//------------------------------// // The Queen Strikes Back // Story: The Little Pony Legend: A New Beginning // by MaggiesHeartLove //------------------------------// The Queen Strikes Back As the dragonfly loomed over the spirit desert, Iris kept her eyes closed. Rather than focus on her own power like last time, she concentrated on the energy of her friends. She could hear Akari's grunts of protests and Nori's complaints about the icky gooey substance on her cloths, mane and scales. Her eyes snapped open and Iris pointed downwards. "Land there." she said to the dragonfly. He gladly complied and flew downwards onto what appeared to be a common sand dune, rising up from the ground. It was small, and hardly reached pass Iris's knees. "I don't see anything." Kuvira said as she assisted Sunset Shimmer downwards from the dragonfly. "Iris, are you sure this is where you sensed the others?" Sunset asked. Rather than give a directly reply, the star on Iris's forehead started to glow, and a shimmering magenta aura surrounded the sand dune. The adults all shielded themselves when the sands were lifted upwards and thrown to the side. Bits of sand dust rose but once it cleared, the adults were surprised to see a cave with traces of iridescent green lines, hidden deep underneath the sand. Iris finally answered Sunset's question. "Positive." (~) The team silently entered the cave, which ran downwards into a tunnel, with rock formed stairs. The sides were splattered with glowing green slime that dripped from above and landed on the ground. One landed on Mika's tail, to which she whipped off against a small nearby rock. Sunset hugged herself, feeling a shiver go up and down her spin, using the heart of her glowing horn to illuminate the way. Iris snapped her fingers and also created a flame in her palm. Bolin beamed with pride. "Hey, somebody's been practicing." Iris blushed at the compliment and proceeded to lead the way down the tunnel. P'Li studied the details of the cave. The structure was perfecto structured to resemble that of a hive, with holes upon holes on the walls, and claw markings on the rocks, added with the slimy green substance that they couldn't do two seconds without finding. San huddled closer to his two older sisters. "Uh, guys. Anybody else getting a sense of Deja Vu?" Mika nodded in agreement. "Yeah. This place is giving off a seriously bad vibe." Ali traced her clawed lizard hands over one slice of the green slime. She sniffed it and her eyes widened. "It can't be." "What?" "This is what Queen Chrysalis used to trap our parents all those years ago." "It can't be Chrysalis." P'Li stated. "She's dead." "Well, she may be dead, but it's clear her handy work isn't." Sunset's ears perked upwards in alarm. "Everyone, get down!" she warned in a harsh whisper. The team huddled together behind a rock when the sound of growling came from the other end of the tunnel. Iris was held by both Bolin and Asami, while her siblings coiled their tails around them. P'Li and Zaheer held one another close, while Sunset and Kuvira crunched down side by side, gripping each other's hands. The changeling wolf sniffed the air, opening its jaws wide and the sickly black hairs on its back rose upwards like that of an angry cat as it slowly approached the rock from which the others were hiding. Thinking fast, Iris used her levitation to make a random stone from behind fall to the ground, creating a loud noise. The changeling whipped its head around to see the rock then snarled threateningly. Ali quickly crawled up the wall on all fours, her entire body slithering as she did so and just at the right moment, ambushed the changeling by jumping on top of it. Electrical currents coursed through its body and the changeling fell unto unconsciousness. Ali proudly blew the nonexistent smoke off of her taser gun and put it back in her pocket. "Nice one, big sis." Iris said, giving her sister a high five. "Never leave the house unprepared." "Come, it's this way." Iris took the lead once more and the others followed suit. The cave became wider, almost the size of the Canterlot Ball Room, with stone pillars sustaining it. This portion of the cave really did resemble a hive. A hive P'Li remembered seeing before. The combustion woman shook her head in disbelief. This couldn't be possible, could it? The sound of something hitting against a glass bottle echoed inside and the team followed it. Further inside the large scaled room they spotted a stone table, filled with an assortment of chemicals, boiling liquids, ancient books with Equestrian writing on the covers, and magical symbols. Chemistry lad equipment was set up and a shadow of an anthro unicorn was seen tampering with all of them. Sunset Shimmer was the first one to recognize the figure. "Starlight!" The unicorn gasped, nearly dropping her vile of strange yellow green chemicals, but who's mouth grew into a wide smile, her eyes watering at the sight of her old friend. "Sunset!" Both unicorns embraced one another, P'Li and Kuvira quickly joined in. Starlight wiped way her tears, "I thought I'd never see you guys again!" she spotted the young human alicorn and quickly wrapped her arms around. "Iris! You're okay!" "I'm fine. But, what happened? Who captured you? Where is everybody?" Starlight looked exhausted. She had horrible bangs under her eyes, and even though she had been crying, the red in her eyes indicated she had been crying long before they showed up. Ali approached the stone table and read the cover of one of the books. Her eyes widened. "This