//------------------------------//
// Chapter 8: The Villains' Awakening and Comeuppance 
// Story: A Secret Admirer 3: Spike's Sacrifice (AU) 
// by 1jckuhn 
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CANTERLOT DUNGEON, ONE HOUR AFTER THE BATTLE

Chrysalis' vision was blurry as she felt herself come around. She felt like someone had taken a battle-axe to her head.

"Ugh, what happened?" she groaned.

The room that she was in was made of stone and only had one window with three bars. Then she noticed she was on the bottom bunk of a bunk bed. There was another bed on the other side of the room and its occupant was Cozy Glow, who was still unconscious. Chrysalis wouldn't have payed much attention if she didn't notice that Cozy didn't have her horn and her wings seemed a lot smaller. The reality of the situation slowly sunk in for the former Changeling Queen. She jumped out of bed and looked at the top bunk. There was Tirek, who was also unconscious, and he looked like the fragile, old Centaur when they first met him in "Grogar's" lair. Chrysalis then bolted to a mirror and sure enough, her enchanted powers were gone too. She looked like the same creature that she did after she had been defeated by Starlight Glimmer. The only difference was that now, the ends of her teal mane were singed a moderate shade of grey.

Cozy Glow was next to wake up. She too had a splitting headache and felt a lot weaker. She looked back at her wings and noticed they were a lot smaller. She put a hoof on top of her head and noticed that her horn was no longer there. She tried to wrack her brain to figure out what happened, Chrysalis was doing the same thing. Then, all their memories hit both of them simultaneously like a fully loaded freight train. How Spike had nabbed Grogar's Bell from them, how they had chased him and fired at the bell without even thinking about if that would damage it or not, and how they blew up the bell when they fired all their blasts at the same time, all the while thinking Spike was the dumb one flying toward the power-hungry trio.

"I can't believe it," Chrysalis growled. "That repulsive, little reptile defeated all three of us."

"Yeah, thanks to you," Cozy Glow bitterly remarked.

Chrysalis was taken aback, "Oh, really? And how was it my fault that we got defeated?" she snapped.

"Oh, I don't know you were the one who had that idiot in your magic grip. You couldn't have ripped out his wings right then and there?" Cozy Glow replied.

"How was I supposed to know he would go and pull something like that? I thought I pulled on his wings hard enough to break them and render them useless. I just wanted to give him back to those stupid ponies so they could all enjoy a miserable death together," Chrysalis hissed back.

Cozy and Chrysalis' argument soon found its way to Tirek's ears. At first, it worked its way into his dreams, but then it slowly drove the Centaur into consciousness. He let out a groan and sat up. Chrysalis and Cozy didn't seem to notice him, they were too busy arguing. The old creature looked around at his surroundings, a medium-sized room made of stone with just one window with bars on it, one bunk bed, and one regular bed. He looked himself over and instantly realized that his hulking, muscular, rejuvenated frame was gone, replaced with his old, brittle, skinny frame. Like Cozy and Chrysalis, he too recalled the events of his defeat at the hands of Spike. Unlike Cozy and Chrysalis, however, he didn't jump in and argue with them, but instead rolled back into bed, pulled the covers over him. He figured he was in enough trouble as it was and felt it was best to just keep his mouth shut.

Eventually a guard passing by overheard the Pegasus and former Changeling Queen's argument and banged against the wooden door.

"Quiet in there!" he barked.

"Get lost," Chrysalis shouted back. "You've already defeated us with that horrid dragon of yours. Isn't that enough?"

The guard's expression suddenly darkened, and his tone seemed a little bit angrier.

"I'll have you know that "horrid dragon" is dead. The magic surge killed him in a very brutal and painful way. You should also know that he had a harem of 12 girls, one of which suffers from depression and is having the hardest time out of them all. So, show some respect for him.  That's the very least you can do," the guard said.

Cozy and Tirek seemed a little surprised by the news. Chrysalis, however, just grinned evilly.

"Oh, dear," Chrysalis sarcastically began. "I'm so sorry that had to happen to him, but look at it this way. After I met Cozy Glow, she told me about how Spike was an orphan. Maybe now that he's dead, he can reunite with his parents in the bowels of Tartarus and they can all enjoy the comforts that it has to offer to them together. As a family."

