Over the ages it has often been debated, with varying degrees of civility, about what makes a ruler great. The staunchest of Princess Celestia’s allies and subjects would tell you that it is a ruler’s kindness and benevolence to those that she governs, while the denizens of the Crystal Empire would say that it is the ruler’s ability to keep her ponies safe from harm, no matter the cost. Still others in the Griffon Kingdom maintain that it is a monarch’s wealth and treasure that distinguish him as superior.
Yet despite the vast differences in ideology and culture, there is one aspect that every nation agrees on when it comes to rulers: they either rise or fall by those that they govern. Princess Celestia’s willingness to use the Elements of Harmony to banish her own sister to defend her ponies, the Crystal Ponies’ pivotal role in banishing King Sombra, even King Guto of Griffonstone’s legacy had become a kind of cautionary tale back in griffon lands about the perils of kingship.
And then there was Queen Chrysalis…
One of the most controversial figures in recent history, the Changeling Queen and her species had garnered a recent flare of fear and hostility from their invasion of Canterlot. Almost overnight, the changelings had gone from a widely ignored and obscure race to the equivalent of the modern-day bogeymares. Stories about changelings hiding under the beds of young foals and in their closets were spreading like wildfire across Equestria, a rumor that was all too easy to perpetuate as the recountings of the wedding got blown more and more out of proportion with each retelling.
The truth, however, was far less sensational.
Those who had actually been at the royal wedding would be the first to tell anypony who asked that the changelings had been beaten back by the efforts of the newly wed Shining Armor and Princess Cadance, every last one of them flung from the capital with their queen out to the desolate badlands. Indeed, the newlyweds were hailed as heroes of the city, and there was already talk of a memorial being erected in their honor for driving out every last one of the invaders.
The truth, however, was far less convenient.
Every ruler rises and falls by those they govern. Chrysalis, the Queen of the Changelings, was no exception. While many a pony was still swapping tall tales about their self-aggrandized deeds of bravery during the short time that the changelings had been in control of the city, Princess Celestia sat up in her study, staring at her desk without seeing it, piercing the antique lacquered surface with a squint that could have cut glass and probably even steel.
Everything that could’ve possibly gone wrong during the wedding, had gone wrong, and Celestia herself had been helpless in her effort to stop the changelings, going as far as to losing to the changeling queen in a one on one battle.
That had been a tad bit embarrassing.
Her body was as still as a statue, but her brain was racing at supersonic speeds, each of her thoughts a radiant bead of light glimmering in the smog of questions that besieged the princess’ mind.
One droplet of light glowed a little brighter than the rest. It was a memory, and not an altogether pleasant one, a fact further exacerbated by the long and vividly accurate ability to remember the past that alicorns possessed. It was a memory of burning homes and crumbling walls, of fleeing ponies being stalked by shape-shifting creatures, all stained and blackened by the shame of arriving just a hair too late.
It was, of course, the Siege of Trot. A proud city, back in its time, and a cultural heartland as well, ruled by one Emperor Incitatus. A competent, if overly vain ruler who had met his end at the hooves of Chrysalis so very long ago.
Celestia closed her eyes and allowed the memory to bloom fully before her. She remembered it well; She had seen the smoke rising from the fallen city all the way from Canterlot like a distress signal and had rallied her Solar guards to fly to the rescue, but by the time they had flown to Trot, it was already in ruins. That, Celestia fancied, was the day when she and Chrysalis had truly become enemies, and the encounter had ended with her using the sun’s energy to blast the Changeling Queen with enough force to sear holes through her body, and then imprisoning them inside a volcano.
Celestia turned her head to one of her windows, setting her eyes out on at the sunny sky. A pair of blue birds flew by, chirping happily as though there wasn’t a care in the world. They obviously didn’t know what the kingdom had just gone through and the sun princess didn’t blame them. Perhaps it was better they didn’t know.
Back to the volcano...
She had assumed they would be trapped there still. They had even made sure there was the security measure of the dragon to keep them from ever escaping. Evidently Chrysalis was either a lot stronger or smarter than Celestia had given her credit for.
Or was she?
Something still didn’t sit well about the whole Canterlot invasion. The princess opened her eyes to give the window a troubled look. How was it that Trot and Timbucktu had fallen so easily to the changelings when they had been at an advantage, and Canterlot stayed standing despite Chrysalis’ near absolute victory? How had she even infiltrated the castle without anypony knowing any better? How had she kidnapped an alicorn princess and stashed her deep in the caverns below? There were too many questions.
As Celestia readied herself to depart for the Day Court and all the complaints that were sure to come with it, she could not help but wonder where Chrysalis was right now, and what she might be doing.
Unbeknownst to her, Celestia was not the only princess wondering that.
Not at all.