is a book of enchant alchemy from Equestria." she said. "These things have been banned for years. How did you find them?" "I didn't." Starlight hung her head in regret, her voice cracking. "I didn't have a choice! I--" The sound of flapping insect wings echoed within the cave walls and a massive hole appeared above their heads. The insides glowed a sickly green color before lowering down to reveal a number of glowing green cocoons. Within them were Avatar Korra, Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie,  Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Thorax, Nova Nightshade, Mako, Flash Sentry, Sunburst, Princess Cadance, Shinning Armor, Flurry Heart, Discord, Leilani, Luna and Celestia, all hanging upside down, in what appeared to be a deep slumber, floating in the green liquids inside. A few more cocoons dripped with fresh slime, revealing to be Iris's friends. Akari, Chi, Nori, Mai, Hiro and Gallants Steed were all kept in the same state as the others. The sounds of a familiar cackle also echoed within the walls, growing stronger, and clearer with each breath, followed by more insect wing flapping. A shadow hovered over them, the silhouette of what appeared to be a spider glared at them with glowing green eyes with cat-like slits. Iris immediately recognized those eyes from her dream and once the creature leaped down to confront them, her entire body made cracking noises as she stood upwards, her head tilting to the side in an unsettling manner. Her proportions were that of a sickly skinny woman, her arms and legs practically bones with insect-like hairs sticking out, and her feet only had two toes. Her entire skin was black, with gray spots, resembling either freckles or sickly spots. Her hair was long and teal, wet looking with holes and pieces that draped over her face and shoulders. She wore a green, dark turquoise ragged one shoulder dress that reached her knees and a green sash around her waist. Behind her back were a pair of torn up insect wings. On her forehead grew a twisted, half broken horn as she adjusted her head and gave her guests a sly, devilish grin, showcasing her sharp fangs. P'Li, the spirit siblings, Asami and Bolin stared in terror, their eyes looking as if they would pop right out of their heads. In this one, earth shattering moment, the past had become the present once more. "Hello, P'Li. It's been a long, long time." she said, her voice just as slithery and malicious as ever. Absolutely no time has passed. "Queen Chrysalis!" P'Li muttered, unable to even say the name louder than she had wished to. "But--How?" "W--We saw you!" Bolin stuttered, his eyes wide and unblinking, "You--With the falling--Body-- Blood--Eyes out of your sockets--How are you still alive!?" "Shows just how little you know about changelings." With fire an electric glove in hand, both Asami and Sunset stepped in to shield Starlight from the horrid, undead changeling queen. Chrysalis wagged her singer, "Ah, ah, ah. You wouldn't want to upset my precious little darlings now would you?" At the snap of her fingers, a swarm of wolf changelings arrived from the holes on the walls, or having been crawling above them. Some even emerged from in between the cocoons. The pack of wolves swarmed the group, spitting their slimy goop directly at their wrists and feet. The group was thrown back against the wall. Sunset was just about to unleash her magic, but was stopped when one spit the slimy goop onto her horn, keeping her from casting any spells. Iris struggled to activate her magic, cringing in disgust at the slimy sensation on her forehead. P'Li's forehead was also stroked, preventing her from combustion bending. It worked in a similar manner as the Smooze's substance, where it repelled magic. "Let our friends go!" Iris shouted, despite being held captive she refused to back down and cower before the infamous changeling queen. Chrysalis slowly approached Iris, forcibly grabbing her chin, much to her discomfort. "I admit, I underestimated you, little princess. Or should I say… Avatar?" Iris forcibly removed her chin from her grasp. "How do you know about--?" "Oh, I know everything there is to know about you. All of you." Chrysalis's body became engulfed with a green glow, changing her entire body. She was now shorter, with a much healthier physique, with bright eyes and casual clothing. She had changed into a lovely young unicorn. A unicorn Iris knew she had met before. "Oh, my gosh! You have no idea how lucky you are to be related to such heroes!" Chrysalis gushed, using News Caster's voice and then reverted back to her normal self. "I'll admit, I wasn't entirely sure if you or that little alicorn were worth taking given your track record. But, I figured the more power, the merrier." "That's why you sent that changeling wolf after me!" "Wow. Took you long enough to figure it out. Honestly, how did none of you place two and two together?" "Gee, I don't know, maybe because we all saw you fall to your death!" San exclaimed, his eyes becoming like slits as he sneered at the queen. "And why did you take Nova?" Sunset Shimmer asked in anger. I can understand why you would take the Alicorns, the Avatar, Discord and Thorax, but why rope my husband into this?" "And what's with those banished spell books?" Ali demanded before turning towards Starlight Glimmer. Starlight opened her mouth to reply, only to be silenced when the wolves growled at her. The poor unicorn looked so broken and filled with such regret. There was no denying that, whatever it was Chrysalis was forcing