//------------------------------// // Did you predict, the time for a change! (EDITED) // Story: Eternal Darkness // by FLUTTERxxDASH //------------------------------// Daily Life Blue light shimmered against the crystalline black wall, a low buzz in the distance. A queen sat looking through old tomes reminiscing of past times. Chrysalis since her attempted invasion had decided to lay low, now it was just her and the drones waiting until the date came. She was set in the information center of her hive, an uncountable amount of books, scroll's and tomes were littered everywhere that could easily equal Canterlot library's very own set. It was a big collection but to the changelings only one tome within this room held any real worth. It was a tome that held a date, a place, and where the one who writ it would be. To them this one individual was their everything. The one who wrote the tome was none other than Chrysalis' own mother, Flutterheart. She had been taught how to lead her subjects all those millenia ago, now though they were a different species and she didn't know if her mother would accept that with open arms. She lay there and stared at the words on the book. She read the date once, twice, three times just to be sure, she knew it was correct though. She had read the same line again and again for around two weeks now. It read that Chrysalis was to meet her in the Whitetail woods, east of Canterlot at sundown of the fourth month of this year, the first of that month, meaning, today. Chrysalis' face was contoured in worry over the thought that hours from now she would meet the originator again, the one who trained the Queens before her and the ones before them. Flutterheart wasn't just her mother but the goddess of the flutterponies, no, there were no more flutterponies only Changelings. She sighed and got up, "This day is going to be annoying," A drone came up to her with a worried look, "Do not fret my child, we will see this day end soon. Hopefully the all-mother will let us live for our," She looked upon herself and winced, "Transgression's, even if they weren't ours to begin with," The drone nodded in a cheery mood. Most drones didn't show much emotion, it was not their nature. Cold calculative beings were changelings. Though this one drone seemed to radiant happiness, "Would you like to join me on a stroll to Whitetail woods little one," She cooed to the drone who nodded and smiled a toothy grin, in turn Chrysalis smiled back, "Good. Follow me then.” Canterlot Castle "I cannot believe what Twilight is doing! How foolish can one be to go and face an army of thousands by oneself," Luna walked over to the sun goddess who just watched Twilight leave, "Have faith sister, she is no filly you and I know that now. Our rank of goddess' are no match for hers, she knows what she is doing," she said in a calm demeanor. "But that does not mean I do not worry. We just got her back, you just got her back, aren't you worried she will be attacked," Celestia asked. Luna had face-hoofed, "Tia, sometimes you aggravate me. You know her body is not physical, nothing could hurt or inflict pain against her, even less than what we can feel," Luna said with half closed eyes. Celestia stared at her front hooves like she did when she was but a filly, "I know, I really do but there are things out there we don't know. Twilight knows and I know she trusts us but... but I feel there is something else she hides from us, its the way she left," Celestia said turning to Luna. "What? The gotta go, nearly late for the time, you guys stay here I'll be right back just gotta pick up Chyssy? Which I am sure is Chrysalis. Don't worry, she knows what to do now. She has lived enough lives to know so anyway" "I hope your right sister... Wait did you say pick up?" "Oh, I did didn't I. Well, what do we do now?" Luna asked, though it was rhetorical and whimsical as she directed it at nopony at all. In Whitetail woods Chrysalis and the happy drone walked at a slow pace as more drones had begun a protective oval around their Queen, "Please will you not do this? No harm will come to me, it is stated clearly by the all-mother. Now stop making that awful racket up there," The drone in question was flying, buzzing his wings as hard as he could so that he could stay in the air, suddenly he dropped down looking slightly saddened but retained his composure, "Thank the all-mother that it is over. Ah were nearly here little one," She turned to the small drone. The drones eye's were bright and shone like a star, all her subjects had beautiful eyes but this ones were something quite spectacular. Whitetail woods, quite an awe-spacious place. The air simmered with magic here, dragon magic to be in fact. Her mother had taught her when she was a filly flutterpony was the art of transformation, it was one of the most fun things to d., She would often try to turn her teal coat the shade purple so that she would look like her mother. Of course she knew even at that age that she was not her real mother, she was the one who came from above the clouds but that did not matter to the filly. It was very fun back then until Discord was born unto the land, mountains erupted, lakes turned to acid and the sky hailed fire inferno as it raised the ground they stood upon. Before this happened they were a prosperous country of fun and loving ponies that was helping neighboring countries develop to the stage they were at with all their technical wonders. Even the newly created Canterlot was a brilliant site to behold even if their rulers were quite naive and forthcoming about their