"Damnit..." The cold, harsh voice of Chrysalis echoed, the walls of the black hive vibrating slightly, "Everything...all the planning...all the scheming...gone right to waste..." She growled, the dark confines of her shadowy cold room reverberating with her anger and malice. It had been months since the attack on Ponyville...and she STILL couldn't get over the fact that she was easily beaten by half a dozen small ponies. That was the best plan she could muster, and to see it fail was just...humiliating. Her dream to defeat Princess Celestia was crushed, and her changelings once again were sealed away underground into the darkness.
The hive was huge, yet changelings hardly went outside unless it was to feed. The changelings had been banished ever since the reign of Celestia and Luna began, and Queen Chrysalis remembers it well. She was also immortal, yet she lacked the great power that the two pony goddesses were practically swimming in. Only love could feed her power, and at the moment she was practically all out.
Changelings weren't as clean and neat as the ponies. Her room, however, differed still. She had a large dark red carpet stretched across her floor, a few dressers and such thrown about. Changelings were no carpenters, but they cared not for appearances of their things. Her bed was large, yet was torn and ripped, obviously showing the signs of being ancient and uncared for. She had to admit...When she was with Shining Armor for that brief time, she was living pretty comfortably.
"Hmm..." She grunted, trotting over to the doorway, "I must come up with a new plan to rule all of Equestria..." She growled to herself, "But in the meantime...I must feed." There was large pony settlement not that far away, and the changelings often went their to replenish their energy. Chrysalis was no different, however it had taken her quite a few years to gain the necessary power to challenge the throne of Equestria.
She nudged the door open, the door swinging into the darkness, "Changelings!" She called out, "Come to me!" Her voice fired into the darkness, and usually there was the sound of dozens of her servants scampering to her aide. She was a queen after all.
However, there was no noise at all. Nothing. Not even a small insect could be heard in the dark hallways, and with her powerful eyes she could see no changelings. What was going on?
Chrysalis took one step into the darkness, and almost immediately a horrible chill came over her spine. The queen was never scared easily, but something in the dark was frightening her. And whatever it was...Was more evil than she was. With a silent gulp, she walked into the hive halls, her feet clapping lightly on the hard stone floors.
The hive was a series of complicated hallways and tunnels, and they were everywhere. If a pony wandered in, chances are that they would never be able to find their way back. Many diamond dogs had also entered...and many of them met their fate at the horn of Chrysalis.
"Changelings!" Chrysalis shouted angrily into the darkness, "To me!" The hive rattled with her voice, and she waited a few moments impatiently.
Still no answer.
Flipping her mane lightly, she knew that something was terribly wrong. Her changelings were loyal to her...there was no way they could abandon her as the queen. Something had to have happened to them. Something must have gotten into the hive. But what could possibly take on thousands and thousands of evil changelings?
Crunch
Chrysalis froze, her gaze fixated into the darkness of one of the tunnels in front of her, the soft sound barely catching her ears.
Crunch
"Whose there?!" Chrysalis yelled into the darkness, her legs starting to tremble a little.
Crunch
"I am Queen of the changelings!" Chrysalis roared, her horn starting to faintly glow, "I demand you tell me who you are!"
Crunch
The sound was getting louder.
"You asked for it!" She screamed, a powerful green bolt shooting from her oddly shaped horn, illuminated the hallway. It came into contact with something, exploding into a brilliant green light.
For an instant, she was able to see down the tunnels.
It was almost impossible to see in the darkness, but the light made it all clear for her. There was blood everywhere, splattered against the walls and ceilings of the tunnel. There were black shapes mutilated and gored, and she could only guess that it was the bodies of her beloved changelings. Her eyes widened, and she could no longer hide her fear.
Crunch
"GET AWAY!" She shrieked, her wings completely extending as she leaped for one of the tunnels on the ceiling of the highway. Her horn glowed with the light, helping to aid her way. She crossed through different crossroads and forks, her wings fluttering rapidly and at complete speed. When she was finally satisfied that she had lost whatever was after her, she collapsed onto the stone cold ground, panting softly.
