//------------------------------// // Chapter 18: A Black Wedding Part 4 // Story: Death Cometh // by Dracthul //------------------------------// The Canterlot bells had rung, and everypony knew the wedding had begun. They began to swarm the castle, hoping to overhear some of the ceremony. The guards outside had to keep them under control, too many ponies trying to force their way inside to watch. Princess Celestia had already started the introduction. Everything was going well, except the groom’s sister was not there. But to everypony in the room, that did not matter. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza looked Shining Armor in the eyes as they listened to Princess Celestia. The rings had been brought out, and everypony leaned in as the big moment started. “Princess Cadance and Shining Armor,” Princess Celestia proudly said, “it is my great pleasure to pronounce you—” “STOP!” Everypony froze as they heard the pony shout. They all turned around to look at the entrance, finding one lavender unicorn standing in it. The crowd gasped as they realized it was Twilight Sparkle. Her friends were ashamed that she would show up after what she had caused earlier. Rarity facehoofed, and the others quickly got irritated. “Ugh,” Princess Mi Amore Cadenza ground out angrily. “Why does she have to be so possessive of her brother?” When Celestia looked at her, she quickly made her voice sound broken. “Why does she have to ruin my special day?” She covered her face with a hoof. “Because it’s not your special day—” The crowd looked back to Twilight again to find two ponies next to her. One was Sorin, who wore a scowl on his face, and the other was a battered Cadance. Her body was bruised, her mane was rustled, and dirt covered her entire coat. She stepped forward. “—it’s mine!” The ponies gawked. How could there be two Princess Mi Amore Cadenzas? “What?” the one on the altar said out of instinct. “But how did you escape my bridesmaids?” “All it took was a simple bouquet toss,” Cadance smugly answered. “Foiled your evil plan, did we?” Twilight mocked. “Hmph. Clever,” the imposter hummed. “But you’re still too late.” “Ah-ah don’t understand. How can there be two of ’em?” Applejack asked what everypony wanted to ask. “She’s a changeling,” Cadance shouted, addressing the entire room. She moved in front of her friends. “She takes the form of somepony you love and gains power by feeding off your love for them.” Princess Mi Amore Cadenza clenched her jaw, infuriated by this puny princess. Her horn glowed with its twisted green color, her eyes doing the same. A flaming circle of the same color surrounded her, her dress starting to melt away. A torrent of fire came from the ring, creating a pillar that encased her body in a furious light that forced everypony to shield their eyes. As they tried to look, they saw the princess unravel. A pink and purple wing wilted away from the purging inferno, revealing the insectoid one in its place. It was silky and sticky and translucent with large holes in it. The other wing did the same, melting away before the one underneath could be seen. Where there was once a pink leg, flesh fell off, and a black, holed shell took its place. The princess’s face burned away, a dark one beneath the mask. Long locks of flowing green hair drifted in the wind, and a wicked horn jutted from the top of her head. A wire crown sat atop her scalp, and the flames started to fade before her bug-like eyes opened. They were green like emeralds, almost slit down the middle. She cackled, her pair of sharp fangs being displayed to the audience. As her wings fluttered, a rattling sound filled the silent room. All eyes were on her towering form that stood as tall as Celestia. Her jittery and chilling voice drowned out the sound of her wings. “Right you are, princess. And as queen of the changelings, it is up to me to find food for my subjects.” She walked down the steps, coming towards Cadance. “Equestria has more Love than any place I’ve ever encountered. My fellow changelings will be able to devour so much of it that we will gain more power than we have ever dreamed of!” “They’ll never get the chance!” the princess shot back. “Shining Armor’s protection spell will keep them from ever even reaching us.” The queen only chuckled. “Oh, I doubt that. Isn’t that right, dear?” Shining Armor was nodding without hesitation after a quick flash of her horn. Cadance tried to run towards him, horrified by what she witnessed. “Ah, ah, ah,” the changeling tittered, stomping her hoof in the way. “Don’t want to go back to the caves now, do you?” As her horn lit in warning, Cadance backed up. The queen paced over to her groom. “Ever since I took your place, I’ve been feeding off Shining Armor’s love for you. Every moment he grows weaker—and so does his spell. Even now, my minions are chipping away at it.” Sorin followed the queen’s gaze, looking up through the windows. He could barely make out at least a hundred creatures flying just above the purple barrier, waiting to get in. A changeling indeed, he thought to himself. She laughed again, gently stroking Shining Armor’s chin. “He may not