My Little Pony: Nine Elements Book 2

by BlueBioWolf

Chapter 25: A Canterlot Wedding - Part 1 (S2:E25)

The day after Pinkie, Rarity, Rainbow, and Fluttershy cleaned Sugarcube Corner, the last day of August, the Guardians of Harmony, Spike, Caramel, and the Cutie Mark Crusaders were on the express train to Canterlot.

“We’re almost there, y’all,” Applejack said happily. “Ah can hardly wait ta help with the caterin’.”

“Just try to keep Rainbow, Rarity, and Fluttershy away from them,” Scootaloo said.

“They’re going to be too busy with their own responsibilities,” Pinkie said. “And on top of that, I don’t know exactly what kind of cake Applejack is going to make, so, I can’t describe it and make them hanker for it before the wedding. After the dessert competition, I’m not going to be involved in the baking so that won’t happen again. Instead, I’ve been asked to plan the reception.”

“I was tasked with making the wedding dress,” Rarity said.

“I’ve been asked to conduct the songbird choir,” Fluttershy explained.

“I’ll be making a Sonic Rainboom when the bride and groom say their ‘I dos’,” Rainbow added.

“So, we’ll be far too busy to even think about pinching from the goods before the wedding,” Rarity said. “We’re more than willing to wait until the reception to enjoy the cake then.”

“I was put in charge of the bachelor party!” Spike said. “Though, I’m not exactly clear what that entails.”

“Having made several wedding dresses in the past,” Rarity said. “I can tell you from clients’ stallion friends that… well…” Rarity was about to explain it to him when Twilight stopped her.

“I’ll field that query, Rarity,” she said. She then whispered the explanation into his ear frond, causing Spike to make a reaction of shock.

“Shining Armor wants me to be in charge of that?!” he said. “I kind of wish he put his own dad in charge of that.”

Twilight looked over the invitation. Her brother’s name was on it, but, the other name was Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.

“Princess Mi Amore Cadenza?” Twilight said, confused. “I thought he was marrying Cadance. What’s with the change?”

“Maybe ya can talk ta yer brother ‘bout it when we get ta Canterlot,” Apple Bloom ventured.

As soon as Canterlot was in view, the wedding-goers saw a forcefield around the entire city.

“Whoa,” Sweetie Belle piped up. “What’s with the forcefield?”

“I don’t know,” Twilight said. “Maybe to keep Blueblood in?”

“It’s possible,” Spike said. “Even though Blueblood was caught and put back into custody, he could potentially escape again.”

“I just hope my brother’s duties as the captain of the Royal Guard aren’t too stressful,” Twilight said.

“He’s captain now?” Rarity said. “When did that happen?”

“About a month ago,” Twilight said.

Soon, the train arrived at the station. Once the passengers exited, they noticed an excessive amount of Canterlot guards. Several aimed their weapons at Spike.

“Put your weapons down, idiots,” Flash Sentry said. “Spike isn’t a threat. Don’t make me report this to Captain Armor.”

The guards begrudgingly put their weapons aside.

“I must apologize for them,” Flash said. “Follow me this way.”

“Thank you, Flash Sentry,” Fluttershy said.

As Flash led them, Rainbow found her voice. “So, what’s with all the guards?”

“A threat has been made against Canterlot,” Flash explained. “We don’t know all of the details, but, we’re taking extra precautions just to be safe. The efforts of keeping Canterlot safe rests on Shining Armor’s shoulders. He’s the reason why there’s a forcefield around the city.”

“One pony did that?!” Rarity asked.

“Shining was always skilled with combat magic,” Twilight said.

“Indeed,” Flash said. “It’s these skills that made him more than qualified to be the Captain of the Royal Guard. Well, that and his general competence.”

“Absolutely,” Sweetie Belle said. “From what we learned of him and in comparison to other Canterlot guards, he is way more capable. Oh, but, that’s not to say you’re not capable, Flash.”

“I know that a lot of the other guards aren’t that bright,” Flash said. “With so many clones, it’s aggravating dealing with them all the time.”

“True,” Spike said. “Seriously, they really need to start hiring other capable ponies instead of relying on cloning.”

“Phasing that out is still in progress,” Flash said.

Soon, Flash led them to where he needed to take them.

“Could you take me to my brother?” Twilight asked.

“Of course,” Flash smiled. “Follow me, please.”

“Take Spike with you, Rarity,” Twilight said. “I have some words to say to my brother that I don’t want Spike to hear.”

“Understood,” Rarity said.

“See you later, Mom,” Spike said.

Twilight didn't have long to wait before she spotted her brother. He was out near the barracks, overseeing several of the royal guards while wearing that light purple armor he always wore while officially on duty. Without bothering for formalities, Twilight firmly called out to him from afar, "I've got something to say to you, mister. You've got a lot of nerve keeping me in the dark like this. If this is your idea of a joke, it's not funny."