needs. Before all this started she had another name, one her subjects adored, one that made their hearts flutter, Chrystelle. She loved that name but it was now a dry husk that held her chest together a new casing had grown over it. Chrysalis, a name that stroke true fear into the hearts of her enemies and those that would hurt her subjects. She watched as the moon begin to rise, This is it I guess, time to see if our god will accept us, then she felt the drone from earlier holding her shivering body. When did she begin to shiver she wondered. The drone was comforting her, the other drones though were looking at the little one with venom in their eyes. "My Queen that is not one of the brood," One drone stepped forward hissing, "She smells different from us" This made the Queen curious, no feelings of any darker emotions came from the small drone, she only felt the love from her like any other drone. She went to move the drone as another from the crowd shot forward, "Are you a spy?" as another agreed, "Yeah! A spy?" The drone giggled, "Oh Chryssy, your brood has most definitely changed but I sense they love you dearly. Too bad that Discord has bottle-necked the hive, you can't cycle the love of your own people anymore can you," Chrysalis hadn't told anypony about that little nickname, only the one who gave it her knew. She stared downward as the drones form shifted into one larger than hers, "M-mother?" "Yes child, and the rest of you too. It is so good to see the hive mind flourishing even in these difficult times, I have something to tell you today, will you listen," she asked as she was suddenly hugged by all the Changelings, Chryssy included. "Of course dear all-mother, we would do anything for you," Chrysalis replied. Twilight swung her arms around the changelings embracing them, "Good my children, first would be this," Suddenly she burst into blue flames as she reverted back to being Twilight Sparkle. This confused Chrysalis, "What does that mare have to do with anything, you just changed your looks again didn't you?" "I am afraid not Chryssy, this is my true form. The last time I saw you in this form was before you were born, strange isn't it?" Chrysalis looked dumbfounded, she was trying her best fish impression, wasn't the only one as a few changelings did the same. "But all-mother could never be, Eh?" said one of the drones. Twilight leaned over to a changeling and whispered to him, "I think I broke her a little bit," And then retracted back to standing, "Chryssy, I know its hard to understand but, I lived as Twilight Sparkle before I ever came to love the Changelings as Flutterheart. I have had many personas and I assure you some were a lot more different but that does not mean I care any less for the hive. I love all of you dearly and I hope you don't forsake me for being Twilight Sparkle because of this" Chrysalis looked down to Twilight, small droplets of tears threatened to fall, How could mother be Twilight? Well I'm sure mother would have stopped us from invading and capturing ponies but... but Twilight Sparkle of all ponies? Sure she is intelligent, beautiful, dutiful, a bearer of the elements, very adept in magic and could sense who I was immediately, something clicked on in Chrysalis' head, she did notice me right away and now she is able to transform. There is no doubt she is the all-mother but why her. "So then all-mother, would you tell us the reason we have to be here, is another Queen to be chosen to ascend the ranks?" Chrysalis said regaining her regal posture. Twilight shook her head and looked around at all the changelings smiling, "I am afraid not my dear," Twilight looked back to Chrysalis, "I want you to move to Canterlot to help me" "WHAT!?!" Chrysalis screamed. Twilight simply nodded. "Are you being serious all-mother? Those stuck up prissy Princess' are there, and we did kind of invade their country not too long ago, plus the blue one scares me" Chrysalis said looking at the floor. "What was that last part?" Twilight asked with an eyebrow raised. Chrysalis snorted in shock as her carapace went red slightly, "Nothing all-mother. Can I ask why we have to move from the mountain in the desert to Canterlot though?" "You could, all I can say right now is, being there will help with the End," Twilight stated. "The End? to what?" "The world, everything we see, hehe, I mean you see will burn. The Princess' in the prissy castle, my friends, their country, your hive, everything. They will all burn unless everypony joins forces, meaning you and your sisters will have to get along," Twilight said smirking slightly. I hate it when mother smirks, "Sisters? But all I had was Pupa and she ended up in Saddle Arabia," Chrysalis asked.. Twilight walked up to her, "It's funny, now that I think of it. I am not your mother but I still am, thus meaning we have quite a large family. You have today who you can see two sisters, one niece and nephew and a few royal relations, oh also you are actually classed as a Princess" Chrysalis stomped her hoof, "Mom I have always been Queen!!" she huffed before her carapace went even more red, coughing slightly, "What do you mean I am actually just a Princess?" "Well your sisters are, so how can you be the Queen, sure you are the eldest but that doesn't give you right of the throne, plus with us all being immortal you will have to rule as one," Twilight said. "But who are these sisters of mine, really all mother I have no other siblings" "You really don't catch on Chryssy. You really have to get some common sense this millennium. Your sisters are Celestia and Luna, Princess' of