Latios’ ears perked as both he and Fluttershy turned to Ponyville. The sounds he heard were nothing like what he came to associate with this small town. Instead of laughter and singing, shrieks of terror and fear were piercing the air. The occasional blast of strange green light was accompanied by the sounds of explosions, and in between them Latios managed to make out a racket of hooves, either of ponies running away… or fighting.
The Eon Dragon was torn. His instinct was telling him to take Fluttershy someplace safe, but his long years spent guarding Altomare made it hard for him to just fly away and leave Ponyville to its fate.
“W-what is g-going on?” Fluttershy stammered in fright, as her eyes darted between the town and him, as if expecting Latios to explain it.
He could smell her fear; he was afraid, too, for he came to care not only for her but for her friends as well. And Latios observed ponies of Ponyville for a week, he had seen them smiling, talking, laughing, singing and dancing… being happy. To think that they would come under attack, that something would threaten the happiness of the small town, was unthinkable.
But… As Latios glanced down at Fluttershy, he knew that his first concern was for her. He nudged her and pointed at the direction of her den. Once she was away from this madness, he would return to see what was going on.
“Y-you want me to go back to my home?” she asked trembling, but when she glanced back at Ponyville, she stopped and shook her head. “No.”
“Did she… just say ‘no’?” Latios thought in shock.
“My friends are in Ponyville, and they will need my help.” Fluttershy continued before he could protest. “And all the other ponies as well.”
Latios had finally recovered, and attempted to try and convince her to let him lead her away. Nothing worked. Fluttershy was determined to go into what was most likely a battle to try and save her friends.
He should have expected that. Her caring nature was one of the reasons why he had fallen for her. But… that was no place for her. Latios struggled to think of a good way to make her see reason, but he was spared of doing that by the sound of approaching hooves.
They both looked to see Rarity galloping towards them. It was clear from the way she moved that she was hurt, and in the next second Latios and Fluttershy could see bruises all over her.
“Oh my gosh, Rarity!” Fluttershy exclaimed as flew towards her. “What happened?!”
“I-I…” the white unicorn tried to speak. “... they… Ponyville…”
Sensing what was about to happen, Latios leaped forward, just in time to caught her before she fell on the ground as she lost consciousness.
“Rarity!” the yellow pegasus immediately was at her friends side, checking her injuries.
Latios managed an angry growl through his mute throat. Whoever had done this to Rarity and everybody else was about to witness how dangerous the fury of an Eon Dragon can be.
He looked at Fluttershy; as she took her friend from his hooves. She looked at her, then at him, and then finally at Ponyville. “I… I will take Rarity back to my cottage and take care of her.” Fluttershy finally said. She turned to him, pleadingly. “Eon, I don’t want you to get hurt, too. But… please, save my friends. Save Ponyville. Please.”
Latios nodded. He would have liked to see her to safety, but he understood her concern. If Rarity got hurt so badly, in what state could be those still in the town?
The pegasus leaned to him and pressed her lips against his. Latios responded to the kiss, knowing that it might take a while for them to experience such pleasure again. He embraced her with his forelegs, cradling her mane, as he pulled back. His nose leaned against hers for a few more seconds while the two pairs of eyes gazed into each other.
“Stay safe.” Latios begged her in thoughts before he stepped back and shot into the air.
Fluttershy watched as Eon Guard flew towards Ponyville. She had no idea why she asked him to do something that dangerous. Fluttershy was more scared that she could remember ever being; she was afraid for her friends, for Ponyville… And now for Eon, who was flying towards danger because she asked him to.
“But…”
She remembered how he saved Angel by tackling a manticore. How he was both strong and gentle, how he genuinely cared about her.
“He will be fine.” she tried to convince herself. “And I will go help him once Rarity is safe… Then I will get Applejack and Big Mac from Sweet Apple Acres, they will know what’s best to do.”
Just as she was about to head back to her cottage with her friend gently carried on her back - as gently as a weak pegasus like her could, at least - the said unicorn groaned.
“F-Flutter… shy…?”