her to make, was tearing her up inside. "I suppose for you to better understand, you'll need a little history lesson." Chrysalis chuckled as she walked around in front of her prisoners, taunting them by either tracing a bony hand over their heads or taping their shoulders. Each gesture made them feel more and more uneasy. "The last time, you three little lizard pests ruined everything by revealing the changeling's secret history. A history I've fought tooth and nail to hide. But thanks to you, that traitor Thorax took my throne! Reverting my once beautiful changeling followers back into the pathetic weaklings they are now!" Chrysalis hissed, her long fork tongue slithering. Saliva fell on the faces of Ali, Mika and San, only for the three of them to hiss right back, exposing their own slithery tongues as well. Chrysalis recoiled in disgust. "You were making your people starve!" P'Li exclaimed in anger. "You said so yourself, a changeling's hunger can never be satisfied. You had the solution right in front of you, but you ignored it!" "I would never expect a lowlife human like yourself to ever understand!" Chrysalis spatted. "I was once a changeling like them. I used to be bright, and sickly colorful. Back then, changelings were good-doers. Helping other ponies and creatures wherever we roamed." Chrysalis's hand clenched tightly. "But I grew tired of it. Despite our good deeds, we were still inferior to other ponies! They lived in luxury while we lived in forests and trees and caves! The king of that time foolishly presumed it represented our humility. But even with our supposed good deeds we got nothing in return!" "Yes you did!" Iris said, speaking up. "Your people received love." "No! That is where you're wrong. Changelings weren't supposed to feed on love, but share it. The love we had within us is what made us whole. Stealing it, on the other hand…." Chrysalis's grin grew wider. "It gave us so much more. I discovered that by stealing love, I could live longer. Any injury I had would be healed in a matter of days. I could be become immortal! The more love I stole, the more I craved it. And I loved every moment of it! I wanted the same for my people! I wanted them to be as powerful as the other races in Equestria! At long last, we could be adored as the true leaders that we were meant to become!" The queen's pupils shrunk, indicating her slow descendent to madness. Or rather, going even deeper, and deeper into that madness. All this talk about stealing love sounded more and more like an unhealthy addiction than anything else, and the fact that she could gain some form of immortality in doing so only heightened her need for it. "But, that foolish king refused to listen and banished me from the changeling kingdom! During my travels, I stumbled upon an ancient love potion and used it on the king. By willingly giving me his love, I gained all of his powers! I was the true leader of the changelings! Before long, those who wished to live forever joined me, while those who didn't were casted out! My subjects and I could feed on as much love as we wished, and we could live for generations to come!" "Except you didn't stay true to your word." Iris stated, "Thorax said that you never spoke of immortality to your subjects, only that you were. If you wanted your subjects to live forever, then why haven't they lived as long as you have?" For a moment, Chrysalis's eyes…. softened.  Everyone looked at Iris in surprise for no one had been able to get through to Chrysalis like she just did. However, that one glimmer of hope was short lived, for Chrysalis's eyes once again reverted back to insanity. "My immortality is MINE!" she snapped, "I gave my subjects all the food they desired!" "But you hogged most of it for yourself!" "If they couldn't remain as long as they wished then so be it!" "So, you killed them?" Kuvira asked hesitantly. "Of course not! I never killed any changelings! They died of natural causes! The hive's enchantment allowed for more changelings to grow and prosper! Those I would train to be my followers!" "So they were never immortal to begin with." Kuvira said, narrowing his eyes seriously. "With every new generation you just kept lying and lying, using them as a means to get more love for yourself. You never cared about your subjects, you only made them think did. At the end of it all, the only one you ever truly care about is yourself!" "SILENCE YOU FOOL!!" "Help!" That voice. The voice Iris kept hearing. It was here. She could feel it. "It's because of you pathetic humans and ponies that I lost everything! My people, my home, my power! Why else do you think it took me so long to regenerate myself?!" Chrysalis took in a deep breath before composing herself as a few of the changeling wolves circled around her. "Lucky for me, I was heavily protected by this pack of wolves that found my cocoon out in the wilderness. The magic emitting from me was what transformed them into my new loyal followers. Personally, I find them to be more obedient than the last ones." "That still doesn't explain why you took Starlight and the others!" Sunset Shimmer said. "Simple. I know a few tricks in regards to ancient Equestrian potion making, but sadly, my talents are limited." her eyes shifted to Starlight Glimmer, who recoiled in fear. "But I've heard that Starlight here is a natural when it comes to combining powerful spells. And I did say I would have my revenge one day. Doing a bit of research I uncovered this…" Her horn glowed, levitating a book. She flipped the pages before landing