simply stared at me, until she managed a choked cry.
“How is this possible?”
I didn’t look up. “My teleport took me to the place where the real Celestia was fighting Nightmare Moon, and I saw her use the Elements of Harmony to banish her. She was so sorely wounded that she needed to go into a very long healing trance. We… comforted each other about our losses, and it was in my delirious state that I offhandedly suggested that a queen feeding on the love of Equestria would have enough power to raise the sun.
“Celestia seized on that idea and used her magic to keep me alive with a love transfer. She then had me take her place, forcing a copy of her own memories into my mind. In return, I was going to use the love I gained from Equestria to take my revenge on you.
“As for how I managed to get Equestria to support me? Well, as you guessed, when you attacked Canterlot, Shining Armor and Cadance’s love shield ripped my disguise away. Luckily, after some explaining, they accepted me for who I am. For what I had done for them.”
With some stupendous feat of self-control, Chrysalis managed to remain standing after all of that. Swallowing, my eldest sister shook her head.
“But… but why in Mother’s name did you save my life then? Why oblige my hive’s requests and protect us from Equestria First!” screamed Chrysalis. I winced, risking a glance at my older sister. Tears were in her shock-filled eyes, and she now grabbed the table as if it was her only lifeline.
I swallowed. “I… that was a thousand years ago, Chrysalis. And during the negotiations… I realized that… maybe Mother wouldn’t have wanted us to kill each other. That while I wanted you to face justice for your crimes, execution was not the answer. Not when I had nieces who needed their mother.” I looked at Chrysalis meaningfully. “You remember Mother’s dying smile right? Do you think she would have wanted us to kill each other?”
Chrysalis nodded her head in agreement, but her eyes narrowed at the same time. “Then why did you drag my daughter into this? Why did you force Cyndra to divulge my hive’s secrets?” roared Chrysalis, rage breaking through her confusion and shock.
I met her with a determined gaze. “The ponies are my hive, Chrysalis. I would do anything for them. Your hive at the time had nearly razed my capital, and they could have been anywhere and anyplace, ready to carry out a calculated strike on dozens of key Equestrian institutions and organizations. You know why I acted as I did. Also…” I sighed. “I didn’t know Cyndra then as well as I do now. If I was given the same decision now, I would probably choose to leave her alone.”
“Alternia… you…” Chrysalis slammed both her hooves onto the table with a sharp crack. Her head bowed and shaking back and forth, she… sobbed.
I blinked, not knowing what was going through my sister’s mind as she stood there, hoarse pants and sniffles the only sound in the room.
“Do you know what I did that day? After I killed our mother?” croaked Chrysalis.
I shook my head.
“I carried out her cremation, and then left the hive immediately. But you know what I did before all of that?” Chrysalis looked up at me, her moist eyes narrowed.
“I cried. I cried not only for our mother, but for you! For nearly three hours! I cried as I fell asleep, and the next day, when I went to your room, I cried again! It was only then I realized I couldn’t stay in that hive! Not only because of the lack of mother’s presence, but because of yours!”
I shook my head in disbelief. “But you were only jealous of my closeness with mother. So jealous you hated me to the point of wanting to kill me. You nearly did! Why would you cry for me?”
“Of course I hated you, but I loved you as well, you thick-carapaced imbecile!”
I stared, jaw hanging open, tears filling my eyes as Chrysalis screeched at me.
“You were my rival! My only equal! The one I had to strive against! Of course I was jealous of you, but you were the only one I truly respected, other than our mother! I hated you because Mother loved you more, because she died for you, because you always seemed to do better than me at everything! I wanted you defeated! But… but…”
Chrysalis bit her lip for a moment, her form trembling “I told you, didn't I? I didn’t want you to die! I didn’t actually want to kill you. That was because I loved you!”
What? I was baffled, utterly dumbfounded. The room was spinning in my mind, yet I knew my hooves were firmly on the table. Chrysalis loved me? That was why she hadn’t wanted to kill me that day? I knew she hadn't truly wanted to kill me or Mother, but to find out that it was because she actually loved me...
“How do you think it felt to realize you’ve killed two of the changelings you loved all in one day because of your own reckless, stupid plan, and your own mad temper?” whispered Chrysalis.
I didn’t know how it felt, but my brief attempt to place myself in my sister’s hooves wrenched my heart into so much agony I had to shut my eyes.
Shaking her head, Chrysalis managed a half-choked laugh. “And you were alive, all this time! Playing me like the bloody fool I was! Taking care of my hive and your own Equestria somehow! You placed Cyndra into an untenable position, and your subjects wounded Lamia… But you also looked out for and protected my daughters at the same time. Do you know how much Lamia smiles now that you gave her that leg?”
Chrysalis groaned and buried her head in her hooves, her tears still dripping onto the table.
“Alternia, just… leave, please. I don’t know if I want to hit you, or hug you. Please… you have my vote. I’m not changing it, just leave me alone.”
Not knowing what else to do, and seeing that Chrysalis had no intention of taking her hooves away from her head for a while, I stood up and turned around. Luna managed to remind me to put my crown and my disguise on, but right after that, I strode out of the room, galloped to my chambers, and locked myself in.
Chrysalis had sobbed into her hooves for so long, she felt her legs go numb. She didn’t know what to think and wasn’t sure if she was able to think. Her thoughts were a mess, jumbled beyond recognition. She couldn’t even begin to sort out her feelings. There was relief, but there was despair, and also rage. How could Alternia be alive? How could she, a changeling queen, be so… reasonable, selfless, and yet hurt her daughters so? How did their family end up in this bloody mess?
Suddenly, Simulacris’s curt tone cut through the storm gripping her mind.