Chrysalis threw back her head and began to laugh at her own callous comment. Cozy and Tirek couldn't help but seem a little shocked at Chrysalis' harsh words. They hated Spike just as much as she did, but they had enough dignity to respect the dead. The guard's look changed from angered to disgusted. He shook his head in disbelief at the former Changeling Queen showing no remorse for the death of a kid and continued walking down the narrow hallway.

Chrysalis finally finished laughing and looked at her cohorts. She seemed oblivious at their shocked expression as she continued to speak.

"What? Aren't you excited? That miserable lizard is now dead, and I can only imagine what torture those ponies are going through," she said, her tone rivaling that of a filly in a candy shop.

"Chrysalis, don't you have any respect for him at all?" Cozy Glow asked.

"Not a chance in hell," Chrysalis responded coldly. "Don't tell me you feel sorry for them."

"Well, we did have a little respect for them being our rivals and all," Cozy Glow admitted.

"We also shouldn't disrespect the dead," added Tirek. "Sure, Cozy and I hated all of them just as much as you did, but we also should know where to draw the line."

"Oh, please," Chrysalis scoffed. "He was a complete nobody, and I honestly cannot believe either of you speaking out in support in him."

Cozy and Tirek could see there was no point in arguing anymore with Chrysalis. They both let out a sigh and crawled back into bed.

Chrysalis just walked toward the window, and she stared out of it. Even though she was miffed at her cohorts feeling sorry for their enemies, it didn't dampen her good mood. Even though she was defeated, the fact that one of her enemies was killed was reward enough for her.

OCTOBER 23, 2019, PRESENT DAY

Today was the day that the defeated villains were expecting a visit from Twilight, her friends, and the other Princesses. This was the day that Cozy and Tirek both dreaded, but Chrysalis was really excited. She knew exactly what to say to them to hopefully get them really angry. Sure enough, Twilight Sparkle came to face them in their cell, along with the other Members of Spike's harem, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, Shining Armor, The Young Six, Garble, Ember, Thorax, and Discord.

Cozy and Tirek both wore annoyed expressions. They weren't looking forward to the tongue lashing that the Princesses and Twilight were going to give them. Chrysalis, however, was probably the happiest she had been in her whole life. Words couldn't describe how eager she was to see how her insults would play out on the new arrivals.

"Hello, Chrysalis, Tirek, Cozy Glow," Twilight said bitterly.

"Hello, Twilight," Chrysalis said, her voice oozing with venom. "Say, where's that little pet dragon of yours? Or was he your boyfriend? I honestly can't remember. Either way, I would've assumed he'd want to come along too."

She took a look around at the group of creatures.

“How lovely,” she laughed. “Everyone’s present. Here to throw us a parade?”

Everyone except Cozy Glow and Tirek winced slightly at Chrysalis' words, feeling disgusted with her unremorseful attitude.

"I think you know what happened to him," Celestia said simply. “No, we’re not here to throw you a parade either.”

Chrysalis snickered before Twilight spoke up.

"Listen up, you've all been charged with 1st degree murder. Cozy, since you're a child we cannot charge you with treason. How do you plead?" Twilight said curtly.

"Guilty. No contest," Cozy and Tirek said in unison. The Centaur and filly Pegasus knew it was no point in saying innocent. The chips were stacked too tall against them and a trial would only prolong the ordeal for them.

"Chrysalis, we didn't hear your plea," Luna said.

Everyone turned to face her.

"Guilty. No contest," she answered, a smile etched at the corners of her mouth.

Everyone felt even more disgusted with Chrysalis' attitude. Even though Tirek and Cozy were just as guilty as her, they, at least, looked a tiny bit remorseful at first glance, although they didn't want them to see it. Chrysalis didn't even look like Spike's death affected her in any way. In fact, she seemed happy about it. It was as if she had wanted this to happen all along. Chrysalis looked the perturbed ponies, dragons, griffons, changeling, yak, hippogriff, and Draconequus standing before her. She decided to play dumb.

