//------------------------------// // Chrysalis Ceceen // Story: Realms of Isceld: Book One: Hunt For Chrysalis // by AkumaKami64 //------------------------------// Entomian Foreign Intelligence Sector File #226042112 Target of Interest Name: Chrysalis Ceceen Species: Changeling, Royal Caste Gender: Female Date of Birth (Converted): Equum 23, 35 PEF(Post-Equestria Founding) Birthplace: Joch, Skibt Alias: Queen Chrysalis Description: Standard black chitin. Height is estimated to be 5'0 ft., a normal size for the Royal Caste. Green eyes that are constantly revealed, indicating protective lenses may be damaged. Short blue-green mane and tail. Long horn that is unusually bent, curved, and sharp. Legal Status: Banished by the Skibtol Hive Mind in 59 PEF, falsely assumed dead twice. Former Occupation: Spell Crafter. Charges: Unsanctioned testing of experimental mental spells on resistant test subjects, resulting in the mental-destruction and enslavement of no less than five changelings and mental injury to an unknown more. Abilities: Chrysalis is a Spell Crafter. As such, she has had access to numerous spells in the Skibtal Axalkhoien, if not the entirety of the Kiffolic Fifriethoko. Due to the nature of her former occupation, Chrysalis has a cunning and problem-solving intellect that is not to be underestimated as she is likely to find a solution- whether it be making spells, escaping, or battlefield victory- to almost any situation if given enough time. For example, the Love-Control spell is based off the Love-Illusion spell, an ancient spell that simply made a target easier to fool into thinking the caster was their beloved, allowing a changeling to feast on their love faster in a pinch. The Love-Control spell was the next step in a dark direction, allowing the caster to completely subjugate the target's mind by assaulting the portion of the brain that helps stimulate feelings of joy and love. Over use of this spell has shown to completely wipe away a target's personality, leaving them as little more than mindless flesh puppets. Early side effects appear to include minute bursts of mood swings, troubles with positive emotions and ease of depression or enragement. Victims may also become paranoid over if their beloved is the real them, but this is just as likely to be a natural reaction to the situation. In changelings specifically, it also damages or completely blocks a changeling's ability to access Hive Minds, a very traumatizing feeling to most lings. Chrysalis's skills include a mastery of Silent Flight/Silent Buzzing, Meta-Enhance, basic sword training, unknown competency in Skibtal self-defense, Rapid Chitin Hardening, and Long Distance Precision. "And the rest goes onto a biography of her known past," Twilight said as she finished reading the passage out loud, looking over the various ponies reading their own copies of the documents at the meeting table in Canterlot. Her fellow Princesses looked unphased, having read this before, while her brother was biting his lip with a troubled look in his eyes. Fancy Pants had an absolutely smug look directed at Prince Blueblood, who rolled his eyes. Twilight had been strangely unsurprised to find out that Fancy Pants was Equestria's secret spy master. Actually, he was the unofficial secret spy master. If anyone managed to dig deep enough, they'd find that the "official" spymaster was Prince Blueblood and that the secret spymaster was Princess Luna. If somepony managed to dig a canyon, they might find Fancy Pants's name come up. Blueblood himself, while not a spymaster, was bait: A spoiled, snobbish, simpleton prince with seemingly no care for anyone but himself? Oh, the number of things ponies tried to rope him into. Twilight never did get an explanation for the over-the-top act with Rarity at the Gala. Off to the side, leaving those two alone, left Countess Shores and Bronze Bridge. Countess Shores, a sea-green earth pony with black-striped blue mane and black eyes, was in charge of their (limited) Foreign Relations department. Bronze Bridge, true to his name in his coat color while his mane and eyes were a darker shade of brown, was a Pegasus aerial general. Shores looked somewhere between alarmed and fascinated, while Bronze was just staring at Shining "Shines, if you're going to eat your lip, then don't play with it," Bronze said with a goading smirk. "Really, Bronze?" Shores said with a