on one page, where it showcased the image of a potion bottle, and the image of a unicorn stealing magic from an Ursa Major. "This is known as the Potentita elixir. One clever unicorn was inspired by the magic stealing skills of Tirek, and concocted his own version of it. Sadly, his research was burned and hidden away so nopony ever knew of it. While exploring some ancient ruins I stumbled upon it. That is when I set my plan into motion. By disguising myself as News Caster, I was able to gain valuable updates on all of you for months, all the while my changeling pack doubled as my extra set of eyes. Watching over each of you, and reporting back to me with as much information as possible while my magic recharged itself. After all, coming back from the dead leaves a girl's abilities rather week." Chrysalis said, flipping her mane while inspecting her mane. "I had to be extra careful with my disguise, which was only limited to that one persona." "So that's your plan." Zaheer said. "You kidnap all of the most powerful beings in the world land you force Starlight Glimmer to make you that potion so you can steal all of their magic!" "Right. On. The nose." Chrysalis said, tapping Zaheer's nose as a result, much to his annoyance. Starlight looked away in shame. "I'm so sorry, everyone. I didn't want to do this, but--" she was cut off when Chrysalis hooked her arm around her shoulder, startling her. "But, if she didn't comply…" Chrysalis snapped her fingers, and one of the changeling wolves appeared, wielding a spear in his mouth, pointing it at ether Sunburst, or Gallant Steed. "One of her friends would get a very, very nasty case of spear-through-the-heart syndrome. Wouldn't want that now, would we?" "That's why you took Nova? For your stupid power up experiment?!" Sunset's anger boiled. To think, this horrid monster was going to use her husband as some kind of battery charger. "Indeed. He may not be as long lived as he once was, but being an ancient breed of pony/spirit hybrid must count for some powerful magic. And now, with his little wisp friend, well that's just adding more fuel to the fire. Which I like." Sunset growled in anger and forcibly tried to use her magic, to no avail. "You won't get away with this!" "I already have." Chrysalis said, levitating a vile of bubbly green liquids within. With a nod of her head, Starlight was pushed back by one of the changeling wolves and stuck to the wall alongside the others, her horn covered up as well. "Starlight Glimmer has already completed her end of the bargain. It took a while to finish, seeing as it is a very complex recipe, but it was worth it to see her suffer. And to watch little Iris and her companions try so hard to reach her precious mommy and daddy." she spoke in a taunting, cooing tone at the last two words, slightly puckering her lips while clapping her hands together, close to her face. Iris's eyes widened. "What?" "When my darlings failed to capture you the first time, I tried to do the job myself. But, I couldn't risk blowing my cover, and knowing how stubborn teenagers can be, I just knew you would try and save them. Imagine my surprise when it turns out that you, little miss sunshine, was the new Avatar. Guess you aren't so normal after all." Chrysalis cackled. "Once I drink the potion, I will have more power than any known Alicorn and Avatar combined! Finally, I can take my rightful place, as the One. True. QUEEN!!" The changeling wolves howled in victory as their beloved mistress laughed her head off, her eyes unsettlingly wide open, her pupils and irises shrinking more and more, indicating that her sanity was slipping further and further away. Just when it would seem all hope was lost, Iris noticed something from the corner of her eye in the cocoon that had Akari inside. Squinting her eyes, Iris noticed that it was some kind of… Spark. The same spark reflected in Iris's own eyes and a knowing grin crossed her lips. She turned towards the others and nodded her head. The adults all shared questionable expressions, but Iris proceeded with her plan, even after Chrysalis had finished laughing. "Before I take what is rightfully mine, any last words, Princess?" Rather than speak, Iris instead opened her mouth and began to harmonize. The sound of an angel's voice filled the cave, causing the changeling wolves to become mesmerized by the girl's enchanting voice. Chrysalis stepped back, seeing the wolves in some kind of trance-like state. "What? What are you doing? Stop it!" The louder Iris sang, the brighter the spark on Akari's chest became. The same spark emitted from the chests of the other children, followed by Korra herself, Twilight and the rest of the Mane Six. Chrysalis's eyes widened in horror. "No. No!" When Iris hit the high note, the entire cave began to tremble and quake. Chrysalis tumbled backwards, falling against the stone table with all of the chemicals and books, which fell on he ground either shattering or rolling away. Hitting her head, Chrysalis fell to the floor while her changelings were knocked out due to the intense light. The powerful light beam brighter and brighter until the cocoons suddenly burst! Green slime was splattered everywhere in the cave, and the blast itself resulted in the ones who were stuck against the wall to be freed. Sunset, Starlight, Asami and the others rubbed their wrists only to see that the cocoons were now cracked, and everyone inside of them was now free. Iris ceased her singing, and Chrysalis sneered in anger. Korra groaned while wiping the green slime from her