“Hush, Rarity, you are safe.” she comforted her friend, even though she wanted to cry as she thought about her injuries. “Don’t worry, we’re going to my home, I will take care of you…”
“Oh… that won’t be… necessary…” Rarity murmured as she tried to rise from her back.
“What do you mean?” Fluttershy asked, turning around to look at her.
A flash of green light blinded her, and then everything went dark.
“What are those creatures?” Latios mused as he observed the Ponyville’s marketplace from hiding.
He took too much time trying to persuade Fluttershy to go back to her den and hide, for by the time he had reached Ponyville, the fighting has ended. All ponies that resisted those that attacked had either lied beaten and unconscious… or were placed in big, pony-sized green cocoons.
Latios watched as a unicorn was sealed into one by strange, black creatures. They were pony-shaped, leading the Eon Dragon to speculate that they were another kind of their species. However, they were definitely at least part bugs, for he could see similarities between them and Yanmegas that often fly by the garden where he and Latias lived in. Their bodies were protected by a carapace, and they had membranous wings, with blue compound eyes. They also had strange crooked horns which, from what Latios saw, served the same purposes as those of unicorns. But perhaps the strangest things about them was their legs - for a reason Latios couldn’t phantom, they had holes in them.
Oh, and like him, they could shapeshift. Just now, around one of the ponies that still stood erupted green flames; when they dispersed, there was another of those bug-type ponies in her place.
From his hiding place behind the tower of the town hall, Latios watched as the female placed a bruised Rainbow Dash into a cocoon. It made him grinded his teeth. Once he had reached the town, he had realized that he was vastly outnumbered. And the memory of what happened the last time he tried to directly confront a threat was still fresh in his mind. Not wanting to have to go through everything that happened in Altomare again, he hid himself and evaluated the situation.
“There’s no way I will be able to take out so many by myself… or by fighting openly.” Latios decided at last. “It seems that I have no choice, then. I will have to assume my true form and cloak myself. If I can take out those bug-type ponies guarding the prisoners one by one, I could release Twilight, and she could use her powers to release every other pony.”
There was one minor risk to this plan, however. Depending on how swiftly he would take care of the guards, Latios might not find enough time to switch back into his pony form before releasing Twilight… and that would mean…
“I… I don’t want to risk losing Fluttershy.” he thought weakly. Her words at the picnic were still like a claw piercing his heart. How would she react knowing that he is what she fears so? Would she fear him? Hate him for lying?
But, there were some things that couldn’t be helped. Those creatures were a threat to her, and her safety meant more to him that his own happiness. Furthermore, Fluttershy asked him to save her friends. How could he not do everything that was in his power to fulfill her request?
Having decided his course of action, and being prepared to face all consequences, Latios took a deep breath and a step back… and nearly jumped into the air when he felt his tail brush someone.
Latios whirled around, prepared to fight, but to his relief it wasn’t one of those bug-type ponies about to attack him, but it was Fluttershy. That feeling, however, along with the usual happiness he felt whenever the shy pegasus was in his sight, quickly gave way to confusion and worry. What was she doing here? Why wasn’t she with Rarity?
He took a step towards her, hoping to hear some explanation from her, but then she did something he didn’t exactly expect of her. Her forelegs shot forward, and circled around his neck. Fluttershy sink her lips into his hungrily as she embraced him while her tongue worked up its way into his mouth. Latios, taken aback by this for a heartbeat, quickly responded to her affection, kissing and caressing her back. A moan escaped Fluttershy as she pressed his body closer to his, guiding his hooves to…
“W-wait… hang on...” Latios thought dopey. This aggressive behaviour… it was so unlike her. And… what was she doing and Ponyville?
Why was he growing weaker?
Managing at last to see through the charade, Latios angrily pushed the fake Fluttershy away from him. She hit the wall of the tower, and almost at once green flames erupted around her. Once she was in her true for, the bug-type pony hissed at him furiously.
Five more hissed responded from behind Latios.
His wings beat, letting him to shot into the air as he turned around, but that was all that he had time to do. His world became filled with green light.
When he came to, he found that there was still a lot of green around.
