“How is she?” Twilight asked once Doctor Heart finally finished. Behind him, his assistants were busy cleaning blood from the makeshift operating theater.
“It’s not life threatening. She likely won’t be walking for the next few weeks. That said, I know she possesses some sort of healing magic. She might be up by tomorrow. No way to be sure. She might be in pain when she wakes up as well, so you may not want to stand too close.”
“Thank you, Doctor. You did excellently.”
“Of course, Princess.”
With a hasty bow, the doctor left, taking the rest of his team with him.
Twilight sent the rest of the guards away, closing the door behind them. Outside, raindrops tapped against the window, blurring the little starlight that filtered in. Twilight closed her eyes and nestled down into her chair. She let her thoughts drift, never focusing on the same thing for more than a few seconds.
By the time she opened her eyes again, the rain had evolved into a thunderstorm. Lightning flashed. Thunder rumbled. The sound of rain pattering against glass and stone threatened to lull Twilight into unconsciousness. Then she heard the rustling of silk sheets.
Chrysalis sat up in bed, massaging her temple with the edge of her hoof. She scanned the room. Her eyes narrowed when she finally spotted Twilight sitting in her chair.
“Of course you’re still here,” she muttered.
“The doctor just left recently. He said you might be in some pain and assured me that that was normal. But you might not be walking anytime soon.”
“I’m not some fragile little pony. I’ll be fine.”
“I hope so.”
Chrysalis leaned back into her pillows.
“If you want to help me, then throw a few logs in the fireplace. It’s freezing in here.”
Twilight stared at the changeling for a moment before climbing out of her seat. Using her magic, she floated several of the smaller pieces of firewood from the basket nearby and loaded them into the hearth. She struck a match from the book and tossed it into the pile. The fire started slowly, but built up into a cozy bonfire.
Twilight returned to Chrysalis’ bedside. “There. Is that better?”
The changeling turned away from her. “A little.”
“If you’re still cold, I could fetch you a blanket.”
“You’re still pretending you care? Why? I already told you that I didn’t believe you.”
“Think whatever you want. I know why I’m doing this.”
The princess vanished into the hallway for only a moment before returning with a thick wool blanket. She tossed it over Chrysalis and smoothed it out with her magic. She made sure to take extra care when handling the area near the injured leg. Afterward, Twilight returned to her seat.
Chrysalis kept her back to Twilight, but every flash of lightning painted her shadow across the far wall. “How long do you plan on sitting there?” she demanded.
Twilight spoke with a heavy weight. “I don’t know. It’s late, but I haven’t gotten much work done tonight.”
“And whose fault is that?”
Twilight rose and started for the door. “You must be hungry. I’ll send Thorax up as soon as he returns.”
“Twilight?”
The purple pony’s hoof stopped just shy of the door handle. “Yes?”
“It . . . It’s poison.”
Twilight turned back to the changeling, who was now facing out into the storm. “What’s poisoned?”
“Celestia. It’s an ancient spell, rarely used even when I was still young. You won’t find anything about it in modern medical textbooks and, as far as I know, no such cure exists for it. It’s the perfect tool for assassination.”
Twilight took a few steps forward. “Why are you telling me this?”
She heard Chrysalis sigh. “I’m bored. I’ve memorized the map on the ceiling, searched every inch of the room for an escape, and taken enough baths to give my shell the permanent scent of soap. And now I can’t even walk.”
“You want me to stay and talk with you?” Twilight allowed the barest hint of a smile to cross her lips.
“I didn’t say that,” Chrysalis huffed.
Twilight returned to her seat once again. “Alright. Tell me more about this poison.”
“It’s ancient magic. A spell fueled by absolute hatred. I’ve only ever used it once before. And this time . . . it was an accident.”
Twilight knit her brow.
“An accident?”
“I was furious at that stupid princess. You’re a lot like her, you know? You both look down at me with that same pitious look in your eyes. I just felt so angry. I just wanted her to leave me alone. My body was failing. My mind was delirious. I let my instincts take over. I don’t remember anything after that.”