face and hair. "Where are we?" she asked. Looking at her surroundings, she noticed the cave, her friends, her daughter, and a certain changeling queen laying on the ground, her hair spread out it covered her face. "Chrysalis? But, you're supposed to be dead!" Twilight sat upright, removing the slime from her arms, and she took as astonished to see Chrysalis alive and ticking. "What is going on?" "It's a long story." Akari said, standing beside her mother and offering her hand, while covered in slime herself. "Akari!" the older alicorn wrapped her arms around the child. Flash Sentry sat upright and both girls helped him back to his feet. He happily embraced his wife and daughter. "Mai! Hiro!" "Mom! Dad!" the Sato siblings hurried towards their parents, hugging them, ignoring the slime that stained their cloths. Starlight Glimmer hurried to her husband Sunburst, who was assisting his son Gallant Steed. She cried on their shoulders, gripping them as tightly as she possibly could. Korra helped Mako back to his feet, and Iris skyrocketed towards them, hugging their torsos. "Mommy! Daddy!" "Iris? What's going on?" Mako asked, stroking her head affectionately. "What have you been up to?" "A lot and you'll probably ground me for it, but I don't care! I'm just so happy you're back!" Iris cried her eyes out, not wanting to let go of her parents just yet. If at all. Ali, Mika and San happily joined in the family reunion without hesitation. "Nova!" Sunset Shimmer hurried towards her husband, who wrapped his arms around her, spinning her around, her feet hovering above the floor. Chi literally tackled the two and they tumbled to the ground in a giggling heap. Rarity cringed at the disgusting slime in her mane. "Oh, why should I even bother at this point." she groaned to herself. "Rarity!" The unicorn gasped and spread her arms open wide to welcome the young merpony. "Nori! Oh, my sweet little angelfish! It was horrible! The last thing I remember was being knocked out cold by some horrible beast! I was afraid something had happened to you and your father. Are you okay?" "I'm fine and so is dad. I really missed you." "I missed you too." Fluttershy awoke and hurried to the changeling king, "Thorax! Are you okay?" "I'm alright, Fluttershy." "Fluttershy! Thorax! Oh, thank goodness!" Discord swooped in and wrapped the two in a tight embrace, kissing them both on the cheek. "My OTP lives on!" Discord then started to blink and blush like mad. "Please tell me nobody heard that last part." "Everybody already knows, Discord." Fluttershy pointed out, making the chaotic spirit *squee* as a result. The rest of the Mane Six were welcomed by Kuvira, P'Li, Zaheer and the Satos. Flurry Heart helped her parents back up and Akari hugged her beloved cousin, while Twilight hugged her brother and sister-in-law. Leilani and her daughters were reunited, embracing Twilight, Cadance and Korra. Leilani turned towards Iris and the kids. "Well done, Iris. You and your friends were very brave to come here." "Brave, and in a whole heap of trouble." Asami said, crossing her arms and arching an eyebrow at them. "Oh, come on, Mom! Don't we get a free pass at saving your lives?" Hiro asked, flashing his parents and innocent smile. The smile had zero effect and he slumped his posture. "Worth a shot." Flurry Heart ruffled Akari's hair. "Thanks for the save, little cousin." "Indeed." Leilani said, wrapping her arms around her daughters. "You children were very brave." Sadly, their happy reunion became short lived when Chrysalis awoke, cackling like a mad woman. "Did you really think that pretty light show was going to save you? Now that I have the potion, all of your powers will be mine!" Chrysalis lifted up the vile, only to realize that all she was holding was an empty test tube. "What? Where is--" "Looking for this?" Iris said, revealing that she herself had the potion in her hand. "It's over, Chrysalis. You're outmatched." "Am I?" Chrysalis smiled devilishly, and as if by some silent command, the changeling wolves arose back to their feet. "Give me the potion! Now!" Chrysalis demanded, extending her hand towards them. Iris quickly tucked it away in her pocket. "Not a chance! Discord, get us out of here!" The spirit of chaos gave a salute. "With pleasure!" he snapped his fingers and teleported them out… right in the middle of the dark realm desert. Discord blinked in bewilderment and tried snapping his fingers again, but no matter how hard he tries, they still winded up in the same place. "What is going on? Why isn't my magic working? I mean, it's working but not in the way I want it to!" "The only way out of the Dark Realm is through the main entrance." Korra stated, "Also, the chaotic energy around here could be interfering with your own." "It's no wonder she chose this place to keep you guys." Chi said, hovering beside Sunset and Nova, who held one another close. "I'm beginning to think Queen Crazy-wings is a lot smarter than she looks." Discord's eyes widened before his pupils became slits. "Don't tell her I said that!" The sands beneath their feet rose upwards, and the entire swarm of changeling wolves emerged from beneath, flapping their wings and jaws snapping. The creatures became engulfed in a green glow, emerging to resemble perfect copies of each of the heroes. Twilight Sparkle groaned in frustration and face palmed herself. "Great. This again?" "Great. This again?" the changeling copies of Twilight all said in unison, which only made Twilight all the more frustrated. Even her brother and sister-in-law shared