Shining Armor turned to face the voice of his younger sister. “Twilight, what do you mean by me keeping you in the dark? If I was joking, I would tell you.”

“Then, explain why you changed brides,” Twilight demanded.

“I haven’t,” Shining Armor explained. “Cadance insisted that, for the wedding invitation, she used her full name.”

“That’s her full name?” Twilight said in surprise. “I’ve known her for years and she never told me that was her full name.”

“She prefers being called Cadance around those close to her,” Shining explained. “I was surprised by her full name, too. I guess with it being a special occasion, she wanted to showcase it.”

With that explanation, Twilight was able to calm down.

“Oh, thank goodness,” Twilight sighed. “Now that I know for certain, I can focus on making sure everything goes according to plan.” She then remembered that Flash mentioned a threat to Canterlot. “Flash said there was a threat to Canterlot.”

“Yes,” Shining explained. “As you can see, I’ve increased our security and I put up this magic forcefield. So far, we haven’t seen anything out of the ordinary, but, that doesn't mean that there isn’t anything wrong. I’ve been so busy with security measures, which isn’t helped by the grand majority of the Royal Guards.”

“Ahem,” said a familiar voice.

“Not you, Flash,” Shining said.

“Thank you,” the pegasus smiled.

“Flash is the most competent of the guards in my charge,” Shining said.

“Yeah,” Flash said. “But, from what you’ve seen, that’s not saying much.”

“Anyway,” Shining said. “I was hoping you could be my best mare, Twily.”

Twilight, hearing this news, was flattered. “You want me to be your best mare?” She asked before bowing. “I would be honored, BBBFF!” The two siblings affectionately hugged.

At that moment, Princess Cadance walked up to the ponies. However, there was something oddly different about her. Not in looks, but, in overall vibe.

“I hope I’m not interrupting anything important,” she said.

Twilight’s excitement grew.

“Cadance!” Twilight said happily. She then performed her special dance that she shared with her old foalsitter. “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!
Clap your hooves and do a little shake!”

Instead of joining in or even repeating the chant and the gestures, however, Princess Cadance's response was to bat an eye at Twilight. In particular, she seemed to be confused about why Twilight had brought her tail and her rump to face towards the princess without being prompted to. "Uh, what are you doing?" she asked with a quirked brow.

At that instant, Twilight could tell that something was wrong. “Uh, Cadance? Are you feeling alright? We did that all the time when I was a filly.”

Cadance nonchalantly walked up to Shining Armor. “That was then, this is now.”

Shining Armor apologized to his sister. "Sorry, Twily, I guess Cadance doesn't remember foalsitting you as well as you did. But, to be fair, we've had a lot on our mind since we agreed to get married. And the threat certainly hasn't helped matters."

Twilight was still unsure, but, decided not to press the two for additional details.

“Flash Sentry,” Shining Armor continued. “Please keep an eye on my little sister and her friends. Twily is to make sure everything goes well for the ceremony, but, with the looming threat, make sure they aren’t harmed by this potential threat.”

“Understood,” Flash saluted. He guided Twilight out while casting a subtle suspicious glance at Cadance.

“You sense something is wrong with Cadance, too, don’t you?” Twilight whispered to the pegasus guard.

“I’ve had my suspicions for about five days now,” Flash admitted. “I didn’t want to say anything because you or the others hadn’t seen Cadance yet. I didn’t want you to think that I was being slanderous.”

“Let’s keep this on the downlow before we investigate,” Twilight said.

“Understood,” Flash said. “I promise to keep you and your friends safe.”

Twilight tried her best to throw herself wholeheartedly into her role as the official overseer for the wedding, even now that she had her responsibilities as the best mare to consider. Yet, everywhere she went and everything she checked on, she was ultimately reminded of what (or rather who) she was trying not to think about. First, Twilight was making sure everything was going well in the Canterlot kitchen. Applejack was going back and forth, helping the cookponies with what needs to be done.

“Cake, check,” Applejack nodded, prompting Twilight to check that off of the list. “Ice sculpture, check. Best dern bite-size apple fritter ya ever tasted..." She proceeded to shove one of the fritters into Twilight's mouth.

“Mm,” Twilight said, her thoughtful attitude lightening up slightly. “Check.”

Just then, who should come trotting into the kitchen unannounced but Princess Cadance herself? The way she carried herself was really telling, as if she seemed to be more concerned about herself than about anything else even though she had no reason to do so.

“Hiya, Cadance,” Applejack smiled.

In a snooty and almost condescending tone of voice, Cadence coldly replied. "Please, call me Princess Mi Amore Cadenza."