“Are you out of your bloody mind, Chrysalis?” Raising her head, Chrysalis simply stared at her younger sister’s enraged features, with a blank, uncomprehending face that was still drenched with moisture. That caused Simulacris to blink, but the younger queen still scowled at her older sister.
Sitting down next to Chrysalis, Simulacris grabbed the room’s box of tissues and pushed it over. “Alternia’s alive and you just… send her away! Not only that, but after all she’s done for you, all the times she’s put up with you and compromised with you… You can’t even say thank you!”
“I…” Chrysalis groaned, grabbed a tissue from the box and wiped her eyes. “I am thankful, but… it’s just… a lot to take in.”
“Well then, take it in already! You owe Alternia that much! After all that she’s—”
Chrysalis whirled on Simulacris, her eyes flashing. “You think I don’t know how many mistakes I have made of late, Simulacris? My hive is currently at your beck and call because of my foolishness a thousand years ago. It turned out that Equestria was anything but hostile to my hive, and that their leader, my own sister who had good reason to think I hated her, only wanted peace between our species. Not to mention I am dreading the next time the changeling queens call a Queens’ Council because I know they will have me answer for all I’ve done!” Groaning, Chrysalis buried her head in her hooves. “If not for Alternia, my hive would have been at war, and I am sure that I would have lost everything.”
Letting out a long breath, Simulacris swallowed. “Alright, but can you at least tell me why you are so reluctant to forgive her?”
Simulacris found herself faced with a gimlet glare, before Chrysalis’s eyes softened. “The obvious reason is that I feel that she’s been deceiving me for all this time. That’s not the main issue though, because I understand why she did it. After all…” Chrysalis snorted bitterly. “I nearly killed her. No wonder she was so terrified of telling me. No wonder she was so afraid of even sleeping in the same room as me. I...” Chrysalis bit her lip, cutting herself off, as she remembered the sheer fear she had sensed the night she had slept in the same room as her younger sister.
The changeling almost giggled quietly, until she fell head first into the abyss. Confusion was followed by horror and then uncontrollable hysteria as every one of Chrysalis’s senses were silently, abruptly, severed. For one horrifying moment, Chrysalis saw no light, heard no sound, breathed no more, felt nothing. She was dead.
And Chrysalis flinched, the guilt welling up deep within her chest. For she knew she had traumatized her sister.
“All the more reason you should talk to her as soon as possible,” insisted Simulacris, though she did not pry further into what Chrysalis had been about to say.
Pursing her lips, Chrysalis took a deep breath. “Perhaps, but that’s not all. The thing is…. I know Alternia’s decisions were all for her ‘hive,’ for Equestria. But while doing so she has also hurt my daughters. I can’t overlook that. Especially with Cyndra.” Slowly, Chrysalis turned to her sister, a serious light in her eyes. “Simulacris, I need to talk to my daughters about this.”
Raising an eyebrow, Simulacris frowned. “And what makes you think I will just let you talk to your daughters about our sister’s greatest secret?”
Chrysalis’s gaze did not flinch. “They deserve to know the truth about their aunt. About who they have really been negotiating with, who wormed hive secrets from them, who has been protecting and looking after them.”
Simulacris’s expression did not change as she considered Chrysalis’s suggestion. Glancing at her sister, she asked, “Will it make you change your mind about Alternia?”
Closing her eyes for a second, Chrysalis opened them to reveal a new, determined gaze. “My mind is made up.” Simulacris waited, holding her breath in check.
“I know I need to ask for her forgiveness, and to forgive her.” Chrysalis winced. “Part of me doesn’t want to, but even if she doesn’t want to forgive me, I don’t want this feud to continue.” Pain and desperation flashed across Chrysalis’s features. “All of this… it hurts, Simulacris. I don’t want this to continue, but as a mother, I also need to address the pain Alternia has caused Cyndra. You understand, don’t you, sister?” asked Chrysalis, a pleading look in her eyes.
Her shoulders relaxing, Simulacris sighed and smiled. Trotting over, she placed a comforting hoof on Chrysalis’s shoulder.
“I will ask Alternia.”
Upon entering my chambers, I briefly checked to see if they were empty, and then shut the doors, locked them, and for good measure, blocked them with a closet. I didn’t want to see anyone right now. After all, why should I be comforted for this mess?
Groaning, I released my disguise and stood in front of the first reflective surface I could find, the mirror on my vanity, where every morning, servants applied makeup to maintain the appearance of the disguise that hid my actual appearance. From the shining mirror, a face stared back at me, its features miserable, eyes moist. A face that, to the growing weight in my heart, was somehow unfamiliar.
How was it possible that in spite of the near-perfect mask that I had worn for so long, I couldn’t stop this from happening? By the great hive mothers, I know Celestia’s features better than my own, and yet I made such stupid slip-ups! Perhaps I had lowered my guard because some of my sisters knew my secret… but they definitely weren’t to blame. This was all my fault.
I had been standing at the head of one of the greatest diplomatic triumphs in history, which would likely be remembered for centuries! I had finally told Belladonna and Simulacris about my secret! Chrysalis and I had reached what appeared to be a resolution. Everything had been perfect, and I had messed it up.
The crash of furniture toppling over drew my attention and I stared. Luna and Belladonna were standing in the doorway, the wardrobe knocked over, the doors’ locks broken and the doors themselves hanging slightly off of their hinges.
Luna was the first to reach me, with Belladonna, who stayed to shut the doors, not far behind. Stepping in between myself and the mirror, Luna’s blue eyes met my own.
“The locked door meant I wanted to be left alone,” I said, not turning away from Luna.