"What?" she asked, pretending as if she didn't know why they were all mad at her to begin with. "Why are you all angry?"

"Oh, I don't know," came a voice. "Maybe it's because you're still showing no remorse after killing someone, a kid for that matter."

"Who said that?" Chrysalis growled. "Show yourself, now!"

Chrysalis looked around to see where that voice came from. She already knew it was Starlight, but wanted to play dumb more to really let everyone know just what she thought about them. Eventually, Starlight came up to her.

"That was me," Starlight said through clenched teeth.

Chrysalis' demeanor changed from her fake angry expression to her true, excited expression looking at the angry visage of her arch-enemy. Although she hated Starlight most of all, she now knew exactly what to say to taunt the already angry Pink Unicorn. An evil grin spread across her face.

"Oh my," Chrysalis mused. "Whatever happened to the Starlight I knew who wanted to reform me? Certainly, out of everyone here, I would've expected you to be the one who extended me a hoof of friendship hoping to lead me down a better path."

"That was before you became a deranged psychopath hellbent on trying to kill us all," Starlight snapped back. "Had I known that you were going to go and pull a stunt like this, I would've just put you out of your misery right then and there."

"But you didn't," Chrysalis said in a sing-song voice before laughing again. "And, boy, did you pay a price for it. Such a shame too. Although he was a complete nuisance, I must admit that stupid boyfriend of yours was such a promising soul. So full of life, so ready to take on all the challenges the world had to offer to him. He won't be missed. Ever."

Starlight glared at her arch-rival. Chrysalis' taunts were really starting to make her angry. She wasn't the only one either. Thorax and Ember's glares harshened. As Spike was their best friend, they certainly didn't appreciate hearing some bastard trash talk him while he was dead. Smolder was already just as angry as Starlight was now by just looking at Chrysalis' face. However, listening to her mock the one she loved more than anything in the world made her furious. Before Starlight could retort, the seething, orange dragon stomped up to face Chrysalis.

"He was just a kid, you fiend!" she shouted.

Chrysalis just shrugged.

"Ehh, kids grow up to be problems in this world. You, my friend, are no exception. The way I see it, I've made not just this hellhole you call your home, but the entire world, a better place by ridding it of one more flaw."

"He was worth an infinite number of you!" Smolder countered. "He was more sweet, more pure, more loving, and, best of all, he was loved by many. Unlike you."

"Insults now?" laughed Chrysalis. "Hmph, go right ahead and say them. They don't hurt me, and they won't unkill that hideous salamander."

Smolder stomped her foot angrily, "I'm warning you, Chrysalis. If you don't shut your bucking mouth right now, I swear to the Gods and Goddesses above I'll knock you out. Do you hear me?"

"Aww," cooed Chrysalis. "Look at you trying to be scary. How adorable."

Before the angry Smolder could think of a comeback, Starlight interjected.

"Well, just remember that we're not the ones in the cell," the pink Unicorn snarled. "Before we leave here though, however, I just want ask one thing. Was it worth it? Was not being my friend just to try to take Equestria but failing miserably worth all this?"

This was the shot Chrysalis was waiting for. It was time for her to show her foes just what she really thought about not just the battle, but all of them entirely.

"On the contrary, it is actually us who have defeated you," Chrysalis smirked. "See, you may have stopped us, but at what cost? We may be defeated, but the fact that we got took out of you is more than reward enough for me alone, but now it's even better because 12 of you misguided fools actually thought of him as more than a friend. I was already pleased thinking about how much torture you twits were going through, but hearing that fact made that feeling of happiness indescribable. The icing on the cake of this whole ordeal is, if I remember correctly, he was an orphan. I'm willing to bet money that he's probably already reunited with his parents in the bowels of Tartarus. Now, they can all enjoy rotting down there together. So, in a way, I did him a favor. Now, rather than having no other choice but to consider any of you idiots his family, he gets to be with his true family. It's honestly funny how things work out sometimes. Wouldn't you agree? Oh, and here’s the cherry on top of it all. While I was biding my time in here, I began to think the magic of Friendship solved everything and kept everyone okay."