“Oh, uh,” Applejack stammered. “Hiya, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. Ya come ta see what’s on the menu fer yer big day?”

"Oh no, that's okay. I don't need a taste test," Princess Cadence somewhat nervously replied. "I'm sure your cooking will be... adequate."

Twilight had heard this. She knew that Cadance would love to taste all sorts of treats. Applejack, who didn’t know Cadance as well as Twilight did, suspected nothing.*

“Okie dokie, then,” Applejack said. “Ah remember a few weddings, n’ brides can get so busy with preppin’ that they ferget ta get a little somethin’ in their bellies.” And she shoved a tray of freshly baked apple fritters in front of the candy-colored alicorn. "Go ahead, it's on the house."

“Oh, fine,” Cadance said in an almost dismissive tone. “Only because they’re free.”

Her horn lit up with a brilliant green aura instead of the very light cornflower blue Twilight was familiar with. Twilight remembered Dark Mimic could change the color of her aura when taking on the form of another unicorn, but, when she looked closer, she saw that Cadance’s eye were still the same light purple she remembered while Dark Mimic retained her normal eye color regardless of what form she took.

Something is definitely wrong, Twilight thought to herself.

As for Princess Cadance, she carefully and cautiously took a bite of one of the apple fritters and after swallowing she said with a smile. "Delicious! I love-love-love them. Really." But, then she gave off a nervous laugh. Applejack still didn’t suspect anything.

“Aww, shucks,” Applejack smiled. “Well, ah better get back ta things ‘round here. Ya mosey on n’ take care o’ what ya need ta do.” She proceeded to present the princess with a brown paper bag. "Why don’t ya take a free sample o’ 'em ta go? This ain't mah first rodeo er weddin' as the case may be." She chuckled a bit at her joke. "Sorry, couldn't resist."

Applejack carried on with her responsibilities, while Cadance made her way out, rolling her eyes from Applejack’s terrible pun. Making sure Applejack wasn’t looking, Cadance threw the paper bag into the trash. Twilight, however, saw it.

“Did you see that, Applejack?!” she said.

“See what?” Applejack asked. “Ah was busy takin’ care o’ the caterin’. Them brides get so busy, they ferget ta fill their bellies.” At that point, Applejack’s belly gave a rather hungry gurgle. She chuckled in embarrassment. “Guess ah should do that mahself. Won’t be much good as a caterer if’n ah don’t feed mahself, now, will ah?”

Twilight then decided to take the bag of discarded fritters so that they wouldn’t completely go to waste.

When Twilight went to see how Rarity was doing with designing the dress for the bride and her bridesmaids a short time later, she couldn't resist grumbling about what she'd witnessed. It didn't matter to her that Rarity was too busy to really pay attention, Twilight had to get this off her chest one way or another. "Oh, you should have seen how she acted back there, Rarity. I don't know when she changed, but, she sure changed alright!" In a mocking tone of voice she then repeated what she'd heard Cadance say earlier. "'Please, call me Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.'"

“Did somepony call my name?” Cadance asked as she walked into the room with her bridesmaids.

This caught Rarity off guard as she immediately bowed.

“Your highness!” Rarity genuflected. “May I just say what an honor it is to be working on the ensembles for you and your bridesmaids.”

The princess just coldly replied in an uninterested tone of voice. "Uh-huh. Is my dress ready?"

“Oh, yes,” Rarity said, showing Cadance the dress. “I was working on this as soon as I received the assignment and I think you’ll be pleased with the results.” She gestured to the dress she made. It was a surprisingly simple and modest dress, even though it had yellow trim all around it.

“I was hoping for something with more beading and a longer train,” Cadance said, not even acknowledging what she did like about the dress. “Please tell me this is not your best!"

“Oh, uh,” Rarity stammered. “N-no, not at all. I can do much better. Everypony will have their eyes on you in no time.”

Cadance then looked over the bridesmaid dresses, which coincidentally matched the coats of the three unicorns currently serving as her bridesmaids: Minuette, Twinkleshine, and Lyra. “Those dresses should be a different color, too. The idea of having their dresses completely match their coats is stupid.”

Twinkleshine voiced her objection. “I think they’re lovely.”

“Me, too,” Minuette smiled. “Rarity put so much effort into these dresses.”

“Yeah,” Lyra said. “They’re fine as is.”

However, Cadance turned her eyes at the three mares, giving them an icy-cold glare. Twilight noticed this while Rarity was busy bowing. “Make them a different color, okay? And work on my own gown while you’re at it. Otherwise, you’re fired! Understand?”

“Y-yes, of course, your highness!” Rarity stammered. She then hastened to modify the dresses as Cadance requested.

As Cadance and the bridesmaids left, Twilight grew more suspicious. “The Cadance I remember was never this demanding.”