"There..." She breathed, standing back up, "That....should do it..."
Crunch
"What?!" She gasped, her eyes growing huge in fear as she stared down another pitch black hallway.
"Hahaha...."
She pulled back hearing the laughter, her entire body shaking in fear. How did that thing follow her? How did it know where she was? She had been flying through confusing tunnels for about half an hour, and it was right behind her the whole time?
"W-What do you want?!" She cried out, "Stay...Stay back!"
Heheh...Hahaha...
"Leave me!" She hissed, "Or...Or I'll decimate you! I'm the all powerful Queen of the-
Something strong hit her right in the chest, and her body was flung straight into the stone hive walls, the air being sucked out from her lungs. Something hard struck her in the side, and she was immediately thrown through one of the walls, the stone shattered from the impact of her body. She flopped onto the ground, coughing as she struggled to stand up.
A cold appendage grasped her throat, and her back was slammed straight into another wall, her powerful eyes not being able to make out the creature that literally holding her life like it was a toy.
"L....Let...Let me...g...go..." She gasped, her wings beating against the wall to get away, "...Or.....d...die...."
"You...have something I want..." The creature said coldly, its voice sounding strange...almost like it was possessed.
"W...What...." She said, feeling the tendrils begin to close harder around her throat.
The creature chuckled evilly again, and an incredible pressure enclosed around her body, "Just wait. You'll know soon."
And a few moments later, there was no longer any living creature in the hive.
Cloud sighed softly, glancing outside of his garage as the sun began to set on the edge of the planet. He wiped the grease from his motorcycle onto a soft cloth, a few smudges of it on his face. That day had been...quite eventful. He had chased Rainbow Dash all over Ponyville until she finally decided to go into hiding on a cloud high above him, hoping he wouldn't see her. She wasn't hiding very well, and he could see her rainbow mane peaking out from the white fluffyness, and she had obviously underestimated his great jumping abilities. He had tackled her through the cloud, grabbing his part and quickly running away.
He was happy that it was untouched by damage, but it had taken him the rest of the day to install it. So far, he had fixed the leak in the gas tank, fixed the frame from one of his tires, and he had gotten a new handle bar from the metal worker.
Something he hadn't thought about was gas. How was he going to get gas in the strange land? They obviously had no use for any fossil fuels. He could probably think of something, but at the moment he was just tired and needed rest. He grabbed his huge sword, its size slightly decreased due to one of its parts laying in Twilight's library.
He gently pushed open Twilight's door, bending over to step inside. To his surprise, Twilight had some of her friends over. The purple unicorn, Applejack, and Fluttershy were sitting at the table...looking rather strange. Almost like...they were hiding something. Cloud just brushed it off though.
"Um...Hey there uh...Cloud." Applejack smiled, giving him the oddest face.
He raised an eyebrow, "Hey." he replied, resting his sword against one of the walls. He didn't have much of an appetite, and he simply headed upstairs to the washroom. The three ponies watched him almost creepily as he entered the bathroom. They waited till the shower had started.
"Twilight..." Applejack frowned, looking over at her friend, "I don't think this is such a great idea. Isn't it like...invading his privacy?"
Fluttershy nodded, "Um...yeah, I agree with Applejack. I wouldn't want anypony to look into my head...I mean, unless they have good reason of course..."
"Don't worry, you two!" Twilight smiled, "Honestly, there won't be any harm done. I just want to look into his memories to see what kind of person he is, you know. Don't you two want to get to know him better too?" Applejack and Fluttershy murmured lightly before nodding with slight blushes.
"Yeah..." Applejack replied, scratching the back of her head, "But...it's still wrong, right?"