sigh. "Hey, someone has to stop acting like he's glass and get him out of his funk," Bronze defended with a shrug. "He's not wrong," Shining agreed with a small smile of thanks before smirking at his friend from boot camp, "Bridget." The general eye twitched at that as Blueblood clear his throat, "Aunty, Princesses? Are we sure we can really trust the changeling?" He asked, with just a healthy amount of skepticism. "He does have a name, Blueblood," Cadence reminded in slight annoyance. Blueblood shrugged at that one, "He apparently has two, and I'm not sure what to make of that," Blueblood explained. "We were a bit too distracted by...everything else to inquire on that," Luna mused honestly. "Still, between the vouching from Crank Doodle and that Kevin, as we will call him for now, was never seen taking a disguise before entering or after exiting the wedding does seem to add to his credibility," Celestia pointed out, getting rounds of agreed murmurs. "I believe him, but for entirely different reasons," Twilight added in absently, still looking over the documentation. "Oh? What's got you sold, Twily?" Shining asked with a raised eyebrow. "The whole thing," Twilight said evenly, finally looking up at them with a blank expression. "I beg your pardon, Princess?" Countess Shores inquired in confusion. "THIS," Twilight said, holding up the document, "There is an absurd amount of information on Chrysalis's life and not all of it flattering. Right down to her near death at the hands of something called a Keythong, along with sightings and locations of her between the banishment and her disappearance prior to Nightmare Moon. They even have names and titles from her court case!" Twilight explained. "The point, Twilight?" Cadence asked, trying to get her sister-in-law back on track. "Right, right," Twilight said with a sigh, "Look, the amount of detail in this would be absurd to make up, even for someone like me! To say nothing of how unnecessary it would be." "Yes, it does seem a bit too complicated to be a scheme of some sort," Fancy Pants agreed, looking to Blueblood victoriously. "Greedy flankhole," Blueblood grumbled as he forked over his half of the bet. "Just with nobles, my good stallion," Fancy Pants said with a grin. Several eyes were rolled at that as Bronze Bridge spoke up, "So, we know the truth about our old wedding crasher. What's this Lord have to say, exactly?" The general asked curiously. Celestia cleared her throat as she took out the letter and began to read it aloud. As a correspondence with a fellow royal, copying it was seen as both rude and irresponsible. "Princess Celesta and to any other current Princesses of Equestria, I bid you greetings from the Entomian Hills! I'm sorry to say we could not begin these talks under more happy circumstances, but things are as they are. I apologize for not sending word a thousand years ago, Princess Celestia, but I thought you reportedly putting Chrysalis in a volcano took-" "Wait, WHAT?!" Half the table yelled, the other half gaping in shock. "A volcano?" Twilight repeated in amazement. "Really, Sister?" Luna asked with a disapproving look, "Even for us, that seems a bit much." "I was grieving and venting," Celestia defended tonelessly. "W-well, as terrifying as that is...," Blueblood said with a nervous grin, "It wasn't exactly unwarranted." Celestia sighed and relaxed, "You don't know the half of it, Blueblood," She said absently as she returned to reading. "-care of that issue. Nonetheless, it seems that Chrysalis has only grown bolder and more dangerous with time. As your people, no offense, have little experience in tracking down and combating my kind, I'd like to aid your nation in dealing with this criminal. Consider it the start of a hopefully friendly relationship between our countries. My current offer is a task force of two hundred Changeling soldiers, along with a few mind-healers to ease the effects on any of the victims. We can debate the finer points of any potential alliance before and during hunting down Chrysalis. I can understand you might be reluctant to deal with Changelings after Chrysalis and her puppets left a bad impression for Ponykind's first and only baseline for my race. All the same, I hope to hear from you soon. If you wish to meet, merely inform Kevlar. He'll explain. With Respect Battle Shift High Lord of the Entomian Hills" "Short and to the point, with a healthy