“I’m afraid I can’t focus on a conversation now, Twilight,” Rarity said. “I have modifications to work on.”

With that, Twilight went to check on another aspect of the wedding.

Sure enough, when Twilight was checking on the wedding reception, who else but Princess Cadance should show up? And if the expression on her face was any indication, the princess was not pleased in the least by what Pinkie Pie had to offer. The entire hallway where the reception would take place looked rather... childish for lack of a better term.

“Okay,” Pinkie said. “We went over the games, the music, and the dancing. I think this reception is going to be just perfect, don’t you?”

"Yes, perfect," Princess Cadance declared before she began trotting off. And as she did so, she added, "If we were celebrating a six-year-old's birthday party, that is."

Pinkie, not noticing Cadance’s tone of voice, was ecstatic. “Thank you!”

The princess said nothing further, she just grinned and then rolled her eyes when she was certain she was alone once more.

“Pinkie,” Twilight said. “Can’t you tell when somepony’s insulting you?”

“What do you mean?” Pinkie asked. “I think a wedding reception should be fun and give them feelings of nostalgia to prepare them for a bright future tomorrow.”

Twilight facehoofed. “She was insulting you, Pinkie,” she said.

“She was?” Pinkie asked. “Huh, guess I must have missed that.”

Though, she is kind of right,** Twilight trotted off to reflect on the situation. Okay, that settles it. This is not the Princess Cadance I knew! There's no way she could've changed this much since I last saw her! Whoever this pony is, she is not Princess Cadance! So, why would she want to marry my brother?

Elsewhere, Spike ran into Cadance. The alicorn seemed a bit surprised by a dragon being present.

“Ah, there you are, Cadance,” Spike smiled. “There were some things I wanted to ask you.”

“Uh, who are you?” Cadance said.

Spike was a bit confused by this. “Come on, Cadance. It’s me, Spike. What’s with this guessing game? We’ve known each other for years. We last saw each other eight days ago.”

“Oh, right,” Cadance said. “Well, what do you want?”

“Well, I was wondering if it’s okay if my friends, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle are the flowerfillies,” Spike said.

“Fine,” Cadance said begrudgingly. “But, it’s only because I don’t know of any other snot-nosed brats who could do it.” And she trotted off.

Spike, however, was taken aback by such indifference. He grew even more suspicious when he saw Cadance use magic to move ponies aside and noticed that her aura was brilliant green instead of the very light cornflower blue he remembered.  Something’s not right here, he thought to himself. I wonder if Mom noticed this.***

That evening, Princess Luna came in with Canis on her back to take over the task of keeping watch over all of Canterlot. "Rest, dear sister," she told Princess Celestia. "As always, I will guard the night. I shall notify you if you're needed."

Princess Celestia nodded and retired to her sleeping quarters. “Thank you, sister,” she said. “Be safe out there.”

“Mother,” Canis said in concern. “Shouldn’t we tell her that the threat against Canterlot already infiltrated the city before the force field was up?”

“In due time, Canis,” Luna said. “Remember, Chrysalis is a very crafty one. She can disguise herself as anything and anyone at all. She has most likely hidden Cadance. We must wait until the time is right. If not, there could be grave consequences.”****

“I understand,” Canis said.

Meanwhile, at the Canterlot Cafe, the guardians, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Flash Sentry, and Caramel were gathered for post-wedding preparation refreshments. Spike had a rather contemplative look on his face.

“You look puzzled, Spike,” Rarity noted. “Is there something on your mind?”

“It’s about Cadance,” Spike said. “Eight days ago, my mom and I saw her and we had a brief chat and not three hours ago, she didn’t seem to recognize me despite having seen me several times over the past twelve or so years.”

“That’s terrible,” Twilight said. “So, you and I have both noticed that Cadance has been acting differently.”

“I’ve noticed it for the last five days,” Flash said. “I don’t know her nearly as well as you two, obviously, but, I know her well enough that this isn’t normal for her.”

“Right,” Spike said. “Mom, did you see her magic aura at all?”

“I did,” Twilight replied. “Instead of it being her normal cornflower blue color, I saw a brilliant green magical aura.”

“So, did I,” Spike said. “And magic auras don’t suddenly change.” He then remembered Dark Mimic. “Well, unless you’re Dark Mimic, but, that clearly wasn’t the case because Cadance’s eyes were still the same light purple color I remember them.”

“So, ya think that this Cadance ain’t the real one?” Applejack asked.

“No,” Twilight said. “Spike and I have known Cadance for years and the eight days between the last time we saw her and now aren’t enough for her to turn out so rude and demanding. Applejack, remember that bag of treats you gave her?”

“Yeah, why?” Applejack replied.

Twilight levitated that very bag. “She threw it in the trash as soon as your back was turned!”