Equestria, so your title is of course Princess Chyristelle of Equestria," Twilight said proudly. Chrysalis' face dropped as she started to pout, "As if they are my sisters, we have been at each others throats for near two millennium. Even if they are I can't see us getting along too well," Chrysalis said, turning to one of her changelings who was shivering slightly. "My changelings are becoming cold in this night air, we must return soon all-mother" "Yes I understand, so lets go then" "Where?" Chrysalis asked reluctantly. "Home of course, back to the castle" "You are kidding right? I mean yeah you drop the F bomb on us and you tell us that we are related to those Princess' but you instantly want us to go straight there to their castle?" "Ours and yes I do," Twilight deadpanned. Chrysalis stared on until Twilight grabbed her hoof and spread stardust upon her changelings, "Lets go then," Twilight began to glow until it nearly looked like Chrysalis' carapace turned white and then they all flashed out of existence leaving star dust to drift slowly upwards. Celestias room Celestia was pacing back and forward as Luna watched on, "I don't believe Twilight," she huffed, slowly her old self was being dragged to the surface, "She would bring that... that monster here after what she did to us?" "To you" "Yes to me, to be so presumptuous that I would let her in this country so easily Twilight must be on a high," Celestia huffed again. Luna shook her head and looked toward Celestia, "You are acting like you did as a filly Celestia, are you jealous that Twilight has gone to talk to the Changelings alone, not trusting you anymore with the finer details like she used too?" Celestia whipped her head around at Luna, "NOO!" she said making Luna giggle slightly. Luna moved forward watching Celestia turning pink from blushing, "She will be back soon. You heard what she said, she needed to bring the Changelings here to re-integrate them back into society. Before our ruling they were vast in numbers much like our ponies and thrived on other things from feelings, unless you were not listening to her when she said it," Celestia's eyes flicked from right to left quickly, Luna sighed, "What were you doing when she said that?" Celestia shuffled her front hooves, "I couldn't help it, I am just so glad she is back, I just kinda lost track" "A Princess losing track? What has Equestria come too when Sunnybutt loses track" "OY!! Shut up Moonbutt!" "SUNNYBUTT" Luna screamed getting closer to Celestia. "MOONBUTT" Celestia did the same. "SUNNYBUTT" Luna just in front of her sister said again. "MOONBUTT" Locking horns. "SUNNYBUTT" Luna began glaring. "MOONBUTT" Celestia glared back until a spark of white light and several Changelings popped up in the room, at which they both began to blush, "Hello Twilight, how nice of you to drop in, we were... ere-" "Talking," Luna said moving away from Celestia brushing herself off, "I am guessing everything went okay?" Chrysalis snorted and pulled a hoof to her mouth whilst tilting her head back, "I'm so sorry for interrupting your little marriage spat, what happened di-" CHYSTELLE! First impressions matter and you just kicked it out the window!" Twilight said as the changeling Queen slunk under the pressure of her gaze. "Sorry mother" Both Luna and Celestia did a full one eighty at that, both shouting, "MOTHER!?!" Celestia moved forward slightly, still keeping her distance though, "What? There's no way right?" she asked with a hopeful grin, only for it to turn into a frown. "Yes, girls meet your big sister Chyristelle," Chryssy blushed as she looked down at her side, one hoof rubbing her other front leg, "Now be nice, first we will have some tea and then we will get down to business planning how to get what we need to get you back to your original state," Chrysalis' eyes bolted open as she looked over to Twilight. Slowly stuttering, "W-we can b-be changed back?" she received a nod. Celestia slumped down to her rump, "I still don't get it. Big sister?" Twilight facehoofed as she walked over and looked up at the bewildered alicorn still stuck in her thought process, "You two are just as bad as each other with common sense. You aren't related by blood but I was the one who raised you both thus making you step sisters," Celestia began shaking her head. "I won't be the little sister to this... this...-" She stopped as she looked at Twilight, she stared at her daring to start something to get told off for, "This is a little weird" Chryssy walked forward until she was behind Twilight, "You're telling me, finding out the one who fell your kind is the one who created it was even weirder if you ask me. Though everything about you is already weird so-" Twilight turned, "Chyristelle, what did I ask of you?" Chryssy put her head down and sighed, "Fine but I still don't like this," She looked up and moved toward Celestia who she herself took a step back in caution, "I am sorry about earlier and the invasion and for all the other times I have annoyed you before hoof," Almost gagging because of having to apologies but getting a nuzzle from Twilight for doing it quelled her tumbling stomach although there is nothing to come out. Luna stepped forward, "So we can go back to our prank war from a thousand years ago then? I assume you haven't forgotten about that Chryssy?" Celestia whipped her head around at her little sister, "Excuse me, Luna what do you mean by this?" Luna shuffled slightly, "Well when you started to ignore me I kinda started wandering around at night, then I found Chryssy one night and kinda got to being friends