She paused impressively.

”Guess. Not.”

Starlight's vision and face went redder than Applejack's cutie mark. Never in her life had she ever come across a creature so cruel, so shameless, so callous, so evil before. The pink unicorn let out an uncharacteristic growl. If given the chance, she could very well have killed Chrysalis right now. Cozy and Tirek both took a step back. They knew it was best not to intervene with them as that might be just the thing to push the ponies, dragons, griffons, changelings, yak, hippogriff, and Draconequus over the edge and they didn't want to get into any more trouble. They couldn't help but feel more shocked at Chrysalis' harsh, cold words.

Ember and Thorax looked at Chrysalis with shock. That shock, however, quickly gave way to rage. Thorax's eyes saw red as he looked at Chrysalis. Ember let out a growl and clenched her fists.

"You really think this is FUNNY?!!" Ember shouted.

"Funny, no. Hilarious yes," Chrysalis corrected.

Smolder's demeanor instantly changed from furious to apoplectic. Never before had she felt such rage or hatred against a creature in her entire life. Her fists clenched tighter than ever before as her blood pressure abruptly shot through the roof. Her cheeks turned a darker shade of orange, she bared and gnashed her teeth, letting a somewhat loud growl escape from her throat, and a thin trail of black smoke slowly seeped out of her nostrils.

Chrysalis gave herself a mental pat on the back looking at the seething faces of Starlight Glimmer and Smolder, as well as many other creatures in the hallway. A handful of them just stared at her with pure shock. They had, like Starlight, never come across someone as shameless as her and didn't know what to think or say. It had worked, she had said what she wanted to say just to be a brazen, unapologetic jackass. She turned back to face Starlight, who only looked even angrier.

"Something the matter, Starlight?" Chrysalis asked, not bothering to hold back another snicker. "You look a little red. Do you have a fever?" 

She paused briefly as Starlight let out another furious growl.

"Or was it something I did?"

Starlight turned to the Royal Sisters. She wore probably the angriest and scariest look both Princesses had ever seen.

"Celestia, Luna," Starlight said through clenched teeth. "Could you kindly hand me the keys to this demon's cell and grant me five minutes alone with her?"

"Is this a private event, Starlight?" Smolder asked, a louder growl escaping from her throat as the smoke from her nostrils grew thicker. "Or can anyone join?"

"You're more than welcome to join in if you want," Starlight growled. 

"Thank you, Starlight," Smolder said in a low, scary tone.

Garble stepped up to hopefully try and calm his boiling sister down. He put a hand on her shoulder before speaking.

"Smolder, come on," he said. "She's not worth-"

The red teenage Dragon was cut off when Smolder abruptly swatted his hand away, never taking her eyes off of the object of her fury.

"No," she snarled. "This sick, twisted psycho tried to destroy the whole world and our Spike had to pay with his life to save us. Now, she not only has no remorse for what she did, but she has the audacity to make fun of him while he's dead IN FRONT OF US!!!"

Everyone flinched as they listened to Smolder's tone change from just above a whisper to screaming as the last four words of her sentence left her mouth. A few creatures were scared seeing not just Smolder, but Starlight, as well, pushed to the point where they both wanted to tear Chrysalis apart.

"Well, I'm sick of it. It's clear as day that any time in jail isn't going to do her or us any good. It's high time Starlight and I quit playing nice and give this lunatic the punishment she's had coming for a long time," Smolder finished. Her tone had turned from shouting to low and scary. "You want something to smile and laugh about, Chrysalis? I'll give you something to smile and laugh about."

"I want in on this too," growled Ember as she cracked her knuckles.

"Same here," snarled Thorax.

By now, everyone, except the four seething creatures and Fluttershy, were frozen in fear. Smolder's close friends all stared at her in shock. They had never seen Smolder, or anyone on that matter, this angry before. Neither had Garble. Gallus' knees quivered. He did enjoy pulling a prank or two on Smolder from time to time, as well as Smolder chasing him down and warning him of dire consequences if he ever tried it again, but now, it seemed Smolder was at least twenty times angrier than all the times she was with him from all the pranks he pulled on her combined.