be my husband, but he is under my total control now. And, I’m sorry to say, unable to perform his duties as captain of the Royal Guard.” “Not my Shining Armor,” Cadance whimpered. “Soon, my changeling army will break through.” The mad queen lifted into the air. “First, we take Canterlot, and then, all of Equestria!” “No,” a voice firmly stated from behind her. She turned her head, staring at Princess Celestia, the Solar Diarch. “You won’t.” The queen lowered back to the ground. “You may have made it impossible for Shining Armor to perform his spell, but now that you have so foolishly revealed your true self—” Celestia clashed her horn into the queen’s. The alicorn flew back, opening her wings wide and embracing the sunlight. “—I can protect my subjects from you!” A yellow and white surge of energy formed around Celestia’s horn, flying towards the queen, who also fired a beam of green energy. As the two hit, the changeling yelped, feeling the searing heat of the sun. Celestia poured more power into the beam, driving it lower to the changeling’s head. The queen opened her eyes and pushed back with all she had. Her spell slammed through Celestia’s, climbing up to the alicorn and her horn. An explosion of jade light covered everything. Cling. Cling. The sound of Princess Celestia’s crown hitting the floor echoed through the room. It was so incredibly silent that everyone could hear a pin drop. The ringing sound of the crown’s last bounce chilled everypony to their core, the sound repeating in their heads a thousand times. They looked to the ground, seeing their princess skid across it. Sprawled out with her mouth open, she lay motionless. The tip of her horn was black, and smoke rose into the air from it. The collective gasp in the room showed only a fraction of the fear that seized the heart of every pony in the room. The princess had been struck down within her own kingdom. “Princess Celestia!” Twilight screamed, her and her friends rushing to the princess’s side. Sorin kneeled down beside his enemy, almost feeling sympathy for her. This changeling must be stopped. She is stronger than Celestia herself. Friend or foe, she is too powerful to be left on the playing field. The Changeling Queen realized what she had just done. “Shining Armor’s love for you is even stronger than I thought. Consuming it has made me even more powerful than Celestia!” “The Elements of Harmony,” Celestia managed to whisper to Twilight and her friends. “You must get to them and use their power to defeat the queen.” They all nodded to each other, the mares throwing off their clunky dresses. Sorin kept his cloak partly because it would not hinder him, partly because it could even help in battle, and largely in part because it covered his new anatomy. He also realized the Elements could stop his enemy without him having to, just like with Discord. All seven of them rushed through the hall, passing through the two golden doors leading into the room. They left, reaching the courtyard outside as the distant laughter of the queen hit their ears. “You can run, but you can’t hide!” Sorin looked up, spotting the changelings hovering above the magical barrier. They slammed into it, slowly chipping away at it. He could feel the spell beginning to come undone at rapid speed—the barrier would fall. The changelings all lifted up and then rammed into the shield, finally ripping through it with a sound akin to glass shattering. The dome broke apart into countless pieces of sputtering magic, the wall shielding Canterlot utterly collapsing as the ground quaked. Sorin could now see the massive swarm of changelings surrounding the city. They started to dive towards it, their horns forming a green fire that made them look like they were reentering the atmosphere as they dove. Sorin saw them, noticing how similar they were to the Infernals the Burning Legion used against him so long ago. “Go, go!” Twilight shouted to her friends, racing through the street. A changeling landed right next to her, forming a small crater as it did. She dodged another as it landed by her. As they continued on, changeling after changeling crashed around them. They were able to avoid most of them, but one landed right in front of them. It bared its fangs, snarling at Twilight. She slammed her hooves onto its head, stomping over it and continuing on. She noticed Sorin still standing there. “Come on!” she yelled to him. “No. You go,” he said. “I’ll hold them off.” “What? No!” “Trust me, Twilight. Get the Elements, and I will meet up with you. Now, go!” With apprehension, she turned back around, going with the rest of her friends and leaving him behind. He heard a whistle as a changeling crashed only a few feet from him. He saw the creature climbing from its impact site, growling. He swiftly blasted it with fire, causing it to screech in pain. Another landed where he was standing, but he rolled out the way just in time. He spun around, now face-to-face with it. He ran forward, lowering his head and stabbing his horn through the changeling’s chest. It tried to pull itself off of him to fly away, but his horn sparked and electrocuted it before it could