amount of courtesy," Countess Shores summarized with a smile, "Despite his name, he does not appear to be a barbarian of any sort." "He was likely born and named in a darker time of his nation," Luna summarized in interest, "Who knows? This "High Lord" might even be older than my sister and I." "I get the impression that this "High Lord" is a bit higher ranked than his title suggests," Shining mused. "And Equestria is hardly just a principality anymore while the Crystal Empire is less than one," Blueblood pointed out dryly. "We immortals can get very set in our ways, I'm afraid," Celestia said with a small smile as she cleared her throat, "Ladies, Gentlecolts, we have a grand opportunity before us. In all of Equestria's history, we have been mostly isolated, save for a few neighboring nations, due to the various natural hazards surrounding us. Now a nation has sought us out, to aide us against a common foe. Assuming their intents are benign until we have reason to suspect otherwise, I believe this is a chance we cannot afford to let slip by," She said confidently. "While I am in agreement, Your Highness?" Shoes started with a thoughtful frown, "I wouldn't even know where to begin in looking towards what kind of commodities we could use in a trade agreement with them, let alone what of theirs we would also want." Luna smiled comfortingly at that, "Take our hopeful-ally's words to heart, Countess. We shall work out the finer details later. And I'm sure you will learn much from Kevin Crustlar and any other changelings that might arrive from his nation," She assured as the mare sighed in relief and nodded. "Don't worry, Countess, I'm intending to start researching Changelings through Kevin soon, so I'll be sure to send any relevant data your way," Twilight said with a giddy tone. Bronze Bridge whistled lightly as he looked to his old bunk buddy, "You weren't kidding about her, eh?" He asked with a grin. "No, no I was not," Shining Armor said with a smile, smirking as he put a hoof around his wife's shoulder, who cocked an eyebrow, "Nor was I kidding about her," He added in as Bronze scowled in what was likely jealousy. "Do I want to know?" Cadence asked evenly. "Oh, nothing, just guy talk," Shining answered, deceptively innocent. "Guy stuff?" Cadance repeated evenly. "Not to sound bored or anything, but shall we make it official, Aunty?" Blueblood asked, deciding to save the royal Guard Captain. Celestia smiled and nodded, "All in favor of opening talks with the Entomian Hills?" She asked knowingly. "Aye," Came the unanimous answer. Celestia sighed, "It is a bit sad that more seems to get done in unofficial meetings these days than in official ones," She mused. "Yes, well, we don't want the public or the nobles to know about this before we figure out what's what," Fancy Pants mused, "After all, if we told everyone, even just everyone one in the official sense, it'll still get leaked out and everypony will be jumping to conclusions and possibly prompt our first new international relationship in centuries to end in a war." "Please don't," Twilight and Shining said with a synced sighs, getting raised eyebrows. "I don't want to experience the Tartarus of having to deal with a trained enemy army that can look like any of your soldiers," Shining explained. "And I don't want to go Nightmare Twilight because some idiot ruined one of the greatest moments in our modern history," Twilight answered honestly. "...Where would we even banish her to?" Blueblood asked curiously. "The stars?" Shores suggested with a shrug. "Nah, too vague. The Tree of Harmony?" Bronze added, tilting his head. "Maybe she'd be sucked into that thing her castle came out of. What was that, the...Chest of Harmony?" Fancy Pants tried. "Just banish me into the world of books," Twilight said with a sigh. "Twily, if we did that, you'd never leave," Shining pointed out, somewhere between apologetic and comforting. "Let a mare dream!" Twilight retorted with a sniff. "Maybe we can just seal her into Filly form?" Cadence pondered, looking up thoughtfully. "...We get more stuff done AND have more fun in these unofficial meetings," Luna noted in amusement, "So...again, a volcano?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. "I'm never hearing the end of that, am I?" Celestia asked in resignation. Everyone shared a look before shaking their heads, making the solar princess sigh to herself.