“What we want is often not what is best for us,” said Luna. She stepped closer to me and with a gentle hoof, guided me toward the pillows near the fireplace, which she lit with a spark of her magic. “Tell us what ails you, Alternia. Let us comfort you as you once did for me, and for your sisters.”
I didn’t resist and allowed myself to be seated. Luna took a place across from me while Belladonna laid herself down beside me. I noticed she had added a few other anti-scrying spells to my room.
“Well, sister, talk,” said Belladonna in her typical, no-nonsense style. I hesitated for a moment, but the determined glares in my sister’s and in my adopted sister’s faces told me that I had no choice.
“I’m angry at myself. I had wanted to keep Chrysalis out of the loop, but she found out, and now, everything just seems so… confusing.” I glanced at the fireplace for a moment, watching the flames eat at the logs. “I could have told Chrysalis everything and it probably would have been fine. Emotionally exhausting of course, but now that I know she regrets what she did, it probably would have worked out. Instead, I played her like a fiddle. But… I know why I made those decisions, and I know that I had good reason to be scared of Chrysalis.” I turned my head to watch Luna’s contemplative features, and Belladonna’s frown. “I don’t know if I did the right thing by hiding my identity from Chrysalis.”
Luna sighed. “Alternia, you are but a changeling queen. A mortal who made her decisions based on what she thought was right and what would benefit all. Do not begrudge yourself for the unintended consequences of your actions.” I nodded, as the words made sense to my ears, but I still didn’t feel as if I deserved them.
“But I could have done better, I—”
“Sister, stop beating yourself up about this!” snapped Belladonna, her sharp tone spinning my head to her direction. Rising from her seat, Belladonna trotted up to me and poked my chest with a firm hoof.
“What did Mother tell us? No plan survives contact with real life. This mess is nobody’s fault, much less yours, and even if it was, you’ve done your best to help everyone.” Belladonna swallowed then, her head bowed and eyes averted. “You are the best changeling queen in the world. I need not say why.” I frowned, but Belladonna used her hoof to tip my head up, forestalling any of my protests.
“Trust in your abilities and start acting like the changeling queen who has gifted Equestria with unmatched prosperity for the last thousand years.”
Though I still felt a bit guilty, I knew Belladonna was right. After a short sigh, I faced my sisters and smiled. “Thank you, Donna, Luna. I really needed that.”
“Anytime, Alternia,” said Luna, returning my smile.
“Don’t mention it. And I mean it,” said Belladonna in a warning tone, but the embarrassed manner in which she pursed her lips gave her away.
I chuckled, feeling more grateful than ever for the company of my sisters. It was then that a thought suddenly occurred to me, and I raised a somewhat reproving eyebrow at Belladonna.
“By the way, Donna. In revealing yourself to Twilight and her friends, how exactly did that go? I take it they were rather upset with your attempt to kill Chrysalis. Particularly since they knew I was alive.”
Belladonna looked a bit panicked at that question, and she didn’t say anything for a moment, until she groaned. “Your assumption is quite correct. When I talked with them two days prior, Twilight and her friends were quite upset. I have learned that I should never again try to make them fret.”
“Why are you falling into rhyme, Queen Belladonna?” asked Luna.
My youngest sister winced. “That was the fault of Pundamilia my zebrican mentor. Her training could have been gentler. To train my memory in making potions, she made me speak in rhyme while doing the motions.” Belladonna coughed, breaking her sagely tone. “It worked too well. So I sometimes slip into rhyme when things are not swell.”
I couldn’t help it. I giggled. The image of Belladonna being bossed around by a zebra was too hilarious to block out. Luna joined me shortly afterward, Belladonna glaring at us.
“Ha, ha, very funny…” Belladonna frowned. “Is someone knocking on your door?”
There was someone knocking on the chamber’s door. As Luna went to open it, I re-cast my disguise. The door swung open to reveal Simulacris, whom Luna ushered her in and closed to door.
“What is it, Simulacris?” I asked.
Glancing around, Simulacris refocused her attention back to me. “Alternia, I’ve spoken to Chrysalis,” she said in a reserved tone.
My breath caught in my throat, forcing me to swallow it down. “And?”
“I think she’s come around” — I felt my chest deflate as I sighed in relief — “but she wants to discuss your true nature with her daughters first, and she sent me to ask for your permission to do so.”
I bit the inside of my lip and instinctively opened my mouth to protest. But then I paused, and pursed my lips. Chrysalis’s request… I knew why she had asked it, but should I grant it to her? Even if it might help heal the rift between us, too many already knew who I really was.
But did I have the right to refuse her?
I sighed. “Tell her… that she can. They deserve to know.”
“No way,” gasped Cyndra as Chrysalis finished telling the entire story to her daughters. She had sequestered her daughters in their shared stateroom, sealed behind layer upon layer of anti-scrying and listening spells.
“Your sister Alternia is alive and she’s been Princess Celestia all this time?”
“Yes,” said Chrysalis, not flinching at Lamia’s high-pitched shriek, or the fact that Cyndra looked as if she might collapse at any moment.
“You mean Princess— Alternia… she used me knowing I was her niece?” asked Cyndra.
Chrysalis nodded and took a small step closer to Cyndra, while bringing her head down to her daughter’s eyes. “But she said she regretted what she did to you, Cyndra, and that she did it for Equestria.” Chrysalis sighed and found herself unable to meet her daughter’s eyes. “I also have no doubt that your aunt’s actions were likely influenced by her fear of me.”