"He won't even know we'll be in there!" Twilight stated, "Besides, I only want to see his most treasured memories! When you use the spell and you think of something that made you most happy, it will also show a happy memory of the one you're casting the spell on. And I'm sure we'll see his family and friends that way!"
"If you say so..." Applejack sighed, "So...are the other three going to come by as well?"
"Nope! Just me!" Pinkie Pie explained, popping out next to the orange mare, making her shriek and fall off her stool, "Rainbow and Rarity are busy tonight! So it's just little ole me!"
"Okay, Pinkie...." Twilight started, "But whatever you do...do not give away what we plan on doing to Cloud, do you understand?" Pinkie gave a salute, her face growing serious and firm.
"Sir, yes sir!" She declare, "Permission to speak, sir!"
"Er...Yes, Pinkie Pie?"
"Sir! Pinkie Pie would like to bake some cupcakes, sir!"
"Um...hop to it then, private."
"Sir yes sir!" With that, she scampered off into the kitchen, the three other friends laughing together. With that, they began to engage each other in petty conversation until the wonderful smell of the cupcakes wafted in. They were too busy eating their delicious sweets that they almost didn't notice Cloud making his way down the stairs.
"Oh hiya, Clouuuaawwwooww." Applejack blinked, seeing Cloud's topless form make its way to the first floor. His hair was damp, and he was drying it off with his towel at the moment. He was also still a bit wet on his skin, and it was hard for the ponies to held back their obvious flushed faces.
"What?" Cloud asked, not paying any of the ponies any attention as he made his way over to the kitchen, taking up a cup to the sink.
"Um...Oh my..." Fluttershy mumbled, looking away, her face growing even more flushed then usual. Cloud poured water into the cup, taking a long gulp before he tossed it away to be washed. He glanced back, their gazes suddenly finding the floor very amusing. Furrowing his eyebrows, Cloud began to make his way to the basement.
"Uh...going to bed?" Twilight asked, smiling nervously.
Cloud turned the doorknob, glancing back at her, "Yeah." They watched him disappear into the darkness and close the door gently behind him. The four ponies gave a loud sigh relief.
"Gee, Twilight..." Applejack grinned, adjusting the hat on her head, "Do you deal with that every night?" The purple unicorn nodded frustratingly, and Fluttershy stayed as quiet and withdrawn as always.
"Let's give him a little before we cast the spell..." Twilight whispered, "The target should be unconscious, whether it is forced or whether the target is asleep. Forcing Cloud unconscious would definitely not be the best option."
Applejack nodded frantically, "I'll say! Especially when he has the strength to completely destroy all of Ponyville!"
The four mares all nodded to each other as the sun began to set. Each of them were too anxious to start, and a few times they had to keep Fluttershy from leaving due to her nervousness. Twilight had practiced the spell on Spike while he was asleep a few times, and it was stealthy enough for him to not even notice. However, there was a small set back that Twilight was hiding away from the other ponies...and it was going to be something that she would regret.
"Hey Twilight..." Applejack said quietly, her eyes finding the door to the basement, "I...think its about time." Fluttershy gulped and Pinkie's smile reached her ears. The purple unicorn laughed nervously, getting off of her stool.
"Okay...Just let me cast a silence spell just to be safe. He won't hear our hooves coming." Her horn glowed faintly, and in a dim flash it was done. Pinkie took a step, and was dumbfounded when she discovered that it was silent. She began stomping on the floor rapidly, and for a second Twilight though she would break through the floor.
Twilight edged towards the door, her magic slowly and silently opening the door to the dark nether. Slowly and carefully the ponies each slipped through, using the light from Twilight's horn to guide themselves. When that was all finished, they headed down the stairs to see the sleeping form of the human.
Cloud had just a normal mattress on the floor with a thin bedsheet covering it. He had no pillow, but he didn't seem to mind. He was still shirtless, and the ponies felt the heat begin to rise in their faces. He was lying on his back, cradling the back of his head with his hands as he snoozed. Nodding, Twilight's horn began to flash again. It was silent though, and Cloud seemed too exhausted to wake up by a few lights. A mist slowly began to engulf the three ponies, and Fluttershy had to hold back an "eep".