“I see.”
Chrysalis squeezed her eyes closed. “And every time I close my eyes, I see that damned face. It’s like she’s taunting me. Even in death.”
“There’s no way to stop this poison?”
“No.”
Twilight shook her head feverishly. “There must be some way. No spell is perfect.”
“There’s nothing you can do.”
“Is there something you can do?”
“I . . .” Chrysalis hung her head. “No. Not anymore.”
“But you do know something. Tell me. It might help.”
Chrysalis stayed quiet for several minutes. “Do you know anything about changeling magic, Twilight?”
“No.”
“From what I understand, you unicorns are born with magic, but have to practice to get anything done. Changelings are born with theirs and harness it entirely through instinct. Even if I wanted to teach you, you could never learn it.”
“I don’t know, I’m sort of a legendary magical scholar,” Twilight bragged.
“It’s not a matter of your abilities,” Chrysalis sneered. “It’s a matter that Changeling magic, at its most basic, requires the instincts of a changeling to wield. By your very birth, you were disqualified from its use.”
“Alright. But I don’t see how this is supposed to help me.”
“I’ll tell you if you stop interrupting me.” She cleared her throat. “This class of magic is known by every changeling because it's the same force that keeps us alive. It’s how we feed. We are not creatures bound by physical forms like ponies, we’re bound by our magical energy.
“Because of this, we can change our physical form, and why we require neither food nor drink. All the energy we need to sustain us, to sustain our magic, is the emotion we draw from others.”
“Love?”
“Love is the strongest of these emotions. And one of only a few that are worth the effort of draining. This spell that can save Celestia is part of this magic as well. We can grant our life force to others. It’s how we feed our young. It’s how my idiot son and his traitors survive. But if enough of that energy can be focused, it can be used to heal even the most dire of wounds.”
“That doesn’t sound so impossible.”
“It requires a great deal of magical energy. Far more than any drone could wield. You would need the power of a Royal.”
“Like you?”
“I can’t do it. Not without my horn.”
Twilight started to pace around the room. “But you can still use your magic,” she pointed out. “You’re still feeding.”
“Losing our horn does not inhibit our magic, but it does make it exceptionally difficult to channel. If I tried to use it without my horn, that amount of energy might heal Celestia, or it might blow this city to Tartarus.”
“What if the changelings worked together? As a whole, would they be able to do it?”
Chrysalis shook her head. “No. No one drone could hold so much energy, even for such a short time.”
“What if they timed it right? Gave energy during the spell to keep it powered, but never going over that limit.”
“Can you inhale and exhale at the same time?”
Twilight stumbled slightly. “No. Not really.”
“Neither can we. While a changeling can freely give energy, another must actively receive it. And while they’re being fed, a changeling cannot expend their magic. It simply doesn’t work like that.”
The alicorn’s pacing slowed dramatically. “Then . . . you’re telling me that it's hopeless.”
“Yes.”
Twilight stomped her hoof, startling Chrysalis with the sudden thud. “I don’t believe that.”
“There is no way to save Celestia, Twilight! It can’t be done. The sooner you understand that, the easier this will be for you. Truthfully, I don’t care if you believe me or not, it won’t change the outcome.”
Squeezing her eyes shut, Twilight let her breathing slow. “I’m not saying I don’t believe you. But there has to be another way.”
“There isn’t one.”
Twilight stomped her hoof again. “Then I’ll make a new one. I’m not giving up on Celestia.”
Chrysalis shrugged. “Fine! Waste your time, brat. I couldn’t care less. I’ve fulfilled my end of the bargain.” “No.”
“What did you say to me?”
Twilight stepped closer, standing straight in an attempt to match Chrysalis' imposing size. “You have not fulfilled your end of our deal. I said that you would help me save Celestia. Your information is a start, but we’re still a long way from saving her.”