Her daughters still rooted to the ground in shock, Chrysalis exhaled slowly. “I am telling you this, Lamia, and Cyndra, because I intend to ask your aunt for forgiveness.” Lamia and Cyndra gasped, but Chrysalis forged onward. “I know she deceived you both and used you, Cyndra, but my mistakes… what I did to your aunt played no small part in leading to all of this.”
Raising her head, Chrysalis forced herself to meet the narrowed eyes of her daughters. “It is up to me to fix this.”
Neither Lamia or Cyndra said nothing, even as their mother kept her gaze on them. After what seemed like an eternity though, Lamia sighed and glanced at the solemn-faced Cyndra.
“Cyndra, I think mother is right. You remember how Alternia treated us. She was kind, and while she did hide herself from us, I think her emotions were sincere.”
A smile threatened to burst onto Chrysalis’s features, but she didn’t dare push her luck. To Chrysalis’s relief though, Cyndra spoke up immediately afterward.
“Sorry, mother, Lamia. It was just a lot to take in.” Cyndra swallowed. “I agree. Apart from her interrogation, which I must admit, was justly motivated at the time, Alternia has taken good care of me. She comforted me, and I know she played a role in convincing you to forgive me for my own mistakes. She’s actually acted kinda like an aunt would, all this time. This just confirms it.”
“Thank you, Cyndra, Lamia.” Chrysalis embraced her daughters. “Do you mind helping me bring out some of Alternia’s old things from our hive, so I can formally apologize to her after the treaty is signed?” she asked.
Lamia and Cyndra nodded, though Lamia seemed a bit puzzled.
“Of course, mother, but shouldn’t you apologize to her immediately?”
Chrysalis chuckled. “We have all the time in the world. Besides, I need to thank her for the treaty anyway. I might as well do it all at once.”
A week later at Canterlot…
The turnout for the public treaty signing was nothing short of spectacular. Apart from the Royal Guard lining the red carpet leading to the central wooden platform that had been erected for the signing, Canterlot city centre was filled with ponies of all colors. So packed was the square that several “cloud benches” had also been erected in the airspace to free up room for the grounded ponies. Regardless of any misgivings they had, each stallion, mare, and foal knew they were witnessing history.
The Royal Guard, the Lunar Guard, and their changeling counterparts were also fully aware of this. Security was tight. Apart from crowd-controlling reservists that lined the approaching corridor, there were unicorn spellcasters and crossbow-toting earth ponies posted in the windows and roofs of the surrounding buildings. Bat pony and pegasus squadrons patrolled the airspace, and secretly intermixed in the crowd were a number of disguised changeling soldiers and infiltrators. Shining Armor would be standing with the delegation along with the escort of Royal and Lunar Guardsponies and changeling chevaliers, while Captain Vlad Pikehead of the Lunar Guard was sitting on a cloud with a bird’s-eye view of the entire square, and a radio team.
The clock tolled the bell for noon and a hush fell over the gathering as Prince Blueblood and Princess Cadance mounted the stage and trotted to the lectern placed in the corner. Blueblood took the lectern first, and coughed once officiously before addressing the crowd.
“Stallions and mares, thank you for coming. Please welcome their highnesses, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.” With that Blueblood raised his hoof toward the corner, turning the heads of all the ponies assembled.
The pegasus-driven and escorted carriage of Princess Luna and Alternia, who was once more in her disguise as Princess Celestia, alighted onto the ground. They were picked up by a cordon of Royal and Lunar guards. Even the presence of so many armored ponies though, didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the crowd as they cheered their princesses. A number of them were cheering for Princess Luna, whose shy wave only amplified their cries.
The princess and the changeling queen-in-disguise mounted the stage and took their seats across the large table in the centre of the platform. Before Alternia sat down though, she took a moment to glance over the great scroll spread across it. It was the work of many long hours, and there had been so many setbacks and emotional upheavals on the way. Yet, at that moment, Alternia could only think of the new era she had started.
“If only Mother could see this,” whispered Alternia to herself. Luna heard, though, and her responding nudge brought a bit of life to the smile on Alternia’s face. As Alternia sat down, she was further cheered by the sight of Twilight, Spike, and their friends waving from front-row places near the stage.
Princess Cadance stepped forward to the lectern then, her head bowed slightly. She took a deep breath and raised her eyes over the waiting ponies.
“Announcing the three changeling queens of Equestria and their families: Queen Belladonna of the Shadow Empire, Queen Simulacris of the Shade Stalkers, Queen Chrysalis of the Evergreen Flame and her daughters Queen-in-waiting Lamia and Lady Cyndra.” A genuinely warm smile on her face, Cadance lifted her hoof to the red carpet.
The ponies fell silent, watching as the changeling delegation arrived on foot, surrounded by a ring of chevaliers, and another ring of Royal and Lunar guard. Chrysalis was first, Lamia with her mechanical leg and Cyndra beside her. Simulacris and Belladonna walked side-by-side behind Chrysalis. At the head of the delegation was Shining Armor, his eyes flicking left and right as he scanned for threats in the mass of ponies.
They arrived at the platform without being interrupted and as they took their seats on the other side of the table, the Royal Guard took their positions around the base of the platform as practiced.
Chrysalis then stood and trotted to the lectern which Cadance had vacated, drawing the eyes of every pony in the square to her.
“Ponies of Canterlot and Equestria. I am Queen Chrysalis of the Evergreen Flame. As you all know, I led an army to invade this fair city on a day that was supposed to be one of celebration.” There were a couple of grimaces as Chrysalis spoke, but no interruptions, so the queen continued, her clear and calm voice listened to by all.