The ponies and Spike gasped.

“She would throw away perfectly good treats?!” Pinkie asked in alarm. “What kind of monster is she?!”

“Sparin’ mah feelin’s er not,” Applejack said. “Ah worked hard on those! Ain’t no reason ta throw ‘em away like that!”

“Then, there’s her insulting Pinkie’s decorations,” Twilight said.

“I was too busy practicing the Sonic Rainboom to notice any bad attitude,” Rainbow said.

“She did yell at one of my songbirds during rehearsal,” Fluttershy said. She held up one of the songbirds. “Though, he was singing off-key.” As if to prove it, the bird sang an off-key note.

“The real Cadance would have been more understanding,” Spike said. “I’m not the best singer myself, so, I can attest to that.”

“Well,” Sweetie Belle said. “With a little practice–”

“This isn’t about me,” Spike said. “This is about the so called ‘Cadance.’”

“And when she spoke of my dresses, she threatened to fire me if I didn’t do them the way she wanted,” Rarity said. “I’ll admit, I’ve dealt with demanding brides before, but, this is a whole other level.”

“It’s true,” Sweetie Belle said. “From what Rarity told me, none of the other brides that she worked with threatened to fire her the way she did.”

“When I asked her if the Crusaders could be flowerfillies,” Spike said. “She was coldly indifferent.”

“So,” Applejack said. “If this bride-ta-be ain’t Cadance, then, who is she?”

“From the comics I read to my little brother and the mess with Discord,” Flash said. “I can tell this is an imposter both pretending to be Cadance and mind-controlling Captain Armor. Or she’s under mind-control herself.”

“So,” Scootaloo said. “Could this whole wedding preparation thing be just a cover-up to throw off our suspicions?”

“Let me answer that question with an observation I have,” Flash said. “You’ve all seen how–” He used his wings to make air quotes. “-’competent’ most of the Royal Guards are. Do you honestly think Captain Shining Armor would entrust them with the security of all Canterlot?”

“Then,” Apple Bloom said. “If it weren’t fer y’all n’ Shinin’ Armor, Canterlot is doomed!”

“We can’t just go around making accusations,” Spike said. “We need to have proof.”

“We don’t want a repeat of Pinkie’s crazy theories on the way to the National Dessert Competition,” Caramel said. All but Applejack and Flash looked at him in surprise as he remembered it. “What? I can remember things once in a while.”

“What we need to do is look for proof that this Cadance isn’t the real one,” Rainbow said. “That’ll be tough with most of us not knowing Cadance very well.”

“I have an idea,” Rarity said. “We each share a piece of information with each other that only we would know. That way, if she does turn out to be either an impostor or under mind control, we'll have a means of positive identification. We and Spike will work on keeping her busy while you do your investigation - try to buy you enough time to dig up enough hard evidence to either prove or disprove your suspicions.”*****

“That is a brilliant idea, Rarity,” Twilight smiled.

“But, what kind of information should we share?” Sweetie Belle asked.

Spike considered this. Once he had an idea, he whispered them into the others’ ears. Some of them were surprised.

“Whoa,” Pinkie said. “I didn’t expect that.”

“I know it’s more daring,” Spike said. “But, it might still prove to be helpful.”

“That covers Spike,” Rainbow said. “But, what about the rest of us?”

Twilight and Spike, with their knowledge of Princess Cadance at their disposal, gave each of them tidbits of information that only the real Princess Cadance would know. They had to keep this secret. Who knows what listening ears were about?

“Everypony got the info they need?” Twilight asked.

The ponies nodded in confirmation.

“Good,” she said. “Flash, you’re coming with me.”

“Right,” Flash nodded.

And the two went off.

“So, with all of this sorted out,” Caramel observed. “What do we do now?”

“Well,” Applejack said. “Ah reckon we wait ‘til the bride-ta-be calls us n’ we keep her busy while Flash n’ Twi investigate. One thing’s fer sure, we ain’t brushin’ Twilight off again.”

“No way, AJ,” Pinkie said. “Last time we did that, it was a disaster. If we do it this time, things could end up worse than Canterlot brawling over a doll. But, yeah, we can wait.”

“And we’ll have to be really careful, too,” Fluttershy said. “We still don’t completely know what we’re dealing with.”

Twilight and Flash made their way across town to the barracks, more specifically to the captain's quarters. Sure enough, they found Twilight’s big brother there. He had changed out of his royal guard attire and had donned a bright red suit with three yellow buttons on the collar. Attached to the front was a small iron shield similar to the one depicted on Shining Armor's Cutie Mark.

“What do you think, Twilight?” Shining Armor smiled. “I can’t wait to marry Cadance in this.” But, once he noticed Twilight and Flash’s expressions, his smile lowered. “Is everything okay?”