with her. Albeit being a weird relationship since half the time she kept asking me how to get into the castle easier to prank you" "Wait you mean that was you all that time? I had the guards searching for who was doing that to my cake, dammit Luna!" Luna and Chryssy started laughing as Celestia's face turned red, "It's not funny! I had blue teeth for eight weeks and then after that was up you somehow made a rainbow spectrum out of my teeth," Luna's cackling grew louder as she fell to the floor holding her sides finally being caught for what they did those many years ago. After a few minutes their laughter died down as Luna began to get up, a hoof wiping away a tear, "I am sorry sister but it was so funny, you would not talk to anyone but me for a while and that brought me joy so I will not apologize" While they chatted Twilight had moved to sit down, somehow making one of the maids at the side snap from her frightened state of there being changelings and even more surprising being able to go and come back with a tea set, "Old memories are wonderful but they are old, we must look to the future," all others in the room turned their heads to look at Twilight who had seated on a red cushion, some changelings sat near her, she looked... regal as she sat there, "Now have a seat as we have many thing to discuss before we make preparations for our trip north" "Trip?" Celestia asked before sitting down, suddenly a poof at the other end of the room sounded as her moving mane turned into a sickly green, "DISCORD!!" When Celestia turned around she was met with nothing, turning back she saw Discord behind Twilight shaking in fake freight, "Please stop her Twilight, she will turn me to stone again" "Right on time as always Quint, I expect you will change her back before I have to repress your magic?" Discord shot up and snapped his fingers before taking a seat rather fast, "Thank you Quint," Celestia turned checking her mane for anything wrong, thankfully it was back to flowing in the cosmic winds as the colors was hers again. Discord put on a toothy grin, "Wow, four of the gods out of seven, all we needs is the glittery ones and then ones who love clams. I am sure you have already had the boring talk about them right? No? and I am guessing this is about Kha'rune?" "No... Yes... and yes, we need to have the amulet back with their essence," Twilight asked. Discord huffed slightly, "You know, talking about all this is confusing the reader, I am sure it is," he said as he looked to his left, everypony followed his gaze as they stared for a second, "To clarify," he started to explain to the rest of the table, "The amulet is not in my possession as I do not rule over Kha'rune. He has become independent and near as powerful as a god, so I am sorry but I am not helping on this one Twilight. The windigos were one thing because they annoyed me but with this you are on your own Queeny" Twilight sighed, "Fine but we still need the activation key to the rune, that is the least you can do or I will turn you into a fish and watch you swim away down stream," Discord seemed to ponder the thought before raising her arm. "If I do this, you owe me Twilight, agreed?" with a nod her grinned, Snap, "One key to Middle Earth!" "Wrong universe Discord" "Live a little" "I would but we might get sued," Twilight said as she grasped the stone structure in front of her. Discord pondered a thought, "You know you could have just stopped me from ever changing them" "But that would alter history. I will not mess with the fabric of time, I am just a sentient lifeforms that will watch over this verse if you don't remember" "You say that but when you had a temper tantrum years ago because I annoyed you, you turned the mountains into lakes of molten lava," every pony in the room turned to Twilight. Celestia looked over and looked mostly like a lost puppy, "So why is Discord here? I am very confused, from what it sounds like-" "We did," Discord said. Celestia went wide eyes, "You didn't, Twilight how could you?" Twilight shrugged her shoulders, "He was different back then, more rugged and manly but now I have Luna who already knows this. I wasn't keeping it a secret it just never popped up in conversation" Looking around the table there was one changeling Ex-queen now turned princess blushing, one night princess blushing whilst staring at Twilight lovingly, one sun princess looking much like a fish out of water, the one who brought chaos where ever he was taking pictures of said Princess of the sun. "So with that, lets get to planning" Twilight said. The tea session had ups and downs as some of its members were arguing. It didn't help that three of the tables occupants were pretty much at each others throats for one reason or the other but when Twilight told them off they stopped. It surprised many of the guards and maids to see this happen, their Princess' conversing with the embodiment of chaos and a changeling Queen and the fact that a normal unicorn could make them bow when she glared at them all. Some giggled at the reactions of Celestia and Chrysalis when it came to talk about where the changelings would live. It wasn't long before they decided that at the base of the mountain had a wide area to grasslands and wide open lakes, beautiful scenery and such is where they would move to. After all that they finally discussed Kha'rune, a mythical creature created by Discord to keep the essence of the changelings in an amulet hidden, it was up north near the crystal kingdom hidden behind the forgotten mountains. Twilight explained how the north use to look like a