“Recent events have shown me the error of my ways and I apologize for the fear my hive struck into your hearts on that day, for the hurt, physical and emotional, that my hive inflicted, and for the great inconveniences that followed afterwards. My attack, regardless of the circumstances that led to it, was wrong, and I must also formally apologize for that.” Quite a lot of ponies blinked in surprise at that, while a few other snorted disbelievingly.
Chrysalis was undaunted though and she pressed on. “As recompense, my hive has pledged reparations to cover the reconstruction of Canterlot and to directly assist the Equestrian government in several public services projects in Canterlot, Manehattan and Cloudsdale.”
Alternia suddenly found herself needing to resist the temptation to frown. Chrysalis was off script. She was supposed to end her apology now after the announcement. Still, Alternia made no move. It would be better to see how this played out.
Grimacing, Chrysalis swallowed. “Now I know you all doubt my commitment to this peace, to this treaty, and I doubt what I say now will change your minds. But whether you believe me or not, I am telling the truth. I want peace with Equestria. I must admit, I initially agreed to the negotiations because I felt I had no other choice, and was rather reluctant to agree to anything. Your Princess Celestia convinced me otherwise.”
Luna and Alternia blinked as Chrysalis glanced to them, a small, genuine smile on her lips, before turning to the crowd of surprised ponies.
“I do not mean to downplay the diplomatic successes brought about by her highness Princess Luna, but when it came to convincing me of the viability of this treaty, your Princess Celestia was solely responsible. I was uncompromising and uncooperative. Yet, she worked tirelessly to show me the benefits of peace, and made a titanic effort to answer your concerns and mine. She helped carve out what I hope will become a new age for ponies and changelings. That we may live beside each other, not as enemies or strangers, but as friends in harmony.”
Already, most ponies in the crowd were slack-jawed and staring at Chrysalis, but what the queen did next shook them to the core, and convinced nearly all of them, of the queen’s sincerity.
“And you know what, ponies of Equestria? I realize now that your princess did not have to do any of this. After what I have done to you, your princess was well within her rights to kill me, to raze my hive to the ground. She could have retracted her offer of peace simply because of the inconvenience I was causing her, and the protests that her own ponies were making. But your kind princess did not. She took the thorny road, the one less travelled, and gave my kind a chance, to be friends to you all, and not bitter enemies.” Chrysalis opened her eyes and faced the crowd. “I will not squander that chance, ponies of Equestria. For in all my life, I have never met someone with so much greatness, vision, and mercy in their heart as Princess Celestia.”
Alternia was blinking furiously, and had a hoof to her mouth. She knew some ponies would wonder why she was reacting this way, but she couldn’t help it. She had an idea where Chrysalis was going with her speech, but she couldn’t believe her own ears.
Except, Chrysalis was turning to her and she was bowing— wait, kneeling. Her eyes were averted and neck extended in the traditional pattern of changeling submission.
“And so, my last apology is directed to you, Princess Celestia. I am sorry for everything I put you through, and though I know I do not deserve it, I ask for your forgiveness.”
Most ponies thought that the line was strangely worded, but must be a reference to the difficulty Queen Chrysalis had said that she had put their princess through during the treaty process. But Alternia knew better.
“Chrysalis…” Alternia rose from her seat, swallowed and extended her hoof to help a wide-eyed Chrysalis off the ground. Her smile spreading across her face, Alternia somehow managed to blink back her moistening eyes and say, “I accept your apology.”
Chrysalis swallowed, but couldn’t hide her sigh of relief, and the grateful smile that mirrored her sister’s. “Thank you, your highness.”
Cadance, who was wiping her eyes to the puzzlement of the general audience, spoke up then. “Please give a hoof for Queen Chrysalis, and Princess Celestia.”
And the ponies did. Twilight and company, Belladonna and Simulacris, Cadance and even Blueblood joined in as well. Cyndra was jumping up and down, while Lamia nearly fell over as she tried to get her mechanical leg to join in. Shining Armor, who was still on duty, resisted the temptation to do so, but he grinned widely as cheers and hoofbeats resounded through the palace, creating a cacophony that deafened the ears of all. Nopony wanted it to stop though and it was a long time until they all quieted down, their ears ringing a bit and their hooves aching slightly when they finally did so.
Blueblood, who couldn’t help but replicate the infectious smile that everypony else was sharing, stood forward again. “We will now commence with the signing. Princesses and Queens, step forward.”
Alternia, Luna, Belladonna, Simulacris, and Chrysalis picked up the quills from the table and moved to the bottom of the scroll. One by one, they signed the bottom of the scroll, and, using the ink pan, stamped an imprint of their hooves next to their signature.
Chrysalis was the last to sign, stamp her hoof, and wipe it on the towel provided for the dignitaries. As she did so, she smiled at Alternia, who beamed back. Alternia was a little annoyed she had been left so long to ponder whether Chrysalis had forgiven her or not, but it made this moment all the more perfect.
Then everything went horribly wrong.
Shining Armor had first noticed something a little unusual during Chrysalis’s apology when he had spotted a blond-maned, white-coated pony stallion sporting a cloak in the crowd glaring at Chrysalis when she started to praise Celestia. There had been some ponies who seemed a little wary of Chrysalis, sure, but this stallion’s glare was not one of a wary pony. No, Shining Armor had seen this kind of glare not too long ago.
It was that of mad hate, which he had seen in the eyes of the Equestria First militia as he had fought them.
Shining didn’t react immediately. Just because the stallion was feeling irrationally angry didn’t mean he was going to try something. But as Shining Armor continued to scan the cheering crowd, he had noticed several ponies who did not cheer. In fact, they had looked furious.
Shortly afterward, as they had begun to sign the treaty, Shining Armor had realized something. Each of these ponies were wearing cloaks, and now that he was scrutinizing them, each of these ponies seemed to have rather bulky figures.