Pharynx looked at his brother with the same shock. He had never seen his brother even slightly angry in his whole life. Ocellus wanted to say something, anything, to calm down the king of her species, but she couldn't think of anything and seeing Thorax so livid scared her half to death. Tears of fear brimmed in her eyes as she looked back and forth between Thorax's furious expression and Chrysalis' smug one. She didn't want to see someone who she basically considered her father to hurt someone else out of pure rage, even if they deserved it.

Chrysalis, on the other hand, wasn't fazed at all. The bitter and shameless creature took one look at each of her four would-be attackers before breaking down in a fit of hysterical laughter. This lasted about 30 seconds before she got back up and looked at them again, she noticed that all four were now trembling with pure rage. Chrysalis could've sworn the insides of Ember and Smolder's nostrils were now glowing orange. She looked at Thorax and noticed his horn and antlers were now glowing a slight shade of Turquoise. No Doubt in her mind his rage had likely manifested itself into magic. Starlight's horn was also the same way except it was glowing much, much brighter. Chrysalis knew one final push would send all four of them into a full-blown rage. She felt very pleased with herself.

"Oh, what? What are you going to do?" she asked trying not to break down in another fit of laughter. "Friendship me to death? Kill me with kindness? Now, that's something I'd like to see you try."

It was at this moment that everyone in the dungeon, including Cozy and Tirek, knew that Chrysalis couldn't be saved from her own big mouth. One look at Smolder, Starlight, Thorax, and Ember signaled to everyone there that maybe they did need this. Maybe they just needed to take out all that pent up rage inside them with a good fight and then, they'd be back to normal. That was until Fluttershy stepped in-between the villains and the four irate justice seekers. She whispered something in Starlight's ear for a few seconds, which seemed to calm the Pink Unicorn down, before doing the same with Smolder, Ember, and Thorax. Although it did calm her down, Smolder wanted to say one last thing to the unremorseful, sadistic creep before her. She flew up until their noses met between the bars. Her icy blue eyes burned with hatred as she made eye contact with her boyfriend's murderer.

"I want to make something very, very clear right now," Smolder said with another loud growl. "You're bucking lucky that Fluttershy was here to calm us down or Starlight, Thorax, Ember, and I would've personally made sure that you would not live to see your sentencing. Part of me still does want nothing more than to tear you limb from limb to show you personally what kind of pain we go through every day, as well as the kind of pain you put our Spike through in his last moments of life. Just remember that."

Once Smolder was finished, the cream-colored Pegasus turned to face the arrogant, barefaced, disgraced Changeling Queen. Her turquoise eyes vibrating with determination for the third time in less than two weeks. Chrysalis just looked right back at her with the same smirk, but she wasn't aware of what this usually shy pony had to say to her.

"You may have taken Spike's body from us, but there are two things you will never, ever take away from us. The first is his spirit. We all hold a little bit of him inside us. His kindness, generosity, laughter, loyalty, and honesty all live on inside our hearts. The other thing is all the happy memories that we have made with him. We will always have things that will remind us of all the fun things we all did together with him. His love for us, as well as the love we felt for him, is something you would never be able to suck out of us because even one percent of it would overload the system that resides inside your soulless body. My pride as being one of his twelve marefriends increases ten-fold with each passing day. We've seen thousands of creatures of all kinds support us and praise Spike. Those who barely even knew him were writing poems and sending letters praising him on a daily basis. I've never seen a single person in the time I've known you ever come out in support of you. I think I'll leave you to think about that as you sit here until your sentencing," Fluttershy said, her tone had shifted to Bold Fluttershy.

Chrysalis' smirk slowly faded. By the time Fluttershy finished her speech, Chrysalis looked at her in shock. At the back of the room, Cozy and Tirek's shock changed to dumbfounded amazement, both their mouths hung slightly open. They had never expected such strong words to come from such a meek, quiet Pegasus. Everyone else seemed a little shocked by Fluttershy's change in demeanor as well. Fluttershy looked back at Twilight who began to step forward to say when the villains would be sentenced.