"No," Twilight unhappily sighed. "I wish there was an easier way for me to say it, or better yet, that somepony else were here to break the news to you." She swallowed hard and plucked up courage, these next few words would be very important. "We need to talk, B.B.B.F.F. It's about Cadance."

“What is it?” he asked.

But, before Twilight or Flash could say anything further on the matter, Princess Cadance announced her arrival with a sharp and abrupt clearing of her throat.

“Could I speak with you for a moment, dear?” she asked coldly. "Alone if you wouldn't mind?"

“Sorry, Twilight,” Shining Armor said. “I’ll see what she wants and then we’ll get back to what we were discussing, okay?” And he and Cadance went into another room to talk in private.

“This could be our chance, Flash,” Twilight said in a whisper.

Flash nodded and the two ponies snuck up to the door of the other room. Since it was slightly ajar, they were able to peek in without being seen themselves.

"Look, we need to talk," Princess Cadance firmly insisted. "It's about your sister."

“She and I are family,” Shining Armor said. “And you did foalsit her for years so she should be like a sister to you.”

Princess Cadance replied in an ominous tone of voice, "You won't like it. But, you have to know what she's been like today."

“She does tend to worry a lot,” he said. “But, usually, she has a reason to worry. Besides, it’s her responsibility to make sure the wedding goes according to plan.”

The candy colored princess argued back, "Will you just listen to me? You don't know what I know!"

“Honey,” Shining Armor said, backing off nervously. “Are you feeling alright? You’re not usually so abrasive. Come to think about it, that’s been the case for the last five days, but, my memory has some gaps in it.”******

“This is supposed to be my special day,” Princess Cadance growled menacingly. “And I thought I told you not to wear that thing.”

“This belonged to my uncle, Brilliant Shield*******,” Shining said. “He taught me everything I know about combat magic.”

“And?” Cadance said dismissively.

“And, I thought I should wear it,” Shining said, refusing to be intimidated. “It’s my special day as much as it is yours after all.”

Unknown to either, Twilight and Flash were listening and watching the whole thing.

“Are you disagreeing with me?!” Cadance snapped.

The suited stallion firmly but calmly replied, "I guess I am." But, then he winced and groaned as he put a hoof to his forehead, letting out a sharp cry of pain. "Ah!"

“Oh, dear,” Cadance said. “Here, I’ll take care of your migraine for you.”

“Wait, what are you–?!” Shining began before he was struck head on by a beam of brilliant green colored magic from Cadance's horn. His eyes shortly began to glow the same color.

“There,” Cadance said. “Feeling better?”

“Yes, mistress~” Shining Armor answered in a monotone voice.

“Oh, no!” Twilight whispered harshly. “I read about this kind of magic… it’s mind-control magic!”

“This proves my theory!” Flash whispered back.

“What do we do?” Twilight asked.

“We can’t let her know we’re onto her,” Flash said. “You go tell the others. I’ll stall the imposter as long as I can.”

“Thank you, Flash,” Twilight said. “And be careful.” And with that, she ran out to find her friends and her drake son.

The sound of her hoofbeats got the attention of Shining Armor. “Huh?” he said quizzically. “Where’s Twilight going? I thought she had something she wanted to talk to me about.”

“Something else came up and she had to deal with it,” Flash said, covering for her.

“Oh, uh,” Shining began before Cadance nuzzled up to him.

“Let her go, dear,” she said, feigning sweetness.

"But, she had something she was going to tell me," Shining remarked with worry. "You know how she gets when she starts one of her freakouts!"

“Leave her to fuss it out,” Cadance said. “We should get some sleep. We do have a wedding tomorrow after all.”

Twilight ran all the way back to the castle, hoping to find her friends and inform them of what she'd just witnessed.

“Flash and I have new information!” Twilight said as soon as she ran into the room. However, she could hardly believe her eyes when she entered. The other guardians had dresses like the ones Rarity made for the bridesmaids. “What the- what’s happening here?!”

“Cadance made us her new bridesmaids,” Pinkie said.

“New bridesmaids?!” Twilight asked. “What happened to Twinkleshine, Minuette, and Lyra?”

“We don’t know,” Fluttershy admitted. “She didn’t tell us. It’s very strange that five mares are filling in three spots.”********

“Apologies,” Rarity said. “You had said that you had new information. What is it?”

“We saw Cadance use a mind-control spell on my brother!” Twilight said.

The five mares gasped in alarm.

“I say we pony up and kick this phony’s flank!” Rainbow said.

“I know this is asking a lot from you, Rainbow,” Twilight said. “But, don’t do anything stupid.”

“N’ pony up?” Applejack asked flatly. “Really?”

