//------------------------------// // Darkness at the Gates // Story: The Umbra Queen // by Car Cloth //------------------------------// Rarity hugged her sister a second time, holding on far longer than necessary. “I’m so glad you’re okay, Sweetie Belle…” “Wait! Rarity! I need to show you something!” Sweetie Belle stepped away from her sister and turned her body to the side. Rarity’s eyes immediately went to the cutie mark on her flank. “Sweetie Belle! Your cutie mark! When did that happen?” “Watch, Rarity! I’ll show you!” Sweetie Belle ran out into the sea of unconscious ponies and raised her head. Spike walked out after her, a worried expression on his face. “Wait, Sweetie… Do you think that’s a good idea? You haven’t had a chance to rest yet from the last time…” “I have to show her,” Sweetie Belle defiantly. “I’ll be all right.” Rarity sat back and watched as her sister took a breath and began to sing. She always knew her sister had a voice for Bridleway, but now everypony knew. As Sweetie Belle continued to sing, Rarity suddenly felt… energized. A warm, loving sensation came over her and with each note she felt more enchanted by the music. The green and black honeycombs also began reacting to the music, lighting up as if being flooded with electricity. Rarity was about to get up and ask what was going on when she realized that Sweetie Belle had suddenly stopped signing and was now gasping for breath. Spike ran to her side and scooped her up into his arms. “Sweetie! All you all right?” The changeling warrior also ran over to her and began circling Spike like a needy puppy looking for a treat in his master’s hand. “Sweetie Belle?” the changeling asked. “Is she going to be okay? Tell me she’s going to be okay!” As if all waking from a terrible dream, the ponies in the cave began slowly getting to their feet. They rubbed her heads and looked around in a dazed and confused manner. Rarity could hardly believe her eyes. Had Sweetie Belle’s song done this? The changeling workers had now formed a circle around Spike and Sweetie Belle. They were watching her with wide-eyed interest and fascination. “She’s a miracle…” one whispered. “A gift from on-high,” another responded. “Why has Queen Chrysalis never brought us this one?” “Does she even know?” Rarity pushed her through the crowd of confused ponies and awe-struck changelings until she was at her sister’s side. “What was that, Sweetie Belle? What happened?” “It’s my talent…” Sweetie Belle answered weakly. “My cutie mark.” “Sweetie Belle… That’s magnifique. You’re a bard or siren or some other musically-inclined wonder!” “She needs to rest,” Spike stated. “It takes a lot out of her.” Rarity nodded in agreement and turned back toward the ponies in the cave. As she walked away she heard her sister whisper, “Do you think she was impressed? Do you think she liked it?” “Yeah. I’m sure she did,” Spike replied. Fluttershy was going from pony to pony asking if they were all right. Some of the older ponies looked like they were still shaken by what had transpired, but for the most part everypony was okay. Rainbow Dash took to the air and flew straight over to Rarity with a disgusted look on her face. “What’s going on!?” she demanded, landing next to Rarity and shooting all the changelings a dark glare. “Why aren’t we wasting these guys and busting out of here?” “It’s okay, Rainbow Dash. They’re not going to hurt you. I’ve offered to help them and they, in turn, provided us with valuable information.” “Where’s Twilight? What’s going on?” “Twilight is up in Ponyville. We should quickly reunite with her and travel to Canterlot. No telling what might have happened while we were down here.” Apple Jack, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie trotted up to the group. Apple Jack, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were covered in a thin layer of green slime, but that didn’t bother them much. Rarity was sure she would have been the only one truly bothered, but Pinkie Pie looked like she was actively enjoying it. She hopped up and down in the green puddles, listening to the sticking sound on the bottom of her hooves break with each jump. Spike ran to the tunnel he and Sweetie Belle entered. “C’mon! This way! Cootie, can you show us out?” Cootie? Rarity turned her head. She had never heard of a pony named Cootie before. The changeling warrior answered the call and flew over to Spike’s side. “No problem. We’ll be out of here in no time. Just make sure Sweetie Belle is okay.” “I got her,” Spike said, narrowing his eyes. “You don’t need to worry about her safety. She’s with me.” “Apple Jack,” Rarity turned to her apple-bucking friend. “Make sure all the ponies stay together. We’re going to be walking out of the tunnel. With the changelings.” Although everypony was