Alarm bells began to sound in his head and he instantly performed a count of all the ponies he had identified. Twelve of them in total, positioned in various places in the square. A few in the cloud benches, but most of them were in the crowd on the ground. He then grabbed the radio near the stage that the Royal Guard had placed in advance.
“Attention to all units. This is Armor. Suspicious characters spotted. Cloaked and angry, possible hidden weapons. I want the Falcons’ and Hawks’ eyes peeled and the shields ready,” ordered Shining as he informed his unicorns, pegasi air cover, and crossbow snipers to locate the targets, and his unicorn mages to prepare magic shields.
But as the signatories signed the treaty the cloaked ponies did nothing. The guard and the changelings had anticipated that if an attack would come, it would come before the treaty would be signed. Nothing had happened though.
Shaking his head, Shining continued to watch the ponies. This wasn’t making any sense, why would they not attack? If they were Equestria First, they would want to disrupt the treaty signing, right? Shining’s questions were interrupted when he noticed a slight commotion to his right. Turning he frowned, and then blinked.
Was that Major Golden Star pushing through the crowd the edge at the head of a squad?
Shining Armor hadn’t seen the paranoid Golden Star since the council of the Equestrian Army. The major was really more of an administrative and logistics officer than a field commander. He just got into the council meeting because he was an attache to the Canterlot garrison. In fact, after that meeting, Shining had taken great pains to avoid Golden Star. Yes, Shining didn’t love Chrysalis, but as the last council had shown, the major seriously had an issue with changelings.
So it was strange that Golden Star was leading a squad of ponies because Shining was quite sure that he hadn’t assigned one to him—
Shining’s eyes widened, for the puzzle pieces in his mind had suddenly chosen this moment to fall in place.
Equestria First was a organization that had some ties to lower-ranking officers in the military.
Equestria First was an organization with a vision of a pony-only Equestria.
Equestria First had procured their out-of-date armor by stealing armor that was supposed to be relegated for second-line or militia use, which required some degree of influence in the Equestrian military logistics and administrative apparatus.
Golden Star was a lower-ranking officer, and a senior logistics and administrative officer, who believed in a pony-only Equestria.
Heart pounding, his eyes transfixed on the ponies, Shining pointed out Golden Star to his nearby guards, whose eyes widened at the unfamiliar squad. He also grabbed the radio.
“Red Alert. Armored EQF squad in plain sight led by Major Golden Star. Golden Star is a turncoat. Repeat, Golden Star is a turncoat and is leading an EQF squad in plain sight. Evacuate all packages now.”
With that, Shining Armor handed the radio off to another guard, and was about to make his way up the platform to evacuate the party. He hoped that he was being inconspicuous, and that they had enough time to get the princesses and the queens out of here.
Those hopes were dashed.
Out of the corner of his eye, Shining cursed as he saw one of the cloaked ponies, a pegasus, jump the gun and throw off his cloak to reveal Royal Guard Armor Mark 42, and a short javelin in his hooves. The ponies around him gasped in surprise as he took off into the air and charged toward the platform.
“CODE BLACK!” yelled Shining Armor and he raised his shield.
The Royal Guard reacted quickly and the charging pegasus was brought down by a concussion spell from a unicorn mage posted in the balcony. As Shining’s magic formed a protective bubble around the platform, he was dismayed to see the crowd scream and burst into chaos. They had anticipated this situation, but of all the possibilities they had prepared for, this was one of the most inconvenient. The panic would make the job of the snipers in the balconies all the more difficult. He was also shocked to notice several more ponies in simple formalwear draw short swords and daggers out of their pockets to join the now uncloaked ponies pushing their way toward the platform, as well as Golden Star’s squad. Then more unicorns in the crowd bulled their way through the crowd of panicked ponies.
Altogether, there were thirty-five attackers, including thirteen unicorns that seemed to know the Dark Flame spell, and they had all converged around the shielded platform, surrounding them.
Cursing, Shining Armor did a complete turn to check his options. They could fight. He had fifteen Royal Guardsponies, eight Lunar Guard, and sixteen changeling chevaliers with him in the bubble, plus whatever magical power Princess Luna and the queens could bring in. To fight the attackers, though, would endanger not only the civilians, but the VIPs as well, and he was not going to risk the queens or his princesses being struck with the same wounds as Lamia.
So they had to evacuate, but they were surrounded and on the ground. Shining Armor looked directly up and breathed a sigh of relief. The significant number of bat pony and pegasus squads had subdued the few attackers in the cloud benches. The skies were clear. Even now, pegasus and bat pony guards were diving down at the Equestria First attackers, who were doing their best to protect their spellcasters.
“Evacuation by air! Shield the route now!” roared Shining to his officers and the delegation. The unicorn guards nodded and, their horns glowing, they changed the spherical bubble that surrounded the platform into an open-topped cylinder that extended high into the sky, beyond spell range. Grimly satisfied, Shining turned his attention to the attackers and swore as the unicorns began to fire the Dark Fire curse into the shield. Bracing himself against the platform, he channelled every ounce of his magic into reinforcing the shield. He needed to hold it, against all costs.
He didn’t want to think what might happen if the shield didn’t hold.
Alternia muttered darkly to herself as the shield of the Royal Guard changed into a cylinder, protecting them for an evacuation by air. She should have known her day would not go perfectly well. Something always had to spoil the best moments of her life.