warm utopia before Discord did that. He created many different creatures but Kha'rune was the most troublesome. Much like a dragon but made from aspects of the planet, a false created soul and a temper, it would be dangerous. After that day they spent the next week planning as to what they would do. The changelings slowly moved their colony a few hundred at a time, Discord disappeared. Chyristelle hated the regalia but was forced to wear it by Celestia, both were still at each others throats but Luna qualm them most of the time. Getting ready for the trip they sent a letter to Cadence and Shining and began selecting who to go. Some of Chyristelle's avaunt guard were going, Celestia's and Luna's personal guards could be coming and only Luna and Chyristelle would be joining Twilight to north leaving Celestia to look after the royal duties of the kingdom. Celestia wanted to go but eventually gave in after a while. She had been regressing much to her needy attitude when she was younger and Twilight thought it was adorable. They began their trip north, it took five days to arrive at the Crystal Empire. They were greeted by Shining, who only scowled when he saw Chrysalis, Chyristelle was indifferent to it as she ignored his stares. After a day in preparation for traveling to the forgotten mountains and the fact that it was weird of Cadence to slowly warm up to Chyristelle throughout the day, they set off again but with Shining and a few of his guards toward the huge pillars of black rocks that towered above the clouds. Shining trudged through the snow in his gear. Many of his guards struggling to keep up, he looked up at the mountains in front of him, "Twiliy, you say that the creature is behind the mountains but there is no way to climb that" "Were not going to climb it, were going to pass through it. There is a rune that activate a tunnel leading beneath the mountain" She said as she walked, Shining looked over and became slightly confused, Twilight was walking on the snow but wasn't sinking in or making a hoof print. "Erm Twily, why are..." he pointed at her hooves, which she followed and noticed what he was on about. Twilight looked back up, "Its just something I picked up over the years. I can make a print if I wish to but I find it easier to stay in my weightless state" "Oh, okay," Still slightly confused but accepting it as a Twilight thing he carried on walking, they were nearly at the wall. The black of the mountain was covered in what must have been a few meters thick of clear ice, thick enough to actually challenge somepony's magic at getting through it. Twilight walked up to the ice and placed a hoof on its surface, she began to phase through the solid ice and wander toward the mountain. Chyristelle looked over to Luna, "If she can do that, why do we need the rune for the mountain? She could easily just walk through the whole thing," She said as Twilight came back out. "The reason why Chyristelle is that the ice still was clear enough to see in front of myself, I might be able to move through objects but that doesn't mean I can see through a solid does it?" Chyristelle just shrugged. Shining moved forward and tapped the ice with his metal clad hoof, "How are we going to find the rune then? It'll take years if we have to search it by eyes," he turned and looked at the group who had come to similar conclusions as Twilight pulled the key into existence. "This is how we will find the opening," She stated as the keys almost obsidian rock shifted making light emanate through it, the key levitated as a blue orb surrounded it and began to moved slowly towards the mountain, "I am afraid the whole mountain is the rune, anywhere the key touches will become the tunnel. Now shall we go about catching us a molten breathing creature in the depths of this volcano?" The group retracted slowly, Shining gulped and looked at her, "Volcano? Twily, this is an ice mountain there can't be lava in ther-" his voice caught in his throat as the mountain began to shake on contact with the key, melting a hole in the ice where the key had pushed through. The ice on the wall began to steam as the black rocks slowly turned orange and red in different blotches. Suddenly some of the ice began collapsing away from the wall as Twilight put up a barrier to protect them, Shining joined her for extra help even if she didn't need it. Massive slates of ice collided with the ground with enough force that craters began forming, after they fell the group noticed orange and red blobs falling from above before some of the mountain cracked open for lava to rush out. The lava slammed into the ice which in turn became steam almost instantaneously upon contact. The lava pooled around there barrier and down into the craters. Shadows ran up the mountain as the leaking heat slowed to a dribble, finally in front of the group they saw a passage way into the mountain large enough to fit them in. Twilight withdrew the shield as no more lava surrounded them that was a threat. When she did they were blasted with heat, nothing that could kill them but it was very hot. "Are you ponies ready? This is where the hard part begins, time to speak with Kha'rune," Twilight turned and began walking into the gap in the mountain. The rest gulped, even the immortals knew something was going to happen inside this cage that held a monstrosity that the world hadn't met yet. Looking around the group they nodded to each other and began to follow Twilight into the opening. After they went in lava flowed over the gap and cooled covering the hole from being seen. The road to Kha'rune begins.