confused, they followed Rarity’s orders. Apple Jack rounded them up, similar to how she rounded her sheep, and they all began marching. Cootie led the way down the tunnels with Spike, Rarity and Fluttershy following immediately behind. The tunnels were a giant maze. Rarity knew she would have never found her way out if it hadn’t been for this lone changeling. With every twist and turn she would have gotten more lost… Eventually, however, they made their way to a location where the Ruin Worm had surely been slumbering. It was a wide, cracked tunnel filled with black crystals and a dreadful presence. Now that the Ruin Worm was gone, it was nothing more than a straight shot to the surface. Water was flowing downward from the gorge, indicating that the storm had yet to let up. After several minutes of trekking through the water, crystals and rubble, Rarity stepped out into the gorge with a smile on her face. She was glad to be rid of her underground prison. The instant Rainbow Dash made it to the surface she sped off into the sky, piercing the clouds with her speed and pegasus magic. One by one she destroyed the fabric of the rainclouds, dissolving them into nothingness. It was only a matter of seconds before the rain had ceased. With the clouds gone, Rarity could see it was late afternoon. “Come, ponies. We’re close to Ponyville. Princess Twilight is sure to be waiting for us!” --- By the time everypony had made it back to Ponyville, it was dusk. The sun was setting and the stars were coming out into the night. Even from a distance everypony could see a pile of changeling warriors stacked on the outskirts of town. They were unconscious; dazed from a spell Twilight had conjured. Rarity ran into town with Spike, Apple Jack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Cootie in tow. Twilight was waiting for them by the pile of changelings. Although she looked like she had seen her fair share of fighting, her smile and stance were one of confidence. “Girls! You’re okay! Spike and Sweetie Belle were victorious!” Rarity ran to Twilight’s side and nodded. “Twilight! I’m relieved to see you! It’s Queen Chrysalis! She’s behind it all! I saw her, Twilight! She’s using her magic to control- er, a Ruin Worm that’s possessed by Sombra… I’m so sorry! I should have been more diligent, I should have been-” Twilight held up her hoof. “It’s okay, Rarity. What’s done is done. We all need to focus. I tried to round up all the changelings but some managed to get away during the fighting. I’m sure Queen Chrysalis and her changelings will know what’s going on by now.” “You have nothing to worry about, Twilight. We’re here.” Rainbow Dash flew through the sky, circling her friends a few times before stopping next to Twilight’s side. “We’ll handle these punks now that we’re together. We can summon the rainbow powers and destroy them.” “By my best guess I would say Queen Chrysalis has yet to attack Canterlot. I know you must be tired, but I think we need to leave now. I can teleport us most of the way but we’ll need to go in by hoof after that.” “Why do you think Queen Chrysalis hasn’t attacked?” Fluttershy asked. “The sun is setting and the moon is coming up into the sky. It means the two sisters are still in power.” “You need to be careful!” Cootie suddenly interjected to the group. He was practically standing a good twenty feet away, sheepishly kicking at the ground and avoiding eye contact. “Queen Chrysalis said she had plans for you if you ever came to attack her…” Twilight nodded. “Thank you.” Spike, still holding an exhausted Sweetie Belle, took a step forward. “I’m coming to.” “Leave Sweetie Bell in the quill shop. I set up a shield barrier there to protect the twins. I’m sure she can watch over them while we’re all gone.” “What about us?” a pony asked from the massive group of townsfolk. Twilight and the others turned to the group of Ponyville citizens. Diamond Tiara had been the one to speak. She trotted forward and glanced around. “I thought you were the princess! Shouldn’t you get rid of all these parasites first? If you leave they’ll surely attack again! They’ll drain our love and life force! You’re leaving us undefended!” Sweetie Belle glared from the arms of Spike. “Hey! Didn’t I tell you to run to the boutique once you were done causing a distraction? You could have avoided being captured if you had just listened!” “I had to go back and tell my father,” Diamond Tiara said, rolling her eyes. “And then it turned out he was a changeling too! Nopony is safe! Which is why our princess should stay here!” Ponies in the crowd began agreeing with her, nodding their heads. “And furthermore, we should restrain these worker changelings! After everything they’ve done to us, they should be punished!” Again, more ponies in the crowd began