escape. A group of ten touched down around him, each of them staring him down. He grinned, readying himself. He looked around, making sure no pony was nearby. His eyes turned black as he let wispy wings form at his sides. He stretched them out, spanning far larger than his physical ones, making the changelings falter. He clapped them together, jumping into the air. He looked down at his enemies, charging a spell. “Die, insects!” he shouted, hurling a ball of Void energy at them. They tried to move out of the way, but the spell hit the ground first. It spread out, sweeping over their bodies like water. It burned away at their shells, cooking the soft insides held within. They screeched as the blood engulfed them and their bodies collapsed, further cooking them. As more landed, Sorin dove at the ground. He slammed into it, causing it to shake. He swept one of his wings, sending a few changelings onto their backs. Black tendrils shot from him, stabbing through the hearts of the fallen. The tentacles latched onto anything they could, whether it was the ground or a building. As he jumped, the web he made carried him like a spider. He unleashed a torrent of Void upon his enemies, tearing through them with the force of a catapult. More changelings showed up in front of him and jumped at him, but he upended the ground below them. Sharp, jagged rocks came up and impaled them through their midsections. Their green blood dripped onto the dirt as he laughed. Sorin returned to the ground, running after Twilight and the others. As he came to the top of a hill in the road, he could see them in the distance, but there was a cloud of changelings following them. The insects were gaining on the ponies, and they would never make it before getting caught. “You would dare attack us at the heart of our kingdom?” Sorin shouted, drawing the attention of the changelings. “You are doomed!” He went into the air as a wisp, sifting towards the changelings. He went through one of them, causing their body to decay within seconds. After seeing that, the others tried to avoid his ghostly form. He went through another, reaching the middle of his enemies. He rose up, forming a pillar. His two wings opened, sweeping over the ground. Any changeling caught in the way was turned to bones as their flesh rotted away. The others charged at him, only bringing about their end sooner. His essence took the shape of a pony, but he never fully became physical. The changelings charged at him, and he punched one in the face. As they clashed, he shifted in and out of the physical plane. Like Vultrax, he could phase through anything at will. He passed through one, appearing next to it and stabbing his horn through its neck. He lifted the twitching corpse and tossed it to the ground as another charged him. He let it come, waiting for it to get close. When it did, he fell back, becoming mist again. The changeling had his horn down and could not react fast enough to stop from ramming into another changeling head-on. The two impaled each other, falling to the ground. Sorin reformed, reaching out with a hoof and wrapping it around the neck of a changeling who was flying over him. He twisted his foreleg, snapping the bug’s cervical vertebrae. He let the body drop. With the force of a titan, he punched a changeling who was lunging at him. The poor creature went rocketing through the others, knocking them to the dirt. Sorin looked around at the creatures surrounding him. He clapped his wings, knocking everything around him over. He put his wings back, opening them to their full length. The changelings writhed on the ground as their bodies were overwhelmed by the Void, their bodies breaking down. Their wings withered away, their horns fell off, and their legs snapped apart as they came undone. Their buzzing screams were music to his ears as he watched them decay. He sucked the last of their lifeforce away, flapping his wings once more. The wind from the flap sent the dusty remains of the changelings everywhere. There was nothing left of them but dust in the wind. “Accursed insects,” Sorin muttered, running after his friends. He raced through the streets, obliterating any changelings in his way. He stopped as he came around a bend. He looked out from the balcony he was standing on, seeing an entire legion of changelings lined up, waiting for the Elements. “Looks like we’re gonna have to do this the hard way.” Rainbow Dash hit her hooves together. She shot forward, freezing when she saw a copy of herself in front of her. It mimicked her actions as she moved until it threw her back to the ground. “How did you?” she muttered. Suddenly, a whole group became copies of Rainbow Dash. Groups of changelings turned into one of the Elements, taking on their form. Countless copies of each Element appeared, all of them ready to tear the ponies apart. “They’re changelings, remember?” A bunch of Twilight changelings repeated what she said. “Don’t let them distract you. We have to get to the Elements of Harmony. They’re our only hope!” The real ponies leaped into the air, clashing with their copies. The dirt on the ground stirred, clouding the