“Don’t you think we ought to warn Princess Celestia and Luna?” Fluttershy asked. “Princess Celestia is officiating the wedding and we can’t leave Princess Luna out.”

“I’ll go inform the princesses,” Twilight said. “You keep the imposter busy, but, don’t let on that you know she’s an imposter.”

“You got it, Twilight,” Pinkie said. “We should also let Spike know.”

At that moment, Spike stepped in.

“Let me know of what?” he asked. “What did you all find out?”

“The Cadance we saw today is mind-controlling my brother,” Twilight explained.

“What?!” Spike gasped. “We know that our Cadance does help to make the bonds of love stronger, but, nothing as manipulative as that!”

“I’m getting the Princesses involved,” Twilight said. “Keep the imposter busy.”

“Can do, Mom,” Spike said. “I’ll be really careful, I promise.”

Twilight rushed out of the room. Shortly thereafter, Cadance made her way in.

“There you are, Princess mi Amore Cadenza,” Pinkie said. “We wanted to thank you again for making us your new bridesmaids. This is a really, really, really, really, really big honor!”

“Yeah!” Applejack said. “N’ totally not a suspicious cover-up er nothin’!” She began sweating profusely.

“Applejack,” Spike whispered to the farm mare. “More subtlety, please.”

Cadance found Applejack’s words suspicious. “Oh, it’s my pleasure~” Cadance said, feigning delight. “Although, now that I think about it, Applejack, I have a much more important job for you to do. And that extends to the rest of you.”

Applejack gulped nervously. “What’d that be?”

“Before I answer that,” Cadance said. “I want to know one thing.”

“W-what’s that?” Applejack asked.

“Do you,” Cadance asked, her tone becoming more ominous. “Or do you not take me for a fool?”

Applejack didn’t answer. Instead, she and her pony friends began to back away nervously. Spike, however, stood his ground. “You may as well drop the act!” he said. “We know you’re not Cadance!”

“Oh, is that so?” Cadance said intimidatingly. “Then, if you really want to see your precious princess again, why don’t I reunite her with you?!”

Suddenly, a circle of green flames surrounded Spike and the ponies.

“W-what’s happening?!” Rarity exclaimed.

“I don’t know!” Spike said. “Even with my mom’s years of magic, I’ve never seen anything like this!”

“Ugh!” Cadance said. “Your mother, do you even hear yourself? She’s a pony, you’re a dragon. To delude yourself into thinking a pony could be your mother, you’re an absolute imbecile.”

“If it wasn’t for this awful spell of yours,” Rarity snapped. “I would give you what-for for talking down to Spike like that, you beast!”

“I was able to get rid of an alicorn and fool this entire city,” Cadance said. “You’re no threat to me.”

“Ponies will notice we’re missing!” Spike said. But, at that moment, lookalikes of him and the ponies in the flames stepped in, all wearing smug grins.

“You were saying?” Cadance asked. “Enjoy your stay. Bye-bye~”

Once the emerald green flames encapsulated all of them, the six friends began to sink lower into the suite ground until they ended up in a dark mysterious place.

Meanwhile, Twilight was searching the castle courtyard when she felt an inexplicable heartache.

“Something’s happened!” she said to herself.

She suddenly heard the sound of wings flapping.

“Who’s there?” she asked, looking around. Looking up, she saw Luna and Canis. “Princess Luna, Canis. Something horrible is happening!”

“Ah,” Luna said. “So, you know that the Cadance here today is an imposter.”

“Yes, she-” Twilight started before stopping. “Wait, you knew?”

“Indeed,” Luna said. “That imposter set Blueblood loose and hid the real Cadance while taking her place. Blueblood’s escape was a diversion.”

Twilight gasped. “The threat to Canterlot was here the whole time! Who is this imposter?!”

“An old enemy of myself and my sister,” Luna explained. “Queen Chrysalis.”

“Queen Chrysalis,” Twilight repeated, an added shiver in her voice. “So, if she took Cadance’s place, then, where is the real Cadance?”

“Alas,” Luna said. “We haven’t been able to find her. Chrysalis has likely hidden her where I cannot reach her even in the dream realm.”

Twilight turned back towards the suite. “Now, I’m really worried about what she did with my friends and my son.”

“You needn’t fear her killing them,” Luna said. “Cruel as she is, she’s not a murderer.”

Twilight sighed with relief. “Still, what can we do?”

“We plan on waiting until Chrysalis and Cadance are in the same room with no shortage of witnesses,” Canis said. “Chrysalis is very competent at keeping up appearances around those unfamiliar with the reputation of the pony she takes the form of.”

“And your sister?” Twilight asked.

“Celestia has been too distracted by wedding preparations to interact much with the imposter,” Luna said. “Without solid evidence, she may not believe what I say.”