agreeing. They nodded along with every word Diamond Tiara uttered until some of them began chanting her suggestions. “Get rid of the changelings!” “Get rid of the changelings!” The group of worker changelings that had accompanied them to the surface began backing away and huddling together. With their warriors subdued they were helpless to the ponies of Ponyville. “No!” Sweetie Belle shouted, her voice cracking. “You can’t! If you do that the fighting will never stop!” “Oh, yes it will,” one of stallions shouted from the crowd. “The changelings are almost gone! Almost extinct! If we get rid of them now we’ll never have to worry about them again!” More shouting and agreement from the ponies. It was hard to tell if there was any dissent at all… “Hey!” Rainbow Dash shouted. She flew over and got up into the stallion’s face. “Watch your mouth, bub! Maybe we’ll have to use the rainbow powers on you next!” “Rainbow Dash!” Twilight scolded. “That’s enough!” Rainbow Dash backed away, her eyes locked on the stallions and set to a glare. The stallion hesitantly stepped back into the crowd. “I know you all are afraid but my powers are needed elsewhere or else all of Equestria might fall!” Twilight flew up into the sky so that all the ponies could see and hear her. “As for right now, the changelings are not to be harmed! You stay in your homes, lock the door and remain calm until I return! When I do, I will decide what is to be done with them. Everypony understand?” The town reluctantly agreed. Twilight turned back to her friends. “Prepare yourself. I’m going to teleport us.” “Let me go with you,” Cootie suddenly said, scooting closer to the group. “I want to help you ponies!” For a moment Twilight hesitated. Rarity stared at the changeling. Was it really a good idea to take one with them? What if it was a trickster? Then again, he had helped them escape the caves. “It’s okay, Twilight,” Rarity weighed in. “Very well.” Twilight used her magic and the group was teleported, leaving Sweetie Belle, the changelings and the townsfolk behind. --- General Ecdysis watched the moon rise up into the sky. It was almost time. Just a little while longer… He gently stroked the creature he was sitting next to. Discord. The God of Chaos. The draconequus was complacent and quiet, still under Ecdysis’s spell. With a sigh, Ecdysis stared at the moon. Equestria was a realm where virtue and passion gave rise to power and form. Friendship was a force to be reckoned with. Love was a fuel supply. Chaos itself was a beast that roamed the world. Fear and hate were a dark magic that plagued the land… Ecdysis knew those couldn’t possibly be the only forces of power here. He knew there had to be others. Which is why he dedicated himself to the only virtue he knew; loyalty. If there was something, some reward for becoming the epitome of loyalty, Ecdysis was sure he would find it. He knew the costs of loyalty and, but he also knew the benefits. Which was why he felt sorry for the beast known as Discord. Discord was the embodiment of chaos, which by its very nature meant it was everything that wasn’t order and harmony. Chaos had no counterpart or friends. It was a force of nature that nothing could adhere to. Discord was meant to be forever alone… Until he gave up a piece of himself to stay with the ponies of Ponyville. His loyalty to his friends- nay, his love- turned him away from his very birthright… and now look at him. Chained to the changelings and forced to do their bidding. Everything Discord had been loyal to he was about to destroy… Ecdysis could think of nothing more tragic. A rustling in the nearby trees set Ecdysis on alert. He stood up and turned to face the problem. Normally, when he had been impersonating Fluttershy, he would have cowered away from the first sign of trouble – but that was no longer the case. Discord was fully under his control now. Even if he dropped his disguise, Discord would still serve. Ecdysis had yet to remove his new form, if only for the chance to capitalize on it in the future. A changeling warrior burst from the leaves of a nearby tree. He was wounded and bleeding, but still able to fly. Ecdysis was immediately on-edge. “Report,” he hissed in his own voice; an odd juxtaposition coming from Fluttershy’s body. The changeling flew to Ecdysis’s hooves and landed with a hard thud. Taking deep breathes he replied, “The princess… we found the princess…” “You did? Was she dead, like we thought?” “No, General… She fought us off! One by one!” “Impossible!” Ecdysis snapped. “I watched Discord poison her myself! There was no way she was waking! All you fools had to do was find her body! I already told the queen she had perished!” “I-it’s true, General! She was fighting! She took us down! I barely managed to escape!” Curses… “Is that