“Luna, get Lamia and Cyndra out of here first!” she yelled. Luna nodded, and grabbing the younger changelings with her magic, the alicorn shot up, bringing the screaming sisters up with her. Alternia nodded in satisfaction, but winced when she looked at the shield. Cracks began to appear within the magical barrier as the Equestria First unicorns, their eyes narrowed in fanatic determination, torched the shield with maroon flames.
“Let’s go!” ordered Alternia. Her sisters, their wings buzzing, rose into the air as fast as they could go. Alternia kept up beside them, urging them on, keeping one worried eye on the cracks in the shield.
While Royal Guard unicorns were quite well trained, they were no master spellcasters. Shining Armor was an exceptional shield maker, but he was only one pony, and the curses fired at the shield continued to devour the magic of it, leeching the shield’s power, gaining strength, even as it cracked the protective barrier. As Alternia and her sisters rose higher and higher, she could see the strain in Shining Armor’s features and the sweat forming on his brow.
Then there was a flash, as Twilight, her horn glowing, poured her own strength into maintaining the barrier. Blueblood and Cadance were not far behind and they, too, poured their magic into the failing shield. Cracks solidified and the entire shield structure glowed, even as the Equestria First unicorns continued to fire dark spell after dark spell.
For a moment, Alternia heaved a sigh of relief. She could see the Royal Guards on foot pushing through the crowd and joining the pegasi and bat ponies in engaging the Equestria First fighters. Soon the Equestria First mages would be silenced.
That thought was shattered as all of the unicorns of the Equestria first combined their magic and sent white lightning crackled all over the multi-hued barrier. Screams erupted from Twilight, Blueblood, Cadance, Shining Armor, and from the unicorn guardsponies, and one by one they lost their hold on the shield. Alternia’s eyes widened in shock as she identified the cause: A Feedback Spell, designed to bring down magical barriers by rebounding the magic of the caster back upon them. The greater the magical barrier, the worse the feedback. Alternia groaned at the irony of it, for she herself had penned the doctrine that groups of unicorn in the guard should be taught how to cast the spell in extreme situations.
The Equestria First unicorns sneered in triumph as the shield fell, but the changeling chevaliers escorting their queens reacted by casting some smaller shields in front of Belladonna, Simulacris, and Chrysalis, just in time to intercept the barrage of various spells that spiralled upwards towards them. Each shield exploded upon contact with a curse, but it kept the queens safe.
But to Alternia’s horror, the Equestria First mages would not give up. Even as their pegasi and earth pony comrades fell to the Royal and Lunar Guards diving, firing, or hacking at them, the unicorns horns still glowed. Together, all thirteen spellcasters, including Golden Star, who was barking harsh orders at them, concentrated, coalescing their magic in a massive corrosive fireball.
Alternia had just enough time to yell, “Look out!” before the unicorns released their last, desperate, attack.
Time seemed to slow down as Alternia watched the curse, magnified in power and speed, scorching the air as it coursed upward, toward the fleeing queens. The smaller shields of the changeling chevaliers gave way, as the curse simply devoured every one of them, gaining strength as it powered on.
Desperately, Alternia turned right, tracking the path of the curse. She noted in that instant that the curse would go up and just pass Chrysalis, whom she was next to.
Yet, to Alternia’s horror, Chrysalis was deliberately pushing herself out into the path of the curse.
Her eyes wide, Alternia’s attention followed the path the curse would take from Chrysalis to Belladonna, who was directly in the spell’s path. She had folded her wings in an attempt to drop below the curse, but there was no way she could escape the fireball even if she tried. Except, the spell wouldn’t hit her now, Chrysalis had moved just far enough to block it.
In that moment, Alternia’s heart was filled with horror as she was sent a thousand years into the past, to the memory of her mother’s sacrifice. It was going to happen again.
Unless she did something to change it.
Chrysalis was ready to embrace death. As she had thrown herself into the path of the curse, she had shut her eyes. Her thoughts were coming in like a rapid river, and she cherished each one of them… as she knew they would be her last moments of consciousness.
She was going to die, so Belladonna would live. As mad as she was with her sister, Chrysalis found herself surprisingly okay with that. Belladonna was family, after all. Not that Chrysalis was devoid of anger, though. Admittedly, Shining Armor had done his best, had even bought enough time for her daughters to escape. But she never wanted to die, to be struck down by a pony, one of Alternia’s traitorous subjects.
A pang of fear shook Chrysalis’s control. It would not be a peaceful death. She still remembered her daughter’s screams as she had been brought into the infirmary. Lamia had been writhing in pain as the curse had eaten away at her flesh. Was this what her mother felt when she had stepped in front of Alternia?
The thought of Alternia did bring Chrysalis some contentment. She had finally reconciled with her sister. Their feud was over. But Chrysalis couldn’t help but feel disappointed. She had wanted more time, to get to know her sister better after their thousand years apart. This was supposed to be the start, not the end.
There was a strange flash, so bright that Chrysalis could see it through her shut eyes, followed by a cry that nearly broke Chrysalis’s contemplation. It sounded like Alternia’s oh-so-precious student. Why was everypony making it so hard for her to face her death? Why couldn’t they just shut up?
It was then that she heard the scream.
It snapped her eyes open and seized her gaze, as she gaped at the indescribable horror unfolding in front of her. Chrysalis tried to tear her eyes away, but the unending wail of agony transfixed her eyes, even as her stomach was turned to sick mush.
For writhing in pain, engulfed by the inferno, was Celestia.
No. Not Celestia. As the figure staggered in mid-flight, her white fur was evaporating, boiled from her frame. Her sparkling mane was now green, mixed with the spell’s flames. Shattered golden regalia dropped like dark shooting stars, blackened and rotted as the fires of the curse warped them into useless pieces of metal. Glossy black carapace melted away, sizzling and crackling in the sheer heat. Her translucent wings were charring into black ash.