air where the fight took place. Sorin jumped down from the balcony, entering the fray. He demolished any in his way, ripping them apart as he fought his way through the horde. They did not stand a chance against him and were instantly struck down, each of them falling faster than the last. He and the Elements took down the changelings around them, the pile of injured on the ground as proof. As the wind settled, Sorin joined up with his friends. “I told you I would be fine,” he said with a smile. His friends smiled back, then continued onward toward the building where the vault holding the Elements of Harmony was. As they came to the top of the road and forced the door open, they could see an even larger force of changelings waiting for them. They quickly turned around to retreat, but a swarm of changelings descended from the sky. They landed, blocking the Elements off from escaping. They were trapped, pinned between the two sides, and more changelings were coming. Sorin growled. These ponies could barely hold their own. Were it not for the changeling queen, he would use this opportunity to overthrow the princesses, but alas, he had to deal with her first. She was too big of a threat to let roam free. “Fine, I’ll deal with this myself,” he whispered under his breath. The changelings approached, capturing the seven ponies. Celestia… The princess snapped awake, feeling the evil presence within her mind again. It had been relatively quiet early that day, but she guessed that was over now. She groggily awoke, opening her eyes to look where she was. She was horrified when she found herself hanging upside down from the ceiling in a green cocoon. The sticky substance stopped her from moving at all, and she could feel it sapping her magic away. It was transparent enough for her to see through, but she was utterly trapped. Did you fail them, princess? Did you let the tyranny of the false princess win? The voice enjoyed taunting her, stirring her emotions, and then letting her boil in her own anguish. “I will never stop fighting you,” she said back. It only chuckled. So rash, Celestia. You have not even an inkling of what the future will hold; how do you know you will not aid me in time? “I would never.” Do not play coy, my Celly. I can taste the hatred in your heart. Its sweetness is what keeps us so close, after all. To deny it would be to deny your true self. “Any hatred I have would be for you,” she spat. I doubt that. Your subjects think you to be weak, and you know it. Embrace your power and strike them down. Become the ruler of your kingdom. “My sister succumbed to the same feelings, and I will not follow in her hoofsteps.” I do not want you to. She failed. She did not fully accept what she was. She locked part of herself away in an effort to appear strong. You, Celestia, can be great—but only if you acknowledge your whole self. You ruled without your sister, so do it again, only this time, you will be complete. You know that if you had thrown away the shackles you limit yourself to, you would have defeated the changeling queen. You also know you could escape this prison and destroy her now… Celestia tried to dispel its thoughts from her mind, but it was a losing battle. She was forced to endure the whispers and the tortures that came with them. She would have to remain firm against them, no matter the cost. She would not give in. She would not give in. Her thoughts were interrupted by her niece. Cadance’s hooves were stuck in green goo, keeping her stuck in place at the altar. Her husband was beside her, unable to do anything at this point. Spike was there too, but he was nothing more than a bystander. She cried out, “You won’t get away with this! Twilight and her friends will—” She was silenced by the doors opening. In walked Twilight and her friends, surrounded by a group of changelings. Sorin snarled at the changeling pushing him along the way. It took a lot of his willpower not to blast the insect into dust. “You were saying?” the queen smugly replied to Cadance. She looked around at her minions. “You do realize the reception’s been canceled, don’t you? Go. Feed!” They flew away at her command, going out the doors and out to hunt. The doors closed behind them from their queen’s magic. Yes, leave yourself alone and vulnerable. “It’s funny, really.” She lifted up Twilight’s head. “Twilight here was suspicious of my behavior all along.” The mare in question shoved the bony hoof away. The queen buzzed away. “Too bad the rest of you were too caught up in your wedding planning to realize those suspicions were correct.” She continued to laugh. “Sorry, Twi. We should’ve listened to you,” Applejack said to her friend. “It’s not your fault. She fooled everypony.” “Hmm, I did, didn’t I?” the queen taunted, trotting away and overseeing her work. Twilight went over to Cadance, whispering, “Quick. Go to him while you still have the chance,” before blasting away the goo on her hooves. Sorin went over to a nearby window, looking out at the chaos. Ponies were running through the streets, changelings chasing after them. More ran rampant around the city, a swarm of them surrounding the entire