When the mist had completely surrounded them, Twilight turned and grinned widely at her friends, "Alrighty! We're here!"
Applejack blinked, glancing around, "Wait...we're inside his head?"
"Wow!" Pinkie exclaimed, "It's pretty CLOUDY in here!" She laughed at her own joke before jamming her nose into Fluttershy's "Did you get it? Didja?! DIDJA?!"
Twilight laughed softly, "We aren't exactly in his memories yet. More like a sort of barrier between the outside world and his mind. We just have to decide what memory of Cloud's we want to see!"
"Twilight...um..." Fluttershy said quietly, glancing around nervously, "I...I really don't think we should-
"Happy!" Pinkie stated, hopping up and down, "Let's see something happy! Happy happy happy happy happy happy happy happy-
The mist immediately changed around them, and before they realized it they were standing it what appeared to be the middle of a large forest. It was night out, and above them a giant silvery moon was shimmering in the sky, and hundreds of beautiful stars were pinning themselves up to be seen. They were also before a large stream, a calming breeze lightly blowing their manes.
"Whoa...." Twilight blinked, glancing around, "This...this forest...its nothing like the Everfree. It's...beautiful..." The mares then began to hear what they believed to be....singing? Fluttershy blinked, almost feeling entranced by the soft melody and intricate words. They ponies slowly made their way to what was singing the wonderful song.
Their breaths were taken. What appeared to be a young human girl was sitting on the bank of the stream, a large pink bow in her hair. She was wearing a pink dress, and she was beautiful. Her eyes were a wonderful bright blue, and it reminded them of Celestia's beautiful sky.
"Wow..." Pinkie Pie blinked, "I've never seen anything like that before...." There was a rustling behind the girl, and she stopped singing to look behind her.
The girls saw a familiar spiky blonde head appeared, and Cloud emerged from the bushes. However, he looked much different. His hair was a somehow darker blonde, and appeared much spikier. He was wearing what appeared to be a strange black uniform. Cloud still wasn't smiling, but his eyes appeared so much kinder than what they had seen.
"Aerith," Cloud spoke, placing a hand on his hip, "I've been looking for you." Aerith giggled lightly, her voice just as pretty as her appearance.
"Come on, Cloud!" She exclaimed, standing up, "Can't a girl relax? We've been traveling for days, and you've been guarding me like a hawk."
Cloud sighed softly, scratching the back of his head, "There can be monsters out here, Aerith. It's dangerous-
"Oh, come on!" She giggled again, punching him playfully in the arm, "Lighten up Chocobo head! It's a beautiful night out. Let's take this moment to enjoy the moon and the stars." She tucked an arm around his and pulled him to the stream, their reflections appearing on the surface of the water. They both turned their gazes to the stars, and Aerith pulled herself closer to him.
"Awww...." Applejack smiled, "Look at that...Big tough guy has himself a marefriend!"
"Aerith..." Fluttershy said quietly, "She's...wonderful...." Twilight nodded, still speechless. This was one of Cloud's happiest memories.
"Hey Cloud..." Aerith said quietly, looking at him and smiling, "This is the world we want to save. As long as we care, it can all be this beautiful." Cloud gave her his small smile, and the ponies felt their hearts melt. The two humans then turned away, walking back to wherever camp they had set up.
"So adorable..." Pinkie squeaked, "I wish I had somepony like that!" Twilight nodded, turning to her friends with a smile.
"So girls...what do we look at next?"
Author's Note:
Just a question...If you could think of a pairing between Cloud and any of the main six, who do you think it would be? There probably won't be any Cloud pairings in this fic. I'm just curious on what you think and why! Just comment below on your opinion! And remember to rate if you like!