Twilight nodded understandingly. She then had an idea. “Princess,” she said. “I have an idea.”

Luna and Canis listened in.

“I’m going to confront the imposter and have her send me where she sent the real Cadance,” Twilight explained.

“It will be a risky operation,” Canis noted. “But, if you believe it will work, then I will allow it. Do you agree, mother?”

Luna reluctantly nodded. “We’ve not been able to locate Cadance and I must return to my post,” she said. “Even if Cadance escapes on her own, it may be too late by then.”

“I understand,” Twilight said. “I’ll do what I can and we may be able to help Canterlot yet.”

“Stay wary, Twilight Sparkle,” Canis said.

“You will be safe in our quarters tonight,” Luna said.

The next morning as the wedding rehearsal was about to start, Princess Cadance suspected nothing when she and “Twilight’s friends” were called to the throne room of the castle, which was in the process of being converted into an altar for the wedding. She had every reason to believe that everything was going exactly the way she wanted it to.

“I shall say a few words,” Princess Celestia explained. “And then you both will say your vows. Shining Armor, you will get the ring from your best mare.”

At that moment, Twilight burst through the doors.

“Shining Armor,” Twilight exclaimed. “You shouldn’t stand next to her! She’s evil!”

“Now,” ‘Pinkie’ said. “I haven’t been to a whole lot of weddings, but, aren’t you supposed to say ‘I object!’ when you don’t approve of a marriage?”

“Pinkie, you know this isn’t the real Cadance!” Twilight said.

“What are you talking about, Twilight?” ‘Spike’ asked. “Of course that’s the real Cadance. Who else could it be?”

“Wait, what?” Twilight said, noticing he didn’t call her mom. “You were one of the few who suspected this Cadance was a fake.”

“That’s the stupidest thing I ever heard,” ‘Spike’ said. “You must have heard me say something different.”

“Girls, you all know this imposter tried to brainwash my brother!” Twilight said, getting desperate. “Applejack, you have to realize I’m telling the truth!”

“Well, ya ain’t,” ‘Applejack’ lied. But, because this wasn’t the real Applejack, she didn’t gag. “Yer just jealous o’ all the attention that yer brother’s gettin’.”

Celestia was watching what was happening and silently began to suspect something was up.********* At that moment, Cadance decided to play up the act.

“W-why are you saying such horrible things about me, Twilight?!” she sobbed. “I would never do such cruel things to the stallion I love!” With that, she ran out of the room sobbing.

‘Twilight’s friends’ acted with shock.

“Way to go, Twilight,” ‘Rainbow’ snarked. “You made the bride cry. That was so not cool.”

Shining Armor stepped up. “Twilight Elizabeth********** Sparkle, I’m surprised at you! I can’t believe you would think that Cadance would do such horrible things to me. I would think that my own L.S.B.F.F. would be more supportive towards your favorite foalsitter. It’s really important that our wedding be perfect, but, it looks like that wasn’t important enough to you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go comfort Cadance. And you can forget about being my best mare. In fact, if I were you, I wouldn’t show up to the wedding at all.” And he stormed out.

Celestia was shocked by such a callous display. That shock increased with what happened next.

“You ought to be ashamed of yourself,” ‘Fluttershy’ said.

“Come on, y’all,” ‘Applejack’ said. “Let’s go check on the princess.”

And they all left the room until only Twilight and Celestia were left.

“Something’s definitely wrong here,” the princess said. “Your brother would never be so cruel, your friends learned months ago to take your concerns seriously, and Spike, who’s been calling you mom for a good long while now, is so loyal to you, he wouldn’t abandon you if he were paid to.”***********

“Something is wrong,” Twilight said. “But, I do have a plan. If you don’t mind, Princess Celestia, I need you to leave the room.”

“What sort of plan?” Celestia asked.

“A plan that will hopefully lead me to where the real Princess Cadance is,” Twilight explained.

Reluctantly, Celestia agreed. “I hope you know what you’re getting into,” she said as she left the room.

So do I, Twilight thought to herself. So do I.

With that, Twilight was left alone in the throne room. Soon, it wasn’t long until Princess Cadance, taking a different entrance, stepped in.

“I’m onto you,” Twilight said. “Chrysalis.”

At the mention of her name, ‘Cadance’s’ light purple eyes flashed into a deep green.

“I always knew you were trouble,” ‘Cadance’ said coldly as her horn illuminated. “I won’t let you spoil my plans!”

Just like her friends before her, Twilight was surrounded by a circle of green flames. Unlike them, she didn’t attempt to escape. Instead, Twilight allowed herself to be dragged down into the unknown as ‘Cadance’ walked away, thinking she had won. Where did Twilight and her friends go? Where is the real Princess Cadance? Find out very soon.

[To be Continued…]