border. Any guard in sight was captured and bound by sickly gel. Small buildings collapsed as groups of changelings crashed into them. He could feel the fear emanating from the ponies. He was supposed to be the one who brought Equestria to its knees. He was supposed to rule—not some pathetic insect queen! He grit his teeth, letting his rage flow through him once again. Why should I wait? Celestia has been subdued, and so have the Elements. All that stands in my way are the changelings. Once I eliminate their queen, they will fall. The time for my revenge has come, and then I will take all of Eque— What’s this? He turned around, having sensed a surge of power that he had never felt before close by. He saw Cadance hugging Shining Armor, who was motionless. Tears fell from her eyes as she held him tight. He saw her horn sparking, a heart forming at its tip. It drifted into Shining Armor, tearing through the spell on him. His eyes turned back to their normal blue, and he shook his head. He babbled incoherently for a second as he came to reality. “Is-is the wedding over?” “It’s all over,” the Changeling Queen stated, landing in front of the two ponies. “Your spell. Perform your spell!” Twilight desperately shouted to her brother. “What good would that do? My changelings already roam free,” the queen shot back with a laugh. “No!” he exclaimed, attempting to power up the barrier again. Only a tiny flicker appeared on his horn. “My power is useless now. I don’t have the strength to repel them.” “My love will give you strength,” Cadance said, wrapping him up in another embrace. “What a lovely but absolutely ridiculous sentiment,” the queen dismissed, barely able to keep from laughing. She returned to her balcony, looking out over the city. Shining Armor tried to power his spell again, his whole horn lighting this time. Cadance looked into his eyes with a look that told him everything would be alright. Her horn lit, and they touched them to each other. Sorin felt a shockwave that made him twitch. He could sense a great power rising from their forms. A purple glow formed at the end of their connected horns, sending blinding light around the room. A wind stirred, slowly lifting them into the air. That wind turned into a torrent of light. “It can’t be,” Sorin said. He could feel their love radiating from them, and it grew more intense every second. The magical plane began to warp as a mass of energy engulfed them. Waves of Love crashed into him, burning at his essence. He sensed what was coming: a blast powerful enough to force all traces of evil from Canterlot—including him. There was no doubt he would survive, but it would let everypony know he was evil. It would also weaken him far more than he could afford right now. As the light grew even brighter, a plan began to formulate within his mind. Realizing no pony could see him over the glow coming from Cadance and Shining Armor, he wove together the other spell he had learned while in the Canterlot library. Just as their eyes turned purple and the blast of energy started to erupt, he let the spell free.  “Noooo!” the Changeling Queen screamed as the blast came towards her. Sound itself contorted as his magic took effect. The wave slowed to a stop, and everything around him froze in place—everything except for the queen. A look of fear still plastered on her face, she slowly opened her eyes to realize she was unscathed. She checked her forelegs to be sure, seeing no damage at all. Before she could ask what had saved her, she spotted Sorin trotting up to her. “Hello,” he whispered from behind her ear, making her tense up. He was no longer in front of her but standing right behind her. She tripped as she tried to move, falling forward. She quickly righted herself with her wings, her heart still racing. “What did you do?” she demanded in a voice that was not expressive of her real emotions at the moment. “Why, I saved you,” he answered nonchalantly, pacing a few yards from her. “You should thank me.” “For what, fool? For trapping us in this… this—whatever it is!” She had no idea what had happened. The Elements were completely still, the blast had ceased, and even Celestia remained inanimate. “This is a form of pocket dimension, if you will.” He turned to her. “Time does not flow here. As long as I hold the spell, we are stuck here.” She huffed. “Are you threatening me?” He laughed. “Of course not, my dear. I am simply telling you where we are.” “Then why did you bring us here?” She tried to remain authoritative, but she was wavering in his presence. “To offer you a deal.” He came over to her, hearing her breath hitch as he did. He put a hoof over her shoulder, feeling her cold chitin. “Serve me, and we can rule this world.” She laughed, making him scowl. “Do not be so quick to dismiss my offer.” “What can you do to help me?” she asked in a condescending tone. He could see through it and sense her hesitation. “Join me, and your kind will have more food than they could ever dream of. They will rule over these inferior ponies, knowing nothing but strength. With my help, you can get all that you have ever wanted.” “You cannot help me,” she