Latios’ opening eyes found themselves to be watching the world from within a cocoon that he had watched ponies getting captured into earlier. The Eon Dragon tried shaking his head, but to his frustration his movement was hindered by the goo that was with him inside. The same thing prevented him from lifting his hooves and beating them against the walls of his prison.
“No…” he thought, his fear rising as the memories of being used as an energy source for the Defense Mechanism of Altomare came back to him. “Not again!”
“Ah, look who’s finally awake!”
Latios looked tentatively at the direction from which (he thought at least) the voice came. It sounded oddly, as if two creatures were speaking one after the other. The owner of the voice was no less unique. She was definitely a part of the same kind of pony as those bug-types. However, she stood much taller than any of them, and weirdly even resembled other ponies a bit more. Maybe it was an evolved form of those bug-types?
She was surrounded by the smaller ones as she strode towards her. Behind her, Latios saw every pony from Ponyville, captured in cocoons. And… Fluttershy was among them.
“No!” Latios screamed mentally as he began struggling with renewed strength, the sight of his love in the same danger as he being unbearable.
“My, you certainly are a sturdy one.” the bigger bug-type commented with amusement, stopping in front of his prison. “Normally, ponies don’t have enough strength to do more than move their eyes when inside of our cocoons. But, then again, you’re not a pony, aren’t you?”
Latios froze in his efforts. “How could she know?” He could see ponies of Ponyville - the conscious ones, at least - looking at him and bug-type leader from inside their own prisons.
She chuckled. “I’m Queen Chrysalis. We changelings are masters of shape-shifting, so is it really such a surprise that I recognized a fellow shape-shifter?” Chrysalis leaned her head to the side, observing him with great interest. “That being said, I have no idea what are you. Definitely not a changeling. Nor are you a gifted unicorn or alicorn, as we already excluded the ‘pony’ bit out. So… what are you?”
But Latios wasn’t listening to her. His eyes were locked with Fluttershy. He tried to tell her that… Latios wasn’t sure what he wanted to convey. All he knows was that the shy pegasus was looking at him with confusion, along with everybody else.
A lightning of pain shook his entire body. If his throat was able to it, he would’ve screeched, giving voice to his torment. “Oi, eyes on me.” Chrysalis scolded him, her horn glowing. Latios glared at her with fury. A fury to which she responded with sigh. “I get the distinct impression that you’re going to be difficult.” Chrysalis hummed as she glanced at the trapped ponies around them. “Hmm… I should really get started with brainwashing process-”
“What?!”
“-if I want to be done before somepony in Canterlot takes notice… but I really want to know what you are…” she mused, and, apparently coming to a conclusion, she strode off.
Towards Fluttershy.
“NO!!!” Latios shout mentally as he struggled again with his prison. At once, pain shook erupted in every part of his body, but he ignored it.
“I wonder if having an object of your affection under my control will make you more eager to cooperate.” Chrysalis said. She was now in front of her cocoon. “Now, dear, try to relax.” the bug-type creature told Fluttershy with a sarcastic worry. “This will only sting… for a decade.” Chrysalis chuckled as her horn began glowing with an eerie light.
And at the same time, Latios, who hadn’t cased his efforts, felt his hoof punch through the wall of cocoon. Then the second one did so as well. With both of his front hooves, he hauled himself out of his prison, and -not wasting any time- he lounged at Chrysalis.
Probably one of the bug-types must have hissed a warning, because she turned her head just in time to hit him with a beam of concentrated energy right into his chest. Latios felt air escape his lungs, as he was thrown all the way across the marketplace, colliding with a wall of someone’s house.
The next second he felt her grab him with her power and pull him all the way back, chucking him at her hooves. She was saying something, but Latios was in too much pain to make anything clear. His entire body felt as if it was on fire.
It was Altomare all over again.
“Except this time… I have something more precious to lose than my life.” Latios thought, as he struggled to rise. He opened his eyes too look at Fluttershy; one last time, before everything would change for them. The female pegasus had tears in her eyes. “Look what you’ve done.” the Eon Dragon scolded himself for letting her worry about him. “It will be better… when she knows what I am. When she will no longer be hurt.”
He closed his eyes, a single tear falling down his cheek, as he began to change.
“Farewell, my heart.”