Chrysalis leaned in closer. “There. Is. No. Way.”
“No.” Twilight snapped her head around. “You’re wrong. I know there is. I just have to find it. And I need your help to do that, Chrysalis. What do you say?”
“I don’t help with lost causes.”
“Then you’re lucky I do.”
With those final words, Twilight stormed out. The guards remained perfectly still as the princess slammed the door behind her and galloped off toward her lab.
Twilight sat alone at her workstation. She pinched the bridge of her muzzle, massaging away the stress that threatened to split her head in two. In between bouts of exhaustion and light-headedness, she scribbled a few notes on her pages. Just tonight, she had filled three scrolls with recipes for failures.
A knock at the door pulled her up out the doldrums.
“Who is it?” she called.
“Me,” Thorax answered.
“Come on in.”
The door opened just wide enough for Thorax to slip inside.
“I stopped at your room. The guards told me you were still up here. Do you know how late it is? Why aren’t you asleep?”
“I’m working.”
“Oh. Did you make any progress.”
Frowning, Twilight slammed her head down onto the table. “No.”
“Oh.” Thorax cleared this throat. “That’s unfortunate.”
Twilight sat up, staring at the changeling from the corner of her eye. “Thorax, did you need something? I’m a little busy here.”
The king thought for a second before realization struck.
“Yes. I wanted to thank you. I was with Chrysalis for a while. She didn’t say anything, but I heard from one of the guards that you went to see her. They also told me that she hurt herself, but that you stayed with her to help.”
Twilight sighed. “Yeah, I did.”
“You don’t know how much that means to me, Twilight.”
“Apparently, it meant a lot to Chrysalis, too. She gave me some information.”
“Oh?” Thorax buzzed through the air, landing in an open seat beside Twilight. “What did you learn?”
Twilight took a deep breath. “Chrysalis told me what she did to Celestia.”
“She what?” He blinked a few times. “Then, you know what’s wrong?”
Twilight nodded her head back and forth. “Sort of. She told me that she used ancient changeling magic to poison her. A hate spell. Unfortunately, that was about all she had. As far as she knows, there’s no way to heal it. Well, nothing that we can use, at least.”
Thorax paled. “Then there’s nothing we can do?”
The princess shook her head. “No. But I’m not giving up that easily.”
Sitting up in his seat, Thorax asked, “Is there anything I can do to help?”
With her confidence renewed, Twilight turned back to her workstation.
“Maybe. But not right now. For now, I just need to figure this out. I doubt I’ll be able to directly counter the magic, but I think I’ve figured out a way around that. I’m working on a potion that can dispel any magical effects.” She motioned to the pile of notes. “With enough strength, it might be able to counteract even something as powerful as Chrysalis’ magic.”
“That sounds impressive.”
“Yeah? Well, for now it’s just a dream. I need to find the right combination of ingredients.” Twilight jumped with a sudden realization. “Your changelings wouldn’t know anything that would help with that, do you?”
“Not off the top of our heads. But I can look into it, see if I can find anything.”
“Thank you, Thorax. That would be a big help.”
“Of course, I owe you, Twilight.”
Twilight turned her attention back to her work. “I wouldn’t celebrate her reformation just yet. She helped a bit, but she’s still not cooperating too well.” Twilight widened her eyes. “I’ve still got a long way to go on both fronts.”
“I know. But you gave her a chance,” Thorax said, his voice almost a whisper. “That’s more than I expected, and it’s more than she deserved. I trust you to do the right thing, Twilight.” He rose from his chair and put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “Now I’ll go ahead and get out of your mane. I’ll send a message if I manage to track down any leads. Good luck. And goodnight.”
Twilight nodded and worked up just enough energy to conjure a reluctant smile. “Goodnight, Thorax.”
Twilight watched the changeling leave, closing the door behind him with her magic. With the distraction gone, she set up the next potion and hung it over the open flame. As it started to bubble, she returned to her notes to copy down her progress.