her same sentiment. "They're blocking our way out!" Flash Sentry exclaimed. "Looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way." said Rainbow Dash, taking on a defensive stance, creating two fire daggers from her fists. Flash Sentry pulled out his sword, same as his daughter, while Twilight wielded a couple of fire daggers. One by one, each hero readied themselves to fight the changeling pack. Flurry Heart was especially excited, pounding her fists together and cracking her knuckles. "Sweet! I've always wanted to fight off my own changeling!" she blinked and smiled awkwardly at the good changeling beside her. "Uh, no offense Uncle Thorax." "None taken." Thorax replied with a casual shrug. "FREEDOM!!!" Discord shouted, while wearing a scottish warrior outfit, complete with face paint and bagpipes playing in the background. It was difficult to tell exactly which side charged first, for before long, the entire desert turned into an all out war zone, with heroes fighting against copies of themselves. One would wonder how they would be able to tell them apart. Korra unleashed her magic, which manifested itself into pure ice, freezing a couple of her copies before going for a copy of Twilight. Twilight herself fought beside her, literally back to back, with the alicorn unleashing a fiery inferno at several of her own copies. Rather than copy her attacks, the Twilight copies spit that horrible slime from their mouths again, only to be deflected by Twilight's shield spells. One Korra copy came at her, unleashing a multitude of punches her way, which Korra narrowly dodged before gripping the changeling's arm, twisting it and hurling her over her head. "Okay, this trope got old real fast." Korra said, casually knocking down another copy coming her way by earthbending a rock from beneath her feet. Twilight grunted as she tossed another changeling copy of herself, in a similar way Korra did. "Tell me about it!" the alicorn grumbled. (~) Three of the Sunset Shimmer changelings leaped up into the air, their teeth bare as they came down on the real Sunset Shimmer. She easily teleported her way out of their clutches, giving Nova Nightshade the opportunity to wrap them in a magic lasso he had greeted. Working together, the two pulled on it and spun the changelings and slung them against another incoming row, knocking them down. A few more came their way, with Sunset Shimmer and Nova striking them down, each with their respected back. One by one, and in a blur of blur and red. Once the changelings scattered away, Nova wrapped his arms around Sunset's waist and ambushed her with a kiss on the lips. "I missed you." he said with a sly grin, matching Sunset's. (~) Fluttershy panted as she slid across the sanely ground in a three point pose, only to be surrounded by a number of Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash Changelings. Just when they were about to attack, one of them took them all out in little time, revealing herself to be the real Rainbow Dash and helped Fluttershy back up before the two flew up to continue the fight. (~) Applejack and Starlight Glimmer stood back to back, only for Applejack herself to realize that this Starlight was a changeling when she started hissing at her. "Seriously?!" Applejack exclaimed, only to get ambushed by copies of herself. Unlucky for them, they couldn't duplicate her earthbending, so Applejack had the upper hand by rising the earth from beneath their feet to knock them all down. A swarm of Starlight copies came at her and Applejack knocked down each one with her earthbending, except for one which blasted magic from her horn, causing said rock to break into little pieces. Applejack shielded herself from the falling pebbles, and the Starlight before her rose her hands in surrender. "Sorry! My bad!" Applejack only smiled and chuckled in relief. "No harm done, Sugarcube." (~) Pinkie Pie, on the other hand, was facing a changeling copy of Mako, but when he saw she wasn't terrified, he changed into Rarity, then Twilight, then Asami. But Pinkie Pie only laughed her head off. "Do me! Do me!" The changeling rolled his eyes and changed into Pinkie Pie, smile and all. Pinkie Pie shrugged. "Eh. I've seen better." she said… right before pulling out a literal party riffle gun from her long puffy hair. The Pinkie Pie changeling gulped before being blasted away by said riffle, by a powerful impact of confetti, candies and glitter. Pinkie Pie smiled in satisfaction and blew the smoke that, somehow, emitted from the riffle. "You can't beat the classics!" (~) Rainbow Dash zipped left and right, punching at every changeling that came her. One changeling that resembled Kuvira grabbed her by the tail and yanked her down. Rainbow Dash hit the ground hard and was surrounded by more changelings looming over her. One by one, they were knocked down by a blue blur that came at them at rapid speed, even too much for Rainbow Dash herself to keep up with. The blue blur revealed herself to be none other than Chi. Rainbow was visibly impressed. "Where did you learn that?" "Long story short, me and the gang are the new Elements of Harmony, we've got cool new powers, mine is supper speed, and I'm also the Element of Loyalty." Rainbow blinked a coupled times. "How long have I been out?" Chi assisted her back up, and more changelings surrounded them. The two Elements of Loyalty nodded in agreement, sharing the same sly grins and proceeded to go punch, kick and take names to their heart's content. (~) Rarity kicked and punched her way against the changelings, using