all?” “No, General… The workers and the nest… They found them. When I had left there was a changeling leading them to the nest…” The changeling hung his head in shame. “Who?” Ecdysis shouted, pulling the changeling up and glaring. “One of the scouts… I think his designation was Cootie, sir…” Ecdysis threw the changeling down to the ground in a fit of barely restrained rage. “He betrayed us!? He led them to our nest!? You’re sure of this?” “Yes, sir… Very sure…” “I'll snap his neck myself when next we meet,” Ecdysis said in a cold, harsh tone. “Him and the princess.” The changeling on the ground was shaking. “What shall I do, General? Are we to head back to protect the nest? The workers are defenseless without us…” “I shall speak to the queen.” “Yes, General.” Ecdysis flew over to Discord and landed on his back. “Go.” The draconequus flew off the small hill it had been resting on and took to the star-filled sky. Flying just above the treetops to avoid being noticed, they went only a short distance into the woods before stopping. Queen Chrysalis was here; hiding within the darkness of the trees just before the mountain face that held Canterlot aloft. The Ruin Worm was concealing itself with shadows on the far end of the forest. Waiting for the signal to strike. Queen Chrysalis, disguised as Rarity, was perched on the branch of a thick tree. She was staring at the castle with greedy eyes. Ecdysis jumped from Discord’s back after he landed and bowed. “My queen…” “Ecdysis,” the form of Rarity spoke with Queen Chrysalis’s voice. “Why aren’t you at your post? We’re to attack soon.” For a split second, Ecdysis hesitated. Normally, in the past, he had gone to Chrysalis the moment a plan had gone awry. He would report to her everything the moment it happened. Lately… lately she had been… less than rational. “Forgive me, my queen. I have troubling news to bring you.” “Out with it,” she hissed. “The ponies have discovered out nest. We’ll need to turn around immediately if we are to save them.” There was a moment of silence between them. “Is that it?” “The princess, Twilight Sparkle, has also… been resurrected, somehow. She fought the warriors left within the town.” “They’re too late,” Chrysalis said dismissively. “Soon we will attack and this will all be decided.” Ecdysis stood up. “But, my queen, we need to return now. The workers won’t last without our protection. The royal jelly… the eggs… We need to be there. I told you relocating the nest close to Ponyville would have this risk.” “Forget them, Ecdysis,” she said with a twisted smile upon her face, never looking away from the castle. “They aren’t important.” “But-” “They aren’t important!” she said, turning to shout at him. “Don’t you see!? We’re so close to revenge!” Ecdysis took a step back and bowed again. “Forgive me, my queen… But what is this victory if we have no people to share it with? What is the point of all of this if we lose the nest and the warriors? Why are-” “I am the queen! I will decide what is important. Not you. Get back to your post, General.” He remained where he was, quietly debating whether or not to say anything. Queen Chrysalis had been off lately… Saying and doing things upon rash impulses… She was bloodthirty in ways she had never been before… Making terrible decisions all in the name of this revenge… “My queen,” Ecdysis muttered after a long pause. “Perhaps…” Rarity jumped down from the branch of the tree and landed in front of Ecdysis with a blank gaze. Ecdysis couldn’t tell if she were angry or… something worse. “Perhaps you should let one of the other warriors control Sombra. Perhaps draining him of his life forces has left you… tainted by the Nightmare Gem’s magic… You aren’t thinking clearly, my queen… You aren’t thinking like-” Queen Chrysalis, in Rarity’s form, struck Ecdysis across the face with her front hoof, sending him to the ground. That unexpected jolt of pain left him momentarily rocked. His control over Discord flickered for but a moment and in that split second the God of Chaos moved to stand over Ecdysis, thinking him to be Fluttershy in danger. Ecdysis was stunned. She had risked losing control of Discord simply because she was angered by that suggestion? “Ecdysis,” Queen Chrysalis muttered slowly and with a bloodcurdling tone. “No one is to control the darkness but me. Do you understand? I am the queen and you are my subject. If anypony can be replaced it’s you. If I hear another suggestion like that again I’ll make sure you’re replaced. Do I make myself clear?” Ecdysis nodded. He had never seen Chrysalis like this before… Without hesitating, he jumped up onto Discord’s back and ordered the god to fly back to their post. It was almost time… and he would remain loyal to the end. Even if it meant watching his people disappear all around him.