spat back. “You are only a pony. You are nothing. I,” she teleported away from him, “am Chrysalis, queen of the changelings!” Sorin had grown tired of her impudence. He knew she was afraid, only putting on an act that made her think she had the power in the situation. She was wrong. He embraced his true voice as he took a deep breath. “I AM A GOD!” he bellowed, shaking the very foundation of the castle. Her breathing stopped at the sound of his voice. Her eyes turned to pinpricks as she saw the shadow of a horrid beast behind him on the wall. She gulped hard, her throat suddenly drier than ever before. Her terror set in as she realized what she had done. A black tendril weaved towards her from his chest, twisting in the air around her. It hovered in front of her face, two wispy blue eyes at its end. “If you refuse, you simply die here.” It moved to her side, making her look left to see it. “Either way, I grow only closer to my goal. Or—” It went to her right side. “—you could join me.” It spiraled around her, unwinding itself before finally deciding to stop in front of her again. “My blood will let you and your kind survive the blast. You will be able to enact your revenge upon the ponies—only if you accept my blood.” The tendril’s eyes vanished, the end turning into a needle-like point. “The choice is up to you,” Sorin said. She truly realized the predicament she was in. She was forced to choose between dying and serving a wicked master. If she joined him, the changelings would live—she would live. They would someday overthrow him and take over Equestria for themselves. There was only one option. After a moment of apprehension, she slowly extended her warped hoof towards the black liquid. She felt a sudden sense of calm as his blood invited her. Her fear was replaced with tranquility as she got closer to its tip. As she was about to touch, the tendril suddenly reared back and stabbed into her chest before she could react. She screamed as she was forcibly lifted into the air, the action causing more pain to shoot through her body. Sorin laughed as he approached her from the ground. “I told you you would pay for sending me to those accursed caves, and now you will, insect!” More tendrils came from him, all of them rearing back, pointing directly at the queen. “What… are… y-you?” she managed to say through the pain in her chest. He snickered. “I am a being of pure malice from another world.” Why he said “man” instead of pony made deadly sense now. “You never should have crossed me…” “Wai—” she cried, being cut off as a dozen black spears stabbed into her body, ripping through her hard shell and into her flesh. Her green, glowing blood dripped onto the ground as she felt every limb get ravaged. “You are the queen of a tattered race,” Sorin shouted, turning back to his natural voice, “but I will make you into a weapon…” She felt as his blood began to spread through her. A burning pain more intense than anything she had ever felt in her life shot through her, her every nerve igniting. She could not even scream in agony, instead staying dead silent as his blood coursed through her. Hundreds of tiny threads shot from her body, shattering the giant window behind her. His blood used her body as a way to spread, pumping through her and across the city. It was excruciating for Chrysalis. Her every sense became mute as her body was overwhelmed with harrowing fire. Even her mind was racked with unimaginable anguish as her body was used as a host. “Feel my power flowing through you, queen of insects. It will save you and your people; be thankful that is all I use it for…” The threads latched onto every changeling within the city, forcing their way inside their bodies and causing them to unfreeze. They all howled in unison, the sound sending shivers through Chrysalis’s numb body. It brought joy to Yogg-Saron as he finished weaving the web between the changelings. He instantly reversed the flow, extracting any form of power from the changelings and drawing it to him. He embraced the overload of magic, using it to create a shield around himself strong enough to bend the blast of Love around him. He then sent it out through his blood, encasing every single changeling in a similar shield. Chrysalis felt release as his blood retracted from the changelings and ultimately from her body. She dropped to the floor, landing hard as a black shield formed around her body. She slowly got to her hooves, watching as time began to resume. Sound warped back into her ears, the wind returned, and the heat of the blast washed over her. Her eyes snapped to Cadance and Shining Armor, the blast wave coming directly towards her. She covered her eyes as it hit, catapulting her through the window behind her, flying through the already broken glass. She could still feel the burning of the discharge, but she remained unharmed, thanks to the shield around her. As she flailed over the city, she could see her subjects flying as well. They were alive, and for the moment, that was all she cared about. Everything quickly became purple as the wave overtook the entire city, removing all traces of the changeling invasion.