her water whip to knock them down. One changeling that resembled Bolin came from behind her, wrapping his arm around her neck, attempting to chock her. The changeling was then knocked down when a peeler hit him square in the head, causing him to change back into a wolf. Rarity inhaled deeply and saw it was Nori who used her pearls to knock the attack down. She ran up to Rarity, hugging her in relief. (~) Sunburst, Starlight and Gallant rallied together, mother and son using their airbending to blast a multitude of changelings away from them, while P'Li blasted at the changelings that looks like her, and Zaheer blasted at the rest. Asami electrocuted her own changeling duplicates, knocking them out, while Bolin earthbended to knock the rest of them down. Several copies of Discord slithered towards them like snakes, until Mai leaped in and began punching them square in the jaw. Her punches were so powerful, they were literally sent up into the air, where they shifted back into their wolf selves. Mai even grabbed hold of the tail of one of them, and hurled him away. A changeling that was twice her size and she flicked him away like he was no more than a rag doll. Both Asami and Bolin stared at their daughter, eyes wide and jaws dropped, while Mai causally rubbed her wrists and smiled at her parents. Kuvira sent metal slates at the changelings, even those who resembled Korra, Mako and the alicorns. Several explosions showered downwards from the sky, causing more and more changelings to get knocked down on their feet. Kuvira turned around to see it was Hiro, using his new powers. He bowed in respect, only to realize the rocks in his hands were glowing again. He frantically tossed them back and forth in his hands like a hot potato before tossing them into the air. Kuvira ducked and the explosion stroked a copy of Celestia, knocking him down. (~) Ali, Mika and San sliced through the army, using their wings as powerful blazes to strike the changelings once by one. Thorax used his own magic to shoot beams at the changelings, while Fluttershy fought beside him, blasting the ones that came their way. The two flew out of the way when Discord came charging in, ridding on, literally, a minotaur while yelling like a wild man. As in typical Discord fashion, the changelings were comedically thrown off, all looking rather surprised and disturbed by this. "Excuse me, coming through, hot stuff!" Discord said as he charged in. The minotaur disappeared and Discord changed his attire to match that of a G.I Joe character, complete with black sunglasses, sleeveless military shirt, camouflage plants, hiker boots and hat, and packing a real military gun, which really shot just blasts of magic rather than actual bullets. "THEY CALL ME MR. CHAOS!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" "Discord!" "What?!" "I think you made your point." Fluttershy pointed to the row of injured changeling wolves, to which Discord smiled in satisfaction. "Talk about your wings of war." (~) No matter how many times the heroes seem to win, more and more changelings just kept coming back. It would appear that Chrysalis took great advantage of the years in which she had been plotting her revenge, recruiting a literal army of changeling wolves that was twice as big, if not bigger than her original army was. Twilight, Flash, Cadance and Shinning Armor fought off the changelings that resembled them, the royal family already looking worn and tired. Shinning gripped his arm and Cadance looked like a hot mess, with hair sticking to her face due to the sweat. In a flash, two new blades joined in the fight. Akari and Flurry Heart swooped in from the sky, fighting back the changelings with all of the martial moves and sword fighting tricks their fathers and mothers had taught them. There was no hiding the wide smile on Flurry Heart's face as she kicked and punched the changelings away from her parents. Even Akari was getting into the spirit by kicking one in the stomach with her two legs, reminiscent of a pony kicking with her hind legs. Both cousins panted once the fight was over, only to have their parents smiling with great pride. (~) Speaking of fighting alicorns, Luna and Celestia were literally savages on the field. Celestia not only unleashed a powerful breath of fire onto her opponents, but also knocked a couple of them down by literally knocking their heads together and kicking one changeling where the sun don't shine. Luna moved like a ninja, using her ice shards to slice her way through the changeling army, all without so much as flinching. As for Leilani, she narrowly dodged incoming punches and flipped literally three changelings at once. The former alicorn queen stood upright, panting and sweating. "I'm getting too old for this." she said… only to casually punch another changeling that came up from behind her. All without flinching or turning around. (~) For Korra and Mako, fighting side by side never got old. Iris proved herself to be even more skilled and resourceful than they thought when she blasted at the changelings behind her parents with incredible fire power, coupled with traces of her alicorn magic. "Somebody's been practicing." Korra said, happily impressed with her daughter while removing traces of unkept hair from her face. Mako nodded in agreement. "That scarf looks good on you." he said. Iris looked at said scarf, having forgotten to return it back to him. The family screamed in terror when Chrysalis spontaneously bursted from the ground, tackling Iris with brute force. The young