"Since you have all plead guilty no contest, you will not have a trial. Your sentencing date will be scheduled in two weeks' time," Twlight said, looking all three of them right in the eye. "This meeting is concluded. I will see you then."

With nothing left to say, Twilight looked back at her friends and other Princesses. They all looked back at her, nodded to each other, and trotted out of the dungeon hallway, leaving one evildoer shocked into silence and the other two evil-doers in dumbfounded amazement.

November 5, 2019

Twilight let out a sigh as she walked into Celestia and Luna's throne room. Today was the day that the Legion of Doom was finally going to be sentenced for their crimes. Accompanying the Lavendar Alicorn and the other harem members at the sentencing were the Young Six, Discord, Garble and his posse, Thorax, and Ember. Twilight took the lead as she led the group to the side door to the throne room.

Chrysalis and Tirek were both facing life in Tartarus. Tirek didn't even care about what his punishment was. He had already accepted his fate from the minute he had woken up in his prison cell bed. He already knew he didn't have much life left to begin with and he honestly didn't care about life anymore. Chrysalis had also accepted her fate. In fact, she was looking forward to getting sentenced and just get it all over with.

The large group of creatures were lead into a side door that lead them all to two lone chairs on an elevated platform. The two chairs faced the front door and in those two Chairs sat the Royal Sisters themselves. Celestia and Luna heard the door open and looked in that direction. They saw Twilight followed by her friends, her friends' little sisters, the God of Chaos, the Dragon Lord, the Changeling King, the Young Six, four teenage dragons, and a grey Griffon.

"Hello, Celestia," Twilight said.

"Greetings, Twilight," Celestia responded, giving her former pupil a hug.

The warm moment was broken up by a knock at the front door.

"Enter," Celestia called out.

The door opened to reveal ten royal guards forming two lines. Between those two lines stood two creatures shackled and, in Tirek's case, handcuffed. They didn't say a word as the stoic guards led them to the Royal Sisters and the 24 new arrivals. Celestia and Luna glared at the frail Centaur and former Changeling Queen both as they slowly walked up to face them.

"As you both know, today is the day that you will be sentenced for your crimes. Do you have anything you want to say before we sentence you?" Celestia asked, not letting up on her glare. Neither did Luna.

Neither Tirek or Chrysalis said a word.

"Very well then, we shall proceed," Luna said. She took out a scroll and read what the decided sentence was for both creatures. "For the punishment 1st degree murder, the decided sentence is life in Tartarus for both of you. Do you have anything you'd like to say for yourselves?"

Chrysalis and Tirek once again remained silent.

"Alright then, this sentencing is concluded. Take them to Tartarus please," Celestia ordered the guards.

"As you wish, Princess Celestia," the guards all said in unison before beckoning to the two prisoners to come with them. They all trotted slowly to the front door, matching the pace of the two convicts. It seemed like forever, but eventually the guards were out the front door. Once the guards were out the door, Spike's harem, Celestia, Luna, the Young Six, Thorax, Ember, Discord, and even Garble and his buddies embraced each other in a giant group hug. For a solid minute, all the 26 creatures did was hug each other and not say a word. The throne room was peacefully quiet as they did so. Finally, they broke away. Twilight took out a picture and everyone looked at it with a sad smile. The photo was of Spike in the center of it being surrounded and hugged by his whole harem. They were sitting on the couch in the friendship castle, and they all were looking at the camera with big smiles. The photo was taken only two days before that fateful battle.

"Justice was served for Spike today. Thank you, Luna and Celestia," Twilight said wiping away a tear.

"It was nothing," Celestia said, hugging Twilight again.

"Although I can't help but feel a little sorry for Cozy Glow," Thorax said. "Even if she was despicable, it really is sad that she had to go through all that pain."

"Agreed," Twilight said. "It was unfortunate what she had to go through, and I wish we would've helped her instead of sending her to Tartarus."

If everyone was being honest with themselves, they all felt sorry for what she had to go through and what led up to her becoming evil. At the same time though, they were glad that those other two fiends were off the streets for good. Today was a good day, justice had been served for all of Equestria, more importantly Spike, and there world be no more attacks threatening all of Equestria anymore.