//------------------------------//
// Death 
// Story: The Making of a Changeling Queen 
// by Diamond Sparkle 
//------------------------------//

The years rolled by, and Chrysalis grew and blossomed into a full Changeling Queen, even being allowed to travel abroad a few times in disguise before her size made that impossible. Whilst she could still take the shape of an alicorn, this was perilous as the real alicorns would soon get to hear about it. But as she grew, her mother seemed to almost shrivel and wither away no matter how much love she was fed. Her chitin became totally grey and brittle. Her wings that had carried her around with ease for centuries started to fail, first only being good for short flights, then for short hops, and then finally failing to lift her altogether. The holes in each of  her legs seemed to grow until there were more holes then leg, and even her admittedly very rarely used shape changing abilities started to fail, although her mind still remained sane and sharp. When her mother lost the ability to walk, Chrysalis had several cocoons of captured ponies and others moved into her room, to keep her fed with constant love. Her mother beckoned her over. "Chrysalis, my darling daughter, I'm dying, and all the love in Equestria cannot keep me going for very long. I had you when I had only a few decades left to live, so that you would not get frustrated with being unable to rule the Hive when you were fully grown and trained to rule."

Chrysalis planted a kiss on her mother's forehead. "But I don't want to rule the Hive without you, Mother What will I do without you?"

"Be a good Queen when I am gone. Please don't cremate my body, bury me in the Royal Tomb, that's in the deepest tunnel in the Hive, with a few grave goods for my use in the afterlife. Don't try too hard to be popular, but don't annoy everyling either. Don't have a royal daughter too early in case she tries to overthrow you, and above all, stick to the Changeling Way like I have done. Now go, I need some sleep. Please come back in a few hours with some love for me."

Chrysalis left the royal bedroom, and called one of her most trusted drones over to her. "I know this goes against the Way of the Changelings, but I want you to fly to Equestria had somehow meet with one or both of the Royal Diarchy that control the Sun and Moon. Surely Celestia and Luna will help my mother if they are asked nicely. I would go myself but I feel that I have to stay with my mother, in case...her health gets any worse." The changeling bowed to her, spread it's wings and left the Hive. A day later it came back, with a wound in it's side where a thrown spear had cracked the chitin.

"What happened, and why are you alone?" Chrysalis demanded.

"I got into Canterlot Castle easily enough, by taking the shape of a castle guard, and asked to speak to the captain, who went by the name of Shining Armour. He grudgingly agreed to see me when I told him how important it was, but as soon as I showed who I really was, he shouted for help and very nearly speared me to death. I tried to tell him that I was friendly and had been sent by you, but he wouldn't hear a word of it, and I only just escaped, dodging the patrol he sent out after me by hiding behind a nearby cloud and changing my shape into a random pegasus."

"Go and get bandaged, I will see how my mother is doing."

When she entered her mother's room with some tasty pony-love soup, she found her mother lying on her bed and looking at her with glassy eyes. "I brought you some pony love soup, your favourite." There was no reply. "Mother, are you allright?" She gave her mother a shake and as she did so the crown of black chitin that sprouted many centuries ago from her mother's head crumbled into dust, and she felt a new crown sprout from her own head. The symbol of rulership....that only grew when the old Queen died.

"Mother? Don't die, I need you!" She touched her mother's body and it was cold, and felt for a heartbeat only to find that not one of her mother's three hearts was beating. 

The deep sadness she felt was go great that it was involuntarily broadcast over the hive mind system that Queens used in emergencies or at important times to communicate with the Hives that they ruled. From the lookout towers at the very top of the Hive to the deepest inhabited tunnels, every changeling bowed their head and knew that they had a new Queen. Then she sent a message out over it. "You now have a new Queen, Queen Chrysalis, as your old Queen, my mother, is dead.. Had I never loved so kindly, had I never loved so blindly, I would never be broken hearted. May her afterlife be filled with true love. She might have lived longer still, if my attempt to get help from the Diarchy of Equestria had not been so rudely turned down. I will have my vengeance, and for you, when Canterlot is ours you will feast as if every day was Hearts and Hooves Day."

Soon enough Queen Nephila was kissed on the forehead one last time and then placed in a tomb with a few grave goods. A changeling scimitar, a small bowl of pony love, and a ball of glowing green webbing were all that were placed with her in her tomb, and as the tomb was sealed up. Queen Chrysalis turned her mind towards the biggest love raid ever planned. the  conquest of Canterlot.