princess struggled in her grip only for the queen to get blasted away by Korra. She hurried and helped Iris back to her feet. The changelings all ceased their fighting and rallied behind their queen, changing back into wolves. The queen panted, looking visibly tired, probably even more so than the heroes themselves. They all rallied around Chrysalis, ignoring their own exhaustion and ready to end this here and now. "Enough, Chrysalis." Korra stated firmly while panting slowly. "This has to end now." Chrysalis hung her head, her hair partly covering her face. "Yes… you're right." she said, only to start cackling again. "This is the end… for all of you." slowly lifting up her hand, she revealed to have taken the potion from Iris's pocket when she tackled her. "It won't work!" Starlight Glimmer said, taking a step forward, ignoring the hissing of the wolves. "Did you really think I would make you that potion? It has everything but the final ingredient, so it's pretty much useless." "Oh, I'm fully aware of that." Chrysalis said, shocking Starlight. "I knew you'd try and double cross me. I may not have been able to make it myself, but I memorized all the ingredients including the last one… a single drop of light magic. Now, who here has that kind of magic?" To make things even more shocking, Chrysalis revealed that, along with the potion, she also plucked one of Iris's feathers. The princess gasped, feeling foolish for not having noticed when Chrysalis plucked her. Without a moment to waste, Chrysalis opened the vile and placed the feather inside, where it immediately dissolved into small, rainbow-like particles and she gulped the entire thing down in one swoop. "NO!" There was nothing nobody could do. Chrysalis had drunk the potion. There was not even a drop left. The now empty bottle fell from Chrysalis's hand and it rolled away. The queen's expression was not one of devilish joy or accomplishment, but rather one of true, unadulterated terror. Everyone looked on in confusion, for rather than be pleased with herself, Chrysalis looked as if she had realized she made a grave mistake. She jolted, letting out a shocked gasp, gripping her throat which felt like it was on fire. Her breathing became hectic, her eyes unblinking even when she got to her knees. The potion began to take full effect. From what appeared to be completely against her own will, her mouth opened wider than it had ever been. If her skinny body wasn't a disturbing image enough by itself, the massive way her jaw outstretched downwards with her head tilted back and eyes bulging certainly added to it. The rest of the heroes felt a scorching pain inside of them. Their bodies glowed dangerously bright, they groaned, they winced, they screamed, feeling all of their energy slipping away and the will to keep it was only increasing the already unbearable pain. It was just like when Tirek stole their magic, only a billion times more painful. It was like reliving years, and years, and years of pain and suffering came flooding back in one painful second. All of that energy, all of that magic became absorbed into Chrysalis's unsettlingly opened mouth. From her throat grew a green substance, resembling the surface of the cocoons she had used to trap everyone, only it expanded, engulfing every bit of her body, from her arms, to her legs, face and hair, all but her eyes. Her body shimmered, radiating with a powerful light. With each new power she absorbed, a new layer grew around her, causing her body to grow rapidly. Even the changeling wolves whimpered in terror upon seeing their mistress growing and growing larger than life as she continued to absorb the magic from everyone present. Once the process was finished, everyone fell to the ground, their colors dull, their eyes tinted with gray, and their bodies feeling like jello and Anthros were forced back into their pony forms , unable to morph back. Chrysalis had grown to be as large, it not bigger than Tirek or even Kuvira's old Mecha Suit. Her entire body radiated with electrical currents, each in a different color, reminiscent of the hero's color schemes. Her eyes were glowing green, no pupils or irises in sight and her hair was now pure white, moving on its own like snakes and her wings outreached, still torn but larger than before. Upon closer examination of her transformation, Chrysalis was now free to laugh to her black heart's content. She laughed at the fallen heroes. "THE MAGIC OF FRIENDSHIP WON'T BE ABLE TO STOP THIS! THE WORLD WILL KNOW MY NAME!!" Using the magic that was now in her possession, Chrysalis disappeared in a blinding light, leaving the fallen heroes to rot in the Dark Realm. Chrysalis manifested herself in front of the gateway that lead out of the Dark Realm. With her new powerful magic she was easily able to open it and slide her way through with ease. Back in the Spirit World, various humble spirits gasped when the giant changeling queen appeared before them. Her laughter caused the earth to tremble and the skies above to darken. Chrysalis smelled the air and her unquenched thirst for more magic overtook her. Opening her mouth, she absorbed more magic from the innocent spirits, causing them to loose tier vibrant colors and to fall to the ground, weak, helpless and worthless to her now. More magic was taken and the beautiful plants and trees began to die. One by one, the beautiful spirit world began to resemble the dark realm in color and bleakness. Chrysalis tasted only a small sample, and she wanted more. She needed more. And more she would get. (~)