Still screaming, Alternia lost her battle with gravity and she fell, her body plummeting toward the ground like a flaming comet. Her flailing limbs trying to find purchase in the empty air but unable to.
With a ear-rending crunch, the left side of her body slammed into the platform, and she lay there, shrouded in flames, a gaping, burning hole in her chest.
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Warning, several changelings were hurt in the making of this chapter. Ok, it was just the one. Maybe.
I WILL HANG YOU FOR DOING THIS!
6202399 Congratulations! You've just made the first death threat! Have an invisible cookie!
6202408 NOW I'M GONNA KILL YOU FOR TRYING TO MAKE ME EAT A DAMN DISGUSTING COOKIE!
6202410 ... I just said have, not, you must eat lol.
6202415 HOW DARE YOU GIVE ME THAT PIECE OF CRAP FOOD!
6202419 *Steals invisible cookie and leaves a cow pie in your hands*
6202446 *shoves cow pie into your mouth*
6202449 *eats the beef pie* Ass.
6202461 But that's where it came from.... EH!
That was, erm, tense.
...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Why?
6202468 Never had beef pie before?
6202506 Just a joke dude.
Great chapter! BUT DAMN YOU CLIFFHANGER!!!!
6202516 As was mine.
6202502 Cause I'm terrible.
Ayayay, of course things were going too smoothly.
At least "Celestia" taking the bullet for Chrysalis should keep the changelings from getting up in arms and kill off the last good publicity the racists might have had... except I'm not sure how the ponies in general will react to "Celestia" not being what they thought, especially right after how it was emphasized how generous she had been with the changelings. Well, at least it's surely too late in the story for things to go hooves up for long... Right?
6202556 no comment.
vren55!!!! *throttle throttle throttle*
That's cruel, leaving me on the edge up my seat until the next update. You beast.
Aaaaaaah, must, have more! So long since this last updated, *wiggles* And wow are Equestria First gonna be shocked, and possibly angered, if/when they find out their leader for the past 1000 years was a changling.
Wow , this chapter was intense. From the star to the finish , it was magnificent.
Well , I admit that listening to symphonic metal while reading might have played a part , but still.
It had it all : Interesting reveal , heartwarming moments , tearjerkers , sacrifices ...
(If anyone wonder , I was listening to this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyuJI73Uxns )
Then the real Celestia comes back, and the 'fun' is doubled.
So... EQF just had to rear their ugly heads...
Unrelated, so... Chrysalis's daughters get to feel even a bit jilted at being manipulated by a being that turns out to be their aunt... yet one of the starting reasons (Donna starving Chryssie's hive, leading to Chryssie's utterly bungled wedding gambit) is never to be addressed?
Eh, still a great chapter.
Good ol' cliffhangers.
You Monster!!! ;-;
I'm gonna chop your head off for this!
WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME!!!!!!!!!!!!
I WAS ABOUT TO CRY!!!!!!!!!
Calm down all more are coming.
unless some one duse something not smart and kills the author.
)
Also it is not tags as tragedy(and April fools is far away
I was just thinking of this story earlier today, and I get a chapter. YAY.
okay
first of all
how dare you make me read this with my own two eyes
i fukken loved it 10/10
please tell me those equestria first fucks get publicly executed
I'm not too worried.
call it denial but I'm too used to things like these to expect a super bad ending
Although I do wonder is Alternia being revealed will just end up helping the terrorists.
talk about getting a full body tan
guess we should call her burntllestia
And that's when you know you need to brace yourself
Welp that happened.
I wonder if Equestria's love for Celestia will counter Alternia's current case of chest-pains.
6202758 Toastlestia
Shitstorm time.
(Poor, poor Equestria.
)
6202675 It will be, but if you hadn't noticed now is a terrible time for it.
6202815 Lol. Very terrible, I agree on that.
*punches every EQF pony I can find right in the face*
'Oh new chapter, yay'
'Oh wait. Didn't author say this one would have a huge cliffhanger? Maybe I should wait till more come out.'
'Egh, how bad can it be? I'm sure I'll be fine'
*reads chapter*
'...Fuck...'
Well its about time this showed up! I was starting to get worried, still HALALUYA! good chapter btw I didn't think it would be that easy for it to wrap up it never is lol.
This is a fantastically written story but the end of this chapter. That was right in the feels and a cliffhanger too.
While I do quite enjoy this story, I will have to face palm pretty hard yet again. Three Queens, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, Shining Armor, Twilight Sparkle, some of the elite changeling guard and royal guards are unable to best 13 unicorns? I get that you want to stir up some action and get some drama going but couldn't you just stick to politics where it wouldn't be so head scratching how some of the most powerful ponylings in the area are barely average unicorn level?
Awww, come on. You should have said "in three months, I promise."
That would have been hilarious.
The easy out for Princess Celestia appearing as a Changeling, is that the Guard were aware of Equestria First and asked the Changelings to provide an agent. This would also be a good time for the real Celestia to reappear and heal Alternia once again.
Okay I normally would have said; "A cliffhanger is better than waiting forever" but now...? this is an exception. I need to know what happened to Alternia!
Very appropriate music choice for that ending. Tip of the hat, my dear fellow, to your good taste and the follow-up chapter better be up soon or words will be given. Words, good sir, words of a most dire and portentous sort.
6202977 I mean no offence, it is a good story idea, but it is also known as a deuex macena. (or however you spell it)
Don't worry, I'll just kill you after you've posted the last few chapters!
about time CHryssy knew the truth. But man, Alternia. I'm guessing Celestia will be coming soon.